EPA stalls civil rights enforcement as pollution complaints pile up
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's ability to investigate environmental discrimination has ground to a halt under Trump, leaving dozens of communities of color without recourse as pollution complaints sit unresolved.
Grey Moran reports for Sentient.
In short:
- The Trump administration has quietly blocked the EPA from opening new civil rights investigations or issuing findings of discrimination, effectively sidelining Title VI of the Civil Rights Act.
- The Office of Environmental Justice was shuttered, and the civil rights division has been largely frozen, unable to act on pollution complaints from mostly Black, Indigenous, and Hispanic communities.
- This rollback coincides with a broader federal effort to defang civil rights enforcement, including staff layoffs at the Departments of Education and Homeland Security.
Key quote:
“Especially with this spate of actions targeting unexpected entities like law firms and universities, I can see a world where complaints against state agencies that are let’s say ‘friendly’ to the administration would be rejected but complaints against agencies that are ‘unfriendly’ to the administration might be allowed to go forward.”
— Former EPA staffer
Why this matters:
The erosion of civil rights enforcement at the EPA blocks a crucial tool for protecting vulnerable communities from environmental harm. What’s at stake includes everything from drinking water safety to lung disease, from childhood asthma to intergenerational harm. Communities already dealing with racism and economic disinvestment are being left exposed to toxic air, soil, and water — all while the federal agency meant to protect them stays silent.
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