Grantee Research Project Results
Health and High Water: Health Impacts of Increased Rainfall on Families Living in Racially Isolated Neighborhoods in Pittsburgh PA
EPA Grant Number: R840473Title: Health and High Water: Health Impacts of Increased Rainfall on Families Living in Racially Isolated Neighborhoods in Pittsburgh PA
Investigators: Dubowitz, Tamara , Finucane, Melissa , Lewis, Walter , Haig, Sarah , Elliott, Emily , Bain, Daniel , Lyon, Alyssa
Current Investigators: Dubowitz, Tamara , May, Linnea Warren , Lewis, Walter , Haig, Sarah , Elliott, Emily , Bain, Daniel , Lyon, Alyssa
Institution: RAND Corporation , Homewood Childrens Village , University of Pittsburgh , Black Environmental Collective
Current Institution: RAND Corporation , University of Pittsburgh , Homewood Childrens Village , Black Environmental Collective
EPA Project Officer: Hahn, Intaek
Project Period: February 1, 2023 through May 7, 2025
Project Amount: $1,349,997
RFA: Cumulative Health Impacts at the Intersection of Climate Change, Environmental Justice, and Vulnerable Populations/Lifestages: Community-Based Research for Solutions (2021) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Environmental Justice , Endocrine Disruptors , Human Health , Watersheds
Objective:
Black Americans are disproportionately affected by cumulative and compounded health, social, economic, and environmental impacts of climate change, fueled in part by redlining and other policies that have, for centuries, created differences in access to opportunity and resources. Specific objectives of the project are to:
1. Characterize the bacterial and fungal pathogens and indoor air quality (e.g., radon concentrations, humidity) in residential basements in two predominantly Black, low income, urban neighborhoods in Pittsburgh.
2. Characterize respiratory and behavioral health conditions of residents exposed to the microbial pathogens.
3. Examine associations between basement pathogens and contaminants, basement moisture, daily rainfall extremes, housing and neighborhood conditions, and cumulative health impacts for residents across the lifespan.
4. Develop and disseminate community-based solutions to address cumulative health impacts of pathogen/contaminant exposure related to wet basements and heavy rainfall events.
Approach:
This project builds on a unique community-partnered research infrastructure that has been following a cohort of randomly selected households, and their built and social environment, in a Black, disinvested urban neighborhood in Pittsburgh, PA, for the past decade. New data collection include an in-person survey, basement dust samples, and an indoor air quality sensor. The new data will be integrated with existing calibrated radar rainfall data, outdoor air quality data, and with prior in-person surveys and neighborhood assessments
Expected Results:
The work will improve understanding of—and generate community-based solutions for—the cumulative health impacts of increased rainfall among residents in predominantly Black, low-income neighborhoods. Products will include integrated datasets, lay oriented communications, and peer-reviewed articles.
Supplemental Keywords:
community-engaged, exposure, cumulative human health effects, microbial pathogens, housing, pollution prevention, extreme rainfall, environmental chemistry, risk perception, hydrology, climateProgress and Final Reports:
The perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.