Spatial disparity in the distribution of superfund sites in South Carolina: an ecological study

Abstract

BackgroundAccording to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Superfund is a federal government program implemented to clean up uncontrolled hazardous waste sites. Twenty-six sites in South Carolina (SC) have been included on the National Priorities List (NPL), which has serious human health and environmental implications. The purpose of this study was to assess spatial disparities in the distribution of Superfund sites in SC.MethodsThe 2000 US census tract and block level data were used to generate population characteristics, which included race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status (SES), education, home ownership, and home built before 1950. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) were used to map Superfund facilities and develop choropleth maps based on the aforementioned sociodemographic variables. Spatial methods, including mean and median distance analysis, buffer analysis, and spatial approximation were employed to characterize burden disparities. Regression analysis was performed to assess the relationship between the number of Superfund facilities and population characteristics.ResultsSpatial coincidence results showed that of the 29.5% of Blacks living in SC, 55.9% live in Superfund host census tracts. Among all populations in SC living below poverty (14.2%), 57.2% were located in Superfund host census tracts. Buffer analyses results (0.5mi, 1.0mi, 5.0mi, 0.5km, 1.0km, and 5.0km) showed a higher percentage of Whites compared to Blacks hosting a Superfund facility. Conversely, a slightly higher percentage of Blacks hosted (30.2%) a Superfund facility than those not hosting (28.8%) while their White counterparts had more equivalent values (66.7% and 67.8%, respectively). Regression analyses in the reduced model (Adj. R2 = 0.038) only explained a small percentage of the variance. In addition, the mean distance for percent of Blacks in the 90th percentile for Superfund facilities was 0.48mi.ConclusionBurden disparities exist in the distribution of Superfund facilities in SC at the block and census tract levels across varying levels of demographic composition for race/ethnicity and SES.

A Cluster Analysis of USA Superfund Sites and Associated Cancer Risk

“…The same study also found a cluster of elevated rates of gastrointestinal cancers in counties located in EPA Region 3 (Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia), an area with many Superfund sites [2]. There have been several Environmental Justice studies conducted to try to determine which segments of the population are most adversely affected by Superfund sites [3], [4], [5]. Most research suggests that non-white populations as well as Hispanic populations are more likely to live near Superfund sites [3], [4], [5].…”

“…Most research suggests that non-white populations as well as Hispanic populations are more likely to live near Superfund sites [3], [4], [5]. Some studies have also found that areas with higher levels of poverty and lower levels of education may also be impacted [3], [4], [5]. However, the roles of race and ethnicity seem to be larger indicators than poverty and education [3], [4].…”

“…There have been several Environmental Justice studies conducted to try to determine which segments of the population are most adversely affected by Superfund sites [3], [4], [5]. Most research suggests that non-white populations as well as Hispanic populations are more likely to live near Superfund sites [3], [4], [5]. Some studies have also found that areas with higher levels of poverty and lower levels of education may also be impacted [3], [4], [5].…”

A Spatial Study of the Location of Superfund Sites and Associated Cancer Risk

“…However, race and ethnicity seem to play a larger role than poverty and education (Boer et al 1997;Burwell-Naney et al 2013). Recently, potential associations between Superfund locations in Florida and cancer incidence were studied (Kirpich and Leary 2016), but there is no published study on clusters of superfund sites covering the entire contiguous USA.…”

“…There have been several environmental justice studies conducted to determine which segments of the population are most adversely affected by Superfund sites (Boer et al 1997;Stretesky and Hogan 1998;Burwell-Naney et al 2013). Most research suggests that non-white populations as well as Hispanic populations are more likely to live near Superfund sites.…”