Illinois EPA to convene 1st meeting of State Environmental Justice Commission

[August 12, 2013]  SPRINGFIELD -- The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency announced that the first meeting of the Illinois Commission on Environmental Justice will be on Wednesday at 10 a.m. in Chicago and Springfield.

The commission will operate under the principle that environmental justice requires that no segment of the population, regardless of race, national origin, age or income, should bear disproportionately high or adverse effects of environmental pollution. The commission is charged with advising state entities on environmental justice; analyzing the impact of state and local laws and policies on environmental justice and sustainable communities; developing criteria to assess whether communities in the state may be experiencing environmental issues; and recommending options to the governor's office and legislators for addressing these issues.

The 20-member volunteer and non-compensated commission will include six state agency directors, a representative of each legislative caucus and 10 members appointed by the governor to represent affected communities, businesses, environmental organizations, units of local government, experts on environmental health and justice, and interested members of the public.

"As a community member in one of the many front-line communities of Chicago, we are excited to be a part of the Illinois Environmental Justice Commission," said Kimberly Wasserman Nieto, commission chair and executive director of the Little Village Environmental Justice Organization. "To be at the table with different stakeholders working on rural and urban issues that affect us all give us hope to the future of the environment in Illinois."

Media and members of the public are invited to the meeting, which will be on Aug. 14 at 10 a.m. at:

• James R. Thompson Center
  Illinois Pollution Control Board
  9th Floor, Conference Room 035
  100 W. Randolph St., Chicago

• Illinois Environmental Protection Agency
  Illinois Pollution Control Board
  Conference Room (adjacent to library)
  1021 N. Grand Ave. East, Springfield

For more information, contact Kenneth Page, environmental justice officer for the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, at 217-524-1284 or [e-mail].

[Text from Illinois Environmental Protection Agency file received from the Illinois Office of Communication and Information]