Petroleum, Refineries, and the Future Main Menu Appreciating Oil Refinery Science By Shailesh Thapa Exploring Pollution and the Environmental Impacts Associated with Petroleum Refining By Bailey Klause Disaster Risks and What Refineries Can do to Best Prepare By Nick Steinhofer Global Environmental Justice: Holding Oil Refineries Responsible By Sam Hermann Health, Petroleum Refineries, and the Future By: Jake Rames Contributors Oil Boom Inquiry 2017

The (In)visible Violence of Petroleum Refineries

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Photo by Kenueone. Taken 5 August 2016. Creative Commons License 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication. Available at https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Renewable_Energy_on_the_Grid.jpg.

Introduction

The United States Environmental Protection Agency defines environmental justice as, “The fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income, with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies” (United States). The government’s own definition of environmental justice is being broken across America, especially in the 150-mile stretch along the Gulf Coast called “Cancer Alley” which contains numerous petroleum refineries; however, “Cancer Alley” has also become the epicenter of the environmental justice movement (Huber 69). As someone who has lived in South Dakota my whole life, the environmental injustice petroleum refineries cause was a new concept to me. Even if the injustice of petroleum refineries doesn't affect me directly, as a citizen, it is my duty to stand up for those less represented. Because the refineries are poisoning the neighborhoods in which they are placed, society needs to shift the conversation to renewable energy options instead of oil infrastructure.

In the following Scalar pages, I will address petroleum refineries as a causation of environmental injustice, discuss the environmental justice movement as a history, argue the negative effects the current administration poses to environmental justice, and insight solutions in terms of renewable energy. 


Works Cited

This page has paths:

  1. Petroleum, Refineries, and the Future Jonathan Steinwand

Contents of this path:

  1. Environmental Injustice of Petroleum Refineries
  2. Environmental Justice Movement as a History
  3. Implications of the Current Administration
  4. Progress Through Action
  5. Works Cited