Massachusetts EJ plan could ‘reverse decades’ of harm

By Thomas Frank | 02/16/2024 06:24 AM EST

State officials say the new Environmental Justice Strategy will influence departmental actions and decisions on grants and permitting.

Massachusetts officials released an aggressive environmental justice strategy Thursday that aims to influence a variety of state actions such as awarding grants, evaluating new polluting projects and reducing environmental harms.

The Massachusetts Environmental Justice Strategy marks the latest state effort to repair the disproportionate environmental damage found in communities with large numbers of low-income or minority residents.
Massachusetts Environmental Justice Strategy

“It is a historic moment because we are addressing the harms and trying to reverse decades and generations of environmental injustice in the most vulnerable populations,” María Belén Power, the Massachusetts undersecretary of environmental justice and equity, said at a briefing Thursday.

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The strategy aims “to really embed environmental justice into everything we do,” added Power, a longtime activist and member of the White House Environmental Justice Advisory Council.
White House Environmental Justice Advisory Council.

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