02.18.22

Chair Grijalva Issues Statement on Launch of New White House Environmental Justice Screening Tool

Washington, D.C. – House Natural Resources Committee Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today issued the following statement after the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) launched the beta version of its Climate and Economic Justice Screening Tool. The tool will help define and map communities that have been subjected to environmental injustices. 

“I am pleased that the Biden administration is quite literally putting environmental justice communities on the map with its new beta Climate and Economic Justice Screening Tool,” Grijalva said. “Communities of color, Indigenous communities, and low-income communities have been bearing the brunt of pollution, climate change, and underinvestment for years, all while government officials and industry have tried to pretend they don’t exist. They cannot and will not be ignored any longer. I commend the administration for its effots so far and urge them to work alongside environmental justice community members as they refine the beta tool to make sure we’re investing in the right communities in the right way.”

Today’s release of the screening tool marks the beginning of a 60-day comment period during which members of the public are encouraged to submit feedback. The beta version of the Climate and Economic Justice Screening Tool and feedback submission guidance can be found at https://screeningtool.geoplatform.gov.

Chair Grijalva, along with Rep. A. Donald McEachin (D-Va.), has championed a years-long effort to elevate the issue of environmental justice to the national stage. The lawmakers introduced the Environmental Justice for All Act on March 18, 2021, which incorporates extensive feedback from affected communities and leaders in the environmental justice movement. The Natural Resources Committee held a legislative hearing on the bill earlier this week.

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