title: Leaking Underground Storage Tanks and Environmental Injustice: Is There a Hidden and Unequal Threat to Public Health in South Carolina?
abstract: There are approximately 590,000 underground storage tanks (USTs) nationwide that store petroleum or hazardous substances. Many of these tanks are leaking, which may increase the risk of exposure to contaminants that promote health problems in host neighborhoods. Within this study, we assessed disparities in the spatial distribution of leaking underground storage tanks (LUSTs) based on socioeconomic status (SES) and race/ethnicity in South Carolina (SC). Chi-square tests were used to evaluate the difference in the proportion of populations who host a LUST compared to those not hosting a LUST for all sociodemographic factors. Linear regression models were applied to examine the association of distance to the nearest LUST with relevant sociodemographic measures. As percent black increased, the distance (both in kilometers and miles) to the nearest LUST decreased. Similar results were observed for percent poverty, unemployment, persons with less than a high school education, blacks in poverty, and whites in poverty. Furthermore, chi-square tests indicated that blacks or non-whites or people with low SES were more likely to live in LUST host areas than in non-host areas. As buffer distance increased, percent black and non-white decreased. SES variables demonstrated a similar inverse relationship. Overall, burden disparities exist in the distribution of LUSTs based on race/ethnicity and SES in SC.
authors.affiliation: Director of the Program on Community Engagement, Environmental Justice, and Health (CEEJH) and an assistant professor at the Maryland Institute for Applied Environmental (MIAEH), School of Public Health, University of Maryland, in College Park, MD.
authors.forename: Sacoby
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wilson
authors.affiliation: Associate professor of the Division of Epidemiology, Biostatistics, and Environmental Health at the School of Public Health, University of Memphis, in Memphis, TN.
authors.forename: Hongmei
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Graduate research assistant for CEEJH and a doctoral student at MIAEH, located at the School of Public Health, University of Maryland in College Park, MD.
authors.forename: Kristen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Burwell
authors.affiliation: Graduate assistant in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Arnold School of Public Health, at USC in Columbia, SC.
authors.forename: Ashok
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Samantapudi
authors.affiliation: Program associate for CEEJH at MIAEH, located at the School of Public Health at the University of Maryland in College Park, MD.
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Dalemarre
authors.affiliation: Research associate for CEEJH at MIAEH, located at the School of Public Health, University of Maryland in College Park, MD.
authors.forename: Chengsheng
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.affiliation: Research associate at the Institute for Partnerships to Eliminate Health Disparities and doctoral candidate in the Department of Health Promotion, Education, and Behavior at the Arnold School of Public Health at USC in Columbia, SC.
authors.forename: Lashanta
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Rice
authors.affiliation: Research assistant professor of epidemiology and biostatistics and the deputy director for research and sustainability at the Institute for Partnerships to Eliminate Health Disparities, Arnold School of Public Health, at USC in Columbia, SC.
authors.forename: Edith
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.affiliation: Faculty Research assistant for CEEJH at MIAEH, within the School of Public Health, University of Maryland in College Park, MD.
authors.forename: Charles
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Naney
references.citation: Am J Public Health. 2012 Oct;102(10):1974-80
references.pmid: 22897529
references.citation: Environ Health Perspect. 2002 Apr;110 Suppl 2:161-71
references.pmid: 11929725
references.citation: Environ Sci Technol. 2009 Oct 15;43(20):7626-34
references.pmid: 19921871
references.citation: Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2011 May;8(5):1441-59
references.pmid: 21655129
references.citation: Am J Public Health. 2011 Dec;101 Suppl 1:S37-52
references.pmid: 22028451