April 21, 2025

Ellis Walton

New Ordinance Would Help End Sacrifice Zones in Chicago

The Hazel M. Johnson Cumulative Impacts Ordinance is a culmination of decades of advocacy from Chicago’s environmental justice groups.

On April 16, 2025, the City of Chicago took a big step for public health by introducing the Hazel M. Johnson Cumulative Impacts Ordinance. The ordinance recognizes that several areas of the city have experienced unequal environmental, social, and health burdens and that it is past time to remedy those disparities. This proposal is the culmination of decades of community advocacy and builds on the groundbreaking work conducted during the 2023 Chicago Cumulative Impacts Assessment. The time to act is now!

Tell your Alder to pass the Hazel M. Johnson Ordinance

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ELPC Supports the Cumulative Impacts Ordinance

ELPC Associate Attorney Ellis Walton provided written comment in support of the Hazel M. Johnson Cumulative Impacts Ordinance. Ellis formerly served as co-chair of the Policy Working Group in the Chicago Cumulative Impacts Assessment and Chicago Environmental Equity Working Group (EEWG) member. Here are some highlights from his comments:

Read Ellis’ Full Testimony

For generations, Chicago leadership has treated the South and West Sides as “sacrifice zones,” creating toxic environments for local residents In 2022, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) confirmed what overburdened residents had long known: Chicago’s policies systematically concentrated industrial facilities into Black and Latino neighborhoods, deepening environmental and racial disparities. This was due in part to the City’s “Industrial Corridor System,” labeling mostly non-white neighborhoods as corridors open to receiving more industrial development—increasing the overburdened status of these communities.

As a result of the HUD decision, the City entered into a Voluntary Compliance Agreement with HUD and local community members, and committed to significant reforms. These included the 2023 Cumulative Impacts Assessment (CIA), which identified pollution disparities across the city and relevant policy solutions. In September 2023, the City and EEWG presented our findings to the City Council and made the findings publicly available online.

Read the Chicago EJ Action Plan Report

A Fitting Namesake

The proposed ordinance is named after a Chicago hero, Hazel M. Johnson, the “mother of Environmental Justice.” In the 1970s, Johnson became a pioneer for public health in her far south side neighborhood of Altgeld Gardens when she called out the health effects of being surrounded by multiple polluters, including landfills, industrial facilities, and sewage treatment plants. This “toxic donut” around her community contributed to the loss of her loved ones and neighbors to lung cancer, respiratory issues, and other health harms. Hazel searched for answers and founded the People for Community Recovery (PCR). She used PCR to rally her community against these environmental threats and advocate for equitable solutions from government decision-makers.

The Hazel M. Johnson Cumulative Impacts Ordinance would:

• Codify the definition of Environmental Justice
• Require regular citywide Cumulative Impacts Assessments to ensure updated findings are incorporated into city decision-making
• Create an advisory board to guide future policies and make recommendations on zoning applications
• Remove by-right zoning privileges for intensive manufacturing, recycling, warehousing, and freight movement facilities
• Require new industrial developments to conduct a cumulative impacts study and hold a community meeting before they are approved and added to already-overburdened communities

As the city council considers this ordinance, we urge them to ground their decision in data, lived experiences, and local, well-documented environmental harm. The findings of the Cumulative Impacts Assessment, the Chicago Environmental Justice Index, and the extensive Community Input Summaries all demonstrate that structural reforms are needed to prevent further harm. The Hazel M. Johnson Cumulative Impacts Ordinance is a critical first step toward equality, accountability, and a healthier future for all Chicagoans.

Tell your Alder to pass the Hazel M. Johnson Ordinance today

Take Action!