The Galena Park community is surrounded by the ship channel, industry (particularly the Houston petrochemical industry; rail lines, and high traffic roadways. This subjects members of the community to an unjust level of health pollutants, and this study hopes to determine the magnitude of pollution as well as the health risk that comes with it.
2. Where do the authors work, and what are their areas of expertise? Note any other publications by the authors with relevance to the 6Cities project.
The report does not list authors, but an acknowledgement at the end reads "Thank you to the many contributors to this report, including Ira Arlook, Laura Campos, Dr. Mark Chernaik, Paul Duda, Denny Larson, Dr. Loren Raun, Dr. Thomas Stock, and Belinda Vasquez-St. John."
Laura Campos wrote a report that is included in the appendix of this report, titled "Are the current TCEQ PM2.5 Monitors representative of the Galena Park Community?" Campos is an Environmental Research Assistant at Rice University. She is one of four authors for a publication titled "Factos affecting ambulance utilization for asthma attack treatment: understanding where to target interventions." The report finds that ambulance use for asthma attack treatment varies spatially in Houston, given rates are 6 times as high in an area with specific socio-economic characteristics. source
Mark Chernaik, PhD, provided analysis and interpretation of the results of this report. He is on the Board of Directors and Advisory Board for Global Community Monitor, an organization that assists communities in the use and implementation of environmental monitoring tools to help individuals understand the impacts of industrial pollution on their health and the environment, which co-produced this report with Air Alliance Houston. Chernaik is also a Staff Scientist at ELAW, or the Environmental Law Alliance Worldwide. There, he helps attournies and citizens make use of scientific information to defend the environment.
Denny Larson is the Executive Director of Global Community Monitor. He trained those using the monitoring equipment in this report and gave input on the results.
Dr. Loren Raun is a Faculty Fellow in the Department of Statistics at Rice University. He assisted Campos with her study.
Dr. Thomas Stock is an Air Alliance Houston board member. He is also an associate professor in the program of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, Division of Epidemiology, Human Genetics and Environmental Sciences at the University of Texas School of Public Health. He provided suggestions and edits to Campos' independent analysis.
3. What are the main findings or arguments presented in the article or report?
Diesel pollution presents a serious and unacceptable health risk in the community, cancer risk due to diesel exposure may exceed 1 in 10,000.
Fine particulate matter may also exceed federal health standards.
Galena Park must take actions to reduce diesel emissions, like banning old and dirty trucks and diverting trucks from Galena Park roads.
Further testing of air quality in Galena Park is recommended.
4. Describe at least three ways that the argument is supported.
The averages of all samples as well as the means at each monitoring site exceeded the Environmental Protection Agency and World Health Organization annual fine particulate matter (PM2.5) standards.
Argues that the PM levels reported to the EPA by the TCEQ may not be representative of the actual air quality. Their data has show the area to be very close to the standard, but always slightly below it. This was the case both when the standard was 15.0 μg/m³ and when it was lowered to 12 μg/m³ in 2012. However, Air Alliance Houston points out that "exceptional events" are removed from the data because they are “unusual or naturally occurring events that affect air quality and are not reasonably controllable or preventable.” This causes the data to under represent the health risk citizens are exposed to.
Furthermore, of all the monitors in Houston, the monitor along Clinton Drive (a thoroughfare in Galena Park for diesel trucks coming and going to the Port of Houston) has consistently shown the highest PM2.5 levels. This has spurred campaigns and actions to reduce the levels in the area immediately surrounding the monitor, and Air Alliance Houston argues that this has made it so the monitor is no longer representative of the area-wide air quality.
Supports the environmental justice and health disparities aspects of the argument with the results of the Community Health Impact Survey.
78% Hispanic/Latino
Average mean household income is only 65% of the national average.
16% of adults and 24% of children have asthma or another respiratory disease, while the across the state of Texas only 12.7% of adults are affected.
No private practices in Galena Park and 56% of residents are unaware of the City’s public pediatric clinic.
5. What three (or more) quotes capture the message of the article or report?
"Galena Park, Texas was selected for this project because it is a small community with large health challenges. Galena Park is located on the north side of the Houston Ship Channel, which serves the Port of Houston, one of the largest and busiest ports in the nation. Galena Park receives pollution from the variety of mobile sources associated with the Houston Ship Channel, including barges and other large ships, support vessels, stationary engines such as cranes and generators, and associated mobile sources such as trucks and trains."
Diesel pollution presents an unacceptable health risk in Galena Park. Cancer risk due to diesel pollution exposure may exceed 1 in 10,000. Fine particulate matter pollution may exceed federal health standards as well. Galena Park must act now to reduce diesel and particulate matter pollution in order to protect its residents’ health. We recommend aggressive steps to limit diesel pollution by banning older, dirty trucks and diverting trucks from Galena Park roads. We also recommend further testing to determine the extent of air pollution in Galena Park, and its impacts."
"Galena Park recently elected a new mayor and city council. This new administration has an opportunity to take a fresh look at the pollution challenges their residents face. It is our hope that Galena Park will work with the Port of Houston Authority, Harris County, and the City of Houston to address these challenges and protect the health of the citizens of Galena Park, Texas."
6. What were the methods, tools and/or data used to produce the claims or arguments made in the article or report?
Air Alliance Houston and Global Community Monitor partnered for a multiyear project in Galena Park. The 3 main components of this project were a community health impact survey, a community mapping workshop, and a community air monitoring project.
Community Health Impact Survey
Conducted in 2012 by students from Galena Park High School.
Of the 2,900 households in Galena Park, 860 responded to the survey, resulting in an approximately 30% response rate.
Identified demographics, as well as gauged air pollution concern, access to health care, and frequency of respiratory diseases.
Community Mapping Workshop
In 2012, Air Alliance Houston and Global Community Monitor held a mapping workshop open to the whole community.
20 residents attended. The workshop had them map out "community treasures," "environmental hazards" that could affect the quality of life, and "opportunity sites" that could be used to create a vision for the community.
The workshop was also used to identify locations that residents would like monitors to be placed.
Community Air Monitoring Project
Through the community mapping workshop, 5 public buildings were selected as monitoring sites. The were chosen for their distribution throughout Galena Park, particularly in their relation to Clinton Drive. The selected buildings were the Galena Manor Recreation Building, Galena Park Resources and Training Center, Galena Park Police Department, Galena Park City Hall, and Galena Park ISD Early Head Start.
Particulate matter samples were gathered using two MiniVol Tactical Air Samplers, a technology commonly used by Global Community Monitor. Participants in the study using the MiniVols were trained by Denny Larson of Global Community Monitor. Two monitors were deployed side-by-side throughout the project. The project collected only PM2.5 samples for 24-hour periods. Monitors were placed on the roofs of the monitoring location, postioned according to manufacture specifications and GCM training to avoid conditions or objects that could interfere with accuracy. Typically, one monitor would use a Teflon filter and one a quartz filter.
On five occasions, the same type of filters were used to create duplicate samples. This allowed for a regressional analysis of the duplicate samples. There were three duplicate samples for the Teflon filter, two of the duplicates showed good precision, and the third showed poor precision with relative error of 91%. There were also some planned field blanks included. Each field blank was transported to the monitoring site, removed from its package, placed in the monitor while it was turned off, immediately removed from the monitor, returned to its package, and placed in the closed casing of the monitor during its 24-hour run. One Teflon field blank showed large amounts of PM2.5, while others did not. Both the duplicate sample with large error and the inaccurate field blank bring the accuracy of the data into question.
Data gathered was then independently analyzed by several individuals and groups, including Mark Chernaik, and also Laura Campos with the assistance of Loren Raun.
7. How (if at all) are health disparities or other equity issues addressed in the article or report?
The central theme of this report is the importance of addressing health disparities. The Community Survey acknowledges that while 74% of citizens in Galena Park are concerned about the effects of air quality on their health, there is no private medical practices in Galena Park and 56% of residents unaware of the City’s public pediatric clinic.
Furthermore, the survey identified that the majority of the community is Hispanic and below average income, and their living conditions induce an estimated cancer risk of 1 in 10,000, compared to the accepted value of 1 in a million.
8. Where has this article or report been referenced or discussed? (In some journals, you can see this in a sidebar.)
Referenced in the EPA's compilation of Public Comments for their Draft for the Environmental Justice 2020 Action Agenda Framework. One public comment criticizes the EPA because they claim to promote community based participatory research, but demonstrated the opposite with their reaction to this study (referenced further in Question 11).
9. Can you learn anything from the article or report’s bibliography that tells us something about how the article or report was produced?
Most references were used to support general background on air pollution in Houston or to establish the health risks associated with certain pollutants. However, this report was created with little outside information in that it was not based off the findings of other reports and most conclusions were drawn directly from either their work with the community or the air quality data they collected. This demonstrates an attempt to aim for authenticity while directly addressing and working for what the community wants.
10. What three points, details or references from the text did you follow up on to advance your understanding of how air pollution science has been produced and used in governance and education in different settings?
Followed up on the EPA reaction to this data that conflicts with their reports, discussed further in Question 11.
I followed up on Air Alliance Houston's opposition to the allowance of removing data from "exceptional events." Their website page on particulate matter outlines examples of what have been considered "exceptional events" in the past. Some of these events include pollution from distant international sources, one example mentioned is a widespread dust event originating in Mexico in December 2013 that affected Houston. This is a useful reference because no other sources focused on Houston I have seen have focused on pollution from distant sources.
Another reference I found while following up on "exceptional events" is Air Alliance Houston's letter to the EPA on their position. This letter includes data and argues why exceptional events need to be accounted for as a health risk, so it would be a good annotation for a student focused on health.
11. Does the article provide information or perspective on any of the thematics already identified as important for the 6Cities project?
There is a growing need for capacity to characterize pollutants from distant (sometimes international) sources; enhanced capacity for this will in turn create complex transboundary governance challenges.
The report discusses the TCEQ's removing data if they consider it an "exceptional event." Air Alliance Houston, as well as other public health and air advocacy organizations such as the Environmental Defense Fund, Public Citizen, the Sierra Club Lone Star Chapter, and Texas Environmental Justice Advocacy Service, have disputed this policy. The report states, "It does not matter if particulate matter pollution comes from Mexico, or Africa, it still impacts human health. The stated purpose of the Clean Air Act is 'to protect and enhance the quality of the Nation’s air resources so as to promote the public health and welfare and the productive capacity of its population.' It is our belief that artificially lowering the reported ambient air quality defeats the intent of the Clean Air Act." This demonstrates that the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality refuses to acknowledge and account for pollutants from distant sources. This reveals something about their attitude on air quality, which is that they are only willing to fix what they feel responsible for. This implies a lack of motivation to preserve air quality for the sake of human health, rather than just to meet regulation.
Across sites, there is growing recognition of a need to improve understanding of air pollution, health impacts, and mitigation opportunities at the neighborhood level.
Previously used this study as an example, obvious due to its focus on Galena Park.
A notable group of environmental health researchers and advocates now argue for making air pollution knowledge more actionable by tightening its resolution, leveraging diverse data types (potentially including citizen science) and new capacity in data analytics.
Air Alliance Houston clearly supports the inclusion of citizen science through their attempts to involve the community in the data collection process as well as in decision making for study set up. However, the EPA's response to the report demonstrates a lack of acceptance for this sort of research. The EPA concluded:
"With regard to whether the data collected by Air Alliance Houston indicates a violation, Region 6 evaluated the monitoring data submitted by the commenter. Approximately 29 discrete samples were collected in the Galena Park community over a 16-month period from May 2012 through September 2013, thus the data is limited in scope compared to the data collected by regulatory monitors over a 3-year period and subject to data completion criteria. Additionally, these data were also not monitored and collected according to the requirements of the federal reference method for PM2.5 found in 40 CFR part 50, Appendix L. Our designations must be based on valid 3-year design values, and even if the monitoring data submitted by the commenters fully complied with the siting and data quality criteria, there are not sufficient data on which to derive a valid, 3-year design value.
Therefore, these data do not affect our decision to designate the area as Unclassifiable/Attainment."
This suggests that the EPA only wants to consider data collected with federal methods, which is not practical in a community setting.
However, a footnote in the report states "The MiniVol is not a federal reference method monitor. The data collected in this study cannot be certified by the EPA and used for regulatory purposes. Neither was it intended for that use."
2. Where do the authors work, and what are their areas of expertise? Note any other publications by the authors with relevance to the 6Cities project.
3. What are the main findings or arguments presented in the article or report?
4. Describe at least three ways that the argument is supported.
- The averages of all samples as well as the means at each monitoring site exceeded the Environmental Protection Agency and World Health Organization annual fine particulate matter (PM2.5) standards.
- Argues that the PM levels reported to the EPA by the TCEQ may not be representative of the actual air quality. Their data has show the area to be very close to the standard, but always slightly below it. This was the case both when the standard was 15.0 μg/m³ and when it was lowered to 12 μg/m³ in 2012. However, Air Alliance Houston points out that "exceptional events" are removed from the data because they are “unusual or naturally occurring events that affect air quality and are not reasonably controllable or preventable.” This causes the data to under represent the health risk citizens are exposed to.
- Furthermore, of all the monitors in Houston, the monitor along Clinton Drive (a thoroughfare in Galena Park for diesel trucks coming and going to the Port of Houston) has consistently shown the highest PM2.5 levels. This has spurred campaigns and actions to reduce the levels in the area immediately surrounding the monitor, and Air Alliance Houston argues that this has made it so the monitor is no longer representative of the area-wide air quality.
- Supports the environmental justice and health disparities aspects of the argument with the results of the Community Health Impact Survey.
- 78% Hispanic/Latino
- Average mean household income is only 65% of the national average.
- 16% of adults and 24% of children have asthma or another respiratory disease, while the across the state of Texas only 12.7% of adults are affected.
- No private practices in Galena Park and 56% of residents are unaware of the City’s public pediatric clinic.
5. What three (or more) quotes capture the message of the article or report?6. What were the methods, tools and/or data used to produce the claims or arguments made in the article or report?
7. How (if at all) are health disparities or other equity issues addressed in the article or report?
8. Where has this article or report been referenced or discussed? (In some journals, you can see this in a sidebar.)
9. Can you learn anything from the article or report’s bibliography that tells us something about how the article or report was produced?
10. What three points, details or references from the text did you follow up on to advance your understanding of how air pollution science has been produced and used in governance and education in different settings?
11. Does the article provide information or perspective on any of the thematics already identified as important for the 6Cities project?
Therefore, these data do not affect our decision to designate the area as Unclassifiable/Attainment."