environmental justice

We will all breathe easier once New Jersey’s Environmental Justice Law is implemented. Signed by Governor Murphy two years ago, the law gives the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) the power to deny permits to polluting industries that would further harm overburdened communities all across the state. It has the potential to be one of the strongest policies of this type in the nation.

Juneteenth, observed every year on June 19, is a holiday commemorating the end of slavery in the United States. It is the date in 1865 when federal troops arrived in Texas and the last enslaved African Americans learned of the Emancipation Proclamation--over two years after it was issued. In 2021, President Joe Biden formally marked Juneteenth as a federal holiday.

This year, we’re celebrating Clean Water Action’s 50th birthday and the 50th anniversary of the Clean Water Act - our nation’s bedrock environmental law passed in 1972 with the help of our founder David Zwick. This law ensures that our rivers, streams, lakes and other surface waters are protected.

Welcome to Clean Water on the Move, your monthly update from Clean Water Action and Clean Water Fund in New Jersey!

Good news! Last week, the Boston City Council unanimously voted for the Building Emissions Reduction and Disclosure Ordinance to become law. 

In recognition of Women’s History Month, Clean Water Action is thrilled to raise the voices of strong women in the environmental justice field who continue to encourage us to take action and better our communities.

Just months after announcing groundbreaking environmental justice legislation, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy has announced a trio of environmental actions, including over $100 million in new transportation investments to tackle the climate crisis, reduce pollution in communities of color and high-poverty areas, and create new jobs.

As an organization dedicated to the creation and preservation of a healthy environment for all we are appalled and sickened by the recent murders of Black people by police (George Floyd and Breonna Taylor) as well as police complicity with vigilante murder (Ahmaud Arbery).

Clean Water Action joined the Moving Forward Network in holding a World Asthma Day Virtual Town Hall featuring elected officials, health professionals and grassroots leaders working on the front lines to address the root cause in “asthma hotspots” like Newark, Elizabeth, Camden, California as well as state legislators promoting environmental justice legislation. Watch here.