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dc.titleInequality in Air Pollution Monitoring and Exposure: Evidence from Four Latin American Cities
dc.contributor.authorDomínguez, Patricio
dc.contributor.authorHoffmann, Bridget
dc.contributor.authorMedina, María Paula
dc.contributor.orgunitDepartment of Research and Chief Economist
dc.coverageColombia
dc.coverageMexico
dc.coverageChile
dc.coverageBrazil
dc.date.available2025-03-17T00:03:00
dc.date.issue2025-03-17T00:03:00
dc.description.abstractWe study inequality in monitoring and exposure to particulate matter air pollution in four metropolitan areas of Latin America, Bogota, Colombia, Mexico City, Mexico, Gran Santiago, Chile, and Sao Paulo, Brazil. We find that the population residing in close proximity to at least one monitoring station in Bogota, Mexico City, and Sao Paulo generally have higher educational attainment and income. In contrast, in Gran Santiago, education levels are generally higher further from monitoring stations. In Bogota, Mexico City, and Sao Paulo, the distance to the closest monitoring station declines and the number of monitoring stations within 3 km increases as the mean education level of the census geographic unit increases. Considering only census geographic units that contain a monitoring station, we find that areas where individuals with lower educational attainment reside tend to be exposed to higher pollution levels. While we find small and mostly insignificant disparities in mean annual concentrations of particulate matter, we find that lower education quintiles experience significantly more hours of extreme pollution relative to the highest education quintile. Non-linear effects of pollution imply that the small disparity in mean concentrations likely masks large disparities in the negative impacts of air pollution. Our findings indicate that in Bogota, Mexico City, and Sao Paulo, air pollution exposure is likely to be better monitored for those with higher educational attainment and income, and in all four cities, lower income and education groups have greater exposure to extreme levels of air pollution.
dc.format.extent99
dc.identifier.doihttp://dx.doi.org/10.18235/0013465
dc.identifier.urlhttps://publications.iadb.org/publications/english/document/Inequality-in-Air-Pollution-Monitoring-and-Exposure-Evidence-from-Four-Latin-American-Cities.pdf
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherInter-American Development Bank
dc.subjectAir Quality
dc.subjectMetropolitan Area
dc.subjectEquality of Opportunity
dc.subjectCensus
dc.subjectEducation
dc.subjectEquality
dc.subjectEducational Level
dc.subjectIncome Distribution
dc.subjectEducational Institution
dc.subject.jelcodeQ53 - Air Pollution • Water Pollution • Noise • Hazardous Waste • Solid Waste • Recycling
dc.subject.jelcodeD63 - Equity, Justice, Inequality, and Other Normative Criteria and Measurement
dc.subject.keywordsInequality;Air pollution;Particulate matter;cities
idb.identifier.pubnumberIDB-DP-01087
idb.operationRG-T4014
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