NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE ADVISORY 

COUNCIL

A Federal Advisory Committee to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 

Members: 

Margaret May. 

Chair

Teri Blanton 

Charles Chase 

Kerry Doi 

Ellen Drew 

Michael Ellerbrock 

Andrea Guajardo 

Stephanie Hall 

Savanala 'Savi' Horne 

Effenus Henderson 

Rosalyn LaPier 

Vernice Miller-Travis 

Michelle Moore 

Kandi Mossett 

Edith Pestana 

Cynthia K L Rezentes 

Deidre Sanders 

Fatemeh Shafiei 

Nicky Sheats 

Paul Shoemaker 

Kenneth Smith 

Horace Strand 

Javier Francisco Torres 

Kimberly Wasserman 

Jill Witkowski 

 May 21, 2015 

Gina McCarthy 

Administrator 

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 

1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW 

Washington, D.C. 20460 

Dear Administrator McCarthy, 

The National Environmental Justice Advisory Council (NEJAC) supports aggressively 

combatting climate change by sharply reducing emissions of greenhouse gases. We do 

so because climate change may cause increased air pollution, an increased number of 

heavy precipitation events, elevated food prices, an increase in certain communicable 

diseases, and have other impacts that pose a grave threat to all communities in the 

United States but which may disproportionately affect environmental justice (EJ) 

communities, i.e. communities of color and low-income communities. 

More specifically, we support the goal contained in the U.S. Environmental Protection 

Agency’s (EPA) proposed Clean Power Plan rule to reduce carbon dioxide emissions 

from power plants in the United States by 30% by the year 2030, and continued 

aggressive efforts to reduce greenhouse emissions 80% by 2050. We also believe EPA 

has the authority to mandate emissions reductions and therefore support the spirit of the 

Clean Power Plan rule. 

However, we believe that the proposed rule should include actions that facilitate 

equitable outcomes for EJ communities. In its current form the proposed plan seldom 

mentions equity and fails to ensure that environmental and technological benefits of the 

plan will reach EJ communities. It is also clear that no EJ analyses were employed 

during the development of the Clean Power Plan, a major EPA proposed rule. The 

proposed rule also identifies a potential EJ problem (increased local emissions of 

greenhouse gases and co-pollutants at some locations) but provides no remedy or 

guidance on how to reduce or eliminate risks it poses to EJ communities. We believe 

that climate change policy should address equity and that the EPA has a fundamental 

obligation to ensure equity while addressing this global threat. 

In the context of the Clean Power Plan this would at the very least mean that the 

proposed rule should require: 

1. Absolute carbon dioxide emissions reductions in and near EJ communities, 

where they would also result in co-pollutant reductions. It is preferable that co-
NEJAC Recommendations 

Clean Power Plan Rule 

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A Federal Advisory Committee to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 

2. Pollutant reductions be intentionally maximized but even if they are not there should be 

carbon dioxide emissions reductions in and near EJ communities so these communities will 

benefit from unintentional co-pollutant reductions. Co-pollutant reductions should be 

accomplished in the context of achieving the Clean Power Plan’s goal of attaining a 30% 

reduction in carbon dioxide emissions. 

3. The prioritized use of appropriate renewable energy and energy efficiency in EJ 

communities. 

4. EJ analyses performed by the States that: 1) demonstrate absolute carbon dioxide emissions 

reductions in and near EJ communities where they also result in co-pollutant reductions; 2) 

demonstrate the prioritized use of appropriate renewable energy and energy efficiency in EJ 

communities; and 3) evaluate the distribution of costs and benefits to EJ communities from state 

implementation plans developed pursuant to the Clean Power Plan rule. 

No climate change policy, including the Clean Power Plan, should result in detrimental impacts on EJ 

communities. Moreover, the Plan and other climate change policy should be designed in a way that 

requires equitable distribution of emission reductions and prioritizes renewable energy and energy 

efficiency utilization to EJ communities. EPA should design the plan so that impacts and benefits 

produced by the Clean Power Plan are consistent with the Agency’s obligations under Title VI. 

The fight against climate change presents our country with a unique opportunity to improve the quality 

of life in EJ communities that suffer disproportionately from environmental hazards. EPA should take 

advantage of this opportunity by designing the Clean Power Plan in such a way that environmental and 

technological benefits produced by any climate change mitigation policy such as emissions reductions, 

and the utilization of renewable energy and energy efficiency, actually reach EJ communities in a cost 

effective manner. 

As always, NEJAC stands ready to work with EPA to implement any of the suggestions contained in 

this letter. 

Sincerely, 

Margaret J. May 

Chair 

cc: NEJAC Members 

Cynthia Giles, Assistant Administrator, EPA Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance 

Janet McCabe, Assistant Administrator, EPA Office of Air and Radiation 

Mustafa Ali, Senior Advisor to the Administrator for Environmental Justice 

Matthew Tejada, Director, Office of Environmental Justice (OEJ) 

Sherri White, Designated Federal Officer, NEJAC, OEJ