Author: Jasmyn J. Tang, MPH
August 15, 2024
Even with international agreements like the United Nations Paris Agreement and the Race to Zero campaign to decrease the production of fossil fuels, worldwide emissions show no signs of significantly reducing. In 2002, worldwide fossil fuel consumption amounted to an extraordinary 137,236 terawatt-hours.[1] Texas and Louisiana are home to some of the largest greenhouse gas emissions in the United States, mainly due to petrochemical plants. But, what is the result of these pollution machines for families that reside in nearby neighborhoods?
Texas is home to the largest petrochemical industrial complex in the U.S., the Houston Ship Channel. This 52-mile waterway stretches from the Gulf of Mexico to Houston, encompassing more than 600 industrial plants manufacturing plastics, fertilizers, pesticides, and other products.[2,3] One would assume strict regulations and audits for these plants to deter increases in pollution; however, according to an Amnesty International researcher, regulations are often unenforced with fines treated as just a cost of doing business.[2] Over decades, thousands of air and water pollution violations were found due to irresponsible operating practices including the right to health, a clean environment, access to information, etc.[3]
Children and their families exposed daily to these chemicals face almost an impossible situation. With these areas having some of the lowest air quality readings in the county, 15 of 29 community members interviewed by Amnesty International reported how they or a close relative have been diagnosed with respiratory disease, chronic cough, and/or breathing difficulties.[2] Loren Hopkins, a chief environmental science officer for the Houston Health Department, mentioned how areas near the channel had six times the rate of ambulance treated asthma attacks as compared to the rest of Houston, and two times the rate of cardiac arrest.
Louisiana is no different. About a fifth of the U.S.’s petrochemical production is centered in southeastern Louisiana along the Mississippi River.[4] This specific area has been named “Cancer Alley” due to the high cancer diagnosis rate – more than seven times the national average[4,5]. According to research done by Human Rights Watch[5], in 2020, 66% of Louisiana’s reported annual greenhouse gas emissions were produced by some 150 industrial facilities in Cancer Alley, releasing 522 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions from 2016 to 2021, or the equivalent of the annual releases of 140 coal-fired power plants. For decades, the Louisiana Department of Environment Quality (LDEQ) has consistently failed to address the harms of fossil fuels to protect the environment and human health. Even the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has disregarded human rights, taking no responsibility for air, land, water, and health protections.
Looking closer at the invasion of human rights, one major commonality between Texas and Louisiana’s petrochemical industry stands out. The residents surrounding these plants are mainly minority and low-income residents. Affected communities are predominantly Hispanic and Black, taking in the brunt of the toxic gases.[1,2,5] With clear indications of environmental racism, these families not only have nowhere to go but can also be seen as unwilling sacrifices for large petrochemical companies who have no realistic indication of taking any responsibility for their actions. Furthermore, the United Nations and prior research[6,7] approximate the global cost of health damages associated with exposure to air pollution to be $ 8.1 trillion a year. Ambient air pollution is blamed for 7 million deaths worldwide, with the Global Burden of Disease 2017 Risk Study calling it the second most common cause of lung cancer supported by epidemiological studies, estimating about 14% - 16% of individuals are more likely to die of lung cancer than those who live in less polluted areas.[6]
With fossil fuel pollution showing no signs of decreasing, human rights are put on the back-burner with petrochemical and governmental associations ignoring the devastating long-term effects on human life. Is this ignorance or inadequacy? It’s a question to consider as we hope to find solutions to combat this issue.
Glossary
Greenhouse gas: Greenhouse gases are any gas that has the property of absorbing infrared radiation (net heat energy) emitted from Earth’s surface and reradiating it back to Earth’s surface, thus contributing to the greenhouse effect. Carbon dioxide, methane, and water vapour are the most important greenhouse gases.
Petrochemical plants: Petrochemical plants use oil and gas to make plastics, industrial chemicals, and pesticides. Petrochemicals are derived from crude oil and fracked gas. Petrochemical plants convert the components of oil and gas such as ethane, propane, butane, and methane into chemicals like ethylene, propylene, butadiene, and methanol.
Environmental racism: The phrase environmental racism was coined by civil rights leader Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. He defined it as the intentional siting of polluting and waste facilities in communities primarily populated by African Americans, Latines, Indigenous People, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, migrant farmworkers, and low-income workers. Studies have since shown that those communities are disproportionately exposed to fumes, toxic dust, ash, soot, and other pollutants from such hazardous facilities located in their midst.
Ambient air pollution: Ambient air pollution is a broader term used to describe air pollution in outdoor environments. Poor ambient air quality occurs when pollutants reach high enough concentrations to affect human health and/or the environment. Urban outdoor air pollution is a more specific term referring to the ambient air pollution experienced by populations living in urban areas, typically in or around cities.
Epidemiological studies: Epidemiological studies are generally retrospective studies attempting to identify the cause of a foodborne illness through observations relating to such things as location, consumption of a particular food and behaviors.
References
Fossil Fuel Energy Consumption 1965-2022. Statista. (2024, January 30). https://www.statista.com/statistics/1302754/fossil-fuel-energy-consumption-worldwide/
Fossil fuel-related toxic pollution from petrochemical industries devastating lives in the United States. Amnesty International. (2024, January 25). https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2024/01/united-states-lives-devastated-and-human-rights-sacrificed-by-toxic-fossil-fuel-related-pollution-from-petrochemical-plants-in-texas-and-louisiana/
Zhang, H. (2024, February 2). Lives "devastated’ by petrochemical industry pollution in Texas: Report. EHN. https://www.ehn.org/petrochemical-industry-pollution-in-texas-2667078428.html
Brangham, W., & Quran, L. (2024, April 16). Study links petrochemical plants in Louisiana to premature and low-weight births. PBS. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/study-links-petrochemical-plants-in-louisiana-to-premature-and-low-weight-births
Juhasz, A. (2024, May 30). “We’re Dying Here.” Human Rights Watch. https://www.hrw.org/report/2024/01/25/were-dying-here/fight-life-louisiana-fossil-fuel-sacrifice-zone
Schiller, J. H. (2024, March 8). Climate change: Why oncologists need to get involved. Nature News. https://www.nature.com/articles/s44276-023-00023-9
United Nations. (n.d.). Taking action for the health of people and the planet. United Nations. https://www.un.org/en/climatechange/science/climate-issues/health#:~:text=Phasing%20out%20fossil%20fuels,-The%20production%20and&text=Air%20pollutants%20from%20coal%2Dfired,disorders%2C%20and%20adverse%20pregnancy%20outcomes.