By Frank Bonet
In May 2019, I wrote an article on Electric Vehicles and the benefits that it would bring the City of Lawrence. Mostly, the article was in regards to the lack of EV city legislature and lack of incentives for residents to buy electric vehicles. I explored data of asthma rates from children in Lawrence, based on the pollution of many things but it was mostly vehicles which were getting our children sick.
Not long ago, a team of Tufts researchers called the Community Assessment of Freeway Exposure & Health (CAFEH) conducted several related community-based participatory research (Lawrence not one of those communities), collected and compared, analyzed and generated information relating to pollution. In this case, it was pollution at its finest and smallest level – ultrafine particles (UFP) – less than one-millionth of a meter in diameter. The study was measuring changes in air pollution levels and health impacts as a function from nearby highways.
NPR Radio states that these particles are “so tiny, they don’t just affect the lungs. They’re small enough to go directly into the bloodstream and cause inflammation, leading to the most common cause of death in the United States,” basically strokes and heart attacks.
Considering that Lawrence is situated in between three major highways (495, 93, and 213) it was a disappointment that Lawrence was not included in this study. However, let’s just gather the information that was found in the study and discuss how it affects our current Lawrence population’s health.
CAFEH states that “Studies have shown that living near highways is linked to higher rates of heart disease, asthma, and lung cancer. People living near highways who breathe in this pollution may suffer illness and premature death as a result. Even blocks away from highways, pollution may still cause health problems.”
The study also found that the lower the education and incomes of residents, the higher the pollution and health issues. Jon Levy of Boston University states “The lower your income… and the higher your level of pollution exposure,” and his numbers also found that minorities are breathing these particles more than non-minorities, and even more by uneducated people. So if you are poor, minority and uneducated, then you are most likely residing in an area that has more pollution than other areas that are higher income, less minority, and better educated.
Studies like these, by CAFEH, are occurring in Puerto Rico, Somerville, Chinatown, Mira Loma in California, and other locations. However, many other reports are being studied, written about, and discussed. For instance, the Guardian newspaper reports that in Southeast Asia toxic air is shortening children lives by 20 months, City Lab is reporting that test scores fall and absences increase due to students residing downwind of major roads, Science Alert wrote that poor air quality actually links to Autism.
So while all of these studies and scientific results are popping out of colleges and laboratories not many lawmakers are taking this climate change thing seriously.
