Race and the Distribution of Social and Physical Environmental Risk

Abstract

Since W. E. B. Du Bois documented the physical and social environments of Philadelphia’s predominantly African American Seventh Ward over a century ago, there has been continued interest in understanding the distribution of social and physical environments by racial make-up of communities. Characterization of these environments allows for documentation of inequities, identifies communities which encounter heightened risk, and can inform action to promote health equity. In this paper, we apply and extend Du Bois’s approach to examine the contemporary distribution of physical environmental exposures, health risks, and social vulnerabilities in the Detroit metropolitan area, one of the most racially-segregated areas in the United States. We begin by mapping the proximity of sensitive populations to hazardous land uses, their exposure to air pollutants and associated health risks, and social vulnerabilities, as well as cumulative risk (combined proximity, exposure, and vulnerability), across Census tracts. Next, we assess, quantitatively, the extent to which communities of color experience excess burdens of environmental exposures and associated health risks, economic and age-related vulnerabilities, and cumulative risk. The results, depicted in maps presented in the paper, suggest that Census tracts with greater proportions of people of color disproportionately encounter physical environmental exposures, socioeconomic vulnerabilities, and combined risk. Quantitative tests of inequality confirm these distributions, with statistically greater exposures, vulnerabilities, and cumulative risk in Census tracts with larger proportions of people of color. Together, these findings identify communities that experience disproportionate cumulative risk in the Detroit metropolitan area and quantify the inequitable distribution of risk by Census tract relative to the proportion of people of color. They identify clear opportunities for prioritizing communities for legislative, regulatory, policy, and local actions to promote environmental justice and health equity.

Environmental Inequality: The Social Causes and Consequences of Lead Exposure

“…Crowder & Downey (2010) find that African Americans are both more likely to move into heavily polluted neighborhoods and less likely to leave, attributing these differences primarily to discriminatory real estate practices that restrict African Americans' and Latinos' geographical mobility. Schulz et al (2016) find that communities of color in the Detroit metropolitan area are more likely to be surrounded by hazardous facilities and are disproportionately exposed to pollution.…”

Moving Health Education and Behavior Upstream: Lessons From COVID-19 for Addressing Structural Drivers of Health Inequities

“…Racial discrimination and poverty are associated with increased prevalence of multiple chronic conditions (Blackwell et al, 2014;Williams & Mohammed, 2009), several of which (e.g., hypertension, diabetes) are linked to increased risk of COVID-19 mortality (National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, 2020). Communities of color and low-income communities have increased risk of exposure to air pollutants that are associated with increased risk of respiratory and cardiovascular disease (Schulz et al, 2016). Previous studies have demonstrated that air pollutants exacerbate the adverse health effects of other coronaviruses (e.g., SARS; Cui et al, 2003), and a recent study found heightened COVID-19 mortality in U.S. census tracts with higher levels of PM2.5, a form of air pollution (Wu et al, 2020).…”

“…Health educators can play a key role in working with communities and decision makers to make the public health argument that threats to the enforcement of existing standards must be guarded against (Morehouse, 2020), particularly for communities that experience exposures from multiple sources and pollutants. They can also advocate for the critical public health role use of Health Impact Assessments in permitting decisions, especially in areas already experiencing heightened levels of pollutants with adverse health outcomes (Schulz et al, 2016). Finally, they can work with policy makers to advocate for more rapid conversion from energy sources that emit large volumes of harmful pollutants (e.g., coal), to clean energy (e.g., solar).…”

Health and Environmental Justice Implications of Retiring Two Coal‐Fired Power Plants in the Southern Front Range Region of Colorado

“…Throughout the United States, lower income populations are more likely to live near industrial facilities such as coal-fired power plants (Collins et al, 2016;Mohai et al, 2009;Mohai & Saha, 2015;Schulz et al, 2016). Exposure to environmental pollutants generated by these industrial sources, including ambient air pollution, is inequitably distributed by class and race (Ash et al, 2013;Brown, 1995;Pastor et al, 2005;Zwickl et al, 2014) and may contribute to differences in health outcomes (Adler & Newman, 2002;Apelberg et al, 2005;Collins et al, 2011;Morello-Frosch & Jesdale, 2006;Rice et al, 2014).…”