EQUITY AND JUSTICE IN ENVIRONMENTAL DECISION-MAKING - A PROPOSED RESEARCH AGENDA

The substantial health, social, and economic costs borne by rural, low -income, and minority communities because of their differential exposu re to environmental hazards is being increasingly acknowledged. For de cades, these groups have been the the victims of a variety of activiti es and policies that have placed them at a substantial risk to their h ealth and quality of life. Recently, many of these policies have come under increasing criticism by an emerging environmental justice moveme nt-a movement that promises to be one of the strongest forces for envi ronmental reform to appear in recent years. It is argued that question s of justice and equity in environmental decision making are deserving of increased attention by the research community. A number of questio ns that can guide such a research agenda are identified.