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Historical red-lining is associated with fossil fuel power plant siting and present-day inequalities in air pollutant emissions

Environmental Studies and Forestry

Historical red-lining is associated with fossil fuel power plant siting and present-day inequalities in air pollutant emissions

L. J. Cushing, S. Li, et al.

A new study reveals that historical racial biases in housing investment risk assessments may have led to environmental inequalities today, where communities of color face higher burdens of air pollution from fossil fuel power plants. This insightful research sheds light on the longstanding impacts of 'red-lining' in the U.S., conducted by Lara J. Cushing and her colleagues.

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Playback language: English
Abstract
Stationary sources of air pollution are disproportionately located in communities of color, but the causes for this disparity are unclear. This study assesses whether racialized appraisals of investment risk ('red-lining') undertaken by the US federal Home Owners' Loan Corporation in the 1930s influenced the subsequent siting of fossil fuel power plants. Across 8,871 neighborhoods in 196 US urban areas, a stepwise correlation was observed between risk grade, number of power plants, and cumulative quantity of power plant emissions upwind and within 5 km. Controlling for pre-existing power plants, 'hazardous' (D-grade, 'red-lined') neighborhoods had a higher likelihood of a fossil fuel power plant being sited and higher average present-day emissions of nitrous oxides, sulfur dioxide, and fine particulate matter compared with 'declining' (C-graded) neighborhoods. The results suggest racism in the housing market contributed to inequalities in present-day power plant emissions burdens.
Publisher
Nature Energy
Published On
Jan 15, 2023
Authors
Lara J. Cushing, Shiwen Li, Benjamin B. Steiger, Joan A. Casey
Tags
air pollution
red-lining
fossil fuel power plants
environmental justice
racial disparities
historical policies

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