Community Health: Air Pollution in West Oakland, California

We present this work as a presentation and a white paper that can be shared with community partners. In this work, we conducted a preliminary analysis of air pollution data (including criteria air pollutants and air toxics), demographics, and health outcomes in the community of West Oakland, California. West Oakland has historically been subject to redlining and other forms of racial discrimination; current community members have environmental justice concerns. West Oakland has been selected to participate in California's AB 617 program, in which communities work with local and state government authorities to improve air quality. We worked with community members and EPA Region 9 staff to identify research priorities for the community. The community members would like to conduct a longitudinal health study in the future, so we conducted analyses that can provide a baseline picture of environmental health in West Oakland and guide future research efforts. We identified that West Oakland has relatively high PM2.5 concentrations but somewhat lower ozone concentrations compared to other urban Alameda County communities. We identified major stationary anthropogenic sources of air toxics in Oakland and West Oakland. We also identified asthma, COPD, diabetes, hypertension, poor mental health, and stroke as possible health priorities.

Impact/Purpose

Historically, West Oakland  has faced a legacy of redlining as well as structural and systemic racism, leading to the placement of pollutant-emitting industry and infrastructure close to residents. To improve the state’s air quality, California passed Assembly Bill 617, a state program that approaches environmental justice from a community approach, targeting the reduction of air pollution exposure and the preservation of public health. The West Oakland Environmental Indicators Project (WOEIP) is a strong community leader and has connected with local, state, and federal governments to work towards achieving equitable environmental health results for the community.  Following the passing of Bill 617, WOEIP partnered with the Bay Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD)  to achieve the targets outlined in the bill.  They have documented significantly higher emissions of pollutants (e.g., fine particulate matter,  ozone, air toxics) in West Oakland compared to surrounding Alameda County. We analyzed health and demographic data, and emissions reports to evaluate the prevalence of disease in West Oakland versus surrounding communities. We conducted literature reviews, performed data analyses with R, prepared a written brief of these analyses, and created community engagement materials of the study’s findings such as Schnitzer Steel is a top polluter of the top 20 air toxics in terms of cancer risk. We gathered publicly available data to share with WOEIP in partnership for next steps and joint data gathering techniques with a goal of a long-term longitudinal health study to reduce exposure and outcomes in the community.  

Citation

Matthews, O. AND A. Weaver. Community Health: Air Pollution in West Oakland, California. Olivia Matthews Practicum, Chapel Hill, NC, August 16, 2024.