Of Racism and Rubbish: The Geography of Race and Pollution in Mississippi

The notion of racism has recently taken a new twist. Using demographic variables in the description of hazardous-waste sites, the United Church of Christ Commission on Racial Justice (1987) reported a correlation between race and the location of waste-producing facilities. Charges of environmental racism and environmental injustice quickly followed. Robert D. Bullard asserts: "Environmental discrimination is defined as a disparate treatment of a group or community based on race, class, or some other distinguishing characteristic. White racism is a factor in the impoverishment of black communities and has made it easier for black residential areas to become dumping grounds for all types of health-threatening toxins and industrial pollution" (1994, 7). The charge of environmental injustice has been taken seriously. At least two national conferences have been held to review the existing research on the subject and to propose policies to alleviate the problem. The Clinton administration took steps to outlaw environmental discrimination. A 1994 executive order instructed all federal agencies to be on the lookout for evidence of such discrimination. In 1998, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was instructed to investigate facilities whose emissions have a disparate impact on minorities. Any state agency that approves such facilities is to be found in violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In this article, we add to the growing literature investigating the link between environmental waste and both minorities and the poor. We consider data on pollutants emitted in the state of Mississippi. The next section provides a brief description of externalities and an overview of the benefits and costs of government intervention. Next we provide a review of the existing pertinent literature, then present pollution and racial-demographic data, and follow that with a conclusion and final comments.