Researchers report links between industrial pollution exposure and employment for minority groups in the United States. Debates about industrial pollution regulations are often framed in terms of a trade-off between pollution exposure and employment opportunities. Racial and ethnic minorities in the United States are disproportionately exposed to industrial air pollution, but whether these groups experience corresponding employment gains is unclear. Michael Ash and James Boyce combined US Environmental Protection Agency air pollution data with data on employment by race from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for more than 700 industrial facilities. The authors found that the share of exposure to pollution borne by black or Hispanic Americans generally exceeded that group's share of employment. On average, blacks bore 17.4% of the total pollution exposure while constituting 10.8% of employment. Hispanics bore 15% of pollution exposure while constituting 9.8% of employment. The disparity between pollution exposure and employment was larger for skilled and professional workers, less than 7% of whom were black or Hispanic. On a national level, the authors found no association between pollution exposure and the number of jobs. According to the authors, the findings suggest that strict environmental regulations may not necessarily take a toll on employment.
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Article #17-21640: "Racial disparities in pollution exposure and employment at US industrial facilities," by Michael Ash and James K. Boyce.
MEDIA CONTACT: Michael Ash, University of Massachusetts Amherst, MA; tel: 413-545-6329; e-mail: mash@econs.umass.edu
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences