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Hurricane Harvey and people with disabilities: Disproportionate exposure to flooding in Houston, Texas

Author

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  • Chakraborty, Jayajit
  • Grineski, Sara E.
  • Collins, Timothy W.

Abstract

While numerous environmental justice (EJ) studies have found socially disadvantaged groups such as racial/ethnic minorities and low-income individuals to be disproportionately affected by environmental hazards, previous EJ research has not examined whether disabled individuals are disproportionately exposed to natural hazards. Our article addresses this gap by conducting the first distributive EJ study of the relationship between flooding caused by Hurricane Harvey and locations of people with disabilities in Harris County, the most populous county in Texas that was severely impacted by this disaster. Our objective is to determine whether the areal extent of flooding at the neighborhood (census tract) level is disproportionately distributed with respect to people with any disability and with specific types of disabilities, after controlling for relevant socio-demographic factors. Our study integrates cartographic information from Harvey's Inundation Footprint developed by the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency with data on disability and socio-demographic characteristics from the 2012–2016 American Community Survey. Statistical analyses are based on bivariate correlations and multivariate generalized estimating equations, a modeling technique appropriate for clustered data. Results indicate that the areal extent of Harvey-induced flooding is significantly greater in neighborhoods with a higher proportion of disabled residents, after controlling for race/ethnicity, socioeconomic factors, and clustering. Disabled individuals with cognitive and ambulatory difficulties are more likely to reside in neighborhoods with a higher proportion of flooded area, compared to those facing other types of difficulties. These results represent an important starting point for more detailed investigation on the disproportionate impacts associated with Hurricane Harvey for people with disabilities. Our findings also highlight the growing need to consider individuals with physical and mental disabilities in future EJ research, as well as planning and management of natural disasters.

Suggested Citation

  • Chakraborty, Jayajit & Grineski, Sara E. & Collins, Timothy W., 2019. "Hurricane Harvey and people with disabilities: Disproportionate exposure to flooding in Houston, Texas," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 226(C), pages 176-181.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:226:y:2019:i:c:p:176-181
    DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2019.02.039
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Collins, Timothy W. & Grineski, Sara E. & Morales, Danielle X., 2017. "Environmental injustice and sexual minority health disparities: A national study of inequitable health risks from air pollution among same-sex partners," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 191(C), pages 38-47.
    2. Grineski, Sara E. & Collins, Timothy W. & Morales, Danielle X., 2017. "Asian Americans and disproportionate exposure to carcinogenic hazardous air pollutants: A national study," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 185(C), pages 71-80.
    3. David C. Folch & Daniel Arribas-Bel & Julia Koschinsky & Seth E. Spielman, 2016. "Spatial Variation in the Quality of American Community Survey Estimates," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 53(5), pages 1535-1554, October.
    4. Jayajit Chakraborty & Timothy W. Collins & Sara E. Grineski & Marilyn C. Montgomery & Maricarmen Hernandez, 2014. "Comparing Disproportionate Exposure to Acute and Chronic Pollution Risks: A Case Study in Houston, Texas," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 34(11), pages 2005-2020, November.
    5. Timothy W. Collins & Sara E. Grineski & Jayajit Chakraborty & Marilyn C. Montgomery & Maricarmen Hernandez, 2015. "Downscaling Environmental Justice Analysis: Determinants of Household-Level Hazardous Air Pollutant Exposure in Greater Houston," Annals of the American Association of Geographers, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 105(4), pages 684-703, July.
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    Cited by:

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    2. Eric Tate & Md Asif Rahman & Christopher T. Emrich & Christopher C. Sampson, 2021. "Flood exposure and social vulnerability in the United States," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 106(1), pages 435-457, March.
    3. Yi Chen & Hui Liu & Zhicong Ye & Hao Zhang & Bifeng Jiang & Yang Zhang, 2022. "Social Justice in Urban–Rural Flood Exposure: A Case Study of Nanjing, China," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(9), pages 1-14, September.
    4. Vijay S. Limaye, 2021. "Making the climate crisis personal through a focus on human health," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 166(3), pages 1-11, June.
    5. Dean Kyne, 2023. "Willingness to Prepare for Disasters among Individuals with Disabilities: An Essential Component for Building Disaster Resiliency," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-18, July.

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