ABSTRACT

A major environmental health concern arose in the 1970s, as will be subsequently discussed in this chapter. The concern is called environmental justice, although other terms have been used. EPA’s current defi nition of environmental justice is “[t]he 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” [1]. As the defi nition implies, fair treatment lies at the heart of environmental justice. But fair treatment in what and whose context? The answer to this essential question requires awareness of the history of environmental justice, which will be discussed later in this chapter. However, it can be stated at this point that fair treatment involves the prevention of inequitable distribution of environmental hazards across the segments that comprise a society.