May 19, 2008

2008 EJ Conference, Inc. Interviews:

John C. Cruden

Deputy Assistant Attorney General

Environment and Natural Resources Division

U. S. Department of Justice

John C. Cruden serves as the Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the U.S. Department of Justice.  In that capacity, he is responsible for supervising a wide variety of environmental litigation, including civil enforcement actions in federal court for the key federal environmental statutes, including Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act, RCRA, Safe Drinking Water Act, and the Superfund law.  In addition, he supervises wetland enforcement, challenges to EPA rule making, and environmental actions filed against the United States.

Mr. Cruden has spent most of his legal career either litigating, teaching litigation-related subjects, or supervising litigators.  He has received the highest government award, the Presidential Rank Award, from two different Presidents.  In 2005-2006, Mr. Cruden was the first government lawyer to serve as President of the District of Columbia Bar, which is the second largest bar in the nation.  He currently serves as Vice Chair of the American Bar Association’s Section on Environment, Energy, and Resources.

2008 EJ Conference, Inc.:   What is the mission of the Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD) in the U.S. Department of Justice?

Mr. Cruden:  The primary mission of ENRD is: (1) to represent the United States in enforcing the nation’s environmental and natural resources laws; and (2) to defend federal agencies that carry out policies and programs to implement these and other laws.  ENRD has a docket of well over 7,000 pending cases and matters, with litigation in every judicial district in the nation.  We are responsible for cases arising from more than 70 different environmental and natural resources laws.

As lawyers for the United States, our duty is to represent federal agencies and advance the public interest.  Our duty carries a commitment to fairness and consistency in adopting, applying and enforcing laws to protect human health and the environment and to manage natural resources.

ENRD’s commitment to fairness and consistency includes considering environmental justice and carrying out the Executive Order on Environmental Justice (Exec. Order 12898, February 11, 1994).

2008 EJ Conference, Inc.:   How does ENRD incorporate EJ into its mission?

Mr. Cruden: ENRD’s commitment to fairness and consistency in adopting, applying and enforcing all laws includes our strong position that no community should be subject to environmental harms stemming from illegal activity.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 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."

ENRD endorses this definition, including its core principles of fair treatment and meaningful involvement.  Fair and consistent enforcement includes "leveling the playing field" so that no one breaking the law may gain from that activity to the detriment of law-abiding competitors.  Fair treatment ensures that illegal environmental degradation will not be tolerated regardless of where it occurs.

The principle of meaningful involvement is that people have a voice in decisions that affect their lives and communities.  This voice is a fundamental value in a democratic society.  Laws that codify this value include the Administrative Procedure Act, the National Environmental Policy Act and other environmental laws.  These laws provide opportunities and tools for participating in environmental decisions that affect communities.  In addition, we often seek public comment on our enforcement settlements.

2008 EJ Conference, Inc.:   Can you give some examples of how ENRD supports Executive Order 12898 and advances EJ?

Mr. Cruden:  In enforcing the nation’s laws, ENRD promotes environmental justice in a variety of important ways:

1) Housing Issues.  In recent years, the Department of Justice, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), EPA, and state and local governments throughout the country have acted to enforce the Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act.  This law requires landlords and sellers of older housing to warn prospective tenants and buyers of the dangers of lead paint.  DOJ’s civil and criminal enforcement actions, along with EPA and HUD’s administrative actions, resulted in the testing and cleanup of tens of thousands of dwelling units, the collection of hundreds of thousands of dollars in penalties, and supplemental projects to inspect and abate lead paint hazards and provide free blood lead testing for children (and child health improvement plans).

2)  Working with Communities.  In crafting enforcement settlements in low-income and minority communities, ENRD regularly works with EPA and the community to develop a supplemental environmental project to address community concerns.  An example is the consent decree in the Clean Air Act case against DuPont to address a toxic cloud released from a facility in Louisville, Kentucky.   DuPont agreed to set aside a green buffer zone between the facility and the community, and to fund a community center and web site to provide environmental and health information.

3) Reducing Pollution.  Every time ENRD obtains court-ordered injunctive relief that requires companies to install state-of-the-art pollution abatement equipment, citizens benefit from a cleaner environment.  Many of ENRD’s cases result in significant reductions of pollution across large geographic areas.  One recent example is our consent decree with American Electric Power, which resulted in a record $4.6 billion in environmental improvements at 16 coal-fired power plants spanning five states.  This consent decree reduces air pollution by a massive 813,000 tons per year across an entire region of the country.

4)  Interagency Collaboration.  ENRD represents the Department of Justice on the Interagency Working Group on Environmental Justice established by Executive Order 12898.  Through this group, ENRD advises agencies and works with diverse groups of public and private stakeholders and community organizations.

2008 EJ Conference, Inc.:   What is your role in the 2008 EJ Conference?

Mr. Cruden:  I am scheduled to make a presentation during the Conference’s plenary session on Thursday, May 22 along with representatives from EPA and the US Department of Energy.  I plan to discuss the role and importance of environmental justice in ENRD and describe some examples of how ENRD has successfully addressed environmental justice considerations.

2008 EJ Conference, Inc: Have you had a prior role in this Conference or with Howard Law School?

Mr. Cruden:  Yes. I participated in the Conference last year and have been a guest lecturer at Howard Law School a number of times, including for their course on Environmental Justice.

2008 EJ Conference, Inc:  As Past President of the District of Columbia Bar, did you have occasion to support Environmental Justice?

Mr. Cruden:  Yes.  As President you are given the opportunity to send out a one page “President’s Page” in the beginning of the monthly Washington Lawyer, which goes to over 85,000 bar members.  I wrote one of my most important President’s Pages on environmental justice, explaining both the concept and its importance.

2008 EJ Conference, Inc.:   What message would you like those attending the Conference to take home?

Mr. Cruden:  As we have described, environmental justice is an important part of the mission of the Environment and Natural Resources Division in the Department of Justice.  ENRD addresses environmental justice concerns in our cases - both enforcement and defensive - and assists other agencies and communities through the Interagency Working Group under the Executive Order.

And communities should know that environmental laws generally give them the right to know about environmental pollutants and waste issues in their areas.  These laws also give communities opportunities and tools for participating in many environmental decisions affecting them.  All communities should support environmental enforcement which brings activities into compliance with the law.