Is There Environmental Racism? The Demograhics of Hazardous Waste in Los Angeles County

Examines the relationship between the location of hazardous waste facilities & the demographic characteristics of residents in Los Angeles County, CA, drawing on two proprietary datasets & publicly available statistics on all 82 treatment, storage, & disposal facilities in the county. Findings indicate that hazardous waste facilities are most likely to be located in industrial areas inhabited largely by working-class people of color. Rising income has first a positive, then a negative, impact on the probability of being located near a hazardous waste site. Race & ethnicity remain significant even when % African American/Latino are evaluated as separate groupings. 3 Tables, 2 Figures, 28 References. Adapted from the source document.