Environmental racism plagues our society. It actively kills people of color. It is seen through the placement of nuclear power plants, fracking, factories, and more. One of the biggest culprits is air pollution.
What is the science behind it?
Air pollution is when small particles of solids, liquids, and some gasses, called aerosols, are sent into the air. Aerosols are any particles that are suspended into the air--they can come from fires, factories, erupting volcanoes, and more. Even pollen is considered an aerosol.
Not all gasses are considered aerosols--gasses like nitrogen are already in the atmosphere. But, gasses like ozone cause air pollution. Ozone is a greenhouse gas that can have a positive or negative effect on the atmosphere. It depends on where it is located. High in the atmosphere, ozone has a positive impact, creating the ozone layer. Lower in the atmosphere, it has a negative impact, causing damage to the environment and animals' health. The ozone closer to the ground is a result of burning fossil fuels. Smog, a kind of air pollution that looks like fog, is created when other aerosols and ozone are combined. Noxious gasses are also aerosols. These gasses include carbon monoxide, sulfur oxides, and more. They are produced by driving cars and burning fossil fuels. These noxious gasses also harm the environment.
Breathing in air pollution can kill. We inhale the aerosols and they break through the epithelial cells on our lungs (the lungs' protective barrier). In the lungs, air pollution causes inflammation. This causes more mucus production, the narrowing of the airways, and the swelling of the airways--all of which leads to airflow limitation. This results in diseases such as asthma and emphysema. The immune system tries to defend the immune system to defend the respiratory system. The toxic particles then penetrate the immune system, which can cause DNA damage and cancer. Although it is not fully understood how aerosols cause cancer, a clear correlation has been demonstrated.
The aerosols enter our bloodstream, causing inflammation and constriction in our blood vessels. That results in high blood pressure. The particles force out fatty plaque which causes clots--stopping blood flow from the heart or brain. This can result in a stroke or heart attack.
Asthma Alley
In 2014, in the South Bronx neighborhood, Mott Haven, protestors went to the streets. More than 97% of Mott Haven's residents are people of color. They waved posters, asking "How many lives do we have to lose before you stop polluting our air?" The protest was prompted by Fresh Direct, a food delivery organization, placing a warehouse there.
In 2012, the building of the warehouse was announced. It was said the creation of the warehouse would bring more jobs to the neighborhood and increase accessibility to healthier foods. But the benefits are outweighed by the detrimental effects the project has on air pollution. Traffic, and therefore air pollution, would increase because there would be an influx of delivery trucks driving in and out of Mott Haven. This neighborhood already had extremely high asthma levels due to the Major Deegan Expressway running through it. The asthma levels, and consequent hospitalizations, were expected to increase with the addition of the delivery trucks running in and out of the neighborhood.
South Bronx Unite, an advocacy alliance of community groups, filed a lawsuit stating Fresh Direct and the officials who approved Fresh Direct's warehouse, neglecting the environmental and health impacts. The court sided with Fresh Direct.
In 2021, the warehouse is still there, and the citizens are still upset. The promise of accessibility to healthier foods was not kept-- Fresh Direct predominantly delivers to affluent areas of Manhattan and Brooklyn. When complaints were made from South Bronx Unite, Fresh Direct refused to comment.
In the United States, 6.4% of White children have been diagnosed with asthma, while 13.5% of non-Hispanic Black children have been, and 7.5% of Hispanic children have-- demonstrating disproportionate asthma levels. This is because of the treatment of neighborhoods of color such as Mott Haven. Children are dying.
Cancer Alley
Along the Mississippi River, in between New Orleans and Baton Rouge, lay petrochemical plants and oil refineries. They release energy through a series of reactions by burning fossil fuels and pollute the air. The towns in this area are ravaged by these plants. Nearby towns include St. Gabriel and Freetown--both neighborhoods of color. In these towns, smokestacks are as common as grass. People have stopped sitting outside because chemicals can drop on them like rain. The leaves have turned black because of the pollution.
In 1993, residents of Iberville Parish voted to become a part of the new city of St. Gabriel. Being a part of St. Gabriel could have more power over the chemical plants polluting their air. And the city did that--they were able to keep their plants out. But, the chemical plants began to pile up just outside of St. Gabriel.
While the air quality in Cancer Alley has improved since the 1980s, residents are still 50 times more likely to get cancer than the average American. Recently, toxic air pollution has been increasing. More chemical plants are being built in or near communities that already have extremely dangerous air quality levels. Most of these communities are communities of color. That being said, White neighborhoods such as Ascension Parish are still extremely affected.
Chemical plants are continuing to be approved by government officials. For example, the Shintech ethylene plant is being built, which increased the level of air toxicity by 16%. While officials who work in these plants argue the plant's social and economic benefits outweigh the environmental impacts--I believe this is false. The creation of more chemical plants worsens a problem for so many, killing so many. When are these communities going to stop being targeted?
The locations of the petrochemical plants are racist in themselves. A 14-plant complex was built in 2014, on the burial ground of enslaved people. Not only are the corporations increasing the toxicity in the air, but they are also culturally insensitive, putting profit over the livelihood of the residents.
The health problem has been accentuated by the coronavirus pandemic. In April 2020, St. John the Baptist Parish had the nation's highest per capita coronavirus death rate.
How Did This Happen?
When suburbs were created, they were not created for people of color. They were targeted to lower-middle-class White families, while people of color were sent to urban areas. This was done by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) through redlining--a policy in which the FHA refused to insure mortgages in and in the areas surrounding communities of color. They were also funding the construction of the suburbs--but they would remove funding if the houses were sold to African-Americans. The FHA argued that if African-Americans bought houses in the White neighborhoods, the property value of the homes would decrease, and the FHA's loans would be at risk. Actually, when African-Americans moved into White neighborhoods, the property value would increase because they would often pay more than White people moving into the neighborhood. After all, housing was so restricted. Color-coded maps were created-- signaling which areas were not safe to insure mortgages. These maps were created in the depression era.
The impacts of redlining are shown today. The areas that were seen as hazardous to invest in, are still predominantly areas of color today. These areas include Mott Haven. The"hazardous" areas are often the areas that have highways running through them, the areas that have petrochemical plants built, and the areas in which air pollution runs rampant. This is not a coincidence. Communities of color are being targeted.
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This was super interesting! It is crazy how government seems to always side with larger corporations over the well being of their citizens (unless, of course, those citizens also have a lot of money). The Government is able to distance themselves from the issue, but pollution problems are very real for the people living in affected areas.
ReplyDeleteIt was really interesting to read about how air pollution actually leads to higher rates of asthma, and how chemical plants can lead to cancer. I would say that it is surprising that this trend is not talked about more, but seeing as the perpetrators are mainly large corporations with the support of the government, I guess it is not
ReplyDeleteThis post was so fascinating! Super interesting to read about the government’s role in these kinds of issues!
ReplyDeleteIn particular, the knowledge that the issues discussed in this post still haven't been addressed is somewhat chilling. People are still dying out there. Very eye-opening post.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great article that raises so many important issues. Good job!
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