A Qualitative Examination of Factors Shaping Exposures to Hazardous Air Pollutants Among Hispanic Households in Miami

• In Event: 331 - Section on Environment and Technology Refereed Roundtable Session and Business Meeting
  In Refereed Roundtable 60min: Table 13. Environment and Health

Abstract

Hispanics suffer disproportionately from exposure to toxic pollution hazards, but little is known about the specific factors that lead some Hispanics to high risk neighborhoods and protect others from similar risks. This study advances environmental justice scholarship by using comparative interview-based methods to clarify factors shaping Hispanic people’s residential decision-making and their associated exposures to hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) in the Miami Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is home to one of the most diverse Hispanic populations in the US. We use 22 in-depth interviews conducted with Hispanic householders living at high and low risk to HAPs, drawn from a larger representative survey of residents. For Hispanics at high risk, economic constraints, family ties, desiring a central location, a sense of community, and comfort in a shared culture contributed to their residences in high risk locations. In contrast, protective factors for Hispanics living at low risk included the desire to live in an ethnically diverse setting, the ease of finding service work, and preferring environmental amenities and exclusivity. Findings demonstrate that there are considerable differences in factors shaping residential decision-making of low and high risk Hispanic residents, but that all were influenced by economic, socio-cultural, and environmental considerations to varying degrees.

Authors

• Jonathan Israel Rocha, University of Texas at El Paso

• Sara Elizabeth Grineski, University of Texas at El Paso

• Timothy William Collins, University of Texas-El Paso