Environmental Justice Statistics That Live in My Head (Rent Free)

If you’re on TikTok, you’ve probably seen the trend that prompts viewers to make a video talking about a statistic that lives in their heads “rent free”.

I recently came across one related to environmental justice that BLEW my mind (watch it below)…. and made me think about all the other insane statistics about the environmental justice (and the lack thereof) that I have encountered in the past few years. 

Environmental Justice Terms

Confined animal feeding operations, otherwise known as CAFOs, are industrial-scale farms that house thousands of animals for slaughter. 

Superfund sites are contaminated sites listed on the Environmental Protection Agency’s National Priorities List (NPL) for being hazardous

PFAS (per and polyfluoroalkyl substances) are highly toxic fluorinated compounds that are found in a variety of waterproof items and food packaging products.  

Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) is a database created in 1986 under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act in order to support emergency planning and publicize information about toxic releases.

Particulate matter emissions are particles in the air that are small enough to be inhaled, causing serious health problems. 

Environmental Justice Statistics

70% of Superfund sites are within a mile of federally assisted housing (Shriver Center on Poverty Law, 2020 ). 

Race has the strongest relationship with the amount of time people have to live with drinking water violations (National Resource Defense Council, 2020). 

11.2 percent of African American children are poisoned by lead, compared with 2.3 percent of white children (Center for Disease Control). 

Low-income households spend three times as much of their income on energy than non-low-income households, despite consuming less energy (Reames, 2016).

On average, people of color comprise 56% of the population living in neighborhoods with TRI facilities, compared to 30% elsewhere (Bullard, 2008).

The proportion of Black, Hispanic, and Indigenous Americans living within three miles of a North Carolina pig CAFO are 1.54, 1.39, and 2.18 times higher than white Americans, respectively (Steve Wing and Jill Johnston, 2014). 

Black Americans have a 54% higher burden from particulate matter emissions than the overall population (EPA, 2018). 

.. and the List Goes On

There are most definitely more jaw-dropping Environmental Justice statistics that I have forgotten to include in this piece. If you want to share other stats that live in your head ‘rent free’, comment the facts down below!

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