Once-Redlined Neighborhoods , Now Experience Higher Pollution Levels.<br />NPR reports a new study has found that neighborhoods subjected to redlining <br />during the 1930s now often experience heightened levels of air pollution.<br />Researchers reportedly analyzed <br />air quality data from 202 cities <br />in the United States.<br />Researchers reportedly analyzed <br />air quality data from 202 cities <br />in the United States.<br />Redlining was a practice used by <br />mortgage appraisers and the government following the Great Depression.<br />Now deemed discriminatory, appraisers <br />would draw lines around heavily Black <br />and immigrant areas, denoting them as <br />risky sites for home mortgages.<br />In redlining, neighborhoods would be <br />denoted as "A" for best to "D" for <br />hazardous, which would be in red.<br />We see a really clear association between how these maps were drawn in the '30s and the air pollution disparities today. , Joshua Apte, study author and assistant professor of environmental <br />engineering and health sciences at UC Berkeley, via NPR.<br />And that's not surprising, <br />but it is very striking. , Joshua Apte, study author and assistant professor of environmental <br />engineering and health sciences at UC Berkeley, via NPR.<br />According to NPR, historically <br />redlined neighborhoods experience <br />higher temperatures and a <br />range of health disparities.<br />Experts say the difference in the <br />air quality between neighborhoods <br />in the United States is alarming.<br />The D-grade neighborhoods <br />on average experience <br />50% greater pollution <br />than the A-grades. , Joshua Apte, study author and assistant professor of environmental <br />engineering and health sciences at UC Berkeley, via NPR.<br />The D-grade neighborhoods <br />on average experience <br />50% greater pollution <br />than the A-grades. , Joshua Apte, study author and assistant professor of environmental <br />engineering and health sciences at UC Berkeley, via NPR.<br />And in some cities, <br />it's more than double. , Joshua Apte, study author and assistant professor of environmental <br />engineering and health sciences at UC Berkeley, via NPR.<br />And in some cities, <br />it's more than double. , Joshua Apte, study author and assistant professor of environmental <br />engineering and health sciences at UC Berkeley, via NPR
