July 15, 2004

Honorable Thomas Finneran
Speaker of the House
State House, Room 356
Boston, MA 02133

Dear Speaker Finneran:

The Environmental League of Massachusetts urges you to release Senate Bill 2418, An Act Promoting Environmental Justice, from House Ways and Means, so that it may be taken to the floor of the House to be voted on.

The Environmental Justice (EJ) bill is vital to halting environmental inequity across the commonwealth and protecting the health of communities already disproportionately burdened with environmental ills. This bill will encourage economic growth in communities through lessened environmental hazards, encourage cleaner development in heavily burdened communities, trigger the appropriate review of cleanups and facility sitings, and provide a forum for communities to become involved in the health of their communities. This bill would also encourage real, job-producing development by requiring a closer examination of the consequences of siting more polluting facilities and land uses in these communities and encouraging instead more office buildings, retail stores, restaurants, and clean manufacturing.

Massachusetts currently has 108 cities and towns with EJ communities, including Boston and Milton, and the disparity of treatment between those communities and other communities is startling: according to Dr. Daniel Faber's 2001 report Unequal Exposure to Ecological Hazards, poor communities have 4 times the hazards that affluent communities have, and minority communities have 9 times more hazardous waste sites and other polluting industries in their communities than predominantly white communities.

One only needs to look at the high asthma rate in EJ communities in Massachusetts to see the connection between EJ and public health problems: of the top 10 communities with the highest hospitalization rate for asthma, over half of them are among the 15 most overburdened communities in Massachusetts according to Dr. Faber's report. And it's not just EJ communities who pay the price for their burden. The cost of asthma alone, not to mention the multitude of other health concerns these communities face because of a toxic environment, has been enormous. In 2002 over $55 million was charged for inpatient asthma hospitalizations, and over $13 million of that was covered by Medicaid or free care.

Thank you for your consideration of this request; Senate Bill 2418 is a crucial step toward improving the health of our communities, raising healthier children, and preventing current and future health care costs. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions about the bill at 617-742-2553 or at mamundson@environmentalleague.org.

Best regards,

Megan Amundson
Policy Analyst