Study finds air polluters more likely to locate near downwind state borders

IU

IUB Newsroom »Study finds air polluters more likely to locate near downwind state bordersStudy finds air polluters more likely to locate near downwind state bordersLocating factories that pollute at downwind sites helps home state at expense of othersJan. 19, 2017FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEBLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Research by an Indiana University professor and colleagues at two other universities reveals a pattern of companies strategically locating facilities where wind will carry pollution across state lines.
Locating factories and power plants near downwind borders can allow states to reap the benefits of jobs and tax revenue but share the negative effects -- air pollution -- with neighbors.
"When you look at the location of major sources of air pollution, they are more likely to be nearer to downwind state borders, when compared to similar industrial facilities," said David Konisky, associate professor in the School of Public and Environmental Affairs at IU Bloomington.
The study compares 16,211 facilities in the United States that produce air pollution with 20,536 sites that produce hazardous waste but not air pollution. Using a technique called point pattern analysis, they show that facilities that produce air pollution are more likely to be near downwind state borders than those that produce other types of waste. A polluter is 22 percent less likely to be near an upwind state border than near a downwind state border, after adjusting for other variables.
The trend is especially pronounced for large facilities that emit toxic air emissions, those that are included in the Environmental Protection Agency's Toxics Release Inventory program.
States have long complained about air pollution from their neighbors. The Clean Air Act was designed to address the problem by setting uniform pollution standards. But under the U.S. system of federalism, enforcement of the regulations falls largely to the states, which may have less interest in regulating facilities that produce air pollution that crosses state boundaries. The ...

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