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OLAMIDE OMOBA S307145 Environmental hazards are things that could cause harm to the environment and affect public health. They occur due to poor facility operational methods or negligence and they are usually concentrated in acquiescent areas. Due to stereotypes or ingrained institutional biases, minorities and those in poverty end up exposed and living in more polluted areas than the wealthy residents (The Lancet Planetary Health,2018). Environmental racism is the study of the relationship between environmental hazards, racial minorities and those in poverty. According to (Macionis & Plummer, 2012, p.889; Covert, 2016), it is the pattern in which environmental hazards are greater in areas with poor and racial minorities. However, Lohmann (2016, p.35) argues that environmental racism is not only about the racialized distribution of waste but also about the co-definition of people and ethnic groups with pollution and the environment. This essay will discuss environmental racism, explore the social reasons and assess its relation to issues of poverty, social stratification and race. Firstly, racial differences cause social stratification, inequality and discriminatory practices in the distribution of environmental hazards. In 1991, a project to build a Waste Management incinerator and waste disposal facility in the largely Spanish-speaking town of Kettleman City, California was proposed, but the project ceased to continue when the court ruled that, those in charge of the project had not provided Spanish translations of the projects documents for the public, thus making it impossible for the local community to have adequate knowledge of what the project was about (Cole & Foster as cited in Pellow & Vasin,2019, p.2). Differences in language helped the company deceive the landowners on the details of the project and the possible waste products that could cause irreversible damage to their land and health as they were unaware of what the project entails. In the case of the mainly black populated community of West Harlem in New York, USA the government constructed a water pollution control plant whose construction had been stopped previously when it was proposed to be built in a diverse and more affluent community. Operations at the plant began and although the West Harlem community voiced their disapproval when the waste from the plant started affecting their environment the government did not shut the plant down (Northridge & Shepard, 1997, p.731). This showed the governments prioritization of economic income over public health and its refusal to aid communities that would not provide profit. Secondly, underdeveloped areas with people suffering from poverty tend to have more environmental hazards than cities with various economic avenues. According to Aldrich (as cited in Beamish,2009, p.296), during a research it was found that Japanese state planners deliberately sought out communities with weak levels of social capital, as they had no social power to effectively mobilize opposition to state-sponsored projects. Aldrich adds that the way the state handles opposition from the community differs according to the level of opposition. The inability of those in poverty to understand the impacts of projects to their surroundings and oppose to them leads to them being exploited by those with social power. This shows that governments look for communities that can easily be exploited and controlled. Another instance of the exploitation of minorities and the black race is the deliberate negligence of the government towards the largely black-American city called Flint in Michigan, USA. The company that provided jobs for the town filed for bankruptcy and left more than half the population jobless leading to mass emigration. This led to the inability of Flint to contribute to economic accumulation of wealth which resulted in the government’s abandonment of the city causing poverty and crime rates to increase. Infrastructural breakdown began to occur, and the chemicals present leached into the water supply making it unsuitable for consumption. The governments dismissal of the corrosiveness of their water supply caused by industrial pollution caused a lot of health issues for the residents (Pulido,2016, p.4). This showed how governments stratify and treat people based on their economic situations, social power and race as it is a mainly black community situated in a mainly white country. The loopholes present in the law made closure of the company in Flint not only devastating for those who lost their jobs but also freed the company from having to clean up the waste they had generated over the years. Besides low-income communities and racial and ethnic minorities, other groups of people have been victims of unjust environmental laws and practices. Greater exposures to toxic chemicals occur in countries that do not have strict operational laws for facilities that produce toxic waste. At the same time, the environment is susceptible to harm as it is seen as a means to an end for economic profit and some governmental policies do not prioritize the environment. This creates the flow on effects that affect the surrounding communities and societies leaving them to fend for themselves and solve problems that were not theirs to begin with. The lack of ethical guidelines also sees companies from other countries take the production of their goods to countries without policies to protect the workers from work related accidents and this is when events like explosions that cause air pollution killing thousands of people occur. This racism towards minorities also sees them as a means to an end as it does not show value for life and neglects the issues the minorities would be facing. Lohmann (2016, p.35) used the idea of the governments use of indigenous land for the removal of toxic waste as an example of environmental racism. It involved the discrimination against indigenous values and beliefs as they were said to be non-existent. Maristella (as cited in Lohmann, 2016, p.35) also highlighted a similar form of racism where the indigenous values placed on land goes unacknowledged when seen as a deterrent for trade export. This shows that the racism towards the people also extends to what they value most and the government’s willingness to overlook the importance their environment might have to them so long as economic improvements are made. This essay assessed how the distribution of environmental hazards are inversely proportional to a person’s race and social status. It was shown that the government plays a huge role in the stratification of people and communities. Examples were used to expand on the relationship environmental hazards shares with race, poverty and social stratification. The essay revealed that racial prejudices occurred in places with environmental hazards and that social power was determined by race and economic accumulation. It also showed the government’s willingness to sacrifice public health for economic profit. Overall, the effects of environmental racism on the minorities was highlighted and showed that the distribution of environmental hazards is based on social power and race. References Beamish, T. (2009). The Logic of Risk Distribution: Site Fights and Resisting Global Toxics. Social Movement Studies, 8(3), 295-298. doi: 10.1080/14742830903024390 Covert, B. (2016). Environmental racism. Nation, 302(10), 5. Retrieved from https://cdu-edu-primo.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/f/mf9tj6/TN_scopus2-s2.0-84969135636 Pellow, D. & Vazin, J. (2019). The Intersection of Race, Immigration Status, and Environmental Justice. Sustainability, 11(14), 3942. doi: 10.3390/su11143942 Lohmann, Larry. (2016). Expanding the concept of environmental racism. Chain Reaction, (127), 35-36. Retrieved from https://cdu-edu-primo.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/f/mf9tj6/TN_informit291865306014042 Macionis, J.J., & Plummer, K. (2012). Sociology: UEL (5th ed.). Retrieved from https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.ezproxy.cdu.edu.au/lib/cdu/detail.action?docID=5175351. Northridge, M., & Shepard, P. (1997). Environmental racism and public health. American Journal of Public Health, 87(5), 730-732. doi: 10.2105/AJPH.87.5.730 Pulido, L. (2016). Flint, Environmental Racism, and Racial Capitalism. Capitalism Nature Socialism, 27(3), 1-16. doi:10.1080/10455752.2016.1213013 The Lancet Planetary Health. (2018). Environmental racism: Time to tackle social injustice. The Lancet Planetary Health, 2(11), E462. doi:10.1016/S2542-5196(18)30219-5