Black Americans face the highest death rates from air pollution compared to other racial and ethnic groups in the United States, according to a new study published in Nature Medicine. Researchers found that over half the difference in overall death rates between Black and white Americans was attributable to fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) from 2000 to 2011. This disparity decreased only slightly by 2015. “Our findings underscore the need for targeted air quality interventions to address environmental health disparities,” the study authors wrote.
The team analyzed national data on air pollution levels, population demographics, and mortality rates from 1990 to 2016. They estimated PM2.5-related deaths across racial/ethnic groups, education levels, rural/urban areas, and social vulnerability. Racial disparities in air pollution mortality were more pronounced than differences by education, rurality or social vulnerability index. The Black population consistently had the highest proportion of PM2.5-attributable deaths throughout the study period.
While overall air pollution levels have declined in recent decades, the racial gap in pollution-related mortality has persisted. “This difference decreased only marginally between 2000 and 2015, from 53.4% to 49.9%,” the researchers reported. The study highlights how environmental injustice continues to disproportionately impact communities of color. The authors call for policies that specifically target reducing air quality disparities to improve health equity.
