Update on Theories and Data Gathering on Environmental Racism T. I hroughout Sociology in Our Times, we have examined so- cial theories that help us understand the interplay of factors suchas race, class, andgender in the everydaylives of millions of people. In the "Sociology Works!" feature, we have focused on specific theories and how applications of those theories can help us understand the world and sometimes make it a better place in which to live. In this chapter we have looked at the work of new social Today, sociologists and other social scientists use GIS (a computer system for capturing, storing, checking, inte- grating, manipulating, analyzing, and displaying data re- lated to positions on the Earth's surface) to more adequately determine the distance between environmentally hazard- ous sites and nearby populations. By using distance-based methods to control for proximity around environmentally hazardous sites, those researchers have demonstrated that nonwhites constit ute a large percentage of the population movement theorists who have demonstrated the intersec- tion of envirormental justice with race and class: the belief that hazardous-waste treatment, storage, and disposal facili- ties are more likely to be located near low-income, nonwhite neighborhoods than near higher-income, predominantly white neighborhoods. This is an important issue because ofthe potential health risks that such sites may pose for people who live nearby. However, critics have scoffed at the suggestion that race-orclass-based discrimination is involved in decisions living within one mile of hazardous-waste facilities, mean- ing that racial disparities in the distribution of hazardous sites are much greater than what had been previously re- ported. According to social scientists Paul Mohai and Robin Saha (2007: 343), "We [find that] these disparities persist even when controlling for economic and sociopolitical vari- ables, suggesting that factors uniquely associated with race, such as racial targeting, housing discrimination, or other race-related factors, are associated with the location of the nation's hazardous waste facilities: about where hazardous-waste-materials facilities are located. Can more-accurate data be gathered to help determine the na- Sociological theories and research pertaining to environ- mental racism have raised public awareness that the location of hazardous facilities is not purely coincidental in communi- ties throughout our nation. Clearly, proximity to hazardous sites is related to the cost of the land on which the facilities are located, but the issue of proximity based on the racial- ethnic composition of residents raises an even more chal- lenging socialandethical dilemma. But it is also clear that the vast quantity of data available today-and the methods for obtaining those data-make it possible for us to fine-tune previous theories and obtain a better understanding of the ture andextent to which environmental racismexists? In the past, national-level studies documenting the loca- tion of waste sites and other polluting industrial facilities often used "unit-hazard coincidence" methodology. Based on this approach, researchers selected a predefined geographic unit (such as certain ZIP code areas or census tracts). Then they identified subsets ofthe unitsthat had, or did not have, the haz- ard present. The researchers then compared the demographic characteristics of people living within each of the subsetsto see if a larger minority population was present near the hazardous facility (see Mohai and Saha, 2007). Unit-hazard coincidence social world in which we live. methodology assumes that the peoplewho live withinthe pre- defined geographic units included in a study are located closer reflect & analyze New technology can Improve people's lives but also cause problems for soclety-for example, a nuclear power plant can produce energy but also be dangerous In a tsunami. How does the location of a new nuclear power plant or other technology affect people based on race and class? to the hazard than those individuals who do not live in those geographic units (Mohai and Saha, 2007). The problem with this approach is that the hazardous site is usually not located at the center of the ZIP code or census tract and that the geo- graphic area being examined may be large or small, making it difficult to know for sure the racial and class characteristics of the people who live the closest to the waste facility.

Update on Theories and Data Gathering on Environmental Racism T. I hroughout Sociology in Our Times, we have examined so- cial theories that help us understand the interplay of factors suchas race, class, andgender in the everydaylives of millions of people. In the "Sociology Works!" feature, we have focused on specific theories and how applications of those theories can help us understand the world and sometimes make it a better place in which to live. In this chapter we have looked at the work of new social Today, sociologists and other social scientists use GIS (a computer system for capturing, storing, checking, inte- grating, manipulating, analyzing, and displaying data re- lated to positions on the Earth's surface) to more adequately determine the distance between environmentally hazard- ous sites and nearby populations. By using distance-based methods to control for proximity around environmentally hazardous sites, those researchers have demonstrated that nonwhites constit ute a large percentage of the population movement theorists who have demonstrated the intersec- tion of envirormental justice with race and class: the belief that hazardous-waste treatment, storage, and disposal facili- ties are more likely to be located near low-income, nonwhite neighborhoods than near higher-income, predominantly white neighborhoods. This is an important issue because ofthe potential health risks that such sites may pose for people who live nearby. However, critics have scoffed at the suggestion that race-orclass-based discrimination is involved in decisions living within one mile of hazardous-waste facilities, mean- ing that racial disparities in the distribution of hazardous sites are much greater than what had been previously re- ported. According to social scientists Paul Mohai and Robin Saha (2007: 343), "We [find that] these disparities persist even when controlling for economic and sociopolitical vari- ables, suggesting that factors uniquely associated with race, such as racial targeting, housing discrimination, or other race-related factors, are associated with the location of the nation's hazardous waste facilities: about where hazardous-waste-materials facilities are located. Can more-accurate data be gathered to help determine the na- Sociological theories and research pertaining to environ- mental racism have raised public awareness that the location of hazardous facilities is not purely coincidental in communi- ties throughout our nation. Clearly, proximity to hazardous sites is related to the cost of the land on which the facilities are located, but the issue of proximity based on the racial- ethnic composition of residents raises an even more chal- lenging socialandethical dilemma. But it is also clear that the vast quantity of data available today-and the methods for obtaining those data-make it possible for us to fine-tune previous theories and obtain a better understanding of the ture andextent to which environmental racismexists? In the past, national-level studies documenting the loca- tion of waste sites and other polluting industrial facilities often used "unit-hazard coincidence" methodology. Based on this approach, researchers selected a predefined geographic unit (such as certain ZIP code areas or census tracts). Then they identified subsets ofthe unitsthat had, or did not have, the haz- ard present. The researchers then compared the demographic characteristics of people living within each of the subsetsto see if a larger minority population was present near the hazardous facility (see Mohai and Saha, 2007). Unit-hazard coincidence social world in which we live. methodology assumes that the peoplewho live withinthe pre- defined geographic units included in a study are located closer reflect & analyze New technology can Improve people's lives but also cause problems for soclety-for example, a nuclear power plant can produce energy but also be dangerous In a tsunami. How does the location of a new nuclear power plant or other technology affect people based on race and class? to the hazard than those individuals who do not live in those geographic units (Mohai and Saha, 2007). The problem with this approach is that the hazardous site is usually not located at the center of the ZIP code or census tract and that the geo- graphic area being examined may be large or small, making it difficult to know for sure the racial and class characteristics of the people who live the closest to the waste facility.