environmental justice

The Trump administration is cancelling or defunding a number of initiatives that have been investing in environmental and energy justice. These are programs that, in some cases, have a direct impact on Washtenaw County. The Biden-era Justice40 program has been cancelled. WEMU's David Fair spoke with one of the architects of that program, Dr. Jalonne White-Newsome, who is the former White House Federal Chief Environmental Justice Officer and is founder and CEO of Empowering a Green Environment and Economy, LLC.

The Trump Administration has been slashing government in a variety of areas, including the Environmental Protection Agency. Region 5 of the EPA covers the Great Lakes area and includes Washtenaw County. The layoffs have the potential to impact the agency’s ability to steward the environment around the world’s largest body of fresh water. And the impact on public health could be significant. Loreen Targos is Executive Vice President of the American Federation of Government Employees-Local 704, which represents about 1,000 EPA workers. She spoke with WEMU's David Fair and Michigan League of Conservation Voters executive director Lisa Wozniak about employee cuts and the implications.

The A2Zero Plan aims to have Ann Arbor carbon neutral by the year 2030. While it is an environmental initiative, it is being implemented with the idea of creating greater equity and equality through the process. WEMU's David Fair talked over that component of A2Zero with Missy Stults, the city's Director of Sustainability and Innovations.

A key component to adapting to a changing climate is resiliency—finding ways to be flexible in addressing change in environmental, social and economic ways. Ann Arbor recently received a $1 million grant from the EPA’s Environmental Justice Government-to-Government program to support investment in reaching the most underserved residents. Ann Arbor Sustainability and Innovations director Missy Stults joined WEMU's David Fair to discuss how the grant money will be applied.

Governor Whitmer has signed measures into law to require all children be tested for lead exposure. Additionally, a new law requires installation of lead water filters in all schools and childcare centers. It is progress, but there is still a lot of work to be done. WEMU's David Fair discusses its impacts with lead policy expert Mary Sue Schottenfels.

The United Auto Workers strike against the Detroit Three ended with the union claiming significant gains over past contracts. Among those that supported the union through the strike was the Ann Arbor-based Ecology Center. In addition to gains for workers, it says the contracts are important for our future environmental health. WEMU's David Fair took a look ahead and practical impacts of the deals with the Ecology Center’s Climate and Energy Program Director, Charles Griffith.

Air quality continues to be an issue, and with a warming climate, the efforts at improvement may become more difficult. The federal EPA has curiously ruled that Washtenaw County and Southeast Michigan now meet attainment status for ground-level ozone. Environmental advocates, including the director of the Great Lakes Environmental Law Center, says the process used to make the determination is questionable. Nick Leonard joined WEMU's David Fair to discuss the challenges ahead.

Vice President Kamala Harris was in Ann Arbor Thursday talking about the climate crisis with U of M students at Rackham Auditorium. WEMU’s Cathy Shafran has more.

A part of Ann Arbor's plan in achieving carbon neutrality by 2030 is to create a more robust circular economy. Think and act local first, and become more mindful of how we use, reuse, and dispose of all of our materials at home and at work. Ann Arbor Sustainability and Innovations Manager, Missy Stults, joins WEMU's David Fair with the 2023 plans to grow the local circular economy.

Washtenaw County is in the process of developing a comprehensive plan to address greenhouse gas emissions. It's called "Resilient Washtenaw." Strategic partnerships and a year's worth of public input will soon be drafted into an action plan with equity and justice at its heart. The county's strategic director, Andrew DeLeeuw, joined WEMU's David Fair with the latest as the public input portion of the study winds down.