Environmental Justice: Spatial Distribution of Hazardous Waste Treatment, Storage and Disposal Facilities in Los Angeles

Abstract

Concern over possible inequities in the siting of noxious facilities leads us to study spatial patterns of distribution of hazardous waste treatment, storage, and disposal facilities (TSDs). Inasmuch as such patterns are inextricably linked to particular land-use institutions, our focus is jurisdiction-specific, in this case, concentrated on the city of Los Angeles. Problems with statistical confounding require some effort at ordinary least-squares model specification and diagnostics. The paper addresses the simultaneity of effects due to demographics and zoning, and we employ a two-stage least-squares procedure to address the possibility that both the siting and industrial zoning are endogenously determined. The results suggest a significant correlation between prevalence of TSDs and the proportion of Latino residents. The political implications of such results are unquestionable, and analyses such as this can be used in conjunction with a greater body of evidence supporting the call for reform. We show how the statistical analysis might also be useful for formulating fair-share criteria for screening locations in the site selection/screening process.