 Whose Risk in Philadelphia? Proximity to Unequally Hazardous Industrial Facilities*Diane Sicotte and Samantha Swanson Social Science Quarterly, 2007, vol. 88, issue 2, 515-534 Abstract: Objective. Few researchers have investigated who lives near the worst polluting facilities. In this study, we test for disparate impact from hazardous industrial and infrastructure facilities on racial/ethnic minorities, the disadvantaged, the working class, and manufacturing workers in the nine‐county Philadelphia MSA. Methods. Hazard Scores for Philadelphia‐area facilities in EPA's Risk‐Screening Environmental Indicators (RSEI) database were calculated and facilities mapped onto Census block group maps. One‐kilometer buffer zones around facilities were created and intersected with Census data on population inside and outside buffers. After correcting for spatial autocorrelation, we tested for relationships between Hazard Scores and characteristics of people near facilities using multivariate regression. Results. Hazard Scores rose along with percents black, Hispanic, disadvantaged, and employed in manufacturing in some (but not all) counties. Conclusions. Among those living near polluting facilities, minorities, the poor, and manufacturing workers lived near the most hazardous, constituting a disparate impact on these groups. Date: 2007 Downloads: (external link) Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:bla:socsci:v:88:y:2007:i:2:p:515-534 Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from Access Statistics for this article Social Science Quarterly is currently edited by Robert L. Lineberry More articles in Social Science Quarterly from Southwestern Social Science Association |
Is your work missing from RePEc? Here is how to contribute.
Questions or problems? Check the EconPapers FAQ or send mail to .
EconPapers is hosted by the
School of Business at Örebro University.