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Batbaatar N, Smith A, Jia C, Naser AM, Mou X, Vidal G, Starlard-Davenport A. Association of environmental factors with breast cancer incidence among African American women in Memphis, Tennessee. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH RESEARCH 2024:1-13. [PMID: 39267524 DOI: 10.1080/09603123.2024.2400702] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2024] [Accepted: 09/01/2024] [Indexed: 09/17/2024]
Abstract
African American (AA) women confront distinct disparities in breast cancer rates, and the impact of their living environment is unclear. This study aimed to examine the association between breast cancer incidence and environmental factors among a high-risk female population. The study recruited 355 AA women ages 20-88 in Memphis from 2016-2018. Their addresses were geocoded and linked to environmental and socioeconomic data. The final dataset contained 50 cases and 157 controls. Associations between breast cancer incidence and social and environmental factors were examined using logistic regression. Spatial analysis in ArcGIS showed that cases clustered in Southwest Memphis. Proximity to traffic and Superfund sites had odds ratios of 1.636 (95% CI: 25 1.046, 2.560) and 12.262 (95% CI: 1.814, 82.864), respectively. Mediating analyses further revealed that environmental inequities contributed significantly to breast cancer inequalities. In conclusion, the built environment plays a role in breast cancer onset among AA females.
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Affiliation(s)
- Namuun Batbaatar
- School of Public Health, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Alana Smith
- Department of Genetics, Genomics and Informatics, College of Medicine, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Chunrong Jia
- School of Public Health, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Abu Mohd Naser
- School of Public Health, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Xichen Mou
- School of Public Health, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Gregory Vidal
- West Cancer Center and the Lee S. Schwartzberg Research Institute, Memphis, TN, USA
- College of Medicine, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Athena Starlard-Davenport
- Department of Genetics, Genomics and Informatics, College of Medicine, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, TN, USA
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2
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Berberian AG, Morello-Frosch R, Karasaki S, Cushing LJ. Climate Justice Implications of Natech Disasters: Excess Contaminant Releases during Hurricanes on the Texas Gulf Coast. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2024; 58:14180-14192. [PMID: 39078622 PMCID: PMC11325638 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.3c10797] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/31/2024]
Abstract
Extreme weather events are becoming more severe due to climate change, increasing the risk of contaminant releases from hazardous sites disproportionately located in low-income communities of color. We evaluated contaminant releases during Hurricanes Rita, Ike, and Harvey in Texas and used regression models to estimate associations between neighborhood racial/ethnic composition and residential proximity to hurricane-related contaminant releases. Two-to-three times as many excess releases were reported during hurricanes compared to business-as-usual periods. Petrochemical manufacturing and refineries were responsible for most air emissions events. Multivariable models revealed sociodemographic disparities in likelihood of releases; compared to neighborhoods near regulated facilities without a release, a one-percent increase in Hispanic residents was associated with a 5 and 10% increase in the likelihood of an air emissions event downwind and within 2 km during Hurricanes Rita and Ike (odds ratio and 95% credible interval= 1.05 [1.00, 1.13], combined model) and Harvey (1.10 [1.00, 1.23]), respectively. Higher percentages of renters (1.07 [1.03, 1.11], combined Rita and Ike model) and rates of poverty (1.06 [1.01, 1.12], Harvey model) were associated with a higher likelihood of a release to land or water, while the percentage of Black residents (0.94 [0.89, 1.00], Harvey model) was associated with a slightly lower likelihood. Population density was consistently associated with a decreased likelihood of a contaminant release to air, land, or water. Our findings highlight social inequalities in the risks posed by natural-technological disasters that disproportionately impact Hispanic, renter, low-income, and rural populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alique G Berberian
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095, United States
| | - Rachel Morello-Frosch
- Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management and School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
| | - Seigi Karasaki
- Energy and Resources Group, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
| | - Lara J Cushing
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095, United States
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3
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Yin JH, Horzmann KA. Embryonic Zebrafish as a Model for Investigating the Interaction between Environmental Pollutants and Neurodegenerative Disorders. Biomedicines 2024; 12:1559. [PMID: 39062132 PMCID: PMC11275083 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines12071559] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2024] [Revised: 07/08/2024] [Accepted: 07/11/2024] [Indexed: 07/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Environmental pollutants have been linked to neurotoxicity and are proposed to contribute to neurodegenerative disorders. The zebrafish model provides a high-throughput platform for large-scale chemical screening and toxicity assessment and is widely accepted as an important animal model for the investigation of neurodegenerative disorders. Although recent studies explore the roles of environmental pollutants in neurodegenerative disorders in zebrafish models, current knowledge of the mechanisms of environmentally induced neurodegenerative disorders is relatively complex and overlapping. This review primarily discusses utilizing embryonic zebrafish as the model to investigate environmental pollutants-related neurodegenerative disease. We also review current applicable approaches and important biomarkers to unravel the underlying mechanism of environmentally related neurodegenerative disorders. We found embryonic zebrafish to be a powerful tool that provides a platform for evaluating neurotoxicity triggered by environmentally relevant concentrations of neurotoxic compounds. Additionally, using variable approaches to assess neurotoxicity in the embryonic zebrafish allows researchers to have insights into the complex interaction between environmental pollutants and neurodegenerative disorders and, ultimately, an understanding of the underlying mechanisms related to environmental toxicants.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Katharine A. Horzmann
- Department of Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849, USA;
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4
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Trasande L. The role of plastics in allergy, immunology, and human health: What the clinician needs to know and can do about it. Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol 2024:S1081-1206(24)00417-4. [PMID: 38945394 DOI: 10.1016/j.anai.2024.06.029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2024] [Revised: 06/13/2024] [Accepted: 06/24/2024] [Indexed: 07/02/2024]
Abstract
The effects of plastics on human health include allergy, atopy, asthma, and immune disruption, but the consequences of chemicals used in plastic materials span nearly every organ system and age group as well. Behavioral interventions to reduce plastic chemical exposures have reduced exposure in low- and high-income populations, yet health care providers know little about plastic chemical effects and seldom offer steps to patients to limit exposure. Health care facilities also use many products that increase the risk of chemical exposures, particularly for at-risk populations such as children in neonatal intensive care units. Given that disparities in plastic chemical exposure are well documented, collaborative efforts are needed between scientists and health care organizations, to develop products that improve provider knowledge about chemicals used in plastic materials and support the use of safer alternatives in medical devices and other equipment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leonardo Trasande
- Department of Pediatrics, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, New York; Department of Population Health, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, New York; NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, New York, New York.
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5
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Uekert T, Walzberg J, Wikoff HM, Doyle MM, Carpenter AC. Strategies for Considering Environmental Justice in the Early-Stage Development of Circular Economy Technologies. ACS SUSTAINABLE CHEMISTRY & ENGINEERING 2024; 12:8307-8312. [PMID: 38845759 PMCID: PMC11151278 DOI: 10.1021/acssuschemeng.4c02205] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2024] [Revised: 05/15/2024] [Accepted: 05/16/2024] [Indexed: 06/09/2024]
Abstract
The circular economy could transform how industry and society approach resources and waste, resulting in significant environmental justice (EJ) implications. However, there are few resources for analyzing the EJ impacts of new circular economy technologies before they are deployed. This work presents an EJ framework tailored for early stage circular economy technologies and showcases its capabilities through a case study on enzymatic plastic recycling. By providing concise, actionable, and accessible guidelines based on technology readiness levels and a series of 20 questions, the framework empowers both experts and nonexperts to evaluate the justice implications of circular economy solutions. Preliminary user feedback highlights the approachability of the framework and its corresponding interactive worksheet, as well as their potential to stimulate innovative thinking toward a more just and sustainable future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Taylor Uekert
- Strategic
Energy Analysis Center, National Renewable
Energy Laboratory, Golden, Colorado 80401, United States
- Bio-Optimized
Technologies to keep Thermoplastics out of Landfills and the Environment
(BOTTLE) Consortium, Golden, Colorado 80401, United States
| | - Julien Walzberg
- Strategic
Energy Analysis Center, National Renewable
Energy Laboratory, Golden, Colorado 80401, United States
| | - Hope M. Wikoff
- Strategic
Energy Analysis Center, National Renewable
Energy Laboratory, Golden, Colorado 80401, United States
| | - Meredith M. Doyle
- Bio-Optimized
Technologies to keep Thermoplastics out of Landfills and the Environment
(BOTTLE) Consortium, Golden, Colorado 80401, United States
- Bioenergy
Science and Technology Department, National
Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, Colorado 80401, United States
| | - Alberta C. Carpenter
- Strategic
Energy Analysis Center, National Renewable
Energy Laboratory, Golden, Colorado 80401, United States
- Bio-Optimized
Technologies to keep Thermoplastics out of Landfills and the Environment
(BOTTLE) Consortium, Golden, Colorado 80401, United States
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6
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Torbatian S, Saleh M, Xu J, Minet L, Gamage SM, Yazgi D, Yamanouchi S, Roorda MJ, Hatzopoulou M. Societal Co-benefits of Zero-Emission Vehicles in the Freight Industry. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2024; 58:7814-7825. [PMID: 38668733 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.3c08867] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/08/2024]
Abstract
This study was set in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA), where commercial vehicle movements were assigned across the road network. Implications for greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, air quality, and health were examined through an environmental justice lens. Electrification of light-, medium-, and heavy-duty trucks was assessed to identify scenarios associated with the highest benefits for the most disadvantaged communities. Using spatially and temporally resolved commercial vehicle movements and a chemical transport model, changes in air pollutant concentrations under electric truck scenarios were estimated at 1-km2 resolution. Heavy-duty truck electrification reduces ambient black carbon and nitrogen dioxide on average by 10 and 14%, respectively, and GHG emissions by 10.5%. It achieves the highest reduction in premature mortality attributable to fine particulate matter chronic exposure (around 200 cases per year) compared with light- and medium-duty electrification (less than 150 cases each). The burden of all traffic in the GTHA was estimated to be around 600 cases per year. The benefits of electrification accrue primarily in neighborhoods with a high social disadvantage, measured by the Ontario Marginalization Indices, narrowing the disparity of exposure to traffic-related air pollution. Benefits related to heavy-duty truck electrification reflect the adverse impacts of diesel-fueled freight and highlight the co-benefits achieved by electrifying this sector.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Torbatian
- Department of Civil and Mineral Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario,Canada M5S 1A4
| | - Marc Saleh
- Department of Civil and Mineral Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario,Canada M5S 1A4
| | - Junshi Xu
- Department of Civil and Mineral Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario,Canada M5S 1A4
| | - Laura Minet
- Department of Civil Engineering, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada V8W 2Y2
| | | | - Daniel Yazgi
- Department of Research and Development, Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute, Norrköping 60176, Sweden
| | - Shoma Yamanouchi
- Department of Civil and Mineral Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario,Canada M5S 1A4
| | - Matthew J Roorda
- Department of Civil and Mineral Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario,Canada M5S 1A4
| | - Marianne Hatzopoulou
- Department of Civil and Mineral Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario,Canada M5S 1A4
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7
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Johnston JE, Quist AJL, Navarro S, Farzan SF, Shamasunder B. Cardiovascular health and proximity to urban oil drilling in Los Angeles, California. JOURNAL OF EXPOSURE SCIENCE & ENVIRONMENTAL EPIDEMIOLOGY 2024; 34:505-511. [PMID: 37553411 PMCID: PMC10850428 DOI: 10.1038/s41370-023-00589-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2023] [Revised: 07/19/2023] [Accepted: 07/20/2023] [Indexed: 08/10/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Although ~18 million people live within a mile from active oil and gas development (OGD) sites in the United States, epidemiological research on how OGD affects the health of nearby urban residents is sparse. Thousands of OGD sites are spread across Los Angeles (LA) County, California, home to the largest urban oil production in the country. Air pollution and noise from OGD may contribute to cardiovascular morbidity. OBJECTIVE We examined the association between proximity to OGD and blood pressure in a diverse cohort of residents in LA. METHODS We recruited residents in South LA who lived <1 km from an OGD site. We collected three blood pressure measurements for each participant and used the second and third measurements to calculate averages for systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) separately. We conducted multivariable linear regression to examine the relationship between distance to OGD sites and continuous SBP and DBP, adjusting for BMI, smoking status, distance to freeway, sex, age, and use of antihypertension medications, with a random effect for household. We examined effect measure modification by BMI category and smoking category. RESULTS Among the 623 adult participants, we found that for every 100 meter increase in distance from the OGD site, DBP was reduced by an average of 0.73 mmHg (95% CI: -1.26, -0.21) in this population. We observed stronger effects of proximity to OGD site on DBP among never smokers and among participants with a healthy BMI. The associations observed between proximity to OGD site and SBP were weaker but followed the same patterns as those for DBP. IMPACT Our study suggests that living near urban oil drilling sites is significantly associated with greater diastolic blood pressure in urban Los Angeles communities. This research improves understanding of impacts from living nearby drilling operations on the health and welfare of this community, which is critical to inform public health relevant strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jill E Johnston
- Division of Environmental Health, Department of Population & Public Health Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
| | - Arbor J L Quist
- Division of Environmental Health, Department of Population & Public Health Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | | | - Shohreh F Farzan
- Division of Environmental Health, Department of Population & Public Health Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Bhavna Shamasunder
- Department of Urban & Environmental Policy, Occidental College, Los Angeles, CA, USA
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8
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Quist AJL, Hovav A, Silverman AD, Shamasunder B, Johnston JE. Residents' experiences during a hydrogen sulfide crisis in Carson, California. Environ Health 2024; 23:31. [PMID: 38519920 PMCID: PMC10960400 DOI: 10.1186/s12940-024-01071-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2023] [Accepted: 03/12/2024] [Indexed: 03/25/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND In early October 2021, thousands of residents in Carson, California began complaining of malodors and headaches. Hydrogen sulfide (H2S), a noxious odorous gas, was measured at concentrations up to 7000 parts per billion (ppb) and remained above California's acute air quality standard of 30 ppb for a month. Intermittent elevations of H2S continued for 3 months. After 2 months of malodor in this environmental justice community, a government agency attributed the H2S to environmental pollution from a warehouse fire. Research has yielded conflicting results on the health effects of H2S exposure at levels that were experienced during this event. This research fills a critical need for understanding how people perceive and experience emergent environmental health events and will help shape future responses. METHODS Through a community-academic partnership, we conducted 6 focus groups with 33 participants who resided in the Carson area during the crisis. We sought to understand how this incident affected residents through facilitated discussion on topics including information acquisition, impressions of the emergency response, health symptoms, and ongoing impacts. RESULTS The majority of participants were women (n = 25), identified as Latina/o (n = 19), and rent their homes (n = 21). Participants described difficulty obtaining coherent information about the emergency, which resulted in feelings of abandonment. Most participants felt that local government and healthcare providers downplayed and/or disregarded their concerns despite ongoing odors and health symptoms. Participants described experiencing stress from the odors' unknown health effects and continued fear of future odor incidents. Residents sought to take control of the crisis through information sharing, community networking, and activism. Participants experienced longer term effects from this event, including increased awareness of pollution and reduced trust in local agencies. DISCUSSION This study demonstrates the necessity of clear, comprehensive, and prompt responses by relevant decisionmakers to chemical emergencies to appropriately address residents' fears, curb the spread of misinformation, and minimize adverse health effects. Participant responses also point to the benefit of supporting horizontal community networks for improved information sharing. By engaging directly with community members, researchers and disaster responders can better understand the various and complex impacts of chemical disasters and can improve response.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arbor J L Quist
- Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, 1845 N Soto St., Los Angeles, CA, 90032, USA.
| | - April Hovav
- Department of Urban & Environmental Policy, Occidental College, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Alexander D Silverman
- Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, 1845 N Soto St., Los Angeles, CA, 90032, USA
| | - Bhavna Shamasunder
- Department of Urban & Environmental Policy, Occidental College, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Jill E Johnston
- Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, 1845 N Soto St., Los Angeles, CA, 90032, USA
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9
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Nogueira L, Florez N. The Impact of Climate Change on Global Oncology. Hematol Oncol Clin North Am 2024; 38:105-121. [PMID: 37580192 DOI: 10.1016/j.hoc.2023.07.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/16/2023]
Abstract
Climate change is the greatest threat to human health of our time, with significant implications for global cancer control efforts. The changing frequency and behavior of climate-driven extreme weather events results in more frequent and increasingly unanticipated disruptions in access to cancer care. Given the significant threat that climate change poses to cancer control efforts, oncology professionals should champion initiatives that help protect the health and safety of patients with cancer, such as enhancing emergency preparedness and response efforts and reducing emissions from our own professional activities, which has health cobenefits for the entire population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leticia Nogueira
- Surveillance and Health Equity Sciences, American Cancer Society, Palm Harbor, FL, USA.
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10
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Frischmon C, Hannigan M. VOC source apportionment: How monitoring characteristics influence positive matrix factorization (PMF) solutions. ATMOSPHERIC ENVIRONMENT: X 2024; 21:100230. [PMID: 38577261 PMCID: PMC10993988 DOI: 10.1016/j.aeaoa.2023.100230] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/06/2024]
Abstract
Positive matrix factorization (PMF) can be used to develop more targeted air quality mitigation strategies by identifying major sources of a pollutant in an area. This technique is dependent, however, on the ability of PMF to resolve factors that accurately represent all sources of that pollutant in an area. We investigated how the accuracy of PMF solutions might be influenced by monitoring data characteristics, such as temporal resolution, monitoring location, and species composition, to better inform the use of PMF in VOC mitigation strategies. We applied PMF to five VOC monitoring programs collected within a four-year period in Colorado and found generally consistent factors, which we identified as oil extraction, processing, and evaporation; natural gas; vehicle exhaust; and liquid gasoline/short-lived oil and gas. The main determinant influencing whether or not a dataset resolved each of these sources was whether the dataset had a comprehensive list of VOC species covering key species of each source. Pollution spikes were not well-modeled in any of the solutions. Hyperlocal and volatile chemical product factors expected to be resolved in the industrialized, urban location were also missing, highlighting three limitations of PMF analysis. Wind direction dependence and diurnal trends aided in source identification, suggesting that high-time resolution data is important for developing actionable PMF results. Based on these findings, we recommend that air monitoring for PMF-informed VOC mitigation efforts include high temporal resolution and a comprehensive array of VOC species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caroline Frischmon
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, 80309, USA
| | - Michael Hannigan
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, 80309, USA
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11
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Smarr MM, Avakian M, Lopez AR, Onyango B, Amolegbe S, Boyles A, Fenton SE, Harmon QE, Jirles B, Lasko D, Moody R, Schelp J, Sutherland V, Thomas L, Williams CJ, Dixon D. Broadening the Environmental Lens to Include Social and Structural Determinants of Women's Health Disparities. ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH PERSPECTIVES 2024; 132:15002. [PMID: 38227347 PMCID: PMC10790815 DOI: 10.1289/ehp12996] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2023] [Revised: 12/06/2023] [Accepted: 12/14/2023] [Indexed: 01/17/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Due to the physical, metabolic, and hormonal changes before, during, and after pregnancy, women-defined here as people assigned female at birth-are particularly susceptible to environmental insults. Racism, a driving force of social determinants of health, exacerbates this susceptibility by affecting exposure to both chemical and nonchemical stressors to create women's health disparities. OBJECTIVES To better understand and address social and structural determinants of women's health disparities, the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) hosted a workshop focused on the environmental impacts on women's health disparities and reproductive health in April 2022. This commentary summarizes foundational research and unique insights shared by workshop participants, who emphasized the need to broaden the definition of the environment to include upstream social and structural determinants of health. We also summarize current challenges and recommendations, as discussed by workshop participants, to address women's environmental and reproductive health disparities. DISCUSSION The challenges related to women's health equity, as identified by workshop attendees, included developing research approaches to better capture the social and structural environment in both human and animal studies, integrating environmental health principles into clinical care, and implementing more inclusive publishing and funding approaches. Workshop participants discussed recommendations in each of these areas that encourage interdisciplinary collaboration among researchers, clinicians, funders, publishers, and community members. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP12996.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melissa M. Smarr
- Division of Extramural Research and Training, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | | | | | | | - Sara Amolegbe
- Office of the Director, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Abee Boyles
- Division of Extramural Research and Training, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Suzanne E. Fenton
- Division of Translational Toxicology, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Quaker E. Harmon
- Division of Intramural Research, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Bill Jirles
- Office of the Director, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Denise Lasko
- Division of Translational Toxicology, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Rosemary Moody
- Division of Extramural Research, National Institute on Drug Abuse, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - John Schelp
- Office of the Director, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Vicki Sutherland
- Division of Translational Toxicology, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Laura Thomas
- Division of Translational Research, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Carmen J. Williams
- Division of Intramural Research, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Darlene Dixon
- Division of Translational Toxicology, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, North Carolina, USA
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12
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Johnson L, Sarosiek KA. Role of intrinsic apoptosis in environmental exposure health outcomes. Trends Mol Med 2024; 30:56-73. [PMID: 38057226 DOI: 10.1016/j.molmed.2023.11.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2023] [Revised: 10/31/2023] [Accepted: 11/06/2023] [Indexed: 12/08/2023]
Abstract
Environmental exposures are linked to diseases of high public health concern, including cancer, neurodegenerative disorders, and autoimmunity. These diseases are caused by excessive or insufficient cell death, prompting investigation of mechanistic links between environmental toxicants and dysregulation of cell death pathways, including apoptosis. This review describes how legacy and emerging environmental exposures target the intrinsic apoptosis pathway to potentially drive pathogenesis. Recent discoveries reveal that dynamic regulation of apoptosis may heighten the vulnerability of healthy tissues to exposures in children, and that apoptotic signaling can guide immune responses, tissue repair, and tumorigenesis. Understanding how environmental toxicants dysregulate apoptosis will uncover opportunities to deploy apoptosis-modulating agents for the treatment or prevention of exposure-linked diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lissah Johnson
- John B. Little Center for Radiation Sciences, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Molecular and Integrative Physiological Sciences Program, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA; Laboratory for Systems Pharmacology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Kristopher A Sarosiek
- John B. Little Center for Radiation Sciences, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Molecular and Integrative Physiological Sciences Program, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA; Laboratory for Systems Pharmacology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute/Harvard Cancer Center, Boston, MA, USA.
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13
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Quist AJL, Hovav A, Silverman A, Shamasunder B, Johnston JE. Residents' experiences during a hydrogen sulfide crisis in Carson, California. RESEARCH SQUARE 2023:rs.3.rs-3745719. [PMID: 38168211 PMCID: PMC10760216 DOI: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-3745719/v1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2024]
Abstract
Background In early October 2021, thousands of residents in Carson, California began complaining of malodors and headaches. The odor was identified as hydrogen sulfide (H2S), a noxious odorous gas. H2S was measured at concentrations up to 7000 parts per billion (ppb) and remained above California's acute air quality standard of 30 ppb for a month, with intermittent elevations continuing for 3 months. After 2 months of malodor in this environmental justice community, the H2S was attributed to a warehouse fire. Research has yielded conflicting results on the health effects of H2S exposure at levels that were experienced during this event. There remains a gap in understanding how people perceive and experience odor emergencies such as this H2S event. Methods Through a community-academic partnership, we conducted 6 focus groups in Carson with 33 participants who resided in the Carson area during the crisis. We sought to understand how this incident affected residents through facilitated discussion on topics including information acquisition, impressions of the emergency response, physical and mental health symptoms, and ongoing impacts. Results The majority of participants were women (n = 25), identified as Latina/o (n = 19), and rent their homes (n = 21). Participants described difficulty obtaining coherent information about the emergency, which resulted in feelings of abandonment. Most participants felt that local government and health care providers downplayed and/or disregarded their concerns despite ongoing odors and health symptoms. Participants described experiencing stress from the odors' unknown health effects and continued fear of future odor incidents. Residents sought to take control of the crisis through information sharing, community networking, and activism. Participants experienced longer term effects from this event, including increased awareness of pollution and reduced trust in local agencies. Discussion This study demonstrates the necessity of clear, comprehensive, and prompt responses by relevant decisionmakers to chemical emergencies to appropriately address residents' fears, curb the spread of misinformation, and minimize adverse health effects. Participant responses also point to the benefit of supporting horizontal community networks for improved information sharing. By engaging directly with community members, researchers and disaster responders can better understand the various and complex impacts of chemical disasters and can improve response.
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Iyer HS, Shi X, Satagopan JM, Cheng I, Roscoe C, McLaughlin RH, Stroup AM, Setoguchi S, Bandera EV, Hernandez BY, Doherty JA, Hsieh MC, Knowlton R, Qin B, Laden F, Rebbeck TR, Gomez SL. Advancing Social and Environmental Research in Cancer Registries Using Geomasking for Address-Level Data. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2023; 32:1485-1489. [PMID: 37908192 DOI: 10.1158/1055-9965.epi-23-0790] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2023] [Revised: 08/31/2023] [Accepted: 09/08/2023] [Indexed: 11/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Understanding the social and environmental causes of cancer in the United States, particularly in marginalized communities, is a major research priority. Population-based cancer registries are essential for advancing this research, given their nearly complete capture of incident cases within their catchment areas. Most registries limit the release of address-level geocodes linked to cancer outcomes to comply with state health departmental regulations. These policies ensure patient privacy, uphold data confidentiality, and enhance trust in research. However, these restrictions also limit the conduct of high-quality epidemiologic studies on social and environmental factors that may contribute to cancer burden. Geomasking refers to computational algorithms that distort locational data to attain a balance between effectively "masking" the original address location while faithfully maintaining the spatial structure in the data. We propose that the systematic deployment of scalable geomasking algorithms could accelerate research on social and environmental contributions across the cancer continuum by reducing measurement error bias while also protecting privacy. We encourage multidisciplinary teams of registry officials, geospatial analysts, cancer researchers, and others engaged in this form of research to evaluate and apply geomasking procedures based on feasibility of implementation, accuracy, and privacy protection to accelerate population-based research on social and environmental causes of cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hari S Iyer
- Section of Cancer Epidemiology and Health Outcomes, Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick, New Jersey
| | - Xun Shi
- Department of Geography, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire
| | - Jaya M Satagopan
- Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Rutgers School of Public Health, Piscataway, New Jersey
| | - Iona Cheng
- Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California
| | - Charlotte Roscoe
- Division of Population Sciences, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts
- Department of Environmental Health, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Robert H McLaughlin
- Cancer Registry of Greater California, Public Health Institute, Oakland, California
| | - Antoinette M Stroup
- Section of Cancer Epidemiology and Health Outcomes, Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick, New Jersey
- New Jersey State Cancer Registry, Trenton, New Jersey
| | - Soko Setoguchi
- Rutgers University Institute for Health, Healthcare Policy, and Aging Research, the State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick, New Jersey
| | - Elisa V Bandera
- Section of Cancer Epidemiology and Health Outcomes, Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick, New Jersey
| | - Brenda Y Hernandez
- Hawai'i Tumor Registry, University of Hawai'i Cancer Center, Honolulu, Hawaii
| | - Jennifer A Doherty
- Department of Population Science, Huntsman Cancer Institute, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah
| | - Mei-Chin Hsieh
- Louisiana Tumor Registry and Epidemiology Program, School of Public Health at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, New Orleans, Louisiana
| | - Richard Knowlton
- Massachusetts Cancer Registry, Office of Data Management and Outcomes Assessment, Office of Population Health, Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Bo Qin
- Section of Cancer Epidemiology and Health Outcomes, Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick, New Jersey
| | - Francine Laden
- Department of Environmental Health, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Timothy R Rebbeck
- Division of Population Sciences, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Scarlett L Gomez
- Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California
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Aubourg MA, Sawtell G, Deanes L, Fabricant N, Thomas M, Spicer K, Wagar C, Campbell S, Ulman A, Heaney CD. Community-driven research and capacity building to address environmental justice concerns with industrial air pollution in Curtis Bay, South Baltimore. FRONTIERS IN EPIDEMIOLOGY 2023; 3:1198321. [PMID: 38099060 PMCID: PMC10720608 DOI: 10.3389/fepid.2023.1198321] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2023] [Accepted: 07/20/2023] [Indexed: 12/17/2023]
Abstract
Introduction Curtis Bay (CB) is an environmental justice (EJ) community in South Baltimore. With a high concentration of industrial polluters and compounding non-chemical stressors, CB has experienced socioeconomic, quality of life, and health burdens for over 100 years. Today, these polluters include the open-air CSX Coal Terminal, waste-to-energy incinerators, and heavy diesel traffic through residential areas. The Community of Curtis Bay Association, Free Your Voice, and South Baltimore Community Land Trust are local organizations enacting a vision for equitable, healthy, and community-led development without industrial encroachment. In response to community-identified EJ concerns and an explosion at the CSX Coal Terminal, CB community groups partnered with academic researchers to develop a community-driven hyperlocal air monitoring and capacity building approach. This paper describes this approach to characterizing hyperlocal air quality in CB, building bridges between community residents and regulatory agencies, and nurturing a cohesive and effective community-academic partnership toward EJ. Methods Using hyperlocal air monitoring, we are collecting real-time air pollution (particulate matter, black carbon, and ground-level gas species) and meteorological data from 15 low-cost sensors in residential and industrial areas of CB. We also use trail cameras to record activities at the CSX Coal Terminal. We merge air pollution and industrial activity data to evaluate the following: overall air quality in CB, multi-air pollutant profiles of elevated events, spatiotemporal changes in air quality in the community, patterns of industrial activity, and potential correlations between air quality and observed industrial activity. Members of our partnership also lead a high school course educating students about the history and ongoing efforts of the EJ movement in their community. Students in this course learn how to employ qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis methods to bring scientific support to community EJ concerns. Results and Discussion Our hyperlocal air monitoring network and community-academic partnership are continuing to evolve and have already demonstrated the ability to respond to community-identified EJ issues with real-time data while developing future EJ leaders. Our reflections can assist other community and academic groups in developing strong and fruitful partnerships to address similar EJ issues.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew A. Aubourg
- Community Science and Innovation for Environmental Justice (CSI EJ) Initiative, Center for a Livable Future, Department of Environmental Health and Engineering, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Greg Sawtell
- Community of Curtis Bay Association, Curtis Bay, Baltimore, MD, United States
- South Baltimore Community Land Trust, Curtis Bay, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Lauren Deanes
- Community Science and Innovation for Environmental Justice (CSI EJ) Initiative, Center for a Livable Future, Department of Environmental Health and Engineering, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Nicole Fabricant
- Department of Anthropology, Sociology, and Criminal Justice, Towson University, Towson, MD, United States
| | - Meleny Thomas
- Community of Curtis Bay Association, Curtis Bay, Baltimore, MD, United States
- South Baltimore Community Land Trust, Curtis Bay, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Kristoffer Spicer
- Community Science and Innovation for Environmental Justice (CSI EJ) Initiative, Center for a Livable Future, Department of Environmental Health and Engineering, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Caila Wagar
- Community Science and Innovation for Environmental Justice (CSI EJ) Initiative, Center for a Livable Future, Department of Environmental Health and Engineering, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Shashawnda Campbell
- Community of Curtis Bay Association, Curtis Bay, Baltimore, MD, United States
- South Baltimore Community Land Trust, Curtis Bay, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Abigail Ulman
- Community Science and Innovation for Environmental Justice (CSI EJ) Initiative, Center for a Livable Future, Department of Environmental Health and Engineering, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Christopher D. Heaney
- Community Science and Innovation for Environmental Justice (CSI EJ) Initiative, Center for a Livable Future, Department of Environmental Health and Engineering, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United States
- Department of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United States
- Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United States
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Iyer HS, Zeinomar N, Omilian AR, Perlstein M, Davis MB, Omene CO, Pawlish K, Demissie K, Hong CC, Yao S, Ambrosone CB, Bandera EV, Qin B. Neighborhood Disadvantage, African Genetic Ancestry, Cancer Subtype, and Mortality Among Breast Cancer Survivors. JAMA Netw Open 2023; 6:e2331295. [PMID: 37647068 PMCID: PMC10469269 DOI: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.31295] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2023] [Accepted: 07/24/2023] [Indexed: 09/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Importance Racial disparities in breast cancer (BC) survival arise from multilevel causes, which may exert influence at different stages of BC progression. Clarifying the importance of genetic and social factors could help prioritize interventions. Objective To jointly examine associations between African genetic ancestry, social environment, and mortality from any cause and BC in Black BC survivors. Design, Setting, and Participants This population-based cohort study enrolled self-identified Black women aged 20 to 75 years with histologically confirmed BC from June 2005 to May 2019 and followed them up until death or censoring in September 2021. Participants lived in 10 New Jersey counties. Data were analyzed between December 2022 and April 2023. Exposures A neighborhood socioeconomic status (nSES) index composed of census tract measures (education, income, wealth, employment status, and occupation) was linked to residential addresses at diagnosis. Percentage African ancestry was estimated using the ADMIXTURE program. Main Outcomes and Measures Sequentially adjusted (age adjusted: age and interview year; fully adjusted: age adjusted with individual SES, lifestyle factors, and comorbidities) logistic regression models were fit to estimate associations with tumor subtypes (estrogen receptor-negative [ER-] vs estrogen receptor-positive [ER+]; triple-negative breast cancer [TNBC] vs luminal A), and Cox models were fit for associations with all-cause mortality (ACM) and breast cancer-specific mortality (BCSM). Models for BCSM were fit using Fine-Gray competing risks models, and robust standard errors were used to account for census tract-level clustering. Results Among 1575 participants, median (IQR) African ancestry was 85% (76%-90%), and median (IQR) age was 55 (46-63) years. A 10-percentage point increase in African ancestry was associated with higher odds of ER- vs ER+ (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 1.08; 95% CI, 0.98-1.18) and TNBC vs luminal (aOR, 1.15; 95% CI, 1.02-1.31) tumors, but not with ACM or BCSM. A 1-IQR increase in nSES was associated with lower ACM (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR], 0.76; 95% CI, 0.63-0.93), and the HR for BCSM was less than 1 but not statistically significant (aHR, 0.81; 95% CI, 0.62-1.04) in age-adjusted models, but associations attenuated following further adjustment for potential mediators (individual SES, lifestyles, comorbidities). Conclusions and Relevance In this cohort study of Black female BC survivors, higher African ancestry was associated with aggressive tumor subtypes. Compared with genetic ancestry, mediating pathways related to social environments may be more important for survival in these patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hari S. Iyer
- Cancer Epidemiology and Health Outcomes, Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick
- Department of Medicine, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, New Brunswick, New Jersey
| | - Nur Zeinomar
- Cancer Epidemiology and Health Outcomes, Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick
- Department of Medicine, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, New Brunswick, New Jersey
| | - Angela R. Omilian
- Department of Cancer Prevention and Control, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, New York
| | - Marley Perlstein
- Cancer Epidemiology and Health Outcomes, Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick
| | - Melissa B. Davis
- Institute of Genomic Medicine, Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia
| | - Coral O. Omene
- Department of Medicine, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, New Brunswick, New Jersey
- Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick
| | - Karen Pawlish
- Cancer Epidemiology Services, New Jersey State Cancer Registry, New Jersey Department of Health, Trenton
| | - Kitaw Demissie
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University School of Public Health, Brooklyn, New York
| | - Chi-Chen Hong
- Department of Cancer Prevention and Control, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, New York
| | - Song Yao
- Department of Cancer Prevention and Control, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, New York
| | - Christine B. Ambrosone
- Department of Cancer Prevention and Control, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, New York
| | - Elisa V. Bandera
- Cancer Epidemiology and Health Outcomes, Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick
- Department of Medicine, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, New Brunswick, New Jersey
| | - Bo Qin
- Cancer Epidemiology and Health Outcomes, Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick
- Department of Medicine, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, New Brunswick, New Jersey
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Lee RJ, Tao Z, Prybutok S, Jang S, Dalaijamts C, Chiu WA, Newman G. Unseen Risk: Mapping Contamination Hazards to Enhance Risk Perception in Galena Park, Texas. CLIMATE RISK MANAGEMENT 2023; 41:100532. [PMID: 38298905 PMCID: PMC10830168 DOI: 10.1016/j.crm.2023.100532] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/02/2024]
Abstract
As extreme weather events have become more frequently observed in recent decades, concerns about exposure to potential flood risk have increased, especially in underserved and socially vulnerable communities. Galena Park, Texas, is a socially vulnerable community that also confronts escalated physical vulnerabilities due to existing flood risks from Buffalo Bayou and the Houston Ship Channel as well as proximity to industrial facilities that emit chemical pollution. To better understand the underlying risks that Galena Park is facing, this research assesses and visualizes the existing contamination hazards associated with the chemical facilities within Galena Park. Through this process, we (1) compute the environmental, health, and physical hazards associated with industrial facilities, (2) spatially geocode the points of contamination sources and flood exposure, and (3) increase awareness of existing risk by visualizing and distributing related information using an ArcGIS Dashboard. The results indicate that there are 169 points of location from 127 industrial facilities, and 24 points were inducing potential chemicals. In total, 126 chemicals have potential physical, health, and environmental hazards. On average, each facility has 2.4 chemicals that could cause potential hazards with a range of zero to 57 chemicals. When examining the specific physical, health, and environmental risks associated with the chemicals, on average each facility has 14.6 types of risks associated with it. This includes, on average, 9.8 types of health hazards, 1.53 physical hazards, and 2.3 environmental hazards per facility. When analyzing the spatial relationship between the chemical exposure and the current flood risk using the Dashboard, it is noticeable that most of the industrial facilities are located in the south of Galena Park, near Buffalo Bayou, where a variety of industrial facilities are clustered. Through this study, we spatially mapped the existing risks in Galena Park that are not readily available to the community and risks that are not currently tangible or visible. The utility of ArcGIS Dashboards affords the opportunity to translate massive databases into digestible knowledge that can be shared and utilized within the community. This study also takes another step toward building community resilience by providing knowledge that can be used to prepare for and respond to disasters. Visualizing unseen risks and promoting awareness can enhance risk perception when supported by scientific knowledge. Further investigation is necessary to enhance preparedness behaviors, identify proper evacuation techniques and routes, and build community networks to comprehensively promote resilience to multi-hazard circumstances.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryun Jung Lee
- School of Architecture and Planning, College of Engineering and Integrated Design, The University of Texas at San Antonio, 501 W. César E. Chávez Blvd., San Antonio, TX 78207, USA
| | - Zhihan Tao
- School of Architecture, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Sara Prybutok
- School of Architecture, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Suji Jang
- Department of Veterinary Physiology and Pharmacology, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Chimeddulam Dalaijamts
- Department of Veterinary Physiology and Pharmacology, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Weihsueh A. Chiu
- Department of Veterinary Physiology and Pharmacology, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
- Interdisciplinary Faculty of Toxicology, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Galen Newman
- School of Architecture, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
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Liu S, He L, Bannister OB, Li J, Schnegelberger RD, Vanderpuye CM, Althouse AD, Schopfer FJ, Wahlang B, Cave MC, Monga SP, Zhang X, Arteel GE, Beier JI. Western diet unmasks transient low-level vinyl chloride-induced tumorigenesis; potential role of the (epi-)transcriptome. Toxicol Appl Pharmacol 2023; 468:116514. [PMID: 37061008 PMCID: PMC10164119 DOI: 10.1016/j.taap.2023.116514] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2023] [Revised: 04/05/2023] [Accepted: 04/12/2023] [Indexed: 04/17/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND & AIMS Vinyl chloride (VC) monomer is a volatile organic compound commonly used in industry. At high exposure levels, VC causes liver cancer and toxicant-associated steatohepatitis. However, lower exposure levels (i.e., sub-regulatory exposure limits) that do not directly damage the liver, enhance injury caused by Western diet (WD). It is still unknown if the long-term impact of transient low-concentration VC enhances the risk of liver cancer development. This is especially a concern given that fatty liver disease is in and of itself a risk factor for the development of liver cancer. METHODS C57Bl/6 J mice were fed WD or control diet (CD) for 1 year. During the first 12 weeks of feeding only, mice were also exposed to VC via inhalation at sub-regulatory limit concentrations (<1 ppm) or air for 6 h/day, 5 days/week. RESULTS Feeding WD for 1 year caused significant hepatic injury, which was exacerbated by VC. Additionally, VC increased the number of tumors which ranged from moderately to poorly differentiated hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Transcriptomic analysis demonstrated VC-induced changes in metabolic but also ribosomal processes. Epitranscriptomic analysis showed a VC-induced shift of the modification pattern that has been associated with metabolic disease, mitochondrial dysfunction, and cancer. CONCLUSIONS These data indicate that VC sensitizes the liver to other stressors (e.g., WD), resulting in enhanced tumorigenesis. These data raise concerns about potential interactions between VC exposure and WD. It also emphasizes that current safety restrictions may be insufficient to account for other factors that can influence hepatotoxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Silvia Liu
- Department of Pathology, University of Pittsburgh, United States of America; Pittsburgh Liver Research Center, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, United States of America.
| | - Liqing He
- Department of Chemistry, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40208, United States of America.
| | - Olivia B Bannister
- Department of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition University of Pittsburgh, United States of America.
| | - Jiang Li
- Department of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition University of Pittsburgh, United States of America.
| | - Regina D Schnegelberger
- Department of Pharmacology and Chemical Biology, University of Pittsburgh, United States of America.
| | - Charis-Marie Vanderpuye
- Department of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition University of Pittsburgh, United States of America.
| | - Andrew D Althouse
- Division of General Internal Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, United States of America.
| | - Francisco J Schopfer
- Pittsburgh Liver Research Center, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, United States of America; Department of Pharmacology and Chemical Biology, University of Pittsburgh, United States of America.
| | - Banrida Wahlang
- Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, Department of Medicine, University of Louisville School of Medicine, Louisville, KY 40202, United States of America; Superfund Research Center, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40202, United States of America; Hepatobiology and Toxicology Center, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40202, United States of America; Center for Integrative Environmental Health Sciences, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40202, United States of America; University of Louisville Alcohol Research Center, Louisville, KY 40202, United States of America.
| | - Matthew C Cave
- Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, Department of Medicine, University of Louisville School of Medicine, Louisville, KY 40202, United States of America; Superfund Research Center, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40202, United States of America; Hepatobiology and Toxicology Center, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40202, United States of America; Center for Integrative Environmental Health Sciences, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40202, United States of America; University of Louisville Alcohol Research Center, Louisville, KY 40202, United States of America; Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Louisville School of Medicine, Louisville, KY 40202, United States of America; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, University of Louisville School of Medicine, Louisville, KY 40202, United States of America; Liver Transplant Program at UofL Health-Jewish Hospital Trager Transplant Center, Louisville, KY 40202, United States of America; The Robley Rex Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Louisville, KY 40206, United States of America.
| | - Satdarshan P Monga
- Department of Pathology, University of Pittsburgh, United States of America; Pittsburgh Liver Research Center, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, United States of America; Department of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition University of Pittsburgh, United States of America.
| | - Xiang Zhang
- Department of Chemistry, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40208, United States of America; Hepatobiology and Toxicology Center, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40202, United States of America; Center for Integrative Environmental Health Sciences, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40202, United States of America; University of Louisville Alcohol Research Center, Louisville, KY 40202, United States of America.
| | - Gavin E Arteel
- Pittsburgh Liver Research Center, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, United States of America; Department of Environmental and Occupational Health University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, United States of America.
| | - Juliane I Beier
- Pittsburgh Liver Research Center, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, United States of America; Department of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition University of Pittsburgh, United States of America; Department of Environmental and Occupational Health University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, United States of America.
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Sansom GT, Hernandez R, Johnson JN, Newman G, Atoba K, Masterson JH, Davis D, Fawkes LS. Evaluating the impact of proximity to reported toxic release facilities and flood events on chronic health outcomes in the city of Galena Park, Texas. CLIMATE RISK MANAGEMENT 2023; 40:100507. [PMID: 37975020 PMCID: PMC10652947 DOI: 10.1016/j.crm.2023.100507] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2023]
Abstract
Evidence has conclusively revealed that environmental justice communities experience poor environmental conditions compared to more affluent majority communities. However, there has been little research evaluating the health impacts of immediate proximity to industrial pursuits and flood events on a population compared to others living within the same community who are only marginally removed from these locations. This cross-sectional study (N = 130) utilized three approaches to assess health outcomes (1) the 12 item Short Form Health Survey, which creates a general physical component score, (2) self-reported noncancerous chronic conditions, and (3) self-reported diagnosis of twelve different cancers. Three risk levels were spatially created using a 5-scale ordinal score for each residential parcel based on the corresponding flood probability level and proximity to facilities which report to the United States Environmental Protection Agencies Toxic Release Inventory. Analysis revealed that general physical health scores were significantly lower (P-value < 0.001) in the medium and high-risk locations, Similarly chronic conditions witnessed a non-significant twofold increased risk in the highest-risk locations compared to the lowest (POR 1.91; 95 % CI 0.82-4.39) and a non-significant increased risk of cancer diagnosis (POR 1.51; 95 % CI 0.38-5.99). This research underscores the importance of place and health outcomes even within relatively geographically compact communities. Public health and urban planning interventions and designs should take into account fine grain approaches to respond to community needs while still being mindful of limited resources.
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Affiliation(s)
- Garett T. Sansom
- Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Texas A&M School of Public Health, 1266 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, United States
| | - Ruby Hernandez
- Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Texas A&M School of Public Health, 1266 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, United States
| | - Jacquita N. Johnson
- Department of Health Promotion, Texas A&M School of Public Health, 1266 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, United States
| | - Galen Newman
- Department of Landscape Architecture & Urban Planning, Texas A&M University, College of Architecture, Langford Architecture Building 3137, College Station, TX 77840, United States
| | - Kayode Atoba
- Department of Marine & Coastal Environmental Science, Texas A&M University 200 Seawolf Pkwy, Galveston, TX 77554, United States
| | - Jaimie Hicks Masterson
- Department of Landscape Architecture & Urban Planning, Texas A&M University, College of Architecture, Langford Architecture Building 3137, College Station, TX 77840, United States
| | - Deidra Davis
- Department of Landscape Architecture & Urban Planning, Texas A&M University, College of Architecture, Langford Architecture Building 3137, College Station, TX 77840, United States
| | - Leanne S. Fawkes
- Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Texas A&M School of Public Health, 1266 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, United States
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FREUDENBERG NICHOLAS. Framing Commercial Determinants of Health: An Assessment of Potential for Guiding More Effective Responses to the Public Health Crises of the 21 st Century. Milbank Q 2023; 101:83-98. [PMID: 37096607 PMCID: PMC10126974 DOI: 10.1111/1468-0009.12639] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2022] [Revised: 09/27/2022] [Accepted: 01/06/2023] [Indexed: 04/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Policy Points The commercial determinants of health (CDH) framework can inform public health policy, practice, and research in ways that contribute to overcoming the world's most serious public health challenges. By documenting the pathways by which commercial actors shape health, the CDH framework can provide a unifying focus for collective action to prevent and ameliorate global health crises. To realize these opportunities, CDH proponents need to find synergies in the multiple emerging streams of research, practice, and advocacy and create a body of scientific evidence, methodologies, and ideas that can inform a public health practice for the 21st century.
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Thoma ED, Gitipour A, George I, Kariher P, MacDonald M, Queiroz G, Deshmukh P, Childers J, Rodak T, Schmid V. Assessment of Chemical Facility Ethylene Oxide Emissions Using Mobile and Multipoint Monitoring. ATMOSPHERIC ENVIRONMENT: X 2023; 18:1-11. [PMID: 37260630 PMCID: PMC10228146 DOI: 10.1016/j.aeaoa.2023.100214] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
Ethylene oxide (EtO) is a hazardous air pollutant that can be emitted from a variety of difficult to measure industrial sources, such as fugitive leaks, wastewater handling, and episodic releases. Emerging next generation emission measurement (NGEM) approaches capable of time-resolved, low parts per billion by volume (ppbv) method detection limits (MDLs) can help facilities understand and reduce EtO and other air pollutant emissions from these sources yielding a range of environmental and public health benefits. In October 2021, a first of its kind 4-day observational study was conducted at an EtO chemical facility in the midwestern United States. The study had dual objectives to both improve understanding of EtO emission sources within the facility and advance NGEM methods. Using cavity ring-down spectroscopy (CRDS) instruments, a combination of mobile surveys and stationary multipoint process unit monitoring assessed EtO concentrations in and near facility operations, while testing and comparing measurement methods. The study concluded that four main areas of EtO source emissions existed within the facility, each possessing unique emission characteristics. Episodic EtO emissions from supply railcar switchovers and batch reactor washouts, lasting seconds to minutes in duration, produced EtO concentrations exceeding 500 ppbv inside the process unit in some cases. In one instance, EtO at ~30 ppbv was briefly observed hundreds of meters from the process unit. Lower level but more sustained EtO concentrations were observed near an EtO transfer pump and wastewater tank outfall and drain system. Overall, 4.6% of mobile survey data were above the 1.2 ppbv mobile test MDL while the nine stationary sampling locations ranged from 17.7% to 82.8% of data above the 1.0 ppbv multipoint test MDL. This paper describes the EtO emissions observed in and near the four defined source areas within the facility and provides details of the NGEM method development advances accomplished as part of the study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eben D. Thoma
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling, 109 TW Alexander Dr., RTP, NC 27711, USA
| | - Ali Gitipour
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling, 109 TW Alexander Dr., RTP, NC 27711, USA
| | - Ingrid George
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling, 109 TW Alexander Dr., RTP, NC 27711, USA
| | - Peter Kariher
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling, 109 TW Alexander Dr., RTP, NC 27711, USA
| | - Megan MacDonald
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling, 109 TW Alexander Dr., RTP, NC 27711, USA
| | - Gustavo Queiroz
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 7, U.S. EPA Region 7, 11201 Renner Blvd. Lenexa, KS 66219, USA
| | | | - Josh Childers
- CleanAir Engineering Inc., 110 Technology Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15275, USA
| | - Tim Rodak
- CleanAir Engineering Inc., 110 Technology Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15275, USA
| | - Volker Schmid
- CleanAir Engineering Inc., 110 Technology Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15275, USA
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22
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Landrigan PJ, Raps H, Cropper M, Bald C, Brunner M, Canonizado EM, Charles D, Chiles TC, Donohue MJ, Enck J, Fenichel P, Fleming LE, Ferrier-Pages C, Fordham R, Gozt A, Griffin C, Hahn ME, Haryanto B, Hixson R, Ianelli H, James BD, Kumar P, Laborde A, Law KL, Martin K, Mu J, Mulders Y, Mustapha A, Niu J, Pahl S, Park Y, Pedrotti ML, Pitt JA, Ruchirawat M, Seewoo BJ, Spring M, Stegeman JJ, Suk W, Symeonides C, Takada H, Thompson RC, Vicini A, Wang Z, Whitman E, Wirth D, Wolff M, Yousuf AK, Dunlop S. The Minderoo-Monaco Commission on Plastics and Human Health. Ann Glob Health 2023; 89:23. [PMID: 36969097 PMCID: PMC10038118 DOI: 10.5334/aogh.4056] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 53.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2023] [Accepted: 02/14/2023] [Indexed: 03/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Plastics have conveyed great benefits to humanity and made possible some of the most significant advances of modern civilization in fields as diverse as medicine, electronics, aerospace, construction, food packaging, and sports. It is now clear, however, that plastics are also responsible for significant harms to human health, the economy, and the earth's environment. These harms occur at every stage of the plastic life cycle, from extraction of the coal, oil, and gas that are its main feedstocks through to ultimate disposal into the environment. The extent of these harms not been systematically assessed, their magnitude not fully quantified, and their economic costs not comprehensively counted. Goals The goals of this Minderoo-Monaco Commission on Plastics and Human Health are to comprehensively examine plastics' impacts across their life cycle on: (1) human health and well-being; (2) the global environment, especially the ocean; (3) the economy; and (4) vulnerable populations-the poor, minorities, and the world's children. On the basis of this examination, the Commission offers science-based recommendations designed to support development of a Global Plastics Treaty, protect human health, and save lives. Report Structure This Commission report contains seven Sections. Following an Introduction, Section 2 presents a narrative review of the processes involved in plastic production, use, and disposal and notes the hazards to human health and the environment associated with each of these stages. Section 3 describes plastics' impacts on the ocean and notes the potential for plastic in the ocean to enter the marine food web and result in human exposure. Section 4 details plastics' impacts on human health. Section 5 presents a first-order estimate of plastics' health-related economic costs. Section 6 examines the intersection between plastic, social inequity, and environmental injustice. Section 7 presents the Commission's findings and recommendations. Plastics Plastics are complex, highly heterogeneous, synthetic chemical materials. Over 98% of plastics are produced from fossil carbon- coal, oil and gas. Plastics are comprised of a carbon-based polymer backbone and thousands of additional chemicals that are incorporated into polymers to convey specific properties such as color, flexibility, stability, water repellence, flame retardation, and ultraviolet resistance. Many of these added chemicals are highly toxic. They include carcinogens, neurotoxicants and endocrine disruptors such as phthalates, bisphenols, per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), brominated flame retardants, and organophosphate flame retardants. They are integral components of plastic and are responsible for many of plastics' harms to human health and the environment.Global plastic production has increased almost exponentially since World War II, and in this time more than 8,300 megatons (Mt) of plastic have been manufactured. Annual production volume has grown from under 2 Mt in 1950 to 460 Mt in 2019, a 230-fold increase, and is on track to triple by 2060. More than half of all plastic ever made has been produced since 2002. Single-use plastics account for 35-40% of current plastic production and represent the most rapidly growing segment of plastic manufacture.Explosive recent growth in plastics production reflects a deliberate pivot by the integrated multinational fossil-carbon corporations that produce coal, oil and gas and that also manufacture plastics. These corporations are reducing their production of fossil fuels and increasing plastics manufacture. The two principal factors responsible for this pivot are decreasing global demand for carbon-based fuels due to increases in 'green' energy, and massive expansion of oil and gas production due to fracking.Plastic manufacture is energy-intensive and contributes significantly to climate change. At present, plastic production is responsible for an estimated 3.7% of global greenhouse gas emissions, more than the contribution of Brazil. This fraction is projected to increase to 4.5% by 2060 if current trends continue unchecked. Plastic Life Cycle The plastic life cycle has three phases: production, use, and disposal. In production, carbon feedstocks-coal, gas, and oil-are transformed through energy-intensive, catalytic processes into a vast array of products. Plastic use occurs in every aspect of modern life and results in widespread human exposure to the chemicals contained in plastic. Single-use plastics constitute the largest portion of current use, followed by synthetic fibers and construction.Plastic disposal is highly inefficient, with recovery and recycling rates below 10% globally. The result is that an estimated 22 Mt of plastic waste enters the environment each year, much of it single-use plastic and are added to the more than 6 gigatons of plastic waste that have accumulated since 1950. Strategies for disposal of plastic waste include controlled and uncontrolled landfilling, open burning, thermal conversion, and export. Vast quantities of plastic waste are exported each year from high-income to low-income countries, where it accumulates in landfills, pollutes air and water, degrades vital ecosystems, befouls beaches and estuaries, and harms human health-environmental injustice on a global scale. Plastic-laden e-waste is particularly problematic. Environmental Findings Plastics and plastic-associated chemicals are responsible for widespread pollution. They contaminate aquatic (marine and freshwater), terrestrial, and atmospheric environments globally. The ocean is the ultimate destination for much plastic, and plastics are found throughout the ocean, including coastal regions, the sea surface, the deep sea, and polar sea ice. Many plastics appear to resist breakdown in the ocean and could persist in the global environment for decades. Macro- and micro-plastic particles have been identified in hundreds of marine species in all major taxa, including species consumed by humans. Trophic transfer of microplastic particles and the chemicals within them has been demonstrated. Although microplastic particles themselves (>10 µm) appear not to undergo biomagnification, hydrophobic plastic-associated chemicals bioaccumulate in marine animals and biomagnify in marine food webs. The amounts and fates of smaller microplastic and nanoplastic particles (MNPs <10 µm) in aquatic environments are poorly understood, but the potential for harm is worrying given their mobility in biological systems. Adverse environmental impacts of plastic pollution occur at multiple levels from molecular and biochemical to population and ecosystem. MNP contamination of seafood results in direct, though not well quantified, human exposure to plastics and plastic-associated chemicals. Marine plastic pollution endangers the ocean ecosystems upon which all humanity depends for food, oxygen, livelihood, and well-being. Human Health Findings Coal miners, oil workers and gas field workers who extract fossil carbon feedstocks for plastic production suffer increased mortality from traumatic injury, coal workers' pneumoconiosis, silicosis, cardiovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and lung cancer. Plastic production workers are at increased risk of leukemia, lymphoma, hepatic angiosarcoma, brain cancer, breast cancer, mesothelioma, neurotoxic injury, and decreased fertility. Workers producing plastic textiles die of bladder cancer, lung cancer, mesothelioma, and interstitial lung disease at increased rates. Plastic recycling workers have increased rates of cardiovascular disease, toxic metal poisoning, neuropathy, and lung cancer. Residents of "fenceline" communities adjacent to plastic production and waste disposal sites experience increased risks of premature birth, low birth weight, asthma, childhood leukemia, cardiovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and lung cancer.During use and also in disposal, plastics release toxic chemicals including additives and residual monomers into the environment and into people. National biomonitoring surveys in the USA document population-wide exposures to these chemicals. Plastic additives disrupt endocrine function and increase risk for premature births, neurodevelopmental disorders, male reproductive birth defects, infertility, obesity, cardiovascular disease, renal disease, and cancers. Chemical-laden MNPs formed through the environmental degradation of plastic waste can enter living organisms, including humans. Emerging, albeit still incomplete evidence indicates that MNPs may cause toxicity due to their physical and toxicological effects as well as by acting as vectors that transport toxic chemicals and bacterial pathogens into tissues and cells.Infants in the womb and young children are two populations at particularly high risk of plastic-related health effects. Because of the exquisite sensitivity of early development to hazardous chemicals and children's unique patterns of exposure, plastic-associated exposures are linked to increased risks of prematurity, stillbirth, low birth weight, birth defects of the reproductive organs, neurodevelopmental impairment, impaired lung growth, and childhood cancer. Early-life exposures to plastic-associated chemicals also increase the risk of multiple non-communicable diseases later in life. Economic Findings Plastic's harms to human health result in significant economic costs. We estimate that in 2015 the health-related costs of plastic production exceeded $250 billion (2015 Int$) globally, and that in the USA alone the health costs of disease and disability caused by the plastic-associated chemicals PBDE, BPA and DEHP exceeded $920 billion (2015 Int$). Plastic production results in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions equivalent to 1.96 gigatons of carbon dioxide (CO2e) annually. Using the US Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) social cost of carbon metric, we estimate the annual costs of these GHG emissions to be $341 billion (2015 Int$).These costs, large as they are, almost certainly underestimate the full economic losses resulting from plastics' negative impacts on human health and the global environment. All of plastics' economic costs-and also its social costs-are externalized by the petrochemical and plastic manufacturing industry and are borne by citizens, taxpayers, and governments in countries around the world without compensation. Social Justice Findings The adverse effects of plastics and plastic pollution on human health, the economy and the environment are not evenly distributed. They disproportionately affect poor, disempowered, and marginalized populations such as workers, racial and ethnic minorities, "fenceline" communities, Indigenous groups, women, and children, all of whom had little to do with creating the current plastics crisis and lack the political influence or the resources to address it. Plastics' harmful impacts across its life cycle are most keenly felt in the Global South, in small island states, and in disenfranchised areas in the Global North. Social and environmental justice (SEJ) principles require reversal of these inequitable burdens to ensure that no group bears a disproportionate share of plastics' negative impacts and that those who benefit economically from plastic bear their fair share of its currently externalized costs. Conclusions It is now clear that current patterns of plastic production, use, and disposal are not sustainable and are responsible for significant harms to human health, the environment, and the economy as well as for deep societal injustices.The main driver of these worsening harms is an almost exponential and still accelerating increase in global plastic production. Plastics' harms are further magnified by low rates of recovery and recycling and by the long persistence of plastic waste in the environment.The thousands of chemicals in plastics-monomers, additives, processing agents, and non-intentionally added substances-include amongst their number known human carcinogens, endocrine disruptors, neurotoxicants, and persistent organic pollutants. These chemicals are responsible for many of plastics' known harms to human and planetary health. The chemicals leach out of plastics, enter the environment, cause pollution, and result in human exposure and disease. All efforts to reduce plastics' hazards must address the hazards of plastic-associated chemicals. Recommendations To protect human and planetary health, especially the health of vulnerable and at-risk populations, and put the world on track to end plastic pollution by 2040, this Commission supports urgent adoption by the world's nations of a strong and comprehensive Global Plastics Treaty in accord with the mandate set forth in the March 2022 resolution of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA).International measures such as a Global Plastics Treaty are needed to curb plastic production and pollution, because the harms to human health and the environment caused by plastics, plastic-associated chemicals and plastic waste transcend national boundaries, are planetary in their scale, and have disproportionate impacts on the health and well-being of people in the world's poorest nations. Effective implementation of the Global Plastics Treaty will require that international action be coordinated and complemented by interventions at the national, regional, and local levels.This Commission urges that a cap on global plastic production with targets, timetables, and national contributions be a central provision of the Global Plastics Treaty. We recommend inclusion of the following additional provisions:The Treaty needs to extend beyond microplastics and marine litter to include all of the many thousands of chemicals incorporated into plastics.The Treaty needs to include a provision banning or severely restricting manufacture and use of unnecessary, avoidable, and problematic plastic items, especially single-use items such as manufactured plastic microbeads.The Treaty needs to include requirements on extended producer responsibility (EPR) that make fossil carbon producers, plastic producers, and the manufacturers of plastic products legally and financially responsible for the safety and end-of-life management of all the materials they produce and sell.The Treaty needs to mandate reductions in the chemical complexity of plastic products; health-protective standards for plastics and plastic additives; a requirement for use of sustainable non-toxic materials; full disclosure of all components; and traceability of components. International cooperation will be essential to implementing and enforcing these standards.The Treaty needs to include SEJ remedies at each stage of the plastic life cycle designed to fill gaps in community knowledge and advance both distributional and procedural equity.This Commission encourages inclusion in the Global Plastic Treaty of a provision calling for exploration of listing at least some plastic polymers as persistent organic pollutants (POPs) under the Stockholm Convention.This Commission encourages a strong interface between the Global Plastics Treaty and the Basel and London Conventions to enhance management of hazardous plastic waste and slow current massive exports of plastic waste into the world's least-developed countries.This Commission recommends the creation of a Permanent Science Policy Advisory Body to guide the Treaty's implementation. The main priorities of this Body would be to guide Member States and other stakeholders in evaluating which solutions are most effective in reducing plastic consumption, enhancing plastic waste recovery and recycling, and curbing the generation of plastic waste. This Body could also assess trade-offs among these solutions and evaluate safer alternatives to current plastics. It could monitor the transnational export of plastic waste. It could coordinate robust oceanic-, land-, and air-based MNP monitoring programs.This Commission recommends urgent investment by national governments in research into solutions to the global plastic crisis. This research will need to determine which solutions are most effective and cost-effective in the context of particular countries and assess the risks and benefits of proposed solutions. Oceanographic and environmental research is needed to better measure concentrations and impacts of plastics <10 µm and understand their distribution and fate in the global environment. Biomedical research is needed to elucidate the human health impacts of plastics, especially MNPs. Summary This Commission finds that plastics are both a boon to humanity and a stealth threat to human and planetary health. Plastics convey enormous benefits, but current linear patterns of plastic production, use, and disposal that pay little attention to sustainable design or safe materials and a near absence of recovery, reuse, and recycling are responsible for grave harms to health, widespread environmental damage, great economic costs, and deep societal injustices. These harms are rapidly worsening.While there remain gaps in knowledge about plastics' harms and uncertainties about their full magnitude, the evidence available today demonstrates unequivocally that these impacts are great and that they will increase in severity in the absence of urgent and effective intervention at global scale. Manufacture and use of essential plastics may continue. However, reckless increases in plastic production, and especially increases in the manufacture of an ever-increasing array of unnecessary single-use plastic products, need to be curbed.Global intervention against the plastic crisis is needed now because the costs of failure to act will be immense.
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Affiliation(s)
- Philip J. Landrigan
- Global Observatory on Planetary Health, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA, US
- Centre Scientifique de Monaco, Medical Biology Department, MC
| | - Hervé Raps
- Centre Scientifique de Monaco, Medical Biology Department, MC
| | - Maureen Cropper
- Economics Department, University of Maryland, College Park, US
| | - Caroline Bald
- Global Observatory on Planetary Health, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA, US
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Patrick Fenichel
- Université Côte d’Azur
- Centre Hospitalier, Universitaire de Nice, FR
| | - Lora E. Fleming
- European Centre for Environment and Human Health, University of Exeter Medical School, UK
| | | | | | | | - Carly Griffin
- Global Observatory on Planetary Health, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA, US
| | - Mark E. Hahn
- Biology Department, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, US
- Woods Hole Center for Oceans and Human Health, US
| | - Budi Haryanto
- Department of Environmental Health, Universitas Indonesia, ID
- Research Center for Climate Change, Universitas Indonesia, ID
| | - Richard Hixson
- College of Medicine and Health, University of Exeter, UK
| | - Hannah Ianelli
- Global Observatory on Planetary Health, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA, US
| | - Bryan D. James
- Department of Marine Chemistry and Geochemistry, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
- Department of Biology, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, US
| | | | - Amalia Laborde
- Department of Toxicology, School of Medicine, University of the Republic, UY
| | | | - Keith Martin
- Consortium of Universities for Global Health, US
| | - Jenna Mu
- Global Observatory on Planetary Health, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA, US
| | | | - Adetoun Mustapha
- Nigerian Institute of Medical Research, Lagos, Nigeria
- Lead City University, NG
| | - Jia Niu
- Department of Chemistry, Boston College, US
| | - Sabine Pahl
- University of Vienna, Austria
- University of Plymouth, UK
| | | | - Maria-Luiza Pedrotti
- Laboratoire d’Océanographie de Villefranche sur mer (LOV), Sorbonne Université, FR
| | | | | | - Bhedita Jaya Seewoo
- Minderoo Foundation, AU
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia, AU
| | | | - John J. Stegeman
- Biology Department and Woods Hole Center for Oceans and Human Health, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, US
| | - William Suk
- Superfund Research Program, National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, US
| | | | - Hideshige Takada
- Laboratory of Organic Geochemistry (LOG), Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, JP
| | | | | | - Zhanyun Wang
- Technology and Society Laboratory, WEmpa-Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials and Technology, CH
| | - Ella Whitman
- Global Observatory on Planetary Health, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA, US
| | | | | | - Aroub K. Yousuf
- Global Observatory on Planetary Health, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA, US
| | - Sarah Dunlop
- Minderoo Foundation, AU
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia, AU
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Desikan A, MacKinney T, Kalman C, Carter JM, Reed G, Goldman GT. An equity and environmental justice assessment of anti-science actions during the Trump administration. J Public Health Policy 2023; 44:147-162. [PMID: 36737622 PMCID: PMC9896454 DOI: 10.1057/s41271-022-00390-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/18/2022] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
In the United States, science shapes federal health and safety protections, but political officials can and do politicize federal science and science-based safeguards. Many presidential administrations have politicized science, but under the administration of President Trump, these attacks on science-such as buried research, censored scientists, halted data collection-increased in number to unprecedented levels. Underserved communities bore the brunt of the harms. Such attacks disproportionately harm Black, Indigenous, low-income communities, and communities of color, all of whom have long been burdened by pollution exposure and other stressors. We analyze the effects on underserved communities of the Trump administration's anti-science environmental and public health policy actions and offer policy recommendations for current and future administrations. Our goal is to strengthen scientific integrity, prioritize health disparity research, and meaningfully engage affected communities in federal rulemaking.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anita Desikan
- Center for Science and Democracy, Union of Concerned Scientists, Washington, DC, USA.
| | - Taryn MacKinney
- Center for Science and Democracy, Union of Concerned Scientists, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Casey Kalman
- Center for Science and Democracy, Union of Concerned Scientists, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Jacob M Carter
- Center for Science and Democracy, Union of Concerned Scientists, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Genna Reed
- Center for Science and Democracy, Union of Concerned Scientists, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Gretchen T Goldman
- Center for Science and Democracy, Union of Concerned Scientists, Washington, DC, USA
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Burbank AJ, Hernandez ML, Jefferson A, Perry TT, Phipatanakul W, Poole J, Matsui EC. Environmental justice and allergic disease: A Work Group Report of the AAAAI Environmental Exposure and Respiratory Health Committee and the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee. J Allergy Clin Immunol 2023; 151:656-670. [PMID: 36584926 PMCID: PMC9992350 DOI: 10.1016/j.jaci.2022.11.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2022] [Revised: 10/31/2022] [Accepted: 11/29/2022] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Environmental justice is the concept that all people have the right to live in a healthy environment, to be protected against environmental hazards, and to participate in decisions affecting their communities. Communities of color and low-income populations live, work, and play in environments with disproportionate exposure to hazards associated with allergic disease. This unequal distribution of hazards has contributed to health disparities and is largely the result of systemic racism that promotes segregation of neighborhoods, disinvestment in predominantly racial/ethnic minority neighborhoods, and discriminatory housing, employment, and lending practices. The AAAAI Environmental Exposure and Respiratory Health Committee and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee jointly developed this report to improve allergy/immunology specialists' awareness of environmental injustice, its roots in systemic racism, and its impact on health disparities in allergic disease. We present evidence supporting the relationship between exposure to environmental hazards, particularly at the neighborhood level, and the disproportionately high incidence and poor outcomes from allergic diseases in marginalized populations. Achieving environmental justice requires investment in at-risk communities to increase access to safe housing, clean air and water, employment opportunities, education, nutrition, and health care. Through policies that promote environmental justice, we can achieve greater health equity in allergic disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Allison J Burbank
- Division of Pediatric Allergy and Immunology, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Children's Research Institute, Chapel Hill, NC.
| | - Michelle L Hernandez
- Division of Pediatric Allergy and Immunology, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Children's Research Institute, Chapel Hill, NC
| | - Akilah Jefferson
- University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, Ark; Arkansas Children's Research Institute, Little Rock, Ark
| | - Tamara T Perry
- University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, Ark; Arkansas Children's Research Institute, Little Rock, Ark
| | - Wanda Phipatanakul
- Division of Asthma, Allergy and Immunology, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Mass
| | - Jill Poole
- Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Allergy and Immunology, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, Neb
| | - Elizabeth C Matsui
- Departments of Population Health and Pediatrics, Dell Medical School at University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Tex
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Kamai EM, Calderon A, Van Horne YO, Bastain TM, Breton CV, Johnston JE. Perceptions and experiences of environmental health and risks among Latina mothers in urban Los Angeles, California, USA. Environ Health 2023; 22:8. [PMID: 36641468 PMCID: PMC9840262 DOI: 10.1186/s12940-023-00963-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2022] [Accepted: 01/07/2023] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Environmental exposures during pregnancy and early childhood can have acute and chronic adverse health impacts. As minoritized populations are more likely to reside in areas with greater pollution, it is important to understand their views and lived experiences to inform action. The purpose of this community-driven qualitative research study was to understand how urban Latina mothers in Los Angeles County, California perceived environmental health and risks. METHODS We conducted semi-structured individual interviews with Latina pregnant women and mothers of young children, recruited through existing collaborations with community organizations. Interviews conducted in either English or Spanish and were coded inductively according to a modified grounded theory approach. RESULTS Thirty-six Latina mothers completed interviews between August-October 2016. Participants lived primarily in low-income communities of South-Central Los Angeles and East Los Angeles. We identified three major themes based on the participants' responses during interviews: Defining the Environment, Environment & Health Risks, and Social & Political Responsibility. Women defined their environment in terms of both "nature" and "hazards." They consistently identified foul odors, dirtiness, noise, trash, bugs, smoke, and other visible blights as indicators of household and neighborhood environmental hazards. They expressed fear and uncertainty about how their environment could affect their health and that of their children, as well as specific concerns about respiratory health, asthma, allergies, cancer, and adverse pregnancy outcomes. Mothers often changed individual behaviors around diet and cleaning during pregnancy but were frustrated by power imbalances that left them unable to change their home or neighborhood environments, despite their desire to do so. DISCUSSION Our study is among the first to describe how urban Latina mothers perceive and experience environmental health risks during pregnancy and early childhood. Our research suggests additional attention is needed by public health professionals and researchers to address the environmental health risks that matter most to urban Latina mothers. They also highlight the tension that many urban Latina mothers feel between wanting to protect their families' health and well-being and feeling powerless to change their environment. Broad policy changes, rather than additional individual recommendations, are needed to address the concerns of this vulnerable population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth M Kamai
- Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
| | - Andrea Calderon
- Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Yoshira Ornelas Van Horne
- Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Theresa M Bastain
- Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Carrie V Breton
- Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Jill E Johnston
- Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
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Jiang S, Datta U, Jones C. Promoting Health and Behavior Change through Evidence-Based Landscape Interventions in Rural Communities: A Pilot Protocol. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2022; 19:12833. [PMID: 36232132 PMCID: PMC9566410 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph191912833] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2022] [Revised: 09/24/2022] [Accepted: 10/03/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Rural communities in the United States have many public health issues, including a high prevalence of physical inactivity, obesity, and higher risks for major non-communicable diseases. A lack of safe and convenient places to exercise could intensify healthy lifestyle disparities. Individually adapted physical activity prescriptions at the primary level of healthcare could play a role in behavior change for rural residents. Healthcare professionals and designers created the rural wellness hub concept, which integrates walking trails and therapeutic landscape features on the clinic site, to support patient physician-prescribed activities and treatments. This research protocol reports the design and implementation of the rural wellness hub at a clinic in Clay County, West Virginia. Following a participatory, evidence-based landscape intervention (EBLI) protocol, 58 user representatives (patient = 49; clinic employee = 9) participated in the four-phase protocol: (1) pre-design survey, (2) design and development, (3) post-design interview, and (4) post-occupancy evaluation. Survey and interview data from all phases were collected and analyzed. The preliminary results indicate that the redesigned clinic campus could promote several health programs among local communities, with the benefits of walking trails, in particular, highlighted. The rigorous EBLI protocol could serve as a template for rural communities that seek to develop similar healthcare intervention programs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shan Jiang
- GBBN Architects, Pittsburgh, PA 15206, USA
| | - Udday Datta
- School of Design and Community Development, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV 26506, USA
| | - Christine Jones
- Community Care of West Virginia at Big Otter (Big Otter Clinic), Ivydale, WV 25113, USA
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27
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Mapping county-level vulnerability to the energy transition in US fossil fuel communities. Sci Rep 2022; 12:15748. [PMID: 36130967 PMCID: PMC9492708 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-19927-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2022] [Accepted: 09/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The energy transition toward lower-carbon energy sources will inevitably result in socioeconomic impacts on certain communities, particularly those that have historically produced fossil fuel resources and electricity generation using fossil fuels. Such communities stand to lose jobs, tax revenues, and support for public services. Which communities are most likely to be affected, which are more susceptible to being harmed, and how to target adaptive capacity programs—such as economic development and workforce training—accordingly are pressing scholarly and policy questions. In this study, we apply a vulnerability framework to calculate, rank, and map exposure and sensitivity scores for fossil fuel producing regions in the US. We find that, while counties in most regions of the United States will be affected by the transition away from fossil fuels, counties in Appalachia, Texas and the Gulf Coast region, and the Intermountain West are likely to experience the most significant impacts, and some regions experience overlapping and significant incidence of vulnerability. These results can be used to target future adaptive capacity programs.
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28
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Davis DD, Diaz-Castillo C, Chamorro-Garcia R. Multigenerational metabolic disruption: Developmental origins and mechanisms of propagation across generations. FRONTIERS IN TOXICOLOGY 2022; 4:902201. [PMID: 36060120 PMCID: PMC9437310 DOI: 10.3389/ftox.2022.902201] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2022] [Accepted: 07/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
It has been long known that the environment plays a critical role in the etiology of disease. However, it is still unclear how the large variety of environmental factors humans are exposed to interact with each other to lead to disease. Metabolic disorders are just one example of human disorders that have been associated with environmental exposures. Obesity and type 2 diabetes have become a health and economic burden worldwide as the number of affected people has tripled in the last 40 years. Animal and human studies have shown a strong association between exposure to environmental chemicals during critical windows of susceptibility such as periconception, prenatal, and early life, whose effect can persist through development and across generations. However, little is known about the mechanisms driving this persistence. Here, we review historical and current knowledge on the effect of exposure to environmental factors during in utero development and discuss mechanisms for these disorders to be propagated across generations.
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29
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Bhardwaj A. Understanding the diversified microbial operon framework coupled to arsenic transformation and expulsion. Biologia (Bratisl) 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s11756-022-01198-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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30
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Lichter KE, Anderson J, Sim AJ, Baniel CC, Thiel CL, Chuter R, Collins A, Carollo E, Berg CD, Coleman CN, Abdel-Wahab M, Grover S, Singer L, Mohamad O. Transitioning to Environmentally Sustainable, Climate-Smart Radiation Oncology Care. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys 2022; 113:915-924. [PMID: 35841919 PMCID: PMC10024638 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijrobp.2022.04.039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2022] [Accepted: 04/28/2022] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Katie E Lichter
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University of California, San Francisco, California.
| | - Justin Anderson
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Mayo Clinic, Phoenix, Arizona
| | - Austin J Sim
- Department of Radiation Oncology, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute, Tampa, Florida; Department of Radiation Oncology, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Columbus, Ohio
| | - Claire C Baniel
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Stanford University, Palo Alto, California
| | - Cassandra L Thiel
- Department of Population Health, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, NYU Langone Health, New York, New York
| | - Robert Chuter
- Christie Medical Physics and Engineering, The Christie NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester, United Kingdom; Division of Cancer Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Heath, University of Manchester, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, The Christie NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Amy Collins
- Health Care Without Harm, Reston, Virginia; Department of Emergency Medicine, MetroWest Medical Center, Framingham, Massachusetts
| | - Erin Carollo
- Loyola University Chicago-Stritch School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois
| | | | - C Norman Coleman
- Radiation Research Program, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, Maryland
| | - May Abdel-Wahab
- Division of Human Health, Radiation Oncology, International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna, Austria
| | - Surbhi Grover
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Pennsylvania, Botswana-UPenn Partnership, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Lisa Singer
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University of California, San Francisco, California
| | - Osama Mohamad
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University of California, San Francisco, California; Department of Urology, University of California, San Francisco, California
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31
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Jovan SE, Zuidema C, Derrien MM, Bidwell AL, Brinkley W, Smith RJ, Blahna D, Barnhill R, Gould L, Rodríguez AJ, Amacher MC, Abel TD, López P. Heavy metals in moss guide environmental justice investigation: A case study using community science in Seattle,
WA
,
USA. Ecosphere 2022. [DOI: 10.1002/ecs2.4109] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Sarah E. Jovan
- USDA Forest Service PNW Research Station Portland Oregon USA
| | - Christopher Zuidema
- Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences University of Washington Seattle Washington USA
| | - Monika M. Derrien
- USDA Forest Service Pacific Northwest Research Station Seattle Washington USA
| | | | | | - Robert J. Smith
- USDA Forest Service Air Resource Management Program Washington District of Columbia USA
| | - Dale Blahna
- USDA Forest Service Pacific Northwest Research Station Seattle Washington USA
| | | | - Linn Gould
- Just Health Action Seattle Washington USA
| | | | - Michael C. Amacher
- Forest Environment Health Research & Consulting, LLC North Logan Utah USA
| | - Troy D. Abel
- Department of Urban and Environmental Planning and Policy Western Washington University Bellingham Washington USA
| | - Paulina López
- Duwamish River Community Coalition Seattle Washington USA
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Nogueira L, White KE, Bell B, Alegria KE, Bennett G, Edmondson D, Epel E, Holman EA, Kronish IM, Thayer J. The Role of Behavioral Medicine in Addressing Climate Change-Related Health Inequities. Transl Behav Med 2022; 12:526-534. [PMID: 35613004 PMCID: PMC9132203 DOI: 10.1093/tbm/ibac005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Climate change is the greatest threat to global health in human history. It has been declared a public health emergency by the World Health Organization and leading researchers from academic institutions around the globe. Structural racism disproportionately exposes communities targeted for marginalization to the harmful consequences of climate change through greater risk of exposure and sensitivity to climate hazards and less adaptive capacity to the health threats of climate change. Given its interdisciplinary approach to integrating behavioral, psychosocial, and biomedical knowledge, the discipline of behavioral medicine is uniquely qualified to address the systemic causes of climate change-related health inequities and can offer a perspective that is currently missing from many climate and health equity efforts. In this article, we summarize relevant concepts, describe how climate change and structural racism intersect to exacerbate health inequities, and recommend six strategies with the greatest potential for addressing climate-related health inequities.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Elissa Epel
- University of California-San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
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Di Fonzo D, Fabri A, Pasetto R. Distributive justice in environmental health hazards from industrial contamination: A systematic review of national and near-national assessments of social inequalities. Soc Sci Med 2022; 297:114834. [PMID: 35217367 DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2022.114834] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2021] [Revised: 01/19/2022] [Accepted: 02/16/2022] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
Communities where polluting human activities are sited often show disadvantage in terms of social and economic variables. Environmental distributive justice studies seek to identify common characteristics in exposed populations and highlight the presence of environmental inequalities. We have conducted a review of the existing literature about justice in the distribution of health hazards from industrial pollution. We included papers investigating associations between social disadvantage and contamination through assessments at national or macro-area level. From each study we extracted: indicators for the social determinants of exposed communities (classified according to PROGRESS-plus categories); definition and measurement of environmental hazard (as either proximity to contamination sources, exposure to emissions or health impacts from pollutants); study design and methods; significant results. We retrieved 45 eligible articles. Most publications were from USA and had a nationwide scope with data at municipal/sub-municipal scale. Socioeconomic position and race/ethnicity were the social determinants most often explored, followed by occupation and education; air pollution was the commonest sort of contamination, while proximity prevailed as measurement of hazard. All papers found significant associations between social dimensions and health hazard from industrial contamination: the majority of associations supported an increased burden on vulnerable categories, especially ethnic minorities and unemployed - however, several relationships were found in the opposite direction or in both ways, particularly with wealth and education, reflecting a mixed reality where potential discrimination in siting decisions coexists with socioeconomic benefits for nearby communities due to industrial development. Assessments of environmental distributive justice are lacking in most countries and those that are conducted show vast methodological heterogeneity. We recommend consistency in models and indicators, the inclusion of female-led households among indicators of social disadvantage, and the adoption of a small scale to elicit significant findings and provide meaningful policy action.
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Affiliation(s)
- Davide Di Fonzo
- Unit of Environmental and Social Epidemiology, Department of Environment and Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161, Rome, Italy; School of Hygiene and Preventive Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Parma. Via Volturno 39, 43125, Parma, Italy.
| | - Alessandra Fabri
- Unit of Environmental and Social Epidemiology, Department of Environment and Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161, Rome, Italy; WHO Collaborating Centre for Environmental Health in Contaminated Sites, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161, Rome, Italy
| | - Roberto Pasetto
- Unit of Environmental and Social Epidemiology, Department of Environment and Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161, Rome, Italy; WHO Collaborating Centre for Environmental Health in Contaminated Sites, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161, Rome, Italy
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Gardner-Frolick R, Boyd D, Giang A. Selecting Data Analytic and Modeling Methods to Support Air Pollution and Environmental Justice Investigations: A Critical Review and Guidance Framework. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2022; 56:2843-2860. [PMID: 35133145 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.1c01739] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Given the serious adverse health effects associated with many pollutants, and the inequitable distribution of these effects between socioeconomic groups, air pollution is often a focus of environmental justice (EJ) research. However, EJ analyses that aim to illuminate whether and how air pollution hazards are inequitably distributed may present a unique set of requirements for estimating pollutant concentrations compared to other air quality applications. Here, we perform a scoping review of the range of data analytic and modeling methods applied in past studies of air pollution and environmental injustice and develop a guidance framework for selecting between them given the purpose of analysis, users, and resources available. We include proxy, monitor-based, statistical, and process-based methods. Upon critically synthesizing the literature, we identify four main dimensions to inform method selection: accuracy, interpretability, spatiotemporal features of the method, and usability of the method. We illustrate the guidance framework with case studies from the literature. Future research in this area includes an exploration of increasing data availability, advanced statistical methods, and the importance of science-based policy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rivkah Gardner-Frolick
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of British Columbia, Vancouver V6T 1Z4, Canada
| | - David Boyd
- Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability, University of British Columbia, Vancouver V6T 1Z4, Canada
| | - Amanda Giang
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of British Columbia, Vancouver V6T 1Z4, Canada
- Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability, University of British Columbia, Vancouver V6T 1Z4, Canada
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35
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Bioremediation of Hydrocarbon-Polluted Soil: Evaluation of Different Operative Parameters. APPLIED SCIENCES-BASEL 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/app12042012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
The bioremediation of soils polluted with hydrocarbons demonstrated to be a simple and cheap technique, even if it needs a long time. The current paper shows the application of statistical analysis, based on two factors involved in the biological process at several levels. We focus on the Design of Experiments (DOE) to determine the number and kind of experimental runs, whereas the use of the categorical factors has not been widely exploited up to now. This method is especially useful to analyze factors with levels constituted by categories and define the interaction effects. Particularly, we focused on the statistical analysis of (1) experimental runs carried out at laboratory scale (test M, in microcosm), on soil polluted with diesel oil, and (2) bench scale runs (test B, in biopile), on refinery oil sludge mixed with industrial or agricultural biodegradable wastes. Finally, the main purpose was to identify the factor’s significance in both the tests and their potential interactions, by applying the analysis of variance (ANOVA). The results demonstrate the robustness of the statistical method and its quality, especially when at least one of the factors cannot be defined with a numerical value.
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36
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MacIver L, London J, Sampson N, Gordon M, Grow R, Eady V. West Oakland's Experience in Building Community Power to Confront Environmental Injustice Through California's Assembly Bill 617. Am J Public Health 2022; 112:262-270. [PMID: 35080948 PMCID: PMC8802607 DOI: 10.2105/ajph.2021.306592] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 10/14/2021] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
We explored how air quality management processes associated with Assembly Bill 617 (AB 617) in West Oakland, California, represent a shift in power relationships between government agencies and communities toward the goal of addressing legacies of environmental injustice. We drew from a statewide assessment of community engagement in AB 617's first year, and an analysis of the West Oakland AB 617 process. The first comprised 2 statewide surveys (n = 102 and n = 106), 70 key informant interviews, observation of all AB 617 first-year sites, and analysis of related planning documents. The second comprised 2 rounds of interviews (n = 22 and n = 23, with a total of 19 individuals) and extensive participant observation. Several factors are necessary for pursuing environmental justice: (1) invest in community partnerships and collaborations, (2) honor community knowledge and data, (3) ensure that community constituents share power in environmental governance, and (4) adopt explicit racial justice frameworks. Although still a work in progress, AB 617 offers important lessons for community and policy organizations nationwide engaged in environmental justice. (Am J Public Health. 2022;112(2):262-270. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2021.306592).
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Affiliation(s)
- Lily MacIver
- At the time of this writing, Lily MacIver was with the Department of City and Regional Planning, University of California, Berkeley. Jonathan London is with the Department of Human Ecology, University of California, Davis. Natalie Sampson is with the Department of Health and Human Services, University of Michigan-Dearborn. Margaret Gordon is with the West Oakland Environmental Indicators Project, Oakland, CA. Richard Grow is retired from US Environmental Protection Agency Region 9, San Francisco, CA. Veronica Eady is with the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, San Francisco, CA
| | - Jonathan London
- At the time of this writing, Lily MacIver was with the Department of City and Regional Planning, University of California, Berkeley. Jonathan London is with the Department of Human Ecology, University of California, Davis. Natalie Sampson is with the Department of Health and Human Services, University of Michigan-Dearborn. Margaret Gordon is with the West Oakland Environmental Indicators Project, Oakland, CA. Richard Grow is retired from US Environmental Protection Agency Region 9, San Francisco, CA. Veronica Eady is with the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, San Francisco, CA
| | - Natalie Sampson
- At the time of this writing, Lily MacIver was with the Department of City and Regional Planning, University of California, Berkeley. Jonathan London is with the Department of Human Ecology, University of California, Davis. Natalie Sampson is with the Department of Health and Human Services, University of Michigan-Dearborn. Margaret Gordon is with the West Oakland Environmental Indicators Project, Oakland, CA. Richard Grow is retired from US Environmental Protection Agency Region 9, San Francisco, CA. Veronica Eady is with the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, San Francisco, CA
| | - Margaret Gordon
- At the time of this writing, Lily MacIver was with the Department of City and Regional Planning, University of California, Berkeley. Jonathan London is with the Department of Human Ecology, University of California, Davis. Natalie Sampson is with the Department of Health and Human Services, University of Michigan-Dearborn. Margaret Gordon is with the West Oakland Environmental Indicators Project, Oakland, CA. Richard Grow is retired from US Environmental Protection Agency Region 9, San Francisco, CA. Veronica Eady is with the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, San Francisco, CA
| | - Richard Grow
- At the time of this writing, Lily MacIver was with the Department of City and Regional Planning, University of California, Berkeley. Jonathan London is with the Department of Human Ecology, University of California, Davis. Natalie Sampson is with the Department of Health and Human Services, University of Michigan-Dearborn. Margaret Gordon is with the West Oakland Environmental Indicators Project, Oakland, CA. Richard Grow is retired from US Environmental Protection Agency Region 9, San Francisco, CA. Veronica Eady is with the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, San Francisco, CA
| | - Veronica Eady
- At the time of this writing, Lily MacIver was with the Department of City and Regional Planning, University of California, Berkeley. Jonathan London is with the Department of Human Ecology, University of California, Davis. Natalie Sampson is with the Department of Health and Human Services, University of Michigan-Dearborn. Margaret Gordon is with the West Oakland Environmental Indicators Project, Oakland, CA. Richard Grow is retired from US Environmental Protection Agency Region 9, San Francisco, CA. Veronica Eady is with the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, San Francisco, CA
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37
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Barnwell G, Wood N. Climate justice is central to addressing the climate emergency’s psychological consequences in the Global South: a narrative review. SOUTH AFRICAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHOLOGY 2022. [DOI: 10.1177/00812463211073384] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
Abstract
The United Nations has signalled a ‘code red’, marking climate change as an existential threat for humanity. The world is rapidly warming, and the consequences of climate change include an increase and intensification in flooding, droughts, wildfires, and other traumatic exposures. Although countries in the Global South have contributed least to global warming, they are the most vulnerable owing to historical inequities. The concept of ‘climate justice’ recognises that historical racial discrimination, class disenfranchisement, political misrecognition, and other social injustices make surviving climate change and thriving within it more challenging. This narrative review considers the psychological consequences of the climate emergency through a climate justice lens. The article discusses the unequal exposures to psychological adversities, socio-historical barriers to adaptations and, finally, institutional betrayal that complicates the experience of psychological distress. The review concludes by pragmatically discussing how psychology could support climate justice ends.
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38
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Beier JI, Arteel GE. Environmental exposure as a risk-modifying factor in liver diseases: Knowns and unknowns. Acta Pharm Sin B 2021; 11:3768-3778. [PMID: 35024305 PMCID: PMC8727918 DOI: 10.1016/j.apsb.2021.09.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2021] [Revised: 06/24/2021] [Accepted: 08/19/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Liver diseases are considered to predominantly possess an inherited or xenobiotic etiology. However, inheritance drives the ability to appropriately adapt to environmental stressors, and disease is the culmination of a maladaptive response. Thus “pure” genetic and “pure” xenobiotic liver diseases are modified by each other and other factors, identified or unknown. The purpose of this review is to highlight the knowledgebase of environmental exposure as a potential risk modifying agent for the development of liver disease by other causes. This exercise is not to argue that all liver diseases have an environmental component, but to challenge the assumption that the current state of our knowledge is sufficient in all cases to conclusively dismiss this as a possibility. This review also discusses key new tools and approaches that will likely be critical to address this question in the future. Taken together, identifying the key gaps in our understanding is critical for the field to move forward, or at the very least to “know what we don't know.”
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Affiliation(s)
- Juliane I. Beier
- Department of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
- Pittsburgh Liver Research Center and University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
- Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, University of Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
- Corresponding authors.
| | - Gavin E. Arteel
- Department of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
- Pittsburgh Liver Research Center and University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
- Corresponding authors.
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39
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Giudice LC, Llamas-Clark EF, DeNicola N, Pandipati S, Zlatnik MG, Decena DCD, Woodruff TJ, Conry JA. Climate change, women's health, and the role of obstetricians and gynecologists in leadership. Int J Gynaecol Obstet 2021; 155:345-356. [PMID: 34694628 PMCID: PMC9298078 DOI: 10.1002/ijgo.13958] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2021] [Revised: 09/16/2021] [Accepted: 09/28/2021] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
Climate change is one of the major global health threats to the world's population. It is brought on by global warming due in large part to increasing levels of greenhouse gases resulting from human activity, including burning fossil fuels (carbon dioxide), animal husbandry (methane from manure), industry emissions (ozone, nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide), vehicle/factory exhaust, and chlorofluorocarbon aerosols that trap extra heat in the earth's atmosphere. Resulting extremes of weather give rise to wildfires, air pollution, changes in ecology, and floods. These in turn result in displacement of populations, family disruption, violence, and major impacts on water quality and availability, food security, public health and economic infrastructures, and limited abilities for civil society to maintain citizen safety. Climate change also has direct impacts on human health and well-being. Particularly vulnerable populations are affected, including women, pregnant women, children, the disabled, and the elderly, who comprise the majority of the poor globally. Additionally, the effects of climate change disproportionally affect disadvantaged communities, including low income and communities of color, and lower-income countries that are at highest risk of adverse impacts when disasters occur due to inequitable distribution of resources and their socioeconomic status. The climate crisis is tilting the risk balance unfavorably for women's sexual and reproductive health and rights as well as newborn and child health. Obstetrician/gynecologists have the unique opportunity to raise awareness, educate, and advocate for mitigation strategies to reverse climate change affecting our patients and their families. This article puts climate change in the context of women's reproductive health as a public health issue, a social justice issue, a human rights issue, an economic issue, a political issue, and a gender issue that needs our attention now for the health and well-being of this and future generations. FIGO joins a broad coalition of international researchers and the medical community in stating that the current climate crisis presents an imminent health risk to pregnant people, developing fetuses, and reproductive health, and recognizing that we need society-wide solutions, government policies, and global cooperation to address and reduce contributors, including fossil fuel production, to climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Linda C Giudice
- Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California, USA
| | - Erlidia F Llamas-Clark
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Division of Ultrasound, University of the Philippines - Philippine General Hospital, Manila, Philippines
| | - Nathaniel DeNicola
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Johns Hopkins Health System, Washington, District of Columbia, USA
| | - Santosh Pandipati
- Obstetrix Medical Group/Mednax (Maternal-Fetal Medicine), Campbell, California, USA
| | - Marya G Zlatnik
- Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, Division of Maternal Fetal Medicine, Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment, Environmental Research and Translation for Health (EaRTH) Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California, USA
| | - Ditas Cristina D Decena
- Departments of Anatomy, Clinical Epidemiology and Public Health International, University of Santo Tomas, Manila, Philippines
| | - Tracey J Woodruff
- Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment, Environmental Research and Translation for Health (EaRTH) Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California, USA
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40
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Ishaq SL, Parada FJ, Wolf PG, Bonilla CY, Carney MA, Benezra A, Wissel E, Friedman M, DeAngelis KM, Robinson JM, Fahimipour AK, Manus MB, Grieneisen L, Dietz LG, Pathak A, Chauhan A, Kuthyar S, Stewart JD, Dasari MR, Nonnamaker E, Choudoir M, Horve PF, Zimmerman NB, Kozik AJ, Darling KW, Romero-Olivares AL, Hariharan J, Farmer N, Maki KA, Collier JL, O’Doherty KC, Letourneau J, Kline J, Moses PL, Morar N. Introducing the Microbes and Social Equity Working Group: Considering the Microbial Components of Social, Environmental, and Health Justice. mSystems 2021; 6:e0047121. [PMID: 34313460 PMCID: PMC8407420 DOI: 10.1128/msystems.00471-21] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Humans are inextricably linked to each other and our natural world, and microorganisms lie at the nexus of those interactions. Microorganisms form genetically flexible, taxonomically diverse, and biochemically rich communities, i.e., microbiomes that are integral to the health and development of macroorganisms, societies, and ecosystems. Yet engagement with beneficial microbiomes is dictated by access to public resources, such as nutritious food, clean water and air, safe shelter, social interactions, and effective medicine. In this way, microbiomes have sociopolitical contexts that must be considered. The Microbes and Social Equity (MSE) Working Group connects microbiology with social equity research, education, policy, and practice to understand the interplay of microorganisms, individuals, societies, and ecosystems. Here, we outline opportunities for integrating microbiology and social equity work through broadening education and training; diversifying research topics, methods, and perspectives; and advocating for evidence-based public policy that supports sustainable, equitable, and microbial wealth for all.
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Affiliation(s)
- Suzanne L. Ishaq
- University of Maine, School of Food and Agriculture, Orono, Maine, USA
| | - Francisco J. Parada
- Centro de Estudios en Neurociencia Humana y Neuropsicología, Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Diego Portales, Santiago, Chile
| | - Patricia G. Wolf
- Institute for Health Research and Policy, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Carla Y. Bonilla
- Gonzaga University, Department of Biology, Spokane, Washington, USA
| | - Megan A. Carney
- University of Arizona, School of Anthropology, Tucson, Arizona, USA
| | - Amber Benezra
- Stevens Institute of Technology, Science and Technology Studies, Hoboken, New Jersey, USA
| | | | - Michael Friedman
- American International College of Arts and Sciences of Antigua, Antigua, Antigua and Barbuda, West Indies
| | - Kristen M. DeAngelis
- Department of Microbiology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Jake M. Robinson
- University of Sheffield, Department of Landscape Architecture, Sheffield, United Kingdom
| | - Ashkaan K. Fahimipour
- Institute of Marine Sciences, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, California, USA
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Southwest Fisheries Science Center, Santa Cruz, California, USA
| | - Melissa B. Manus
- Department of Anthropology, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
| | - Laura Grieneisen
- Department of Genetics, Cell, and Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
| | - Leslie G. Dietz
- University of Oregon, Biology and the Built Environment Center, Eugene, Oregon, USA
| | - Ashish Pathak
- School of the Environment, Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, Tallahassee, Florida, USA
| | - Ashvini Chauhan
- School of the Environment, Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, Tallahassee, Florida, USA
| | - Sahana Kuthyar
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Justin D. Stewart
- Department of Ecological Science, Faculty of Earth and Life Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Mauna R. Dasari
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, USA
| | - Emily Nonnamaker
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, USA
| | - Mallory Choudoir
- Department of Microbiology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Patrick F. Horve
- University of Oregon, Biology and the Built Environment Center, Eugene, Oregon, USA
| | - Naupaka B. Zimmerman
- University of San Francisco, Department of Biology, San Francisco, California, USA
| | - Ariangela J. Kozik
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Katherine Weatherford Darling
- Social Science Program, University of Maine at Augusta, Augusta, Maine, USA
- University of Maine, Graduate School of Biomedical Science & Engineering, Bangor, Maine, USA
| | | | - Janani Hariharan
- Field of Soil and Crop Sciences, School of Integrative Plant Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA
| | - Nicole Farmer
- National Institutes of Health, Clinical Center, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Katherine A. Maki
- National Institutes of Health, Clinical Center, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Jackie L. Collier
- School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York, USA
| | | | - Jeffrey Letourneau
- Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | | | - Peter L. Moses
- Robert Larner College of Medicine, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont, USA
- Finch Therapeutics, Somerville, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Nicolae Morar
- Environmental Studies Program, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon, USA
- Department of Philosophy, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon, USA
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Zierold KM, Myers JV, Brock GN, Sears CG, Sears LL, Zhang CH. Nail Samples of Children Living near Coal Ash Storage Facilities Suggest Fly Ash Exposure and Elevated Concentrations of Metal(loid)s. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2021; 55:9074-9086. [PMID: 34132542 PMCID: PMC10725724 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.1c01541] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Children who live near coal-fired power plants are exposed to coal fly ash, which is stored in landfills and surface impoundments near residential communities. Fly ash has the potential to be released as fugitive dust. Using data collected from 263 children living within 10 miles of coal ash storage facilities in Jefferson and Bullitt Counties, Kentucky, USA, we quantified the elements found in nail samples. Furthermore, using principal component analysis (PCA), we investigated whether metal(loid)s that are predominately found in fly ash loaded together to indicate potential exposure to fly ash. Concentrations of several neurotoxic metal(loid)s, such as chromium, manganese, and zinc, were higher than concentrations reported in other studies of both healthy and environmentally exposed children. From PCA, it was determined that iron, aluminum, and silicon in fly ash were found to load together in the nails of children living near coal ash storage facilities. These metal(loid)s were also highly correlated with each other. Last, results of geospatial analyses partially validated our hypothesis that children's proximity to power plants was associated with elevated levels of concentrations of fly ash metal(loid)s in nails. Taken together, nail samples may be a powerful tool in detecting exposure to fly ash.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kristina M Zierold
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham 35294, Alabama, United States
| | - John V Myers
- Department of Biomedical Informatics and Center for Biostatistics, The Ohio State University, Columbus 43210, Ohio, United States
| | - Guy N Brock
- Department of Biomedical Informatics and Center for Biostatistics, The Ohio State University, Columbus 43210, Ohio, United States
| | - Clara G Sears
- Department of Epidemiology, Brown University, Providence 02912, Rhode Island, United States
| | - Lonnie L Sears
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Louisville, Louisville 40292, Kentucky, United States
| | - Charlie H Zhang
- Department of Geography & Geosciences, University of Louisville, Louisville 40292, Kentucky, United States
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Johnston JE, Enebish T, Eckel SP, Navarro S, Shamasunder B. Respiratory health, pulmonary function and local engagement in urban communities near oil development. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2021; 197:111088. [PMID: 33794173 PMCID: PMC8579779 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2021.111088] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2020] [Revised: 03/23/2021] [Accepted: 03/24/2021] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Modern oil development frequently occurs in close proximity to human populations. Los Angeles, California is home to the largest urban oil field in the country with thousands of active oil and gas wells in very close proximity to homes, schools and parks, yet few studies have investigated potential health impacts. The neighborhoods along the Las Cienagas oil fields are situated in South LA, densely populated by predominantly low-income Black and Latinx families, many of whom are primarily Spanish-speakers. METHODS A cross-sectional community-based study was conducted between January 2017 and August 2019 among residents living <1000 m from two oil wells (one active, one idle) in the Las Cienagas oil field. We collected self-reported acute health symptoms and measured FEV1 (forced expiratory volume in the first second of exhalation) and FVC (forced vital capacity). We related lung function measures to distance and direction from an oil and gas development site using generalized linear models adjusted for covariates. RESULTS A total of 961 residents from two neighborhoods participated, the majority of whom identify as Latinx. Participants near active oil development reported significantly higher prevalence of wheezing, eye and nose irritation, sore throat and dizziness in the past 2 weeks. Among 747 valid spirometry tests, we observe that living near (less than 200 m) of oil operations was associated with, on average, -112 mL lower FEV1 (95% CI: -213, -10) and -128 mL lower FVC (95% CI: -252, -5) compared to residents living more than 200 m from the sites after adjustments for covariates, including age, sex, height, proximity to freeway, asthma status and smoking status. When accounting for predominant wind direction and proximity, we observe that residents living downwind and less than 200 m from oil operations have, on average, -414 mL lower FEV1 (95% CI: -636, -191) and -400 mL lower FVC (95% CI: -652, -147) compared to residents living upwind and more than 200 m from the wells. CONCLUSIONS Living nearby and downwind of urban oil and gas development sites is associated with lower lung function among residents, which may contribute to environmental health disparities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jill E Johnston
- Department of Preventive Medicine, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
| | - Temuulen Enebish
- Department of Preventive Medicine, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Sandrah P Eckel
- Department of Preventive Medicine, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | | | - Bhavna Shamasunder
- Department of Urban & Environmental Policy, Occidental College, Los Angeles, CA, USA
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Zota AR, Shamasunder B. Environmental health equity: moving toward a solution-oriented research agenda. JOURNAL OF EXPOSURE SCIENCE & ENVIRONMENTAL EPIDEMIOLOGY 2021; 31:399-400. [PMID: 34012101 PMCID: PMC8134826 DOI: 10.1038/s41370-021-00333-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2021] [Revised: 04/15/2021] [Accepted: 04/16/2021] [Indexed: 05/12/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Ami R Zota
- Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health, Washington, DC, USA.
| | - Bhavna Shamasunder
- Department of Urban and Environmental Policy and Public Health, Occidental College, Los Angeles, CA, USA
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Van Horne YO, Farzan SF, Johnston JE. Metal-mixtures in toenails of children living near an active industrial facility in Los Angeles County, California. JOURNAL OF EXPOSURE SCIENCE & ENVIRONMENTAL EPIDEMIOLOGY 2021; 31:427-441. [PMID: 33935287 PMCID: PMC8893014 DOI: 10.1038/s41370-021-00330-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/01/2020] [Revised: 04/01/2021] [Accepted: 04/08/2021] [Indexed: 05/15/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Children residing in communities near metalworking industries are vulnerable to multiple toxic metal exposures. Understanding biomarkers of exposure to multiple toxic metals is important to characterize cumulative burden and to distinguish potential exposure sources in such environmental justice neighborhoods impacted by industrial operations. Exposure to metal mixtures has not been well-characterized among children residing in the United States, and is understudied in communities of color. METHODS In this study we used toenail clippings, a noninvasive biomarker, to assess exposure to arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), mercury (Hg), manganese (Mn), lead (Pb), antimony (Sb), selenium (Se), and vanadium (V). We used nonnegative matrix factorization (NMF) to identify "source" signatures and patterns of exposure among predominantly working class Latinx children residing near an industrial corridor in Southeast Los Angeles County. Additionally, we investigated the association between participant demographic, spatial, and dietary characteristics with identified metal signatures. RESULTS Through NMF, we identified three groupings (source factors) for the metal concentrations in children's toenails. A grouping composed of Sb, Pb, As, and Cd, was identified as a potential industrial source factor, reflective of known airborne elemental emissions in the industrial corridor. We further identified a manganese source factor primarily composed of Mn, and a potential dietary source factor driven by Se and Hg. We observed differences in the industrial source factor by age of participants, while the dietary source factor varied by neighborhood. CONCLUSION Utilizing an unsupervised dimension reduction technique (NMF), we identified a "source signature" of contamination in toenail samples from children living near metalworking industry. Investigating patterns and sources of exposures in cumulatively burdened communities is necessary to identify appropriate public health interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yoshira Ornelas Van Horne
- Department of Preventive Medicine, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Shohreh F Farzan
- Department of Preventive Medicine, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Jill E Johnston
- Department of Preventive Medicine, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
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Nicole W. A Different Kind of Storm: Natech Events in Houston's Fenceline Communities. ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH PERSPECTIVES 2021; 129:52001. [PMID: 33950702 PMCID: PMC8099156 DOI: 10.1289/ehp8391] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2020] [Accepted: 10/27/2020] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
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Sharpe RM. Location, location, location-where you are born may determine your reproductive (and more general) health. Hum Reprod 2021; 36:1171-1174. [PMID: 33728440 DOI: 10.1093/humrep/deab051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Richard M Sharpe
- MRC Centre for Reproductive Health, The Queen's Medical Research Institute, University of Edinburgh, 47 Little France Crescent, Edinburgh EH16 4TJ, UK
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Malecha ML, Kirsch KR, Karaye I, Horney JA, Newman G. Advancing the Toxics Mobility Inventory: Development and Application of a Toxics Mobility Vulnerability Index to Harris County, Texas. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2020; 13:282-291. [PMID: 33868548 DOI: 10.1089/sus.2020.0067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
Harris County, Texas, is home to thousands of documented sources of environmental pollution. It is also highly vulnerable to impacts from natural hazards, including floods. Building on the Toxics Mobility Inventory (TMI), this article discusses how the authors developed a Toxics Mobility Vulnerability Index (TMVI) and applied it to Harris County to assess potential exposure risks to residents from the transfer of toxic materials during flood events. The TMI concept was operationalized and standardized by combining multiple spatial data sets to simultaneously evaluate various factors in the weather hazards-extant toxics-social vulnerability nexus (e.g., floodplain area, industrial land use, social vulnerability measures). Findings indicated hot spots of vulnerability to hazard-induced toxics transfer concentrated in Northeast Houston US Census tracts in Harris County. The main drivers of increased risk in these areas include the proportion of the area that is impervious surface, consistently high social vulnerabilities, and poor health. However, the most vulnerable areas also have overlapping exposure to both industrial land use and floodplains. Assessing the contribution of a set of industrial land use, social vulnerability, natural hazard, emergency response, and topography variables in a single index on the same spatial scale (e.g., US Census tract) provides detailed information for policy makers tasked with mitigating risk. Applying tools such as the TMVI to highly vulnerable urban and coastal locations may help identify changes needed for preparedness and mitigation planning and highlight areas where limited resources for investment- and policy-related remediation should be focused, both before and after disasters.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew L Malecha
- Department of Landscape Architecture and Urban Planning, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
| | - Katie R Kirsch
- Epidemiology Program, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware, USA
| | - Ibraheem Karaye
- Epidemiology Program, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware, USA
| | | | - Galen Newman
- Department of Landscape Architecture and Urban Planning, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
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Johnston JE, Chau K, Franklin M, Cushing L. Environmental Justice Dimensions of Oil and Gas Flaring in South Texas: Disproportionate Exposure among Hispanic communities. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2020; 54:6289-6298. [PMID: 32338877 PMCID: PMC8915929 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.0c00410] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
Unconventional extraction techniques including hydraulic fracturing or "fracking" have led to a boom in oil and gas production in the Eagle Ford shale play, Texas, one of the most productive regions in the United States. Nearly 400000 people live within 5 km of an unconventional oil or gas well in this largely rural area. Flaring is associated primarily with unconventional oil wells and is an increasingly common practice in the Eagle Ford to dispose of excess gas through combustion. Flares can operate continuously for months and release hazardous air pollutants such as particulate matter and volatile organic compounds in addition to causing light and noise pollution and noxious odors. We estimated ethnic disparities in exposure to flaring using satellite observations from the Visible Infrared Imaging Spectroradiometer between March 2012-December 2016. Census blocks with majority Hispanic (>60%) populations were exposed to twice as many nightly flare events within 5 km as those with <20% Hispanics. We found that Hispanics were exposed to more flares despite being less likely than non-Hispanic White residents to live near unconventional oil and gas wells. Our findings suggest Hispanics are disproportionately exposed to flares in the Eagle Ford shale, a pattern known as environmental injustice, which could contribute to disparities in air pollution and other nuisance exposures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jill E. Johnston
- Department of Preventive Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles California 90032, United States
| | - Khang Chau
- Department of Preventive Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles California 90032, United States
| | - Meredith Franklin
- Department of Preventive Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles California 90032, United States
| | - Lara Cushing
- Department of Health Education, San Francisco State University, San Francisco California, 94132, United States
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Khanmohammadi A, Jalili Ghazizadeh A, Hashemi P, Afkhami A, Arduini F, Bagheri H. An overview to electrochemical biosensors and sensors for the detection of environmental contaminants. JOURNAL OF THE IRANIAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY 2020. [DOI: 10.1007/s13738-020-01940-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
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