National Environmental Justice 

Advisory Council (NEJAC)

http://epa.gov/environmentaljustice/nejac/

2011 Work Plan (draft)

Victoria Robinson, NEJAC DFO

EPA Office of Environmental Justice
Recent NEJAC Recommendations

• Comments to EPA Plan EJ 2014

▫ Add Science as a cross-Agency focus in which ORD produces by 2014 

some robust results that will drive policy and implementation.

▫ Coordinate enforcement and compliance activities with each other and other 

efforts to reduce disproportionate impacts in individual communities 

selected for agency attention through the use of EJSEAT and other tools.

▫ Develop consistent State guidance on incorporating environmental 

justice principals in permit actions.

▫ Target specific compliance strategies and enforcement actions to 

address problems that affect overburdened communities. EPA needs 

to evaluate how "specific compliance strategies" differ from what is 

required under current regulations/statute.

▫ Provide support for community-based organizations to participate in 

community or government convened collaborative processes.

▫ All federal investments that affect communities suffering from 

disproportionate impacts should go through an appropriate process 

to identify and, if necessary, eliminate or mitigate environmental 

justice considerations.
Recent NEJAC Recommendations

• Recommendations for Permitting

▫ Follow the consensus recommendations of prior relevant NEJAC 

reports (i.e. 1996 and 2000)

▫ EPA and the states/tribes should be more active and ‘vocal’ in 

publicizing and enticing multiple stakeholder/public 

participation with State performance partnership agreements.

▫ EPA should include appropriate EJ-oriented language in its 

MOUs with states/tribes, and other federal agencies.

▫ EPA should maintain an easily accessible ‘living’ document of all 

permit-related factors that contribute to EJ concerns

▫ Encourage greater use of Supplemental Environmental Projects

▫ Allocate more time and attention to the many facets surrounding 

EJ and cumulative impacts in relation to permitting, regardless of 

which governmental entity has primacy.
2011 Work Plan

• Gulf Coast Restoration Task Force Charge (draft)

▫ How best to engage communities for input into decisions about 

Gulf Coast restoration plans, including potential permits

• Permitting Charge (draft)

▫ How can EPA reach out effectively to state, local and tribal 

entities, industry interests, community groups, environmental 

groups and other federal agencies, to gather their comments and 

ideas and, ideally, enlist their support?

▫ How can EPA more effectively promote community involvement 

before, during, and after permit issuance?

▫ How can EPA engage effectively with other permitting or 

licensing agencies to help them account for environmental justice 

considerations when making permitting or licensing decisions?

• Environmental Justice in Rulemaking (late 2011)

▫ Provide input into technical guidance under development in 2011
List of NEJAC Advice and Recommendations

• Request to Provide Input to EPA’s Draft Stragic Plan 2011-2015 (PDF) - August 2010

Nationally Consistent Environmental Justice Screening Approaches (PDF) - May 2010 

Recommendations for EPA's Community Action for a Renewed Environment (CARE) 

Program (PDF) - April 2010 

Strategies to Enhance School Air Toxics Monitoring in Environmental Justice Communities 

(PDF) - April 2010 

Reducing Air Emissions Associated With Goods Movement: Working Towards 

Environmental Justice (PDF) - November 2009 

• Strengthening the Participation of Business and Industry in Environmental Justice, Green 

Business, and Sustainability (PDF) - September 2008 

Recommendations for EPA's State Environmental Justice Cooperative Agreement Initiative 

(PDF) - October 2008 

NEJAC Initial Letter Regarding the Environmental Justice Strategic Enforcement 

Assessment Tool (PDF) - December 2007 

• Future Mechanisms to Enhance Stakeholder Involvement and Engagement to Address 

Environmental Justice (PDF) - August 2006

• The 2005 Gulf Coast Hurricanes and Vulnerable Populations: Recommendations for 

Future Disaster Preparedness/Response (PDF) - August 2006 

• Unintended Impacts of Redevelopment and Revitalization Efforts in Five Environmental 

Justice Communities (PDF) - August 2006 

• Ensuring Risk Reduction in Communities with Multiple Stressors: Environmental Justice 

and Cumulative Risks/Impacts (PDF) - December 2004
• Environmental Justice and Federal Facilities: Recommendations for Improving 

Stakeholder Relations Between Federal Facilities and Environmental Justice Communities 

(PDF) - November 2004

• Meaningful Involvement and Fair Treatment by Tribal Environmental Regulatory 

Programs (PDF) - October 2004 

• Advancing Environmental Justice Through Pollution Prevention (PDF) - June 2003 

• Fish Consumption and Environmental Justice (PDF) - November 2002 

• Integration of Environmental Justice in Federal Programs (PDF) - May 2002

• Guide on Consultation and Collaboration with Indian Tribal Governments and the Public 

Participation of Indigenous Groups and Tribal Members in the Environmental Decision 

Making (PDF) - November 2000 

• Environmental Justice and Community-Based Health Model Discussion - May 2002 

• Environmental Justice in the Permitting Process: A Report from the National 

Environmental Justice Advisory Council (PDF) - July 2000 

• A Regulatory Strategy for Siting and Operating Waste Transfer Stations (PDF) - March 

2000

• Model Plan for Participation (PDF) - February 2000 

• Public Dialogues on Urban Revitalization and Brownfields: Envisioning Healthy and 

Sustainable Communities (PDF) - December 1996 

Draft Memorandum on Integrating Environmental Justice into EPA Permitting Authority 

(PDF) - July 1996