摘要：Objectives. We assessed spatial disparities in the distribution of Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) facilities in Charleston, SC. Methods. We used spatial methods and regression to assess burden disparities in the study area at the block and census-tract levels by race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status (SES). Results. Results revealed an inverse relationship between distance to TRI facilities and race/ethnicity and SES at the block and census-tract levels. Results of regression analyses showed a positive association between presence of TRI facilities and high percentage non-White and a negative association between number of TRI facilities and high SES. Conclusions. There are burden disparities in the distribution of TRI facilities in Charleston at the block and census-tract level by race/ethnicity and SES. Additional research is needed to understand cumulative risk in the region. Toxic Waste and Race in America , published in 1987, was the first comprehensive national report to demonstrate that many people-of-color communities and disadvantaged populations are differentially burdened by environmental hazards and unhealthy land uses 1 These burden disparities lead to exposure disparities, increased health risks, and environmental health disparities. 1–3 Community activists, health advocates, researchers, and public health practitioners are working to address environmental injustice, which is driven by differential power and privilege embedded in how we zone, plan, develop, and regulate. 2,3 Environmental injustice is linked to the historic pattern of exploitation, commodification, and devaluation of place, space, and people, which leads to the production of unhealthy geographies and environmental disparities. 2,3 The environmental justice movement is a social movement that includes activists and advocates struggling for the health of communities affected by disparities in burden, exposure, and environmental health. Since the 1987 report, researchers in environmental justice science (the academic arm of the environmental justice movement) have shown that these disparities continue to exist. 1 Low-income populations and populations of color continue to live in communities that suffer from the exposure and burden of environmental hazards. 1–7 These hazards may include noxious land uses such as incinerators and landfills, 8 Superfund sites, 9 Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) facilities, 4–10 sewer and water treatment plants, 5,6 and other locally unwanted land uses. 11 This disproportionate burden results in increased exposure to harmful environmental conditions for affected communities. Constant exposure to these harmful conditions results in negative health outcomes, stressed communities, and reduction in quality of life and neighborhood sustainability. 2,12 As noted in many studies, people of color and poor populations exposed to environmental hazards show increased health risks that are heavily influenced by many social factors, including racism and classism, segregation, socioeconomic status (SES), and inequities in zoning and planning. 1–7,11–16 Studies have also shown that socioeconomic vulnerability contributes to increased health disparities and variation in community health, 17,18 which further enhance the long-term effects of environmental injustice. Along with increased environmental exposure, communities overburdened by environmental hazards are also affected by associated psychosocial stressors. 2,12,14 Such stressors, coupled with inadequate health-promoting infrastructure (e.g., supermarkets, parks, open spaces, medical facilities), reduce the community’s ability to defend against the adverse health consequences of their differential burden and exposure. 2,12,14 Environmental injustice and related disparities continue to plague much of the southern United States, especially in port communities such as New Orleans, Louisiana; Savannah, Georgia; and Charleston, South Carolina. In South Carolina, limited work has been performed to assess and address burden disparities associated with the distribution of environmental hazards and unhealthy land uses. The Port of Charleston, with its 3 port terminals on the Charleston peninsula and another port terminal on the Wando River, is currently the fourth largest port in the country and the busiest in the southeastern United States. 19 In 2000, it brought in more than 5% of total US imports. 20 The port has a tremendous impact on the local and state economy, as it generates $3.5 billion a year for the Charleston area and $23 billion statewide. The South Carolina State Ports Authority plans to build a new marine container terminal on the Cooper River (on the site of the former Charleston Navy Base in North Charleston) that will open in 2017. 21,22 Charleston has also become a major port of call for cruise liners, the volume of which tripled in only 3 years. 23 This development may contribute to increased air and water pollution in nearby communities. Furthermore, the Charleston region is undergoing rapid urbanization. 23 Metropolitan Charleston is among the top 100 fastest-growing metro areas in the United States, and population expansion could lead to more use of chemicals. The region has several chemical plants, a coal-fired plant, a paper mill, Superfund sites, an incinerator site, brownfields, and 2 major wastewater treatment plants that discharge into Charleston Harbor, with additional upstream discharges into the Ashley, Wando, and Cooper rivers. The region also has a large amount of car traffic on Interstate 26. Local pollution emissions are also caused by diesel truck traffic, rail traffic, and cargo ship traffic related to the movement of goods in the region, leading to air quality problems in heavily trafficked areas. The Low Country Alliance for Model Communities (LAMC) is a community-based organization concerned about the differential burden of environmental hazards and unhealthy land use in the Charleston Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), particularly North Charleston. 24 LAMC organized in 2005 to address environmental justice and health issues in LAMC communities and develop partnerships in South Carolina to revitalize LAMC neighborhoods and other disadvantaged neighborhoods in the region. LAMC created a community–university partnership with the University of South Carolina and other stakeholders to study and address environmental justice and health issues in the region. 24 This study is part of a larger effort of the partnership to assess burden disparities associated with TRI facilities and other locally unwanted land uses in this region with significant port traffic. We assessed spatial disparities in the distribution of TRI facilities in Charleston as part of a community-driven research program to assess the cumulative burden and impact of industrial facilities and unhealthy land use in the Charleston region. We aimed to ascertain whether the racial and SES composition of census tracts with a TRI facility differs from the composition of those that do not have a TRI facility. Examination of the effects of differences in distance from a TRI facility can help determine whether these populations may have potentially higher risks of exposure and negative health outcomes. With this knowledge, LAMC will be able to engage local policymakers in the mitigation of environmental injustice and revitalization of poor and disadvantaged neighborhoods in the Charleston MSA. Furthermore, because there is limited literature on the distribution of TRI facilities in traditional southern US port cities, this research may help environmental justice groups in these communities to develop their own assessment of the spatial distribution and burden of toxic facilities.
