Journal Article Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't Ppublish 23 citations
PubMed: 37036985 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2208450120
Disparities in ambient nitrogen dioxide pollution in the United States.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 120(16):e2208450120
Authors: Yifan Wang, Pengfei Liu, Joel Schwartz, Edgar Castro, Wenhao Wang, Howard Chang, Noah Scovronick, Liuhua Shi
Affiliations
- Gangarosa Department of Environmental Health, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322.
- School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30322.
- Department of Environmental Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115.
- Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322.
Abstract
Average ambient concentrations of nitrogen dioxide (NO 2), an important air pollutant, have declined in the United States since the enactment of the Clean Air Act. Despite evidence that NO 2 disproportionately affects racial/ethnic minority groups, it remains unclear what drives the exposure disparities and how they have changed over time. Here, we provide evidence by integrating high-resolution (1 km × 1 km) ground-level NO 2 estimates, sociodemographic information, and source-specific emission intensity and location for 217,740 block groups across the contiguous United States from 2000 to 2016. We show that racial/ethnic minorities are disproportionately exposed to higher levels of NO 2 pollution compared with Whites across the United States and within major metropolitan areas. These inequities persisted over time and have worsened in many cases, despite a significant decrease in the national average NO 2 concentration over the 17-y study period. Overall, traffic contributes the largest fraction of NO 2 disparity. Contributions of other emission sources to exposure disparities vary by location. Our analyses offer insights into policies aimed at reducing air pollution exposure disparities among races/ethnicities and locations.
MeSH
Air Pollution, Environmental Pollution
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