Voters Strongly Support Key Policies That Would Deter Oil and Gas Companies From Illegally Polluting
By Tenneth Fairclough II, Catherine Fraser, and Grace Adcox
After years of advocacy by environmental justice organizations calling out unchecked and egregious levels of pollution and environmental racism from oil, gas, petrochemical, and other industrial facilities, the Biden administration appeared poised to deliver some answers to communities long on the frontlines of environmental injustice. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Michael Regan made a high-profile visit to Louisiana’s Cancer Alley in 2021 and the agency launched a series of civil rights investigations into years of alleged discrimination by Louisiana state officials and agencies, as well as other enforcement officials across the country. But then, the agency began backing away from these investigations — despite uncovering early evidence of discrimination — and later a federal court judge in Louisiana blocked EPA’s civil rights investigation into Cancer Alley.
New polling from Data for Progress finds that a majority of voters disapprove of a recent federal ruling in Louisiana blocking the EPA and U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) from investigating civil rights violations in Cancer Alley. We also find that a strong majority of voters support enforcing strong penalties on polluters and closing loopholes, like Texas’ notorious affirmative defense loophole, that give polluters a pass to pollute without penalty. Moreover, when asked about their attitudes toward specific policies that aim to hold polluting oil and gas facilities accountable, voters overwhelmingly support a suite of proposed actions, including raising fines for repeat permit violators, requiring companies to compensate communities for damages, improving pollution monitoring along the fence lines of facilities, and more.
Our results show strong support for the advocacy efforts of environmental justice organizations in Cancer Alley and beyond, as they continue to call for justice, dignity, and accountability, despite the failings of local, state, and federal governments to protect public health, civil rights, and the environment.