Environmental Justice

National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) at NASA

Environmental justice (EJ) is the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income with respect to the development, implementation and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations and policies.

On February 11, 1994, Executive Order 12898 was issued to direct Federal agencies to incorporate achieving environmental justice into their mission. Accompanying that Executive Order was a Presidential Memorandum stating, in part,

In accordance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, each Federal agency shall ensure that all programs or activities receiving Federal financial assistance that affect human health or the environment do not directly, or through contractual or other arrangements, use criteria, methods, or practices that discriminate on the basis of race, color, or national origin.

The EPA made Environmental Justice an agency priority in 2010 and identified the need for Environmental Justice to be addressed in NEPA documentation by all federal agencies. They formed the Environmental Justice Interagency Working Group (IWG). In August 2011, the IWG established a Title VI Committee to address the intersection of agencies’ environmental  efforts with their Title VI enforcement and compliance responsibilities. In 2014, the IWG issued the current framework for the US Environmental Justice: The 2014 EJ Plan. Read More on the EPA 2014 Site.

Plan EJ 2014 was named in recognition of the 20th anniversary of President Clinton’s issuance of Executive Order 12898, Federal Actions to Address Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations. Executive Order 12898 called upon “each federal agency to identify and address as appropriate the disproportionately high and adverse effects of its programs, policies and activities on minority populations and low-income populations.”

Much of NASA’s work is conducted within fenced Centers (10) and component facilities (4) located in six states. See map for locations. (Open to map of NASA centers).  Landlocked, NASA’s research and development is typically conducted on site and does not pose environmental justice concerns. NASA also operates rocket launch sites and uses runways where space craft and aircraft operations extend into surrounding airspace over the surrounding communities. 

Due to the diversity within NASA mission, NASA maintains Center-specific EJ plans that are updated every 5 years. These serve to provide community information cited in all NASA NEPA documents. EJ provides NASA with a platform to ensure the community is informed of projects and help maintain strong relationship with our neighbors.

For information on NASA NEPA actions, visit the NASA NEPA library.

Looking Ahead

The US has issued there EPA 2020 EJ strategy. To read more click here.

For more information visit the EPA Website: https://www.epa.gov/environmentaljustice