Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Perspective
  • Published:

Green chemistry as just chemistry

Nature Sustainability volume 6, pages 502–512 (2023)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Environmental injustices have exposed our current system of reliance on polluting and toxic chemicals and chemistries as untenable and one whose risks and burdens are disproportionately borne by those who are disadvantaged. Aiming for effective interventions to create system-wide change, green chemistry and adjacent approaches are powerful leverage points to deeply address environmental injustices by changing the very nature of the molecular (for example, chemical, material, energy) basis of our economy and our society, obviating the need to rely on procedural systems that can either serve to enable progress or reinforce the status quo.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Fig. 1: Systems-thinking inspired leverage points to move the chemical enterprise towards greater environmental equity, where the same amount of problem-solving force is more effective at higher leverage points.
Fig. 2: The iceberg of environmental justice.
Fig. 3: A graphic representation of how environmental injustices can be addressed through green chemistry and lead to direct and cascading benefits for overburdened communities.
Fig. 4: Selected key events, interventions, reports and books bolstering the environmental justice paradigm in the United States according to the US EPA and their relationship to systems change as leverage points.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Taylor, D. E. Toxic Communities: Environmental Racism, Industrial Pollution, and Residential Mobility (New York Univ. Press, 2014).

  2. Bullard, R. D. Dumping in Dixie: Race, Class, and Environmental Quality (Routledge, 1994).

  3. Bullard, R. D., Mohai, P., Saha, R. & Wright, B. Toxic wastes and race at twenty: why race still matters after all of these years environmental justice: making it a reality. Environ. Law 38, 371–412 (2008).

    Google Scholar 

  4. Mohai, P., Pellow, D. & Roberts, J. T. Environmental justice. Annu. Rev. Environ. Resour. 34, 405–430 (2009).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Taylor, D. E. The Environment and the People in American Cities, 1600s–1900s: Disorder, Inequality, and Social Change (Duke Univ. Press, 2009).

  6. Anastas, P. T. & Warner, J. C. Green Chemistry: Theory and Practice (Oxford Univ. Press, 1998).

  7. Erythropel, H. C. et al. The Green ChemisTREE: 20 years after taking root with the 12 principles. Green Chem. 20, 1929–1961 (2018).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Anastas, P. T. & Zimmerman, J. B. Design through the 12 principles of green engineering. Environ. Sci. Technol. 37, 94A–101A (2003).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Zimmerman, J. B., Anastas, P. T., Erythropel, H. C. & Leitner, W. Designing for a green chemistry future. Science 367, 397–400 (2020).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Delegates of the First National People of Color Environmental Leadership Summit. The Principles of Environmental Justice. First National People of Color Environmental Leadership Summit (United Christ of Church, New York, 1991).

  11. Commission for Racial Justice. Toxic Wastes and Race in the United States: A National Report on the Racial and Socio-Economic Characteristics of Communities with Hazardous Waste Sites (United Christ of Church, New York, 1987).

  12. Bullard, R. D. Solid waste sites and the black Houston community. Sociol. Inq. 53, 273–288 (1983).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Anastas, P. T. & Zimmerman, J. B. The molecular basis of sustainability. Chem 1, 10–12 (2016).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Newman, M. K. et al. New Perspectives on Environmental Justice: Gender, Sexuality, and Activism (Rutgers Univ. Press, 2004).

  15. Pellow, D. Toward a critical environmental justice studies: black lives matter as an environmental justice challenge. Du Bois Rev. 13, 221–236 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Al-Kohlani, S. A. & Campbell, H. E. Extending environmental justice research to religious minorities. Rev. Policy Res. 39, 90–112 (2022).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Dombey, M. How governments are systematically poisoning indigenous communities and the U.N.’s role. Univ. Miami Int. Comp. Law Rev. Environ. Racism 27, 131–154 (2020).

    Google Scholar 

  18. Jacobs, B. Environmental Racism on Indigenous Lands and Territories (Canadian Political Science Association, 2010).

  19. Goldsmith, L. & Bell, M. L. Queering environmental justice: unequal environmental health burden on the LGBTQ+ Community. Am. J. Public Health 112, 79–87 (2021).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Pellow, D. & Vazin, J. The intersection of race, immigration status, and environmental justice. Sustainability 11, 3942 (2019).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Rockström, J. et al. Planetary boundaries: exploring the safe operating space for humanity. Ecol. Soc. 14, 32 (2009).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Millennium Ecosystem Assessment. Ecosystems and Human Well-being: Synthesis (Island Press, 2005).

  23. Raworth, K. A Safe and Just Space for Humanity: Can We Live Within the Doughnut? Discussion Paper (Oxfam International, 2012).

  24. Taylor, D. E. The rise of the environmental justice paradigm: injustice framing and the social construction of environmental discourses. Am. Behav. Sci. 43, 508–580 (2000).

    Google Scholar 

  25. The Routledge Handbook of Environmental Justice (Routledge, 2018).

  26. Anastas, P. T. & Zimmerman, J. B. The periodic table of the elements of green and sustainable chemistry. Green Chem. 21, 6545–6566 (2019).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  27. Anastas, P. T. & Zimmerman, J. B. The United Nations sustainability goals: how can sustainable chemistry contribute? Curr. Opin. Green Sustain. Chem. 13, 150–153 (2018).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. Keijer, T., Bakker, V. & Slootweg, J. C. Circular chemistry to enable a circular economy. Nat. Chem. 11, 190–195 (2019).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  29. Kümmerer, K., Clark, J. H. & Zuin, V. G. Rethinking chemistry for a circular economy. Science 367, 369–370 (2020).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. Rittel, H. W. J. & Webber, M. M. Dilemmas in a general theory of planning. Policy Sci. 4, 155–169 (1973).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  31. Ritchey, T. in Wicked Problems – Social Messes: Decision Support Modelling with Morphological Analysis (ed. Ritchey, T.) 19–29 (Springer, 2011).

  32. Meadows, D. H. in Thinking in Systems Ch. 6 (ed. Wright, D.) 145–165 (Chelsea Green Publishing, 2008).

  33. Abson, D. J. et al. Leverage points for sustainability transformation. Ambio 46, 30–39 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  34. Aubrecht, K. B., Bourgeois, M., Brush, E. J., MacKellar, J. & Wissinger, J. E. Integrating green chemistry in the curriculum: building student skills in systems thinking, safety, and sustainability. J. Chem. Educ. 96, 2872–2880 (2019).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  35. Lasker, G. A. & Brush, E. J. Integrating social and environmental justice into the chemistry classroom: a chemist’s toolbox. Green Chem. Lett. Rev. 12, 168–177 (2019).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  36. Lasker, G. A., Mellor, K. E., Mullins, M. L., Nesmith, S. M. & Simcox, N. J. Social and environmental justice in the chemistry classroom. J. Chem. Educ. 94, 983–987 (2017).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  37. Matlin, S. A., Mehta, G., Hopf, H. & Krief, A. One-world chemistry and systems thinking. Nat. Chem. 8, 393–398 (2016).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  38. Kümmerer, K. Sustainable chemistry: a future guiding principle. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 56, 16420–16421 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  39. Mahaffy, P. G., Matlin, S. A., Holme, T. A. & MacKellar, J. Systems thinking for education about the molecular basis of sustainability. Nat. Sustain. 2, 362–370 (2019).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  40. Mahaffy, P. G., Ho, F. M., Haack, J. A. & Brush, E. J. Can chemistry be a central science without systems thinking? J. Chem. Educ. 96, 2679–2681 (2019).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  41. Matlin, S. A., Krief, A., Hopf, H. & Mehta, G. Re-imagining priorities for chemistry: a central science for ‘freedom from fear and want’. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 60, 25610–25623 (2021).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  42. Holifield, R., Porter, M. & Walker, G. Spaces of environmental justice: frameworks for critical engagement. Antipode 41, 591–612 (2009).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  43. Walker, G. Environmental Justice: Concepts, Evidence and Politics (Routledge, 2012).

  44. Pasgaard, M. & Dawson, N. Looking beyond justice as universal basic needs is essential to progress towards ‘safe and just operating spaces’. Earth Syst. Gov. 2, 100030 (2019).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  45. Orum, P., Moore, R., Roberts, M. & Sanchez, J. Who’s In Danger? Race, Poverty and Chemical Disasters: A Demographic Analysis of Chemical Disaster Vulnerability Zones (Environmental Justice and Health Alliance for Chemical Policy Reform, 2014).

  46. Lerner, S. Sacrifice Zones: the Front Lines of Toxic Chemical Exposure in the United States (MIT Press, 2010).

  47. Siting of Hazardous Waste Landfills and Their Correlation With Racial and Economic Status of Surrounding Communities (US Government Accountability Office, 1983).

  48. Banzhaf, H. S., Ma, L. & Timmins, C. Environmental justice: establishing causal relationships. Annu. Rev. Resour. Econ. 11, 377–398 (2019).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  49. Mohai, P. & Saha, R. Which came first, people or pollution? Assessing the disparate siting and post-siting demographic change hypotheses of environmental injustice. Environ. Res. Lett. 10, 115008 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  50. James, W., Jia, C. & Kedia, S. Uneven magnitude of disparities in cancer risks from air toxics. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 9, 4365–4385 (2012).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  51. Johnston, J. & Cushing, L. Chemical exposures, health, and environmental justice in communities living on the fenceline of industry. Curr. Environ. Health Rep. 7, 48–57 (2020).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  52. Wright, B. H., Bryant, P. & Bullard, R. D. in Unequal Protection: Environmental Justice and Communities of Color (ed. Bullard, R. D.) 110–129 (Sierra Club Books, 1994).

  53. Terrell, K. A. & St Julien, G. Air pollution is linked to higher cancer rates among black or impoverished communities in Louisiana. Environ. Res. Lett. 17, 14033 (2022).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  54. Landrigan, P. J., Rauh, V. A. & Galvez, M. P. Environmental justice and the health of children. Mt Sinai J. Med. 77, 178–187 (2010).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  55. Banzhaf, S., Ma, L. & Timmins, C. Environmental justice: the economics of race, place, and pollution. J. Econ. Perspect. 33, 185–208 (2019).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  56. Elliott, M. R., Wang, Y., Lowe, R. A. & Kleindorfer, P. R. Environmental justice: frequency and severity of US chemical industry accidents and the socioeconomic status of surrounding communities. J. Epidemiol. Community Health 4, 24–30 (2004).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  57. Friedman-Jiménez, G. Achieving environmental justice: the role of occupational health. Fordham Urban Law J. 21, 605–632 (1994).

    Google Scholar 

  58. Office of Emergency Management & Office of Land and Emergency Management. Accidental Release Prevention Requirements: Risk Management Programs Under the Clean Air Act, Section 112(r)(7) (US Environmental Protection Agency, 2017); https://www.regulations.gov/document/EPA-HQ-OEM-2015-0725-0734

  59. Chemical Releases Caused By Natural Hazard Events and Disasters - Information for Public Health Authorities (WHO, 2018).

  60. Jafry, T., Helwig, K. & Mikulewicz, M. The Routledge Handbook of Climate Justice (Routledge, 2019).

  61. Wright, B. H. in Race and the Incidence of Environmental Hazards (eds Bryant, B. & Mohai, P.) 114–125 (Routledge, 1992).

  62. Calvert, G. M. et al. Acute pesticide poisoning among agricultural workers in the United States, 1998–2005. Am. J. Ind. Med. 51, 883–898 (2008).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  63. Moyce, S. C. & Schenker, M. Migrant workers and their occupational health and safety. Annu. Rev. Public Health 39, 351–365 (2018).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  64. Castillo, F. et al. Environmental health threats to Latino migrant farmworkers. Annu. Rev. Public Health 42, 257–276 (2021).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  65. Occupational Exposures in Petroleum Refining; Crude Oil and Major Petroleum Fuels (IARC Working Group on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans, 1989); https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK531272/

  66. Minority and Female Employment in the Oil & Gas and Petrochemical Industries (IHS Global, 2014).

  67. Bertazzi, P. A., Pesatori, A. C., Zocchetti, C. & Latocca, R. Mortality study of cancer risk among oil refinery workers. Int. Arch. Occup. Environ. Health 61, 261–270 (1989).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  68. Xin, F., Susiarjo, M. & Bartolomei, M. S. Multigenerational and transgenerational effects of endocrine disrupting chemicals: a role for altered epigenetic regulation? Semin. Cell Dev. Biol. 43, 66–75 (2015).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  69. Rothstein, M. A., Harrell, H. L. & Marchant, G. E. Transgenerational epigenetics and environmental justice. Environ. Epigenet. 3, dvx011 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  70. Lane, M. K. M. et al. What to expect when expecting in lab: a review of unique risks and resources for pregnant researchers in the chemical laboratory. Chem. Res. Toxicol. 35, 163–198 (2022).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  71. Martin, E. M. & Fry, R. C. Environmental influences on the epigenome: exposure- associated DNA methylation in human populations. Annu. Rev. Public Health 39, 309–333 (2018).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  72. Reichert, A. K. Impact of a toxic waste superfund site on property values. Appraisal J. LXV, 381–392 (1997).

    Google Scholar 

  73. Currie, J., Davis, L., Greenstone, M. & Walker, R. Environmental health risks and housing values: evidence from 1,600 toxic plant openings and closings. Am. Econ. Rev. 105, 678–709 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  74. Messer, K. D., Schulze, W. D., Hackett, K. F., Cameron, T. A. & Mcclelland, G. H. Can stigma explain large property value losses? The psychology and economics of Superfund. Environ. Resour. Econ. 33, 299–324 (2006).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  75. Boehm, T. P. & Schlottmann, A. M. Housing and Wealth Accumulation: Intergenerational Impacts (Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University, 2001).

  76. Anguelovski, I. in Neighborhood as Refuge: Community Reconstruction, Place Remaking, and Environmental Justice in the City (ed. Gottlieb, R.) 29–54 (MIT Press, 2014).

  77. LaDuke, W. All Our Relations: Native Struggles for Land and Life (South End Press, 1999).

  78. Lewis, J., Hoover, J. & MacKenzie, D. Mining and environmental health disparities in native american communities. Curr. Environ. Health Rep. 4, 130–141 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  79. Leonard, L. G. III Sovereignty, self-determination, and environmental justice in the Mescalero Apache’s decision to store nuclear waste. Boston Coll. Environ. Aff. Law Rev. 24, 651–693 (1996).

    Google Scholar 

  80. Martinez-Alier, J. Mapping ecological distribution conflicts: the EJAtlas. Extr. Ind. Soc. 8, 100883 (2021).

    Google Scholar 

  81. Castleman, B. The export of hazardous industries in 2015. Environ. Health 15, 8 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  82. Bogdal, C. & Scheringer, M. Climate Change and POPs: Predicting the Impacts (UNEP/AMAP, 2011).

  83. Pellow, D. N. Resisting Global Toxics: Transnational Movements for Environmental Justice (MIT Press, 2007).

  84. Friedman, R. S. et al. How just and just how? A systematic review of social equity in conservation research. Environ. Res. Lett. 13, 53001 (2018).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  85. McDermott, M., Mahanty, S. & Schreckenberg, K. Examining equity: a multidimensional framework for assessing equity in payments for ecosystem services. Environ. Sci. Policy 33, 416–427 (2013).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  86. Pascual, U., Muradian, R., Rodríguez, L. C. & Duraiappah, A. Exploring the links between equity and efficiency in payments for environmental services: a conceptual approach. Ecol. Econ. 69, 1237–1244 (2010).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  87. Schulte, P. A. et al. Occupational safety and health, green chemistry, and sustainability: a review of areas of convergence. Environ. Health 12, 31 (2013).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  88. Anastas, P. T. & Hammond, D. G. Inherent Safety at Chemical Sites: Reducing Vulnerability to Accidents and Terrorism Through Green Chemistry (Elsevier, 2015).

  89. Krings, A. & Thomas, H. in The Routledge Handbook of Green Social Work Ch. 32 (ed. Dominelli, L.) (Routledge, 2018).

  90. Zimmerman, J. B. & Anastas, P. T. When is waste not a waste? Sustain. Sci. Eng. 1, 201–221 (2006).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  91. Boodhoo, K. & Harvey, A. Process Intensification Technologies for Green Chemistry: Engineering Solutions for Sustainable Chemical Processing (Wiley, 2013).

  92. Costanza, R. et al. The value of the world’s ecosystem services and natural capital. Nature 387, 253–260 (1997).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  93. Ecosystems and Human Well-Being: Synthesis (Millennium Ecosystem Assessment Panel, 2005); https://www.millenniumassessment.org/documents/document.356.aspx.pdf

  94. Mihelcic, J. R. et al. Sustainability science and engineering: the emergence of a new metadiscipline. Environ. Sci. Technol. 37, 5314–5324 (2003).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  95. United States Environmental Protection Agency. Environmental Justice Timeline. EPA (accessed 9 Jan 2023); https://www.epa.gov/environmentaljustice/environmental-justice-timeline

Download references

Author information

Author notes

  1. These authors contributed equally: Mary Kate M. Lane, Holly E. Rudel, Paul T. Anastas, Julie B. Zimmerman.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA

    Mary Kate M. Lane, Holly E. Rudel, Hanno C. Erythropel, Andreas Backhaus, Momoko Ishii, Cheldina F. Jean, Tong Wang & Julie B. Zimmerman

  2. Center for Green Chemistry and Green Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA

    Mary Kate M. Lane, Holly E. Rudel, Jaye A. Wilson, Hanno C. Erythropel, Andreas Backhaus, Elise B. Gilcher, Momoko Ishii, Cheldina F. Jean, Fang Lin, Tobias D. Muellers, Tong Wang, Paul T. Anastas & Julie B. Zimmerman

  3. School of the Environment, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA

    Jaye A. Wilson, Hanno C. Erythropel, Elise B. Gilcher, Momoko Ishii, Tobias D. Muellers, Gerald Torres, Dorceta E. Taylor, Paul T. Anastas & Julie B. Zimmerman

  4. Department of Chemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA

    Fang Lin

  5. Law School, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA

    Gerald Torres

  6. School of Public Health, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA

    Paul T. Anastas

Authors
  1. Mary Kate M. Lane
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Holly E. Rudel
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Jaye A. Wilson
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Hanno C. Erythropel
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Andreas Backhaus
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Elise B. Gilcher
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Momoko Ishii
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. Cheldina F. Jean
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  9. Fang Lin
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  10. Tobias D. Muellers
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  11. Tong Wang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  12. Gerald Torres
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  13. Dorceta E. Taylor
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  14. Paul T. Anastas
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  15. Julie B. Zimmerman
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

M.K.M.L. and H.E.R. contributed equally to this work as co-first authors. P.T.A. and J.B.Z. contributed equally to this work as co-last authors. M.K.M.L., H.E.R. and J.B.Z. wrote the first draft and M.K.M.L., H.E.R., J.A.W., H.C.E., A.B., E.B.G., M.I., C.F.J., F.L., T.D.M., T.W., G.T., D.E.T., P.T.A. and J.B.Z. contributed subsequently to its refinement, editing and critical revision. M.K.M.L., A.B., P.T.A. and J.B.Z. were responsible for visualization. M.K.M.L., H.E.R., H.C.E., P.T.A. and J.B.Z. supervised the writing effort. M.K.M.L., H.E.R., J.A.W., H.C.E., A.B., E.B.G., M.I., C.F.J., F.L., T.D.M., T.W., G.T., D.E.T., P.T.A. and J.B.Z. approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Julie B. Zimmerman.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

Peer review

Peer review information

Nature Sustainability thanks Jennifer Burney, Grace A. Lasker and the other, anonymous, reviewer(s) for their contribution to the peer review of this work.

Additional information

Publisher’s note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Lane, M.K.M., Rudel, H.E., Wilson, J.A. et al. Green chemistry as just chemistry. Nat Sustain 6, 502–512 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-022-01050-z

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-022-01050-z

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing