The release of toxic waste materials has negative impacts on people’s health and the surrounding environment. Differing levels of exposure to toxic releases for different communities could highlight disparities. For this indicator, the average concentration of toxic releases by census tract is measured as the pounds of pollution emitted per acre within 2 miles of release sites. The data includes chemical releases reported by industrial and federal facilities, compiled by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) Program. Toxic releases from smaller commercial facilities may not be included.
Go to: Toxic Releases Map | Toxic Releases Now | Toxic Releases Trend
Toxic Releases Map
Pounds per acre within 2 miles of release sites
Source(s): U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Toxics Release Inventory Program, 2021; U.S. Census Bureau, Geography Division 2020 TIGER/Line Shapefiles
* Note: The color ramp uses log scale to accommodate a wide range of values.
Insights & Analysis
- Eight of the ten census tracts with the highest average concentration of toxic releases are near the Port of Tacoma, while two of the ten are in the Kent Valley in King County.
- The average concentrations of toxic releases in Kitsap and Pierce counties are both 2.2 pounds per acre, higher than the regional average.
- Average concentrations of toxic releases for almost half of the census tracts in the region (48%) are zero as of 2022 data.
- Of the region’s population, 2% live in the top 20 census tracts with the highest average concentration of toxic releases (8 tracts are in King County and 12 are in Pierce County).
Toxic Releases Now
Source(s): U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Toxics Release Inventory Program, 2021; U.S. Census Bureau, 2017-2021 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Tables B02001, C17002, B22010, B11005, B11007, C16002
Note 1: Horizontal axis (low, medium, high) denotes concentrations of each community. See, "How is equity measured?" for more information.
Note 2: For Households with Limited English Proficiency, the low and low medium categories have the same value in Kitsap and Pierce counties. There are more census tracts in those places estimated to have 0 households with limited English proficiency than the number of tracts in the low quintile category. The values for the low and low medium categories were averaged.
Insights & Analysis
- The average concentration of toxic releases is eight times higher in communities in the region with high concentrations of households with lower income (4.8 pounds per acre) than in communities with low concentrations of such households (0.6 pounds per acre).
- Areas in Pierce County with low concentrations of households with youth have the highest average concentration of toxic releases compared with all other combinations of county and quintile group.
- In King County, communities with high concentrations of households with lower income have more than five times the average concentration of toxic releases than communities with low concentrations.
- In all four counties, the average concentration of toxic releases in areas with high concentrations of households with lower income is greater than in areas with medium or low concentrations of such households.
- In Pierce County, the average concentration of toxic releases for areas with high concentrations of households with limited English proficiency is 8.5 times higher than areas with low concentrations of such households.
- In Pierce County, the average concentration of toxic releases is 14.8 lb/acre for communities with low concentrations of households with youth, the highest for any group.
Toxic Releases Trend
Source(s): U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Toxics Release Inventory Program, 2011, 2016, 2021; U.S. Census Bureau, 2007-2011, 2012-2016, 2017-2021 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Tables B02001, C17002, B22010, B11005, B11007, C16002
Note 1: Line categories (low, low-medium, etc.) denote concentrations of each community. See, "How is equity measured?" for more information.
Note 2: For Households with Limited English Proficiency, the low and low medium categories have the same value in Kitsap and Pierce counties. There are more census tracts in those places estimated to have 0 households with limited English proficiency than the number of tracts in the low quintile category. The values for the low and low medium categories were averaged.
Note 3: Data for people with a disability and for households with limited English proficiency are only available starting in 2012 and 2016, respectively.
Insights & Analysis
- From 2011 to 2021, communities in King County with high concentrations of households with lower income saw a slight increase in the average concentration of toxic releases.
- Snohomish County areas with high concentrations of households with lower income saw significant decreases in the average concentration of toxic releases, from 9.8 pounds per acre in 2011 to 1.6 in 2021.
- Kitsap County areas with high concentrations of people of color and households with lower income saw decreases in the average concentration of toxic releases from 2011 to 2016, but then saw increases from 2016 to 2021.
- The average concentration of toxic releases in areas in the region with high concentrations of people of color decreased by a third (34%) from 2011 to 2021.
- The average concentration of toxic releases in Pierce County areas with high concentrations of households with lower income decreased by more than a third (38%) from 2011 to 2021.
- The average concentration of toxic releases in areas in the region with low concentrations of households with youth decreased by 42% from 2011 to 2021.