Department of Environmental QualityOctober 2016

Environmental Justice Process- Project Evaluation

Environmental Justice

2Department of Environmental Quality

• What is Environmental Justice?

• Demographics in North Carolina

• Environmental Justice in North Carolina

• Sutton Steam Station Project

• How does this apply to you?

What is Environmental Justice?• EPA defines Environmental Justice as the fair treatment and meaningful involvement

of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income with respect to thedevelopment, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations,and policies.

• Fair treatment means no group of people should bear a disproportionate share of thenegative environmental consequences resulting from industrial, governmental andcommercial operations or policies.

• Meaningful involvement means:• People have an opportunity to participate in decisions about activities that may affect their

environment and/or health• The public's contribution can influence the regulatory agency's decision• Community concerns will be considered in the decision making process• Decision makers will seek out and facilitate the involvement of those potentially affected

3 Department of Environmental Quality https://www.epa.gov/environmentaljustice/learn-about-environmental-justice

What does Environmental Justice currently look like within Title VI?

4 Department of Environmental Quality

•1964: Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. Section2000d)

•1987: Civil Rights Restoration Act (P.L. 100-259) expanded thedefinition of “programs and activities” to include all programs andactivities of federal aid recipients, sub-recipients and contractors,whether such programs and activities are federally assisted or not

•1992: Environmental justice activities around the country led to theestablishment of an Environmental Equity Working Group and theinitiation of federally sponsored meetings on environmental justicewith community leaders to seek solutions

•1994: Former President Clinton issued Executive Order 12898,directing federal agencies to identify and address thedisproportionately high and adverse human health or environmentaleffects of their actions on minority and low-income populations; eachagency must establish a strategy for implementing EJ

Demographics in North Carolina

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Regional Setting

What do North Carolina demographics look over the past decade?

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Department of Environmental Quality

Race, color, national origin

6,005,471

6,869,207

1,835,020

2,284,464

533,087890,601765,505

1,154,724

500,000

1,500,000

2,500,000

3,500,000

4,500,000

5,500,000

6,500,000

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

Estimated Populations Trend in North Carolina

White Alone Black or African American Alone Hispanic or Latino (of any race) Other RaceU.S. Census Bureau: B02001: RACE - Universe: Total population Race included for “Other Race”: American Indian, Alaska Native, Asian, Native Hawaiian, Other Pacific, Some other race alone, Two or more races, Two races including or excluding Some other race. Not included: White alone or African American or Black alone.

Who is your audience in North Carolina?

7Department of Environmental Quality

63%

21.5

1%

2%

0.1%

4% 2%5% 1%

0.2%

2%

RACE and HISPANIC OR LATINO in NORTH CAROLINA, 2010

White

Black or African American

American Indian and Alaska Native

Asian

Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander

Some Other Race

Two or More Races

Mexican

Puerto Rican

Cuban

Other Hispanic or Latino [2]

North Carolina to take extra steps to protect minority communities

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Department of Environmental Quality

In April 2016, the department announced a new initiative to go beyond federal and state requirements to protect minority communities from negative impacts of coal ash when evaluating Duke Energy’s applications to store coal ash in new landfills

Title VI demographic components to assess impacts are:• Race and Ethnicity• Age and Sex• Disability• Poverty• Household Income• Limited English Proficiency (LEP)

Demographic criteria to determine disproportionate environmental impacts are:• 50 percent or more minority• 10 percent or more above county level of minorities• five percent or more above county level for poverty level

NCDEQ Assessment

• A review of the facility’s plan, proposed operations plan and potential exposure pathways to determine impact boundaries

• Establishment of impact radius, which was based on transportation plans

• A study of area demographics, completed using the Environmental Protection Agency’s Environmental Justice tool (EJScreen) https://ejscreen.epa.gov/mapper/ and current available census data at: http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/nav/jsf/pages/index.xhtml.

• A comparison of area demographics to project county census data

• Completion of a site visit to ensure available census data was accurate

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Department of Environmental Quality

EPA’s EJSCREEN tool

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Title VI - Race and Ethnicity

Race and EthnicityTotal Population

WhiteBlack or African AmericanAmerican Indian or Alaska Native AsianNative Hawaiian and Other Pacific IslanderSome other Race

Two or More Races

HISPANIC OR LATINO (of any race)MexicanPuerto RicanCubanOther Hispanic or Latino

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Title VI - Age and Sex

AgeNumber

Both sexes Male FemaleTotal Population

Under 5 yearsUnder 18 years18 to 64 years 65 years and over

Median Age

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Title VI - Disability

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Subject

Total With a Disability

EstimateMargin of Error

+/- EstimateMargin of Error

+/-Total civilian noninstitutionalized population

Population under 5 yearsPopulation 5 to 17 yearsPopulation 18 to 64 yearsPopulation 65 years and over

SEXMaleFemale

RACE AND HISPANIC OR LATINO ORIGINWhite Black or African American American Indian and Alaska Native Asian Native American and Other Pacific IslanderSome other RaceTwo or more racesHispanic or Latino

Title VI –Poverty

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Subject

Total Below poverty level

EstimateMargin of Error +/- Estimate

Margin of Error +/-

Population for whom poverty status is determinedAGE

Under 1818 to 6465 years and over

SEXMaleFemale

RACE AND HISPANIC OR LATINO ORIGINWhite Black or African American American Indian and Alaska Native Asian Native American and Other Pacific IslanderSome other RaceTwo or more racesHispanic or Latino

RACE AND HISPANIC OR LATINO ORIGINAll individuals below:

50 percent of poverty level125 percent of poverty level150 percent of poverty level185 percent of poverty level200 percent of poverty level

Title VI - Household Income

SubjectHouseholds

EstimateTotal

Less than $10,000$10,000 to $14,999$15,000 to $24,999$25,000 to $34,999$35,000 to $49,999$50,000 to $74,999$75,000 to $99,999$100,000 to $149,999$150,000 to $199,999$200,000 or more

Median income (dollars)Mean income (dollars)

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Title VI - Limited English Proficiency (LEP)

1. LANGUAGE SPOKEN AT HOME Estimate Margin of Error Percent of Population

Total (population 5 years and over): +/- 100%Speak only English +/- %i.e. Spanish or Spanish Creole: +/- %

Speak English "very well" +/- %Speak English less than "very well" +/- %

i.e. French or French Creole: +/- %Speak English "very well" +/- %Speak English less than "very well" +/- %

i.e. Chinese: +/- %Speak English "very well" +/- %

Speak English less than "very well" +/- %

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After Initial Assessment

Once the initial assessment has been completed, NCDEQ communicates with public officials to describe the environmental justice evaluation.

• An information session with citizens in the community of concern to discuss the potential effect of a proposed project on the community

• Distribution of a news release regarding an information session, if needed to public areas such as local churches, libraries, county offices and fire departments

• Distribution of informational postcards to the community surrounding the proposed project

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Department of Environmental Quality

Completed Project – Sutton Steam Station

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Department of Environmental Quality

Questions to ask:• What is your project area? • Who is your audience?• What will be your transportation routes?

Environmental Protection Agency’s Environmental Justice tool (EJScreen 2016) https://ejscreen.epa.gov/mapper/

Completed Project – Sutton Steam Station

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Department of Environmental Quality

• One mile radius established, as no coal ash will be transported into the facility

• No people or communities were identified within one mile of the proposed landfill during the desktop screening

• During recon, the Section identified a potential community just outside the one mile radius

• The Section discussed their findings with local officials and requested feedback

• Should a nearby community be identified, the one mile radius can be adjusted

• A postcard was sent to the potential community with information pertaining to the proposed landfill

Think outside the standard to reach your community

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Alternative media examples:• Postcards• News releases sent to

churches, libraries, community centers

• Inform local government offices.

• Social media• Radio stations (English and

non-English speaking)

How does environmental justice apply to you?

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Project Ideas?

• How are you going to evaluate the community around your proposed project area prior to issuance of a permit to operate?

• How are you going to get your company’s plans out to the local communities to ensure meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income?

• Discuss with the Section submitting an Environmental Justice Impact Statement at the beginning of a project.

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Shannon Aufman, Title VI Liaison 919-707-8238Shannon.Aufman@ncdenr.gov

Sarah Rice, Title VI Coordinator, 919-707-8287Sarah.Rice@ncdenr.gov