Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) have introduced legislation that would require federal prisons to report potential environmental health risks.
The bill, the Prison Environmental Sanitation Act, would require the Federal Bureau of Prisons to disclose data about the prevalence of various environmental hazards in its facilities, including information about air and water quality, mold, infectious diseases, and the presence of dangerously cold and hot temperatures.
In addition to BOP facilities, the law applies to prison facilities overseen by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the U.S. Marshals Service, and the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
NBC News First reported Introducing the Bill.
In a statement, Markey and Pressley said 13 Midwestern and Southern states do not require prisons to have air conditioning, resulting in thousands of violations of the Safe Drinking Water Act. Log This will take place between 2011 and 2021 in facilities with their own water supply systems.
Pressley also noted that nearly a third of state and federal prisons are within a three-mile radius of a federal Superfund site that is known to have at least one hazardous substance, and that COVID-19 spreads much more in prisons than in the general population, with experts saying that’s primarily due to poor ventilation in the facilities.
“People who are incarcerated deserve to have their dignity and humanity respected, and that includes clean air, water and living conditions,” Pressley said in a statement. “As we work to end the shameful mass incarceration crisis, this bill recognizes the fundamental right of all people in prison to a safe and healthy environment.”
“At the same time that we work to reduce the number of people in prison, we must also ensure that those currently incarcerated have access to clean air, water and living conditions, are treated with dignity and respect, and live in conditions that are not dangerous and inhumane,” Markey said in a statement.
“Even short prison sentences can amount to a life sentence for returnees who are re-exposed to toxic environments. This legislation will ensure that prisoners can start a new life and reintegrate into their communities as healthy, productive individuals.”
