Media Center

August 31, 2021

New Report Shows EPA Negligence in Protecting People of Color, Indigenous Peoples, and Low-income Communities From Disproportionate Impact of COVID-19

"This is another example of environmental racism that our communities are consistently impacted by,” added Richard Moore, co-coordinator, Los Jardines Institute. “Now is the time to begin to dismantle systemic racism within all levels of government." Read More

August 1, 2021

The Biden Administration’s Embrace of Environmental Justice Has Made Wary Activists Willing to Believe

Decades after emerging from the broader civil rights movement, setting itself apart from traditional environmentalism, flourishing in academia and wending through public discourse, the environmental justice movement has now achieved unprecedented prominence as activists work to entrench their gains within the federal government. Read More

July 27, 2021

Front-line communities bet on Biden. Can his EJ plan deliver?

Environmental justice advocates have gotten used to hearing election-season promises, and so they didn’t get too excited last year when Joe Biden offered them this one: access and input to his political agenda.

The advocates said they were skeptical they could count on the longtime Democratic senator from Delaware, given his state’s poor reputation for environmental inequity. Read More

July 26, 2021

A path to climate, economic and environmental justice is finally on the horizon

In the next few weeks, congressional leaders have a critical opportunity to join forces with President Joe Biden to turn the tide against climate change, economic inequality, and environmental injustice. 

[Op-Ed in The Hill by John Podesta, Center for American Progress and Michele Roberts, Environmental Justice Health Alliance for Chemical Policy Reform.] Read More

June 23, 2021

Prenatal exposure to ultra-fine particles increases a child’s risk of asthma, study finds

When Rosalind Wright started analyzing data on prenatal exposure to air pollution in mothers and children in Boston, she had a notion that ultra-fine particles could be even more harmful than the slightly larger particles she’d studied before. Read More

July 14, 2021

Most Glass-Bottled Beverages Contain Toxic Chemicals Linked to Reproductive Harm and Brain Development, New Study Says

A report released today by the Toxic Free Food Campaign looked at nearly 300 bottle caps from over 140 beverage brands and found that most glass-bottled beverages are capped with toxic or unsustainable chemicals. Read More

February 17, 2016

Environmental Justice Advocates Celebrate Victory as Lawsuit Settlement Directs EPA to Protect Communities from Chemical Spills

Today, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) settled a lawsuit brought by the Environmental Justice Health Alliance (EJHA) and its allies, and agreed to finally implement a 40-year old Congressional mandate to protect communities from industrial chemical spills. Environmental justice advocates, community leaders, and EJHA allies, including the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and People Concerned About Chemical Safety (PCACS), celebrated the victory, and issued the following comments... Read More

April 5, 2021

Discount stores often sell products with hazardous chemicals. Low-income shoppers deserve better.

In the latest Retailer Report Card on chemical management policies, Dollar Tree and Dollar General improved their grades, but 99 Cents Only Stores once again received an F. If discount retailers care at all about the health and well-being of the communities they operate in, or the environmental racism that they are perpetuating, they should reallocate resources and start cleaning up their supply chains immediately. Read More

March 30, 2021

Retailer Report Card Ranks Dollar Stores

The 2020 report card on safer chemicals in consumer products was released by the Mind the Store campaign and the Campaign for Healthier Solutions looking at how 50 companies – including dollar store chains – rank when it comes to chemical safety in products and packaging. Read More

March 2, 2021

Court Upholds Ban on Phthalate Chemicals in Toys for Now

In 2016, the Environmental Justice Health Alliance for Chemical Policy Reform, NRDC, and Breast Cancer Prevention Partners sued the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to force the agency to address toxic phthalate chemcials in children's products. On March 1, a federal appeals court left in place the resulting ban on several phthalates by rejecting most of the arguments made by the chemical industry opposing the ban, but also found flaws in the agency’s rulemaking process. It gave the agency an opportunity to fix those errors. Read More

October 20, 2020

Dollar Tree Thrives During Pandemic, But Is Still Not Removing Toxic Chemicals Fast Enough

When the Campaign for Healthier Solutions tested a variety of products sold at Dollar Tree and other discount retailers, it found that 81 percent tested contained at least one hazardous chemical. Even microwave popcorn and canned foods sold at dollar stores were found to contain deeply concerning levels of harmful chemicals. A number of states have likewise documented high levels of harmful chemicals in Dollar Tree products. Prenatal exposure to some of these chemicals can result in lower IQ levels, as well as learning or behavioral problems. Yet there is actually no need to use many toxic chemicals because there are safe, affordable alternatives. Read More

June 11, 2020

Release: Dollar Tree Must Do More To Eliminate Hazardous Chemicals From Its Stores, Environmental Justice Advocates Say

The Campaign for Healthier Solutions (CHS), which is dedicated to getting toxic products out of dollar stores and helping them stock local, sustainably-produced healthy foods, is deeply concerned Dollar Tree did not express during its annual meeting of shareholders Thursday a commitment to going beyond its previously-stated goal of removing 17 highly-hazardous chemicals from the products it sells by 2020. Read More

June 3, 2020

Coming Clean Stands in Solidarity with the Black Lives Matter Movement, Denounces Police Brutality and White Supremacy

Coming Clean stands in solidarity with those protesting the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, Ahmaud Arbery and the culture of white supremacy and systemic racism that has caused the senseless loss of lives of countless other Black men, women and even children in our country at the hands of people and institutions that regularly escape being held accountable for their actions.

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May 29, 2020

Release: Dollar General Reaffirms New Chemicals Policy, But More Action is Needed, Advocates Say

The Campaign for Healthier Solutions (CHS), which is dedicated to getting toxic products out of dollar stores and helping them stock local, sustainably-produced healthy foods, is pleased Dollar General reaffirmed its commitment to removing eight toxic chemicals from its private label cleaning and beauty/personal care products during its annual meeting of shareholders this week, and that company CEO Todd Vasos expressed an interest in expanding the availability of fresh foods and purchasing locally-grown produce. Read More

April 29, 2020

Release: Affected Communities Urge The Environmental Protection Agency To End The Free Pass It Is Giving Polluters

More than 150 affected communities, environmental justice organizations and other groups are calling on the Environmental Protection Agency to rescind or replace its policy allowing companies to stop reporting how much they pollute under the guise of COVID-19. Read More

April 16, 2020

Release: Groups Sue EPA Over Free Pass for Polluters Amid Pandemic

Coming Clean, the Environmental Justice Health Alliance and many other partners have joined forces with the National Resources Defense Council to sue the EPA in order to protect people from pollution during the coronavirus pandemic. Read More

April 1, 2020

Advisory: Groups Petition EPA Over Reckless Non-Enforcement Policy

The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), Coming Clean, the Environmental Justice Health Alliance, and The Climate Justice Alliance call on the EPA to protect public health and overburdened communities from pollution during the coronavirus pandemic. Read the full press release and petition on NRDC's website. Read More

March 27, 2020

Release: Numerous Groups Denounce EPA’s “Free Pass” for Polluters

Environmental justice advocates, scientists, public health experts, affected community members and others joined forces Friday to declare their outrage that the Trump administration’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a sweeping suspension of its enforcement of environmental laws under cover of the coronavirus pandemic. Read More

March 13, 2020

Release: Court Approves Settlement Requiring EPA Rules on Most Dangerous Chemical Spills

New York, N.Y. – The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York approved a consent decree between the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and a coalition of community and environmental organizations, including the Environmental Justice Health Alliance for Chemical Policy Reform (EJHA), Clean Water Action, and Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). Read More

February 24, 2020

Release: A Day Before White House Public Hearing on Proposed Environmental Rollbacks, A Louisiana Couple Tells Their Story About Living with Cumulative Toxic Pollution

Washington, D.C. — Today, the Environmental Justice Health Alliance for Chemical Policy Reform, Coming Clean and the Center for American Progress released a new video highlighting the story of Christine and Delma Bennett, longtime residents of Mossville, Louisiana, who have suffered from years of exposure to toxic pollution and environmental racism. Read More