Civil rights leaders, sociologists, policy-makers, and scientists contend that biases within environmental policy-making and discriminatory market forces, have created a disproportionate prevalence of hazardous pollution among the poor and communities of color. Underlying these claims is the belief that pollution plays an important, albeit poorly understood, role in the complex pattern of disparate health status diverse communities in the U.S. Yet causally linking the presence of environmental pollution with adverse health effects is an ongoing challenge, particularly in situations where populations are chronically exposed to complex, chemical mixtures. Recent advances in current air emissions inventories and ambient air exposure modeling data can be used to assess whether exposure to air pollution disproportionately impacts health risks for the poor and communities of color. This study provides such an analysis of air toxics in Southern California, examining over 148 air toxics listed under the 1990 Clear Air Act. Results indicate that race/ethnicity plays a persistent explanatory role in the distribution of estimated lifetime cancer risks associated with outdoor air toxics. After controlling for factors such as population density, land use patterns, income, and wealth indicators, race/ethnicity was consistently and positively associated with higher cancer risks. Racial disparities in risks persist across economic strata, although the gap narrows at higher income levels. Cancer risks from air toxics overall exceeded the Clean Air Act goal of one in a million by one or two orders of magnitude, and on average these risks are attributable mostly to transportation and small area source emissions.
Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this oral presentation, participants will be able to: 1) Articulate the process for conducting cumulative cancer risk assessment that accounts for the exposure realities of diverse populations to outdoor air toxics. 2) Evaluate how disparities in exposures have implications for differences in community susceptibility to the cancer risks associated with air toxics. 3) Recognize the complex interaction of demographic and economic determinants of exposures and health risks associated with outdoor air pollution. 4) Assess the utility of cancer risk assessment for providing information for communities and policy-makers who are grappling with environmental equity issues
Keywords: Air Pollutants, Environmental Justice
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.