Environmental groups petition EPA, say TCEQ overlooks air pollution impact on minorities
Environmental justice groups say the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality is failing to assess the impacts of air pollution on communities of color.
National nonprofits Environmental Integrity Project and Earthjustice, as well as local groups including El Paso's Familias Unidas del Chamizal, petitioned the Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday to start a civil rights compliance review of TCEQ. They say the TCEQ is not meeting public participation and environmental justice requirements under federal law.
Under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, programs receiving federal funds cannot discriminate based on race, color or national origin. The petitioners argue that TCEQ fails to adequately evaluate the impact of air pollution on communities of color when issuing permits to industrial sites, alleging that the agency has not carried out environmental justice analyses for air pollution permits, despite multiple requests from groups across the state.
TCEQ declined to respond to questions about the petition.
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“Despite clear legal requirements to weigh pollution burdens and include public input in its decision-making, TCEQ keeps approving project after project that poses major threats to communities, public health, and the environment," Erin Gaines, senior attorney at Earthjustice, said in a news release. "TCEQ must abide by federal civil rights and environmental laws and stop playing this dangerous game with Texans' health."
The petitioners say TCEQ's permitting process limits access to public information and only considers "affected persons" to be those who live within 1 mile of an industrial site. They say this approach also overlooks the cumulative impacts of multiple industrial sites in a geographic area.
Under President Joe Biden, the EPA has devoted additional resources to environmental justice initiatives. The agency defines environmental justice as "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."
TCEQ announced a new Environmental Justice Initiative in April 2021, but the website now refers to it as "Title VI Compliance," avoiding the term environmental justice.
If the EPA acts on the petition, Texans will find out if the state's environmental regulators are following through on civil rights commitments.
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Staff writer Martha Pskowski may be reached at mpskowski@elpasotimes.com and @psskow on Twitter.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Environmental groups say TCEQ ignores pollution impact on minorities
