Environmental Justice analysis incorporating EPA TRI and CERCLA Data with New York State Demographic

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Environmental Justice analysis incorporating EPA
TRI and CERCLA Data with New York State
Demographics

• Greg Thorhaug
• CSS620 Spatial Analysis

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EJ Background

• Quantify and Evaluate the extent to which
  minorities and the poor are disprop. exposed to
  hazardous facilities and toxic releases
• Detroit, Pittsburgh,Phoenix Cleveland.all have
  shown it
• Presidential Order 12998 and EPA Environmental
  Justice Division

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Incompatible Findings

• Geographic scale used in analyses (statewide vs.
  city)
• Identification of what constitutes a hazard
• Estimations of the risks posed by various hazards
• Whats important Hard to quantify but we all see
  it

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Data Used

• EPA Toxic Release Inventory
• www.epa.gov/tri
• EPA CERCLA SuperFund Data
• New York 1990 Demographics
• www.epa.gov/region02/gis/atlas/
• online.htm

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Data Problems

• It is not geocoded in one paper TRI sites were
  found to be incorrectly located up to 40 of the
  time.(they geocoded, I will)
• I do not have annual releases for CERCLA (only
  location)
• Neither data set takes into account the toxicity
  of releases made for each site (can be done)

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Processes

• Overlay percent minority and percent below
  poverty with TRI and CERCLA sites
• Graduate TRI by linking with 1998 data for annual
  release
• Create one kilometer buffer around sites (in
  literature)
• Eventually graduate CERCLA

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Proposed Analysis

• Determine expected number of sites within
  low/high poverty areas depending on total area
• Determine observed number within low/high using
  GIS
• Calculate Chi-Squared and check for stat.
  Significance
• Perform buffer analysis in similar fashion (one
  km is precedence set in literature)
• Look at relative toxicity (maybe)

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Question of Causation

• Who was there first, the minorities or the sites?
• In the worst cases Cancer Alley minorities
  were there way before we even industrialized
• In other cases the factories seem to draw the
  minorities (only jobs they can get, cheap
  housing, etc.) but does this justify it?
• What are the deeper underlying problems (causes)
  in our country?