(Bloomberg) -- The US Justice Department is investigating Houston’s response to complaints of illegal dumping amid allegations that the city moved too slowly on reports of abandoned mattresses, tires and even dead bodies in Black and Latino communities.

The civil rights probe announced Friday was triggered by nonprofit Lone Star Legal Aid, which says calls to the city’s 311 service about trash dumped illicitly in northeast Houston don’t get answered swiftly or properly. The Justice Department will examine whether the city’s responses intentionally discriminate against -- or disproportionately threaten -- the health and safety of Black and Latino Houstonians, said Jennifer Lowery, US attorney for the Southern District of Texas.

“Equal justice does not exist where a person’s race or income determines their level of exposure to environmental hazards that trigger negative health effects and diminished quality of life,” Lowery said in a press conference. A spokeswoman for Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner didn’t immediately respond to messages seeking comment.

The investigation marks the latest effort by the Biden administration to sharpen its attack on environmental injustice. President Joe Biden has made countering environmental disparities a signature issue, having repeatedly highlighted how the impacts of pollution disproportionately fall on low-income residents and communities of color.

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