An environmental justice analysis of air pollution emissions in the United States from 1970 to 2010

Abstract

Over the last decades, air pollution emissions have decreased substantially; however, inequities in air pollution persist. We evaluate county-level racial/ethnic and socioeconomic disparities in emissions changes from six air pollution source sectors (industry [SO2], energy [SO2, NOx], agriculture [NH3], commercial [NOx], residential [particulate organic carbon], and on-road transportation [NOx]) in the contiguous United States during the 40 years following the Clean Air Act (CAA) enactment (1970-2010). We calculate relative emission changes and examine the differential changes given county demographics using hierarchical nested models. The results show racial/ethnic disparities, particularly in the industry and energy generation source sectors. We also find that median family income is a driver of variation in relative emissions changes in all sectors—counties with median family income >$75 K vs. less generally experience larger relative declines in industry, energy, transportation, residential, and commercial-related emissions. Emissions from most air pollution source sectors have, on a national level, decreased following the United States CAA. In this work, we show that the relative reductions in emissions varied across racial/ethnic and socioeconomic groups.

Understanding the Cardiovascular and Metabolic Health Effects of Air Pollution in the Context of Cumulative Exposomic Impacts

“…60,63,64 There are 2 hypotheses driving these disparities, either that the populations themselves are more susceptible due to chronic disadvantage or they have higher risks because of increased exposures. 65,66 Also, often, it is difficult to disentangle the effects of minority status from differences in SES.…”

Evaluation of New Opportunities for Marine Energy To Power the Blue Economy: Green Hydrogen and Marine Carbon Dioxide Removal

“…In addition to contributing to global warming, high concentrations of NOx can lead to acute and chronic illnesses such as respiratory irritation/infection and asthma (Environmental Protection Agency 2023). In the United States, racial/ethnic minorities and those of lower socioeconomic status are disproportionately impacted by higher NOx concentrations (Nunez et al 2024), and environmental justice advocates worry that the shift to a hydrogen economy will only exacerbate these disparities (Energy Innovation 2022).…”