The Evanston City Council on Monday voted 9-0 to adopt a resolution supporting environmental justice in Evanston, acknowledging the harm that communities of color have experienced due to environmental injustices and outlining specific, corrective actions the City will take to support and protect the health and well-being of all residents.
Developed in collaboration with Environmental Justice Evanston, Citizens' Greener Evanston (CGE), and the City's Equity and Empowerment Commission and Environment Board, the resolution defines environmental justice as “when every resident experiences the same degree of access to environmental assets, protection from environmental hazards and health risks, and an opportunity to play an effective role in making decisions that affect the quality of life in this community.”
To achieve environmental justice, the resolution calls for the City to:
-- Incorporate environmental justice into City ordinances, codes, policies and processes in consultation with stakeholders;
-- Create a meaningful public engagement policy and decision making process in collaboration with the City's Equity and Empowerment Commission; and
-- Develop and maintain a geographic information system (GIS) inventory of environmental justice areas in Evanston, defined as regions where there are likely to be disparities in access to environmental assets or exposure to hazards.
In adopting the resolution, the City Council took the first step towards fulfilling an action of the City’s Climate Action and Resilience Plan (CARP), which calls for the adoption of an environmental justice ordinance that builds on the work of Environmental Justice Evanston and the Equity and Empowerment Commission.
Click here for more information about CARP.
Click here for more information, and to get involved in EJE email ej@greenerevanston.org.
If you'd like to find out more about EJE, email ej@greenerevanston.org or visit greenerevanston.org/eje.
Thank you to Andy Schlickman, Janet Alexander Davis and everyone who worked so hard to pass this resolution.
