Hi Friend – 

We’re at a critical moment for Pennsylvania's environmental justice communities.

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is updating its Environmental Justice Policy for the first time since 2004. This policy exists to get more input from low-income and communities of color that would be impacted by projects that require permits from the DEP, like pipelines and industrial plants, as these low-income communities and communities of color disproportionately feel the health impacts of environmental pollution.

The latest version out of DEP has a lot of improvements, but it still doesn’t go far enough to ensure environmental justice communities have a powerful enough say in the permitting process.

The DEP is asking for public comment on this latest version. We know that a policy about public participation is only going to work if the public weighs in. Can you please join us in submitting a comment thanking the DEP for updating this critical policy and urging them to make it even stronger?  

The first step we took when we received this latest version was to connect with our environmental justice allies and ask them – what did they think? As a white-led organization, Conservation Voters of PA didn’t want to make assumptions or pretend we had all the answers. I’m so grateful to our partners for their honesty, trust, and time so that we can be speaking up for the changes that will best meet their communities’ needs. 

Together, we are raising our voices to the DEP and ask them to make these changes to their process:

• Encourage DEP to carefully consider the comments received and thoughtfully apply them to the policy in the final adoption process.
• Increase the number of opportunities for folks to weigh in at public meetings. We appreciate the nine public meetings that have been scheduled, but they fall short of capturing the full spectrum of public sentiment across the Commonwealth. Adding additional meetings will ensure everyone will have the flexibility to attend.
• Increase transparency around how DEP will use public input in the permitting process. 

Your support can make all the difference in getting the DEP to get this policy right. Take action now: send Secretary Negrin of the DEP a message asking him to ensure that the needs of environmental justice communities are heard as this policy is finalized. 

Thank you for everything you do for our movement,

Tim Hayes
Policy Analyst
Conservation Voters of PA

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Conservation Voters of PA
P.O. Box 2125
Philadelphia, PA 19103
United States