After three decades, most polluted U.S. neighborhoods haven't changed
Source: Reuters
ENVIRONMENT JULY 30, 2020 / 2:20 PM / UPDATED AN HOUR AGO
After three decades, most polluted U.S. neighborhoods haven't changed
Nichola Groom
4 MIN READ
(Reuters) - If your neighborhood was among the most polluted in 1981, it probably still is.
Likewise, the least polluted areas are still faring the best, according to a study published on Thursday in the journal Science that analyzed concentrations of fine particulate matter over more than three decades in the United States.
Overall, pollution from fine particulate matter fell about 70% between 1981 and 2016, the study found. In that time, air quality has improved dramatically across the country thanks to tighter air quality regulations, cleaner vehicles and fewer coal-fired power plants, experts have found.
But the communities most exposed to higher levels of pollution remain the same, the study found. That suggests the United States is falling short on its decades-long policy goal of reducing the disproportionate level of exposure to environmental hazards faced mostly by low-income communities of color.
“Disadvantaged communities remain persistently exposed to higher levels of air pollution,” said study co-author Jonathan Colmer, an economist at the University of Virginia. “This was true in 1980, it was true in 1990, 2000, 2010, and so on.”
The study comes four months after the Trump administration rejected a recommendation from scientists at the Environmental Protection Agency to tighten air quality regulations, arguing the current standards are adequate for protecting human health.
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Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-environment-pollution/after-three-decades-most-polluted-u-s-neighborhoods-havent-changed-idUSKCN24V3BS
