How might environmental justice considerations affect response action at a deferred site?
Because sites that are deferred should receive attention more quickly than they otherwise would, effective deferral responses may provide a useful mechanism for resolving some environmental justice concerns. At sites where environmental justice is an issue, a State must show extra sensitivity to the special needs of the community by tailoring its outreach efforts to the community as well as facilitating access to, and enabling interpretation of, information. Establishing a positive rapport with the community at a deferral or any other site should result in wider acceptance of a proposed response. Additionally, because the Agency is committed to addressing environmental justice issues in all its programs, the State should expect the Region to be especially interested in sites associated with environmental justice concerns. The Region should consider playing a greater role in communicating with the community during consideration of such a site for deferral, review State interaction with
