Environmental Justice Tracker

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EPA Report Highlighted Disproportionate Impacts of Climate Change on Underserved Communities

Last updated:

September 2, 2021

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EPA released report detailing how the impacts of climate change are disproportionately felt in “socially vulnerable” communities that are least equipped to prepare for and recover from climate impacts such as heat waves, flooding, and poor air quality. Among other results, the report finds that Black and African American individuals are 40% more likely than other groups to live in areas with the highest projected increases in mortality rates due to climate change, American Indian and Alaska Native communities are significantly more likely to live in areas impacted by sea level rise, and Hispanic and Latino individuals are 43% more likely to live in communities that will lose work hours because of high temperatures. The full report on disproportionate burdens from climate change can be accessed here.