Investigating structural inequalities in neighborhood air quality gains

• In Event: Inequality, Poverty, and Mobility Section Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): 13. Spatial Inequality

Abstract

Ambient particle pollution, such as PM2.5, severely impacts health outcomes and mortality even at low concentrations. The unequal distribution of PM2.5 concentrations across neighborhood environments in the US contributes to neighborhood health differentials that unequally impact different communities. This study examines how socioeconomic factors, race, and residential mobility jointly shape disparities in neighborhood air pollution exposure in the United States. I use restricted geocoded data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics linked to annual census-tract PM2.5 estimates to assess exposure differentials and year-to-year changes in PM2.5 exposure by race and income level. Statistical results show persistent racialized disparities in PM2.5 exposures, with Black, Latino, and Asian/Pacific Islander respondents experiencing substantially higher concentrations than non-Hispanic whites. Further, nonlinear modeling of the income effect reveals differential environmental returns along the socioeconomic gradient. I find that mobility does not uniformly reduce pollution exposure; however, the relationship between income and PM2.5 varies substantially across race-mobility groups. By linking granular residential histories with environmental toxicity data, this study demonstrates that spatial inequality is structured not only by where households live, but also by how social positions shape access to healthier neighborhoods over time.

Author

• Kylee Hoffman, University of California-Berkeley