Historically underserved and socially vulnerable communities, including Black, Asian, and other minority populations, are disproportionately exposed to Superfund sites—places where contamination poses significant risks to human health and the environment. Even more are exposed to sites where cleanup efforts are either insufficient, delayed, or in many cases not underway.
Historically underserved and socially vulnerable communities, including Black, Asian, and other minority populations, are disproportionately exposed to Superfund sites—places where contamination poses significant risks to human health and the environment. Even more are exposed to sites where cleanup efforts are either insufficient, delayed, or in many cases not underway.
That’s according to a new study published in Nature Communications by Tufts University researchers that also devised a decision model for Superfund management that would support equitable action in prioritizing cleanup activities.
Led by Farshid Vahedifard, professor and Louis Berger Chair in Civil and Environmental Engineering at Tufts, and Ph.D. student Mohammed Azhar, the research team also included collaborators from the United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment and Health, Mississippi State University, and George Mason University.
Superfund sites currently have a prioritization system where each site is given a Hazard Ranking System (HRS) score. The tool is used to quantitatively evaluate risks posed to human health and the environment, including toxic exposure from contamination of groundwater, rivers, lakes, wetlands, crop soils, and air pollution.
Other factors used in the calculation of the HRS score include the likelihood of release of contaminants from the site, the level of toxicity and quantity of the contaminants, and their persistence in the environment. The size of the exposed population, nearby crops and livestock, sensitive ecosystems, and endangered species are also considered in the ranking.
The scoring system ranges from 0 to 100, and any site with a score above 28.5 is placed on a National Priority List to ensure it receives funding and attention for immediate cleanup operations.
