What is Environmental Justice?

The EPA defines environmental justice as:

"Environmental justice is the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income, with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies."

This definition by the EPA means that people should not be targeted because of their race or any other factor to have environmentally detrimental projects put in their neighborhoods. Even though this policy has been put in place by the EPA, the policy has not always been effective and the US has had problems with implementing environmental justice. One very recent example is the Dakota Access Pipeline, where the land of native Americans would have been poisoned had it not been for a public outcry.