Assessing Power Sector Impacts on Environmental Justice Communities
Synapse worked on behalf of a coalition of environmental justice (EJ) advocates, including Alternatives for Community and the Environment (ACE), to analyze the emissions impact of power plants on EJ communities in northeastern and mid-Atlantic states.
Emissions of greenhouse gases are a leading cause of climate change while exposure to fossil fuel-linked air pollutants have both short- and long-term health effects. Emissions from electricity generation from power plants disproportionately affect low-income, minority, and native communities throughout the United States. Policies aimed at addressing these emissions include RGGI, a multi-state cooperative among states in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic to cap and reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from power plants.
Synapse conducted a geospatial analysis with EPA power plant data and state-specific EJ definitions to investigate the attributes of populations living within 3 miles of certain emitting power plant units. Synapse found that 91 percent of these units are located within 3 miles of an EJ community, impacting 8.9 million people. EJ communities are nearly twice as likely to be located within 3 miles of a regulated power plant as compared to non-EJ populations. New power plants continue to be built near EJ communities. Between 2009-2022, 90 percent of new emitting units were built near EJ communities. While emissions from emitting plants have been declining in these states, over this time period, new unit additions in EJ communities have meant air quality improvements do not materialize equitably for all populations.
This analysis underscores long-standing concerns voiced by environmental justice communities and indicates that additional action is necessary to reduce emissions and address disproportionate pollution burdens from fossil fuel power plants in EJ communities.