Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #115287

Elizabeth W. Holt, Environmental Health Sciences, Yale School of Epidemiology and Public Health, 60 College Street, P.O. Box 208034, New Haven, CT 06511, 203-789-2051, elizabeth.w.holt@yale.edu

Environmental justice policy-makers and community activists are faced with the challenge of assessing whether or not neighborhoods have been unfairly burdened with hazardous environmental exposures. It is often unclear whether toxic exposure facilities are purposely sited in neighborhoods with certain sociodemographic characteristics or whether neighborhood demographics are the result of existing toxic facilities. Existing cross-sectional exposure/demographic assessments shed little insight into the temporal nature of environmental justice questions. This paper takes a longitudinal approach, assessing the change over time in the sociodemographic variables of the census blocks immediately surrounding toxic environmental exposures. Geographic Information Systemsİ mapping software was used to identify the three highest areas of high TRI facility density, or "hot-spots" in the Greater New Orleans Area. Statistical analytical techniques were then used to assess how hot-spot neighborhood demographics changed between 1990 and 2000 compared to changes in the entire New Orleans area. The analysis showed that some variables in the TRI hot-spots showed greater than expected changes when compared to control. Between 1990 and 2000, percent African-American increased, percent Caucasion decreased, and percent Hispanic/Latino stayed stable within the hot-spots. No significant change was observed between median income or percent bachelor's degree between 1990 and 2000 in the hot-spots.

Learning Objectives:

• -Identify areas of high density of TRI release facilities in Greater New Orleans (1990 and 2000)
• -Longitudinally assess census block sociodemographic change in TRI dense areas

Keywords: Environmental Justice, Environmental Exposures

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.