DEP and Environmental Justice
By Justin Dula, AICP, CC-P

After years of preparation and collaboration, an updated Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Environmental Justice Policy is adopted as interim final and available for official public comment from September 16, 2023 until October 29, 2023. The interim final policy moves beyond the public participation in the permitting process – it looks at ways DEP can further environmental justice goals in compliance, enforcement, grantmaking, and other aspects of DEP’s work.

Additionally, this policy offers a statewide PennEnviroScreen tool that can assist planners in assessing environmental burdens and socioeconomic vulnerabilities. The state-of-the-art mapping tool will allow DEP to more accurately identify communities facing environmental justice issues using more than 30 environmental, health, and socioeconomic indicators. There is a PennEnviroScreen methodology document that goes into detail on the tool, targeted toward academics and researchers. Additionally this tool can help planners assess their community demographics and how they compare with the rest of Pennsylvania

DEP will host nine total community public meetings in October to accept verbal public comment. Written public comments are also welcomed via the Department’s online eComment tool or email at ecomment@pa.gov. Read the updated policy, view the public hearing dates, and learn how to comment at the EJ Policy Revision webpage. All pa.gov website pages can be translated into a variety of languages using the “Translate” button at the top right of the website.

This EJ Policy includes changes that DEP has been discussing and devising with stakeholders for years are now assembled in an interim final policy that has nine sections.

1. Introduction section, which includes history and background.
2. The Definitions section describes key terms used in the policy to help clarify the document for the public, DEP staff, and the regulated community.
3. Environmental Justice Criteria describes where the policy applies. This will be done through the PennEnviroScreen tool, described in detail in the Pennsylvania Environmental Justice Mapping and Screening Tool (PennEnviroScreen) Methodology Documentation 2023.
4. Proactive Community Engagement section describes how DEP can center on community voices by reaching communities before an environmental crisis or project application comes before the agency for review.
5. Enhanced Public Participation Process details this process in terms of which projects are covered and how it is applied in the permitting process.
6. Inspections, Compliance, and Enforcement guidance help the policy move beyond public participation in the permitting process and consider how DEP can be prioritized within regulatory limits after permits are approved.
7. Community Development and Investments look to ways to financially assist communities facing environmental justice issues.
8. Climate Initiatives spells out ways that EJ can be included in the climate action plan and other climate efforts.
9. Policy Updates, the final section, specifies that the policy should be reviewed for updates regularly to ensure that the policy continues to address community concerns.

At the request of stakeholders, this policy goes beyond the current policy’s scope of public participation and meetings during the review of permit applications. This policy integrates environmental justice into more of the Department’s functions including climate initiatives, penalties (Inspections, Compliance, and Enforcement), and grantmaking (Community Development and Investments).

Visit the policy revision webpage to review the policy today and learn how to comment.