Abstract
Several decades ago, Nathan Hare, editor of The Black Scholar and author of The Black Anglo-Saxons, wrote that the interests of environmentalists and blacks "stand in contradiction to each other." He accused those interested in environmental restoration of being focused only on physical and chemical pollution and aesthetic conditions, when they ought to address restoration of the total environment. That total environment, according to Hare, is fundamentally different in the ghetto than it is in the suburbs.
In focusing on environmental justice as an element of environmental restoration, this Article first reviews the emergence of environmental justice problems and the executive order designed to address them. Next, using the environmental impact study prepared for continued operations of the Los Alamos National Laboratory as a case study, this Article argues that the executive order has not succeeded in focusing the needed attention on environmental justice issues. As a consequence, although the United States has legal prohibitions against environmental injustice, these prohibitions have had little practical effect. Moreover, this Article argues that the Los Alamos case is typical. Because there is no one to watch the watchers, federal regulatory agencies have not acted to ensure environmental justice. Finally, this Article argues that, to solve the problem caused by a lack of meaningful oversight, the United States needs a system of adversary assessment and procedural safeguards.
How to Cite
42 Ariz. L. Rev. 525 (2000)
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