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Racial disparities in pollution exposure and employment at US industrial facilities

Author

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  • Michael Ash

    (Department of Economics, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01002; Political Economy Research Institute, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01002; School of Public Policy, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003)

  • James K. Boyce

    (Department of Economics, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01002; Political Economy Research Institute, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01002)

Abstract

Proximity to industrial facilities can have positive employment effects as well as negative pollution exposure impacts on surrounding communities. Although racial disparities in exposure to industrial air pollution in the United States are well documented, there has been little empirical investigation of whether these disparities are mirrored by employment benefits. We use facility-level data from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) and the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission EEO-1 database to assess the extent to which the racial and ethnic distribution of industrial employment corresponds to the distribution of exposure to air toxics emitted by the same facilities. The share of pollution risk accruing to minority groups generally exceeds their share of employment and exceeds their share of higher paying jobs by a wide margin. We find no evidence that facilities that create higher pollution risk for surrounding communities provide more jobs in aggregate.

Suggested Citation

  • Michael Ash & James K. Boyce, 2018. "Racial disparities in pollution exposure and employment at US industrial facilities," Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 115(42), pages 10636-10641, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:nas:journl:v:115:y:2018:p:10636-10641
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    Cited by:

    1. Alex Hollingsworth & Ivan Rudik, 2021. "The Effect of Leaded Gasoline on Elderly Mortality: Evidence from Regulatory Exemptions," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, American Economic Association, vol. 13(3), pages 345-373, August.
    2. Starr, Jared & Nicolson, Craig & Ash, Michael & Markowitz, Ezra M. & Moran, Daniel, 2023. "Assessing U.S. consumers' carbon footprints reveals outsized impact of the top 1%," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 205(C).
    3. Jelonia T. Rumph & Victoria R. Stephens & Joanie L. Martin & LaKendria K. Brown & Portia L. Thomas & Ayorinde Cooley & Kevin G. Osteen & Kaylon L. Bruner-Tran, 2022. "Uncovering Evidence: Associations between Environmental Contaminants and Disparities in Women’s Health," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(3), pages 1-22, January.
    4. Jacqz, Irene, 2022. "Toxic test scores: The impact of chemical releases on standardized test performance within U.S. schools," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 115(C).
    5. Davide, Di Fonzo & Alessandra, Fabri & Roberto, Pasetto, 2022. "Distributive justice in environmental health hazards from industrial contamination: A systematic review of national and near-national assessments of social inequalities," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 297(C).
    6. Rüttenauer, Tobias & Best, Henning, 2020. "Perceived Pollution and Residential Sorting in Germany: Income May Not Sort, But it Helps to Escape," SocArXiv wdu2n, Center for Open Science.
    7. Dustin T. Hill & Elizabeth S. Vidon & Mary B. Collins, 2020. "Public money and private interests: United States government contract awardees’ contribution to industrial pollution production," Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Springer;Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, vol. 10(3), pages 213-225, September.
    8. Cappelli, Federica, 2020. "Investigating the Origins of Differentiated Vulnerabilities to Climate Change and their Effects on Wellbeing," FACTS: Firms And Cities Towards Sustainability 307987, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei (FEEM) > FACTS: Firms And Cities Towards Sustainability.
    9. Shijie Wang & Laijun Zhao & Yong Yang & Chenchen Wang & Jian Xue & Xin Bo & Deqiang Li & Dengguo Liu, 2019. "A Joint Control Model Based on Emission Rights Futures Trading for Regional Air Pollution That Accounts for the Impacts on Employment," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(21), pages 1-17, October.
    10. Ralph P. Hall & Robert Ashford & Nicholas A. Ashford & Johan Arango-Quiroga, 2019. "Universal Basic Income and Inclusive Capitalism: Consequences for Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(16), pages 1-29, August.
    11. Neier, Thomas, 2023. "The green divide: A spatial analysis of segregation-based environmental inequality in Vienna," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 213(C).
    12. Ohler, Adrienne, 2023. "The Economics of Environmental Health Disparities: Who Benefits from Coal Power Plant Closures?," 2023 Annual Meeting, July 23-25, Washington D.C. 335760, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.

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