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Santa Ana is the Least Climate Ready but Most Impacted OC City <br /> In a study by the Notre Dame Global Adaptation Initiative, Santa Ana ranked as the city <br /> most at risk of climate impacts and vet one of the least prepared. Santa Ana residents <br /> are already experiencing the impact of the pollution that causes climate change and <br /> climate impacts. <br /> CaIEPA also identified Santa Ana as being home to some of the most polluted <br /> neighborhoods in all of California through the CalEnviro scoring tool, which shows that <br /> 24 Santa Ana census tracts are in the top 25% for environmental pollution, with one <br /> neighborhood experiencing more pollution than 99% of all other neighborhoods in <br /> California. Santa Ana residents have the right to clean, healthy neighborhoods, and by <br /> hiring an environmental justice staffer, you can begin to make this a reality for all <br /> residents. As climate impacts continue to worsen, having an environmental justice <br /> staffer to do community outreach and equitably create climate policy will become even <br /> more crucial. <br /> The Silencing of Environmental Justice Communities and Advocates <br /> For the past two years, community members have repeatedly shown up for city council <br /> meetings demanding the inclusion of environmental justice policy in the General Plan. <br /> Hundreds of residents and many community organizations such as MPNA Green, <br /> OCEJ, Rise Up Willowick, THRIVE, UCI researchers, Climate Action Campaign and <br /> Stand.Earth shared their experiences of injustice and the need for policies that protect <br /> them, their families, and their futures. By not funding an environmental justice staffer to <br /> carry out these policies and engage with the community, the city is disregarding the <br /> time, effort, and experiences of injustice of the community members who advocated for <br /> these policies. Activists have been told time and time again that city staff currently has <br /> no capacity for additional but necessary environmental justice and related community <br />