Smog and Socioeconomics: Evaluation of Equity in Traffic-Related Air Pollution Generation and Exposure
The distribution of traffic-related air pollution generation, exposure and social disadvantage is an important environmental justice concern. From a social equity perspective, many questions arise at the metropolitan scale: Do socially disadvantaged communities have higher exposure levels to traffic-related air pollution? Does a polluter-pays situation exist wherein communities that generate high levels of pollution are also exposed to greater concentrations? And, is there a relationship between the polluter-pays principle and social disadvantage? These questions are examined for the Montreal metropolitan region through the development of an integrated transport and emission model. Two measures of traffic-related air pollution from private vehicle operation are estimated at the traffic analysis zone level: (1) generation (average emissions per household), and (2) exposure (average residential zone concentration). A social disadvantage index is also calculated that incorporates elements of social and material deprivation. Three levels of inequity exist regarding emissions, exposure and socioeconomics. Firstly, social disadvantage was found to have a positive relationship with exposure, meaning that the most socially disadvantaged communities tend to experience the highest levels of traffic-related air pollution. Spatial gradients in emission generation versus exposure are also present for most of the metropolitan region, negating the polluter-pays principle. Furthermore, the communities that face a double-burden of greater disadvantage and higher exposure also tend to create the lowest quantities of pollution.
-
Supplemental Notes:
- This paper was sponsored by TRB committee ADD50 Environmental Justice in Transportation.
-
Corporate Authors:
500 Fifth Street, NW
Washington, DC United States 20001 -
Authors:
- Sider, TImothy
- Hatzopoulou, Marianne
- Eluru, Naveen
- Goulet-Langlois, Gabriel
- Manaugh, Kevin
-
Conference:
- Transportation Research Board 93rd Annual Meeting
- Location: Washington DC
- Date: 2014-1-12 to 2014-1-16
- Date: 2014
Language
- English
Media Info
- Media Type: Digital/other
- Features: Figures; Maps; References;
- Pagination: 19p
- Monograph Title: TRB 93rd Annual Meeting Compendium of Papers
Subject/Index Terms
- TRT Terms: Air pollution; Economic and social factors; Environmental justice; Equity; Exhaust gases; Low income groups
- Geographic Terms: Montreal (Canada)
- Subject Areas: Economics; Environment; Highways; Society; I10: Economics and Administration; I15: Environment;
Filing Info
- Accession Number: 01515878
- Record Type: Publication
- Report/Paper Numbers: 14-1878
- Files: TRIS, TRB, ATRI
- Created Date: Feb 25 2014 9:15AM