By Jennifer Junghans

For many middle-class and affluent communities with resources, political power and representation, a day at the local park among mature trees, a stroll through nature, a clean glass of drinking water, and protections against environmental pollution, toxic chemicals and hazardous waste in their neighborhoods, are expected standards of living. 

But for many in low-income or communities of color, access to environmental benefits and protections are rarely afforded. Members of these communities disproportionately bear the majority of environmental pollution with little-to-no voice in land use policies that impact their neighborhoods and well-being.   

They lack access to the same political power and representation afforded to wealthier communities, and often live in high-traffic or industrial areas with scarce green space and increased urban heat. Pollution-producing facilities such as coal-fired power plants are often located in marginalized neighborhoods or they are designated for waste disposal or toxic storage. Overexposure to environmental pollutants in the air and water supplies leads to disproportionate cases of respiratory diseases and cancers, perpetuating health, education and economic disparities. In recent years, these communities have begun to bear the brunt of land degradation and natural disasters due to climate change as well.  

Environmental justice (EJ) is the movement uniting federal, state and grassroots efforts to equalize the distribution of environmental benefits and risks — and access to and meaningful participation in policymaking — among all communities regardless of determinants such as race or socioeconomic status. Historical injustices that have wormed their way through society, oppressing people of color and other marginalized communities served as the springboard for environmental injustices. Rectifying systemic racism is critical to striking a balance of environmental risk and reward. 

California was one of the first states to sign EJ policies into law “to meaningfully include communities disproportionately impacted by pollution in decision-making processes.” The state uses a multi-agency approach to implement EJ and has assembled a racial equity team, provides EJ grants and uses its CalEnviroScreen tool to identify communities that disproportionately bear the burden of environmental pollution. Several communities in Sacramento are identified with some of the highest pollution scores using the tool, including what Sacramento County has designated in its Environmental Justice Element as its four EJ communities: North Highlands/Foothill Farms, North Vineyard, South Sacramento and West Arden-Arcade. 

Under Senate Bill 1000, which went into effect in January 2018, all California cities and counties are required to develop an EJ element (or work it into their general plan) to identify environmental objectives, processes and policies regarding land use, and prohibit those that further burden EJ communities. Specifically, plans must address the reduction of pollution exposure and address health risks, prioritize improvements that address the needs of disadvantaged communities, and promote public facilities, access to (healthy) food, physical activity, community engagement, and safe and sanitary homes. 

In  February 2024, the City of Sacramento unanimously approved its General Plan, which it noted in a release, “for the first time, environmental justice is a key consideration.” As part of the city’s plan, it developed the Environmental Justice Factbook that details EJ and its root causes, with a myriad of graphics to help communicate the current state of Sacramento’s air quality, hazardous waste and drinking water quality issues to the general public. 

Other programs that support the city’s EJ efforts, include its Food Justice Grant Program, which announced $1 million in funding to increase access to healthy food for all and the CaliforniaForAll Youth Jobs program, which awarded $6.9 million in 2023 to provide jobs for underserved youth in the green sector, among others. It also provided initial funding to the Sacramento Environmental Justice Collaborative Governance Committee, which is designed to be “led by the community to support marginalized communities, particularly communities of color and youth, in owning and shaping environmental solutions.” EJCGC advises the city but notes it is not a government entity.

That’s important because it advocates for a key element of environmental justice: meaningful participation by the communities that bear the least environmental benefits and the majority of the risks. But it’s not just participation that matters, it’s the quality of participation. Oftentimes, marginalized communities are represented in policymaking by spokespeople who have no influence, or policy decisions are communicated to those impacted after they’ve been made.

These are referred to as manipulative and passive participation, respectively by PolicyMix, a conservation collaborative among nine countries that uses a framework of EJ throughout its work. These are the two lowest levels of inclusive engagement out of seven identified by the organization and they don’t provide fair or meaningful participation. 

As Sacramento gains momentum in the EJ movement, success can be measured in part by whether it reaches the apex of meaningful participation by marginalized communities. PolicyMix identifies this as interactive participation and self-mobilization, involving the development of local institutions and policies by local people for local people, and local people working to change systems independently of external institutions. 

Finally, what is often missing from the conversation is what PolicyMix calls “sense of justice.” After environmental benefits and risks are equally distributed and all communities have equal say in policymaking, the question must be asked: How do the communities “perceive and evaluate the changes?” The credibility of EJ efforts can only fully be realized when the question is asked every time and marginalized communities “accept and endorse” the results withstanding the test of time.   

Sacramento Environmental Justice Resources

Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District

The Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District works to monitor, promote and improve air quality in Sacramento County and aims to ensure the fair treatment of all people through its environmental justice policy and implementation plan. Its incentive programs to improve air quality directly benefit low income and marginalized communities as does the Urban Heat Project, which identifies local communities experiencing the greatest urban heat and provides solutions. 

Address: 777 12th St., Suite 300, Sacramento, CA 95814

Phone: (800) 880-9025

Learn more: https://www.airquality.org/residents/environmental-justice

California Environmental Justice Alliance

CEJA is a statewide, community-led organization that works toward environmental justice through policy solutions. It organizes local community members to fight against poverty and pollution, and for clean air and water, safe housing and sustainable energy, while holding polluters accountable.   

Address: 1107 9th St., Ste. 901, Sacramento, CA 95814

Phone: (510) 808-5898 ext. 105

Learn more: https://caleja.org/

Sacramento Environmental Justice Coalition 

This grassroots organization made up of diverse partners and community leaders works to overcome historical and structural racist policies that drive low income, marginalized and communities of color to live in those Sacramento communities that bear disproportionate levels of pollution. 

Phone: (916) 900-1717

Learn more: https://sac-ejc.org/

Sacramento Environmental Justice Collaborative Governance Committee

The EJCGC is a community-based committee of diverse local residents to inform and advise City of Sacramento efforts and build community capacity. It is designed to be “led by the community to support marginalized communities, particularly communities of color and youth, in owning and shaping environmental solutions.” Learn more: https://www.sacej.org/

This story is part of the Solving Sacramento journalism collaborative. Solving Sacramento is supported by funding from the James Irvine Foundation and James B. McClatchy Foundation. Our partners include California Groundbreakers, Capital Public Radio, Outword, Russian America Media, Sacramento Business Journal, Sacramento News & Review, Sacramento Observer and Univision 19.