"Pollution, Poverty, People Of Color: Falling Into The 'Climate Gap'"

"The Shore Plaza East apartments have a stunning skyline view of downtown Boston across the harbor: Waves lap at the foot of the eight-story building; sailboats carve foam trails in the water. These could be million-dollar condos. But, buffeted by winds and the threat of storm-water flooding, these apartments are subsidized housing, reserved for the poor. Despite their first-class view, these residents are especially vulnerable to whatever the air and water may bring to East Boston, a neighborhood that's a magnet for immigrants."

"That vulnerability puts them, and poor communities like theirs, in the crosshairs of environmental disruption expected from a changing climate. Climate change is adding a new dimension to the three-decades-old environmental justice movement as researchers and activists focus on the inequities of the impacts. The rich can turn up air conditioners, move to higher ground, get bailed out by insurance. The poor and minorities are left – as with other environmental injustices – to cope as best they can. Part 7 of Pollution, Poverty, People of Color. "

Doug Struck reports for Environmental Health News and Daily Climate
in a multipart feature series June 18, 2012.

SEE ALSO:

Series Portal

"Day One: The Factory on the Hill"

"Day Two: 'We are Richmond.' A Beleaguered Community Earns Multicultural Clout"

"Day Three: Stress + Contaminants = Health Effects for Low-Income Kids"

"Day Four: No Beba El Agua. Don't Drink the Water"

"Day Five:  Sacred Water, New Mine: a Michigan Tribe Battles a Global Corporation"

"Day Six: A Legacy of Diabetes"

"An Eye on Environmental Justice" (Columbia Journalism Review)