EPA union slams Trump administration destruction of Environmental Justice office, (Chicago, IL) – (Wednesday, March 12, 2025) – The union representing U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) employees across the Midwest slammed the agency’s announcement that it will eliminate the Environmental Justice office and the employee positions that populate that office. EPA administrator Lee Zeldin has already announced the cancellation of all environmental justice grants.
“Environmental justice simply means ensuring the communities most disproportionately impacted by pollution are protected. Instead, by eliminating the environmental justice program, the Trump administration is putting Americans in danger so that corporate polluters can profit,” said Nicole Cantello, president of the American Federation of Government Employees Local 704, which represents EPA workers in Illinois, Indiana, MIchigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin. “The core mission of the EPA is simple: protecting human health and the environment. By implementing these irresponsible cuts, Administrator Zeldin is doing just the opposite. He should be ashamed.”
The EPA first began addressing the issue of environmental injustice when President Bill Clinton, following pressure from advocates, issued Executive Order 12898. It directed federal agencies to address the disproportionate burden faced by communities of color and low-income populations.
The health impacts of these environmental disparities are clear. One in six Black children has asthma, a rate that is about double the proportion of white children with the disease. One in five Puerto Ricans across the U.S. has asthma, which is the highest of any racial or ethnic group in the nation. Poor rural communities have limited access to the healthiest environments. They are more likely to be located near garbage dumps and toxic waste sites and often have unsafe drinking water contaminated with PFAS, a dangerous “forever chemical.” These are among the communities protected by the Environmental Justice program that will now be left more vulnerable than ever, Cantello said.
EPA union slams Trump administration destruction of Environmental Justice office, funding
