Read the issue brief here.
Lea el informe aquí.
Listen to the press call here. (mp3)
Washington, D.C. — Today the Center for American Progress released a new issue brief, “Why the EPA Is Important for Latino Families,” by Jorge Madrid and Valeri Vasquez. The brief details how conservative politicians’ efforts to attack, defund, and even abolish the Environmental Protection Agency would risk the health of many Americans, in particular Latinos. According to the report, Latinos will be disproportionately impacted by cuts to the EPA because they tend to live or work near high-polluting areas and have a higher risk of contracting respiratory diseases.
According to the authors, among other things:
- 66 percent of U.S. Latinos—25.6 million people—live in areas that do not meet the federal government’s safe air quality standards.
- Seven out of the 25 worst-polluted U.S. cities have Latino populations of more than 40 percent.
- The average Latino population in the 10 worst-polluted U.S. cities is 33 percent.
- The vast majority—nearly 88 percent—of our nation’s farm workers are Latino, and these employees and their families are regularly exposed to harmful pesticides in both the air and water.
In an English- and Spanish-language press call outlining the findings of the report, Madrid stressed why a strong EPA is important for Latinos. “The benefits from the EPA far outweigh the costs,” said Madrid. “Latinos live in areas that have very bad air, and this causes serious health concerns.” Moreover, many Latinos who work outdoors are routinely “exposed to unsafe outdoor ozone levels and bad air quality,” he said.
The call also featured Adrianna Quintero from the Natural Resources Defense Council, who discussed other factors that put Latinos at greater risk of becoming sick if the EPA’s role is drastically reduced. “Latinos’ problems are magnified by funding cuts to the EPA, since they already live in urban environments where higher levels of air pollution occurs, and are generally underinsured, so they feel the cost of air pollution financially,” said Quintero.
According to the brief, polls show that Americans, particularly Latinos, strongly support clean air legislation and consider global warming an imminent threat. It’s clear that Latinos benefit from a strong EPA, which helps keep our air clean, our families healthy, and our economy growing.
Read the issue brief here.
Lea el informe aquí.
Listen to the press call here. (mp3)
To speak with the authors, please contact Raúl Arce-Contreras at [email protected] or 202.478.5318.
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