The administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, Lee Zeldin, is “immediately eliminating all diversity, equity and inclusion and environmental justice offices and positions,” as per screenshots from an internal memo obtained by CBS News.
This decision indicates a reorganization and elimination of the Environmental Justice Divisions across 10 EPA regional offices. The EPA headquarters has already shut down its Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights in D.C., placing 168 employees on administrative leave, though a few have been reinstated.
In a memo dated Tuesday, March 11, Zeldin stated that this initiative aligns with President Trump’s executive order aimed at “ending radical and wasteful government DEI programs and preferences,” along with two additional executive actions.
The EPA has confirmed the closures in regional offices.
“President Trump was elected with a mandate from the American people,” Zeldin remarked in a statement to CBS News. “This mandate includes the elimination of forced discrimination programs.”
It remains uncertain how many EPA employees will be affected by the closures. While precise staffing figures nationwide are unclear, sources inform CBS News that approximately 200 personnel were employed in environmental justice offices in D.C. and the 10 regional sites. The EPA confirmed to CBS News that all employees at these regional offices will be placed on administrative leave.
“Generations of progress are being erased from our federal government,” stated Matthew Tejada, who served as the deputy assistant administrator at the Office of Environmental Justice for over a decade before departing the EPA in December 2023. “The individuals with institutional knowledge and established trust within these communities are being eliminated.”
The Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights was established in 1992 under former President George H.W. Bush to address “disproportionately high and adverse human health or environmental effects on minority and low-income populations.”
While the Office has experienced several reorganizations over the years, it saw significant expansion in 2022 under former President Joe Biden. In September 2022, the office received a $3 billion grant from the Inflation Reduction Act, enabling it to grow into a national program with regional offices in 10 locations, thereby enhancing the department’s efforts in communities adversely affected by environmental pollution.
“It will be extremely challenging to attract individuals courageous enough to engage with these communities,” Tejada remarked, now serving as the senior vice president of environmental health at the Natural Resources Defense Council.
Many neighborhoods that benefit from the regional Environmental Justice offices harbor a lack of trust in the government, making it almost impossible to rebuild that relationship, according to Tejada.
“The government is effectively shutting down before our eyes, and it is a catastrophic situation that is going unacknowledged,” he expressed.
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