Ports and Environmental Justice in the United States: An Exploratory Statistical Analysis

Area of Science:

• Environmental Science
• Public Health
• Urban Planning

Background:

• Ports are critical economic hubs but can pose environmental risks to surrounding communities.
• Growing concerns exist regarding the equitable distribution of environmental burdens associated with port operations.
• Previous studies have highlighted potential environmental justice issues near industrial facilities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To conduct a screening environmental justice analysis of 50 major U.S. ports.
• To identify demographic and environmental disparities in areas surrounding port facilities.
• To assess the implications of these findings for future port development and community well-being.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) EJSCREEN tool for analysis.
• Examined 7 demographic and 11 environmental metrics within 2, 5, and 10-mile radii from port centroids.
• Focused on ports managing over 10 million tons of products.

Main Results:

• Areas within a 2-mile radius exhibited higher values for 13 of 18 environmental inequity indicators.
• Elevated risks included air toxics, fine particulate matter, and proximity to hazardous waste sites.
• These zones also showed higher concentrations of minority populations and indicators of low socioeconomic status.

Conclusions:

• The analysis indicates significant environmental justice concerns concentrated near U.S. ports.
• Maintaining and upgrading screening tools like EJSCREEN is crucial for ongoing assessment.
• Future port neighborhood outcomes depend on community engagement, governance, and commercial user values.