Air pollution impacts from warehousing in the United States uncovered with satellite data

Gaige Hunter Kerr (), Michelle Meyer, Daniel L. Goldberg, Joshua Miller and Susan C. Anenberg
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Gaige Hunter Kerr: George Washington University
Michelle Meyer: International Council on Clean Transportation
Daniel L. Goldberg: George Washington University
Joshua Miller: International Council on Clean Transportation
Susan C. Anenberg: George Washington University

Nature Communications, 2024, vol. 15, issue 1, 1-9

Abstract: Abstract Regulators, environmental advocates, and community groups in the United States (U.S.) are concerned about air pollution associated with the proliferating e-commerce and warehousing industries. Nationwide datasets of warehouse locations, traffic, and satellite observations of the traffic-related pollutant nitrogen dioxide (NO2) provide a unique capability to evaluate the air quality and environmental equity impacts of these geographically-dispersed emission sources. Here, we show that the nearly 150,000 warehouses in the U.S. worsen local traffic-related air pollution with an average near-warehouse NO2 enhancement of nearly 20% and are disproportionately located in marginalized and minoritized communities. Near-warehouse truck traffic and NO2 significantly increase as warehouse density and the number of warehouse loading docks and parking spaces increase. Increased satellite-observed NO2 near warehouses underscores the need for indirect source rules, incentives for replacing old trucks, and corporate commitments towards electrification. Future ground-based monitoring campaigns may help track impacts of individual or small clusters of facilities.

Date: 2024
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-50000-0

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