Joining with a representative from Mattapan and a senator from Springfield, Attorney General Andrea Campbell last week filed legislation to establish a way for her office to distribute to communities disproportionately impacted by environmental harms the money it takes in from environmental protection fines, penalties, and settlements.

The bill would create an Environmental Justice Trust to be administered by Campbell’s Environmental Protection Division (EPD). The fund would be used to support environmental restoration and community well-being projects – the AG’s office used projects like air monitoring networks, asthma prevention programs, roof top and community gardens, and de-paving heat-absorbing black top as examples – in environmental justice neighborhoods and other disadvantaged communities. Campbell filed the bill with Rep. Brandy Fluker Oakley and Sen. Adam Gomez. It has not yet been referred to a committee.

“For far too long disadvantaged communities across the Commonwealth have suffered many, cumulative environmental harms,” Campbell said. “The Environmental Justice Trust Fund would give my office an important tool in the fight for environmental justice by providing those communities with resources and ensure we are centering equity in all our work.”

Campbell’s office said it currently “does not have the ability to provide EPD penalties to those disadvantaged communities directly impacted by the violations of the state environmental laws EPD enforces.” Communities that bear an inordinate burden of cumulative climate and environmental harms are at higher risk of negative health impacts because they tend to be in risk-prone areas like urban heat islands, coastal and other flood-prone areas, areas with older or poorly maintained infrastructure, or areas with higher levels of air pollution, the AG’s office said.

“In Massachusetts, which already has one of the nation’s highest incidences of pediatric asthma, degraded air quality is expected to disproportionately affect already disadvantaged communities, who are more susceptible to incidences of childhood asthma and elder mortality,” Campbell’s office said.

“Heavy rains and flooding are expected to increase mold, overburden sewer systems, and cause contamination of private and public water supplies.  And droughts will deplete water supplies, with disproportionate impacts on disadvantaged communities across Massachusetts.”