Response to Justice Panel from Alejandra Nunez, Deputy Assistant Administrator for Mobile Sources, Office of Air and Radiation, US EPA

Ayden Clytus: As a summer intern with EPA, I learned how we are now living with climate change and became interested in energy justice—how to distribute energy in a just manner, without excluding communities or basing access to energy on income. My focus is on tribal communities—youth health impacts, impacts on the Arctic, and tribal community displacement. Extreme heat is getting worse in Arizona. It is especially a problem for people who cannot afford to run air conditioners.

The question is no longer whether we can avoid climate change, it’s how are we going to continue to adapt and ensure that our communities are protected?

Clarene Davis: I grew up on the reservation in Arizona where I was a home nurse for my uncle, helping with home dialysis. He was poisoned by uranium and arsenic. There was no education about contamination available on the reservation. Leaning about my uncle being poisoned is what got me interested in the environment. As part of an internship with Columbia University, I collected samples around Chinle, Arizona, but had to stop sampling due to COVID. I am now working to educate Navajo elders and monitoring indoor and outdoor air quality.

We had droughts during the summer. We had to grow our own vegetables. I helped out my grandmother with growing her own cornfield as well as hauling water, because where I grew up, we had to haul water.

RESPONSE TO JUSTICE PANEL FROM ALEJANDRA NUNEZ, DEPUTY ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR FOR MOBILE SOURCES, OFFICE OF AIR AND RADIATION, US EPA

EPA wants to integrate environmental justice into all our actions. The COVID pandemic brought to the forefront the importance of good indoor air quality, but this is not just for today and to survive a pandemic. Good ventilation, filtration, and indoor air quality will result in many other benefits. EPA is seeking input on the development of climate regulations, including regulatory mechanisms for cars and trucks. This is part of the Biden administration’s Justice 40 initiative, modeled on New York’s Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, mandating that 35% to 40% of climate investments need to be in frontline, disadvantaged communities (DACs). This includes implementing a clean school bus program: moving to electric and low-polluting school buses. The EPA is working on addressing indoor pollutants with the federal Department of Education. We are helping school districts make proper clean indoor air quality improvements, including investing American Rescue Plan resources.

Healthy schools are a key focus of EPA’s strategic plan. Why? Because we spend 90% of our lives indoors and many pollutants are concentrated indoors.