Doctoral Dissertation Research: Exposure to Environmental Hazards: Analyzing the Location and Distribution of Landfills in the Contiguous United States

Tulane University, New Orleans LA

Investigators

Abstract

SES-1602813 Kevin Gotham Clare Cannon Tulane University This research examines who is impacted in the contiguous United States by environmental hazards in the form of landfills (all types?construction and demolition, industrial, and municipal) and in what ways are people exposed to such socio-environmental inequalities. Much research has shown that people, based on their social location, differentially experience exposure to environmental hazards. This research seeks to add to our understanding of who is affected, to what extent, and why some people may experience greater exposure to environmental harms than others. Furthermore, this research implements an intersectionality approach in the investigation of who is affected by environmental harms. To answer these questions, this research will test for and identify the socioeconomic, ethnic/racial, and gender-based determinants of the spatial location and distribution of landfills in the United States. For this research project, the co-PI will create a novel dataset of all types of landfills (e.g., construction and demolition (C&D), industrial, municipal, disaster-generated) at the county level across the contiguous United States in conjunction with data from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Census Bureau to answer research questions. These data will be used to test several hypotheses concerning whether the socioeconomic status, racial/ethnic status, or gender status of a community is a major predictor in the level of exposure to landfills. The data will be analyzed using GIS mapping, OLS regression, and structural equation modeling to obtain a predictive model for the spatial location and distribution of landfills. Theoretically derived hypotheses will be tested by combining quantitative data and statistical analyses on the location of landfills with qualitative interviews of andomly selected households (N = 30-40 respondents) living near five randomly selected landfills. Interview data will provide novel insights on how residents living near landfills assess environmental risk, how they view landfills as hazards, and the decision-making processes underlying their views of environmental degradation and inequality. Empirically, we seek to identify the factors that predict landfill location and distribution across the U.S., an important issue given that landfill distribution may reflect and reinforce differential access to privileges, resources, risks, and vulnerabilities. Theoretically, we aim to understand whether and how environmental inequality and risk are influenced by racial minority status, poverty and socioeconomic status, or gender status.