And in this country, where power tends to mean so much, not having political power can be worse than not having money. If you do not have power, you may very well end up getting what those with power do not want. Landfills, incinerators, stinky factories, waste storage facilities, etc. You do not typically find these kinds of things in wealthy neighborhoods. They seem to generally be located in poorer, often minority communities.
Rich folks make political donations and get to have their voices heard.
Politicians generally will not risk offending these people with even a suggestion that they might be called on to house the next landfill or incinerator. In addition, poor people cannot retain lawyers and experts that are sometimes necessary to fight the fight. So, when a large company is considering moving a potentially hazardous business into a neighborhood, if it's a choice between a neighborhood that contains residents who can afford to fight and one that contains residents who cannot afford to fight, guess where the facility usually ends up. It has been simmering for 20 years or so, but now is simmering to a boil. What environmental justice signifies, essencially, is that being poor or a member of a minority population does not give license to the government or to industry to place a disproportionate amount of noxious operations in your neighborhood.