National Academies Press: OpenBook
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2004. Effective Methods for Environmental Justice Assessment. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13694.
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T R A N S P O R T A T I O N R E S E A R C H B O A R D WASHINGTON, D.C. 2004 www.TRB.org NATIONAL COOPERATIVE HIGHWAY RESEARCH PROGRAM NCHRP REPORT 532 Research Sponsored by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials in Cooperation with the Federal Highway Administration SUBJECT AREAS Planning and Administration • Energy and Environment • Transportation Law Effective Methods for Environmental Justice Assessment DAVID J. FORKENBROCK Public Policy Center University of Iowa Iowa City, IA JASON SHEELEY URS Corporation Austin, TX

NATIONAL COOPERATIVE HIGHWAY RESEARCH PROGRAM Systematic, well-designed research provides the most effective approach to the solution of many problems facing highway administrators and engineers. Often, highway problems are of local interest and can best be studied by highway departments individually or in cooperation with their state universities and others. However, the accelerating growth of highway transportation develops increasingly complex problems of wide interest to highway authorities. These problems are best studied through a coordinated program of cooperative research. In recognition of these needs, the highway administrators of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials initiated in 1962 an objective national highway research program employing modern scientific techniques. This program is supported on a continuing basis by funds from participating member states of the Association and it receives the full cooperation and support of the Federal Highway Administration, United States Department of Transportation. The Transportation Research Board of the National Academies was requested by the Association to administer the research program because of the Board’s recognized objectivity and understanding of modern research practices. The Board is uniquely suited for this purpose as it maintains an extensive committee structure from which authorities on any highway transportation subject may be drawn; it possesses avenues of communications and cooperation with federal, state and local governmental agencies, universities, and industry; its relationship to the National Research Council is an insurance of objectivity; it maintains a full-time research correlation staff of specialists in highway transportation matters to bring the findings of research directly to those who are in a position to use them. The program is developed on the basis of research needs identified by chief administrators of the highway and transportation departments and by committees of AASHTO. Each year, specific areas of research needs to be included in the program are proposed to the National Research Council and the Board by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. Research projects to fulfill these needs are defined by the Board, and qualified research agencies are selected from those that have submitted proposals. Administration and surveillance of research contracts are the responsibilities of the National Research Council and the Transportation Research Board. The needs for highway research are many, and the National Cooperative Highway Research Program can make significant contributions to the solution of highway transportation problems of mutual concern to many responsible groups. The program, however, is intended to complement rather than to substitute for or duplicate other highway research programs. Note: The Transportation Research Board of the National Academies, the National Research Council, the Federal Highway Administration, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, and the individual states participating in the National Cooperative Highway Research Program do not endorse products or manufacturers. Trade or manufacturers’ names appear herein solely because they are considered essential to the object of this report. Published reports of the NATIONAL COOPERATIVE HIGHWAY RESEARCH PROGRAM are available from: Transportation Research Board Business Office 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001 and can be ordered through the Internet at: http://www.national-academies.org/trb/bookstore Printed in the United States of America NCHRP REPORT 532 Project 8-41 FY’01 ISSN 0077-5614 ISBN 0-309-08798-8 Library of Congress Control Number 2004109183 © 2004 Transportation Research Board Price $34.00 NOTICE The project that is the subject of this report was a part of the National Cooperative Highway Research Program conducted by the Transportation Research Board with the approval of the Governing Board of the National Research Council. Such approval reflects the Governing Board’s judgment that the program concerned is of national importance and appropriate with respect to both the purposes and resources of the National Research Council. The members of the technical committee selected to monitor this project and to review this report were chosen for recognized scholarly competence and with due consideration for the balance of disciplines appropriate to the project. The opinions and conclusions expressed or implied are those of the research agency that performed the research, and, while they have been accepted as appropriate by the technical committee, they are not necessarily those of the Transportation Research Board, the National Research Council, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, or the Federal Highway Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation. Each report is reviewed and accepted for publication by the technical committee according to procedures established and monitored by the Transportation Research Board Executive Committee and the Governing Board of the National Research Council.

The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished schol- ars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. On the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and techni- cal matters. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts is president of the National Academy of Sciences. The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of the National Acad- emy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achieve- ments of engineers. Dr. William A. Wulf is president of the National Academy of Engineering. The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, on its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Harvey V. Fineberg is president of the Institute of Medicine. The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy’s purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Acad- emy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both the Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts and Dr. William A. Wulf are chair and vice chair, respectively, of the National Research Council. The Transportation Research Board is a division of the National Research Council, which serves the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering. The Board’s mission is to promote innovation and progress in transportation through research. In an objective and interdisciplinary setting, the Board facilitates the sharing of information on transportation practice and policy by researchers and practitioners; stimulates research and offers research management services that promote technical excellence; provides expert advice on transportation policy and programs; and disseminates research results broadly and encourages their implementation. The Board’s varied activities annually engage more than 5,000 engineers, scientists, and other transportation researchers and practitioners from the public and private sectors and academia, all of whom contribute their expertise in the public interest. The program is supported by state transportation departments, federal agencies including the component administrations of the U.S. Department of Transportation, and other organizations and individuals interested in the development of transportation. www.TRB.org www.national-academies.org

AUTHOR ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Jason Sheeley, Environmental Justice Coordinator at the URS Corporation, and Professor David J. Forkenbrock, Director of the Public Policy Center of the University of Iowa, served as co-principal investigators of NCHRP Project 8-41. They are the primary authors of the guidebook. Other contributing authors include Professor Marlon Boarnet of the Department of Planning, Policy, and Design at the University of California, Irvine, who drafted Chapters 9 and 12; John Maxwell and Jean Finley, graduate students in urban and regional planning at the University of Iowa, drafted Chapters 8 and 13, respectively; Arijs Pakalns and Bill Forbes, URS, drafted Chapter 11; and Bill Forbes, URS, drafted Chapter 4. Portions of the four appendices were originally prepared for NCHRP by Cambridge Systematics, Inc. in the 2002 report Tech- nical Methods to Support Analysis of Environmental Justice Issues. Ali Abazari, URS, drafted portions of Appendix A and Appendix B. The following people provided technical expertise and input to state of the practice sections of various chapters: John Crawford, URS, Chapters 3 and 10; Steve McManamon, URS, Chapter 4; and Greg Brown, URS, Chapter 5. Nancy Gates, URS, contributed to the glossary and drafted portions of Chapter 2. Edwin Brands, graduate student in geography at the University of Iowa, drafted sections of Chapter 2. Scot Grant and Chris Blakely of URS and Kathy Holeton at the University of Iowa developed most of the maps and figures in the guidebook. Nancy Gates at URS and Teresa Lopes at the University of Iowa provided edito- rial assistance. Pat Johnson and Margie Frey at URS provided sec- retarial and word processing support. The following individuals from URS provided technical review at various stages of the guidebook’s development: Jeanne Witzig, John Lague, Jeff Fuller, and David Griffin. Ten senior practitioners from metropolitan planning organizations and state departments of transportation evaluated a draft of the guidebook and offered suggestions: Sharon Alderton, Gary Bullock, Thomas Dow, Jon Dunham, Cedric Long, Carmine Palombo, Richard Rolland, Vincent Russo, Don Sparklin, and Harold Tull. The review panel also provided us with suggestions. COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PROGRAMS STAFF FOR NCHRP REPORT 532 ROBERT J. REILLY, Director, Cooperative Research Programs CRAWFORD F. JENCKS, Manager, NCHRP RONALD D. McCREADY and MARTINE A. MICOZZI, Senior Program Officers EILEEN P. DELANEY, Director of Publications NCHRP PROJECT 8-41 PANEL Field of Transportation Planning—Area of Forecasting DAVID L. WINSTEAD, Holland & Knight, Washington, DC (Chair) JAMES D. ALTENSTADTER, PIMA Association of Governments, Tucson, AZ WILLIAM R. BLACK, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN ROBERT GARCIA, Environmental Defense Fund, Los Angeles, CA TIMOTHY HILL, Ohio DOT LEE ANN JACOBS, FHWA GREGORY P. KING, California DOT LEIGH B. LANE, Raleigh, NC VALERIE J. SOUTHERN, Issaquah, WA LINDA M. ZEMOTEL, Minnesota DOT DANYELL DIGGS, FHWA Liaison Representative JAMES RYAN, FTA Liaison Representative KIMBERLY FISHER, TRB Liaison Representative

This guidebook is designed to enhance understanding and to facilitate considera- tion and incorporation of environmental justice into all elements of the transportation planning process, from long-range transportation systems planning through priority programming, project development, and policy decisions. It offers practitioners an ana- lytical framework to facilitate comprehensive assessments of a proposed transportation project’s impacts on affected populations and communities. This step-by-step and practical guide provides technical assistance, from selecting appropriate methods of analysis to calculating effects on air and water quality, drainage, and safety. It also addresses impacts of hazardous materials on affected per- sons residing in a given locale. The conclusion of each chapter provides valuable resources and references to supplement the reader’s knowledge. This guidebook should be of particular interest to planning practitioners in state departments of transportation (DOTs), metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs), and local transportation planners, as well as other practitioners concerned with plan- ning, programming, and implementing transportation projects. The guidebook will also be beneficial as an educational resource on the concepts, tools, and procedures currently employed for assessing environmental justice issues in the context of transportation planning decisions. Environmental justice embraces the fundamental human desire for fairness and equity. Because development and implementation of transportation projects can create potentially beneficial and adverse impacts on the communities and people they affect, they require careful consideration and incorporation of environmental justice from the onset. With the passage of Executive Order 12898 in 1994, environmental justice has taken on greater significance in the scope of transportation planning. The U.S. DOT and state and local agencies have worked to identify appropriate processes, techniques, and effective practices for making sound environmental justice assessments and for considering their results in transportation decisions. The objective of this research was to identify and develop processes, procedures, and techniques for integrating environmental justice considerations into transportation systems planning, priority programming, project development, and decision making at the statewide, metropolitan, and local levels. Presented as a guidebook, the research results will improve the analytical capabilities of states, MPOs, and their planning part- ners. The guidance builds on existing impact assessment methods and presents new techniques that improve on current practice. These methods are organized and pre- sented to guide practitioners in assessing environmental justice issues within specific application categories (e.g., air quality, safety, transportation user effects, and eco- nomic development). It is intended to advance current knowledge, provide practical guidance and qualitative and quantitative assessment tools, and share state-of-the-art methods for addressing environmental justice in transportation. FOREWORD By Martine A. Micozzi Staff Officer Transportation Research Board

CONTENTS 1 CHAPTER 1 Guidebook Overview Introduction, 1 Environmental Justice Defined, 2 The Role of Environmental Justice in Transportation Planning and Policy Development, 4 Environmental Justice and Distributive Effects, 6 Types of Effects Addressed, 8 Understanding the Guidebook, 9 Using the Guidebook, 12 Relationship to Other Recent Publications, 15 Resources, 17 References, 18 19 CHAPTER 2 Identifying Protected Populations Overview, 19 State of the Practice, 20 Selecting an Appropriate Method of Analysis, 22 Methods, 24 Resources, 55 References, 56 59 CHAPTER 3 Air Quality Overview, 59 State of the Practice, 59 Selecting an Appropriate Method of Analysis, 66 Methods, 66 Resources, 92 References, 92 95 CHAPTER 4 Hazardous Materials Overview, 95 State of the Practice, 95 Selecting an Appropriate Method of Analysis, 101 Methods, 102 Resources, 117 References, 118 121 CHAPTER 5 Water Quality and Drainage Overview, 121 State of the Practice, 121 Selecting an Appropriate Method of Analysis, 125 Methods, 126 Resources, 133 137 CHAPTER 6 Safety Overview, 137 State of the Practice, 137 Selecting an Appropriate Method of Analysis, 138 Methods, 140 Resources, 162 References, 163 167 CHAPTER 7 Transportation User Effects Overview, 167 State of the Practice – Accessibility, 169 Methods for Studying Accessibility, 171 State of the Practice – Transportation Choice, 186 Methods for Studying Transportation Choice, 189 Resources, 196 References, 197

199 CHAPTER 8 Community Cohesion Overview, 199 State of the Practice, 199 Selecting an Appropriate Method of Analysis, 205 Methods, 207 Resources, 215 References, 216 217 CHAPTER 9 Economic Development Overview, 217 State of the Practice, 217 Selecting an Appropriate Method of Analysis, 218 Methods, 219 Resources, 228 References, 230 231 CHAPTER 10 Noise Overview, 231 State of the Practice, 232 Selecting an Appropriate Method of Analysis, 236 Methods, 238 Resources, 248 References, 249 251 CHAPTER 11 Visual Quality Overview, 251 State of the Practice, 252 Selecting an Appropriate Method of Analysis, 263 Methods, 265 Resources, 274 References, 274 275 CHAPTER 12 Land Prices and Property Values Overview, 275 State of the Practice, 275 Selecting an Appropriate Method of Analysis, 276 Methods, 279 Additional Information, 286 Resources, 289 References, 290 293 CHAPTER 13 Cultural Resources Overview, 293 State of the Practice, 294 Selecting an Appropriate Method of Analysis, 295 Methods, 298 References, 304 307 Appendix A Environmental Justice Regulations and Guidance 319 Appendix B Implications of Recent Environmental Justice Case Law 323 Appendix C Using Geographic Information Systems to Evaluate Environmental Justice 335 Appendix D The Decennial Census as a Source of Data for the Analysis of Environmental Justice 351 Glossary

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TRB’s National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Report 532: Effective Methods for Environmental Justice Assessment is designed to enhance understanding and to facilitate consideration and incorporation of environmental justice into all elements of the transportation planning process, from long-range transportation systems planning through priority programming, project development, and policy decisions. The report offers practitioners an analytical framework to facilitate comprehensive assessments of a proposed transportation project’s impacts on affected populations and communities.

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