Environmental Justice NYC (EJNYC)

In 2017, New York City passed Local Laws 60 and 64 to assess environmental equity issues and develop a plan to incorporate environmental justice into the fabric of City decision-making. This legislation centers on three main products: a report, a mapping tool, and a plan. To carry out this work, the local law mandated that the Mayor and City Council appoint an independent Environmental Justice Advisory Board (EJAB) comprised of nationally recognized EJ advocates and local subject matter experts, and that an Interagency Working Group comprised of staff from 19 city agencies be convened.

Development of the EJNYC Report began with a public scoping process that included thousands of comments from New Yorkers. The City, in partnership with the Environmental Justice Advisory Board (EJAB), conducted this process to ensure the resulting report would lay the foundation for addressing the issues EJ communities face. Comments were open to all New Yorkers, though efforts were made to prioritize outreach in the low-income communities and communities of color that have borne the brunt of environmental health issues, the climate crisis, and impacts of the fossil fuel industry. Public input was formalized into a report scope by the Mayor’s Office of Climate & Environmental Justice and the EJ Interagency Working Group, with input from the EJAB. Read the Scope of Work. 

The EJNYC Report and Mapping Tool serve as the foundation for the next major milestone required by Local Law 64: the development of a comprehensive citywide environmental justice plan. The EJNYC Plan will propose actions to address environmental injustices in communities of color and low-income communities in consultation with EJ communities.

Local Law 64 of 2017 established an Environmental Justice Advisory Board comprised of external environmental justice leaders (advocates, academics, and public health experts) to advise the City as it implements these laws and to bring this work to New Yorkers through public hearings and other forms of engagement. The EJAB’s charge is to ensure the work is grounded in the lived experiences of New Yorkers in the city’s EJ communities. 

Board Members

Peggy Shepard, Chair, Co-Founder and Executive Director, WE ACT for Environmental Justice  
Rebecca Bratspies, Professor of Law, CUNY School of Law  
Shoshanah Brown, Founder, AIRnyc
Marco Carrion, Executive Director, El Puente  
Dr. Luz Claudio, Professor of Environmental Medicine & Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine, Mt. Sinai  
Costa Constantinides, CEO, Variety Boys & Girls Club of Queens  
Omar Freilla, Co-Founder and Coordinator, Collective Diaspora 
Diana Hernandez, PhD, Assistant Professor of Sociomedical Sciences, Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health  
Anhthu Hoang, New York City Resident  
Albert Huang, Senior Attorney, Urban Program, Natural Resources Defense Council  
Tina Johnson, Lifelong NYCHA Resident and Community Activist  
Morgan Monaco, Executive Director, Red Hook Initiative  
Beryl Thurman, Founder/Executive Director, North Shore Waterfront Conservancy of Staten Island 

The Environmental Justice Interagency Working Group (IWG) is the implementing body established to deliver on the requirements of the City’s Environmental Justice Laws. Members were selected based on their expertise in environmental policy and data analysis, and their agencies’ contribution to the local environment as well as the health of New Yorkers.

Participating Agencies: 

Commission on Human Rights 
Department of Buildings 
Department of City Planning  
Department of Citywide Administrative Services  
Department of Education  
Department of Environmental Protection  
Department of Health and Mental Hygiene  
Department of Housing Preservation and Development  
Department of Parks and Recreation  
Department of Sanitation Department of Transportation  
Economic Development Corporation  
Law Department  
Mayor’s Office of Economic Opportunity  
Mayor’s Office of Environmental Coordination  
Mayor’s Office of Environmental Remediation  
Mayor’s Office of Management and Budget  
Mayor’s Office of Operations  
NYC Housing Authority  
Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings  
Office of Technology and Innovation 
Office of the Chief Climate Officer
Office of the Deputy Mayor for Operations