Carbon trading, co-pollutants, and environmental equity: Evidence from California's cap-and-trade program (2011-2015)
| Autor: | Rachel Morello-Frosch, Dan Blaustein-Rejto, Madeline Wander, Lara Cushing, Manuel Pastor, James Sadd, Allen Zhu |
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| Přispěvatelé: | Patz, Jonathan |
| Jazyk: | angličtina |
| Rok vydání: | 2018 |
| Předmět: |
Greenhouse Effect
Atmospheric Science Time Factors 010504 meteorology & atmospheric sciences Social Determinants of Health Natural resource economics Health Status Climate Industrial production Air pollution Social Sciences lcsh:Medicine 010501 environmental sciences medicine.disease_cause Medical and Health Sciences 01 natural sciences Geographical locations California Risk Factors Residence Characteristics Medicine and Health Sciences Public and Occupational Health Inhalation Exposure Geography Organic Compounds General Medicine Pollution Socioeconomic Aspects of Health Chemistry Policy Research Design Physical Sciences Neighborhoods Engineering and Technology Environmental Pollutants Environmental Monitoring Research Article Census Environmental Engineering Climate Change Climate change Human Geography Research and Analysis Methods Risk Assessment Air Quality Greenhouse Gases General & Internal Medicine Air Pollution medicine Humans Environmental Chemistry Climate-Related Exposures and Conditions Air quality index 0105 earth and related environmental sciences Volatile Organic Compounds Survey Research Organic Chemistry Ecology and Environmental Sciences lcsh:R Chemical Compounds Equity (finance) Carbon Dioxide United States Carbon Climate Action Health Care Climate change mitigation Atmospheric Chemistry Greenhouse gas North America Government Regulation Earth Sciences Environmental science Particulate Matter Emissions trading People and places Program Evaluation |
| Zdroj: | PLoS Medicine, Vol 15, Iss 7, p e1002604 (2018) PLoS Medicine Cushing, L; Blaustein-Rejto, D; Wander, M; Pastor, M; Sadd, J; Zhu, A; et al.(2018). Carbon trading, co-pollutants, and environmental equity: Evidence from California’s cap-and-trade program (2011–2015). PLoS Medicine, 15(7). doi: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1002604. UC Berkeley: Retrieved from: http://www.escholarship.org/uc/item/7814z8mp PLoS medicine, vol 15, iss 7 |
| ISSN: | 1549-1676 1549-1277 |
| DOI: | 10.1371/journal.pmed.1002604. |
| Popis: | Background Policies to mitigate climate change by reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions can yield public health benefits by also reducing emissions of hazardous co-pollutants, such as air toxics and particulate matter. Socioeconomically disadvantaged communities are typically disproportionately exposed to air pollutants, and therefore climate policy could also potentially reduce these environmental inequities. We sought to explore potential social disparities in GHG and co-pollutant emissions under an existing carbon trading program—the dominant approach to GHG regulation in the US and globally. Methods and findings We examined the relationship between multiple measures of neighborhood disadvantage and the location of GHG and co-pollutant emissions from facilities regulated under California’s cap-and-trade program—the world’s fourth largest operational carbon trading program. We examined temporal patterns in annual average emissions of GHGs, particulate matter (PM2.5), nitrogen oxides, sulfur oxides, volatile organic compounds, and air toxics before (January 1, 2011–December 31, 2012) and after (January 1, 2013–December 31, 2015) the initiation of carbon trading. We found that facilities regulated under California’s cap-and-trade program are disproportionately located in economically disadvantaged neighborhoods with higher proportions of residents of color, and that the quantities of co-pollutant emissions from these facilities were correlated with GHG emissions through time. Moreover, the majority (52%) of regulated facilities reported higher annual average local (in-state) GHG emissions since the initiation of trading. Neighborhoods that experienced increases in annual average GHG and co-pollutant emissions from regulated facilities nearby after trading began had higher proportions of people of color and poor, less educated, and linguistically isolated residents, compared to neighborhoods that experienced decreases in GHGs. These study results reflect preliminary emissions and social equity patterns of the first 3 years of California’s cap-and-trade program for which data are available. Due to data limitations, this analysis did not assess the emissions and equity implications of GHG reductions from transportation-related emission sources. Future emission patterns may shift, due to changes in industrial production decisions and policy initiatives that further incentivize local GHG and co-pollutant reductions in disadvantaged communities. Conclusions To our knowledge, this is the first study to examine social disparities in GHG and co-pollutant emissions under an existing carbon trading program. Our results indicate that, thus far, California’s cap-and-trade program has not yielded improvements in environmental equity with respect to health-damaging co-pollutant emissions. This could change, however, as the cap on GHG emissions is gradually lowered in the future. The incorporation of additional policy and regulatory elements that incentivize more local emission reductions in disadvantaged communities could enhance the local air quality and environmental equity benefits of California’s climate change mitigation efforts. Rachel Morello-Frosch and colleagues reveal the health inequities in California’s carbon trading program with a disproportionate number of greenhouse gas-regulated facilities in economically disadvantaged neighbourhoods reported. Author summary Why was this study done? Climate change policies to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions can also reduce emissions of hazardous co-pollutants, such as air toxics and particulate matter. Decreases in GHG emissions are therefore also likely to provide health benefits by improving local air quality to communities near regulated facilities. Globally, socioeconomically disadvantaged communities are often disproportionately exposed to hazardous air pollutants due to emissions from facilities nearby. We examined temporal patterns in GHG and co-pollutant emissions with respect to neighborhood demographics under California’s cap-and-trade program—the world’s fourth largest carbon trading market. What did the researchers do and find? We assessed GHG and co-pollutant (particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, sulfur oxides, volatile organic compounds, and air toxics) emission patterns and the social equity implications of California’s cap-and-trade program before (2011–2012) and after (2013–2015) the initiation of carbon trading. Facilities regulated under California’s cap-and-trade program are disproportionately located in disadvantaged neighborhoods. Statistical analysis found that co-pollutant emissions from regulated facilities were temporally correlated with GHG emissions, and most regulated facilities (52%) reported higher annual average local (in-state) GHG emissions after the initiation of trading, even though total emissions remained well under the cap established by the program. Since California’s cap-and-trade program began, neighborhoods that experienced increases in annual average GHG and co-pollutant emissions from regulated facilities nearby had higher proportions of people of color and poor, less educated, and linguistically isolated residents, compared to neighborhoods that experienced decreases in GHGs. What do these findings mean? To our knowledge, this is the first study to assess social disparities in GHG and co-pollutant emissions under an existing carbon trading program. Although GHG emission reductions could bring about significant air quality and health benefits for California’s disadvantaged residents, thus far the state’s cap-and-trade program has yet to yield such localized improvements in environmental equity. Policy and regulatory incentives to enhance local GHG emission reductions in disadvantaged communities could yield greater local air quality and environmental equity benefits from California’s climate change mitigation strategies. Future regulatory efforts should systematically track trends in hazardous co-pollutant emissions associated with GHG emissions from stationary and transportation-related sources and assess how they impact socioeconomically disadvantaged populations. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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