Comment period opens for NYC Environmental Justice For All report

The public is now able to comment on the city’s Environmental Justice for All Report, which looks for ways to tackle environmental justice issues affecting city residents. Photo via Felton Davis/Flickr

By Rachel Vick

The public comment period for the Environmental Justice for All Report is now open as the city moves ahead with the next step in the plan to address environmental issues that disproportionately affect low-income communities of color.

New Yorkers will be able to offer their input on how well the draft reflects the issues they see on the ground.

“Addressing environmental injustice and racism requires accountability, reflection, and collaboration,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said. “The Environmental Justice for All Report needs to be shaped around New Yorkers’ lived experiences and expertise. Their voices will be the cornerstone of the City’s plan for environmental justice and equity moving forward.”

The finalized scope will define the list of environmental justice concerns under review and the methods that will be used to examine city programs, policies and public engagement processes to address environmental justice issues.

In the first draft – which used a public survey asking about issues impacting the community like urban heat, flooding and access to food and clean water – the city identified issues that were key to low income or minority communities.

Nearly 70 percent of the 1,070 survey participants came from Environmental Justice Areas, according to the city, and listed access to healthy food and poor indoor air quality — like mold — as their biggest concerns.

The city will also examine infrastructure concerns like public transportation, waste management and building compliance with environmental laws.

“This scoping process is a chance to prioritize the needs and concerns of frontline communities,” said CUNY School of Law Professor Rebecca Bratspies, who serves on the Environmental Justice Advisory Board.

“We have the opportunity to place long-standing environmental and health hazards squarely on the City’s agenda,” she added. “Public comment will be essential to making the Environmental Justice for All Report a document that reflects the needs and priorities of those most affected by environmental injustice.”

Comments can be made until Sept. 5 online at nyc.gov/ejstudy or by emailing EJ@climate.nyc.gov; by phone at 212-788-4144; or in person at the NYC Summer Town hall on Environmental Justice on Aug. 18.