Law360 Quotes Krista McIntyre on Emphasis by EPA of Civil Rights Enforcement in Agency’s Plan to Further Environmental Justice

Environmental partner Krista McIntyre was quoted in Law360 in an article title “EPA To Rely On Civil Rights Act Power To Reach Justice Goals,” published October 8, 2021. (Subscription required.) The article discusses the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s intention to focus on increased enforcement of civil rights laws as part of its overall plan to embed environmental justice principles into its work.

In the EPA’s strategic plan for 2022 to 2026, the agency lists promoting environmental justice and enforcing the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as the Biden administration’s second goal, with only confronting the climate crisis ranking higher.

McIntyre sees the emphasis on civil rights enforcement as evidence the EPA may be seeking new means of exercising its authority, while improving its civil rights outcomes. “The strategic plan really marries those two things together,” she said. “[In the past] the focus has been on the EPA’s mission: public health and the environment. And this is a very explicit reference to the integration, the inclusion, the embedded priority of civil rights within the mission’s work.”