Why We’re Planning for Environmental Justice
Environmental Justice is the field of work which revolves around addressing injustice in the built environment, namely in cities. Over every city’s history there have been myriad factors which shape each environment and the populations who live there. The image below explains in part how historical factors can influence the present-day conditions residents experience and the impacts they have on our lives while also introducing potential pathways to resolving these inequities.
To address the differences in health and opportunity detailed above, and to comply with State planning requirements laid out in Senate Bill 1000 (2016), the City of Chico is embarking on a process to develop an Environmental Justice Element for the General Plan. Senate Bill 1000, also known as the Planning for Healthy Communities Act, was signed into law in 2016 and requires the development and implementation of an Environmental Justice Element or the integration of Environmental Justice policies upon the update of two other General Plan Elements.
With the forthcoming update to the Housing Element in 2022 and the subsequent state-required update to the Safety Element, now is the time for the City of Chico to begin work on developing a plan to address environmental injustice.
Getting Involved:
- To learn about environmental justice in the context of Senate Bill 1000, read an article on its definitions here.
- To read the draft Environmental Justice Existing Conditions Report, click here.
- To contribute to our understanding of environmental justice topics in Chico, take our online surveys here.
- And to participate in-person in this process, view the calendar of upcoming in-person engagement events here.
- You can also join our mailing list to be notified when new report drafts or engagement opportunities emerge by messaging here.
