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Climate change impacts the rich and poor very differently in the United States and globally. Low-income communities and communities of color are at a much higher risk of pollution-related health issues and they are more likely to live in areas prone to hurricanes, flooding or heat waves and have fewer resources to prepare for such climate disasters.
Climate justice is about recognizing climate imparities in socially vulnerable groups and addressing the issues which often comes down to social, racial, and environmental injustice.
Where did the climate justice movement start?
The climate justice movement began to gain ground in the early 1980s in America. A decision by the state of North Carolina to host a toxic waste landfill in a predominantly African-American community in Warren County sparked a wave of protests. The protests gained national attention and shone a light on the disproportionate number of low-income and minority communities that were exposed to toxic waste, pollution and environmental risk. Following the Warren County protest, people in poor, minority communities across the U.S collectively spoke out, calling for social justice and environmental protection.
Extensive research in the years since has further highlighted the climate inequalities facing low-income and minority communities – not just in America, but across the world.
In what ways are certain communities disproportionately affected by climate justice and inequality?
In our legal case against zombie wells, ClientEarth is addressing climate justice and the issues of air pollution in poorer neighborhoods and communities of color. Oil and gas wells are often abandoned on people’s property or in their communities and the methane pollution from the well forms ozone which is linked to serious health issues and premature deaths for people nearby. Lower-income communities and communities of color often bear the brunt of this pollution as they are more likely to live near oil and gas infrastructure.
Read more about our case against zombie wells here.
Now, as we experience rising sea levels, changing weather patterns and an increase in climate-related disasters, it’s clear that minority communities are suffering the worst impacts of climate change too.
John Magrath from Oxfam explains in a report by Minority Rights that: “minorities tend to live in places that are worst hit by the impacts of climate change – their poverty exacerbates their vulnerability.”
A study by the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction found that the human cost of disasters falls overwhelmingly on low-income countries. People exposed to natural hazards in the poorest nations are seven times more likely to die than equivalent populations in the richest nations.
As people around the world call for action on climate change and the world’s most pressing environmental challenges, it is important that climate justice is not forgotten. It is crucial in creating a world in which people and planet thrive together.
How can we work towards climate justice?
To achieve climate justice, environmental laws and policies need to be developed, implemented and enforced to protect everyone – regardless of race or income.
At ClientEarth, we use the power of the law to change the system – informing, implementing and enforcing the law, advising decision-makers on policy and training legal and judicial professionals.
We’re fighting to protect everyone’s right to breathe clean air and using the law to hold corporations governments to account for failing to take action to mitigate and adapt to climate change. We’re also promoting the right to information and access to justice so the human rights of those most affected by environmental destruction are protected.
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