Updated: June 26, 2024

Environmental Justice addresses the uneven distribution of pollutants in our environment. Pollutants include chemicals and biological substances that cause negative health impacts, but also can include loud or consistent noise, excessive or persistent odors, and inappropriate and intrusive artificial lighting. Where conservation-focused environmentalism may be concerned with the impact of industry on local and global ecosystems, justice-oriented environmentalism is concerned with who is impacted by the negative effects of industry, where those impacts are felt, and how decisions about the siting of polluting activities are made. We heard about a variety of issues related to agricultural waste management pollution during our interviews across the Eastern Shore, including odors and noise from farm operations and Dissolved Air Flotation (DAF) management, and high nitrate levels in local soil and water.

Environmental Justice Fact Sheet