COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL PROFILES – A TOOL FOR MEETING ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE GOALS: An Analysis of the City of Wilmington Researchers: Amy Roe Vernese Inniss Marcos Luna Emery Graham Dick Bosire Maragia Scott Smizik Sangeetha Sriram Kamala Dorsner Supervised by: John Byrne, Director Gerard Alleng, Policy Fellow Yda Schreuder, Senior Policy Fellow and Associate Professor of Geography Center for Energy and Environmental Policy College of Human Services, Education and Public Policy University of Delaware for the Science, Engineering &Technology Services Program a program supported by the Delaware General Assembly and the University of Delaware October 2003 Community Environmental Profiles: A Tool for Meeting Environmental Justice Goals – An Analysis of The City of Wilmington Researchers: Amy Roe Vernese Inniss Marcos Luna Emery Graham Dick Bosire Maragia Scott Smizik Sangeetha Sriram Kamala Dorsner Supervised by: John Byrne, Director Gerard Alleng, Policy Fellow Yda Schreuder, Senior Policy Fellow Center for Energy and Environmental Policy College of Human Services, Education and Public Policy University of Delaware for the Science, Engineering & Technology Services Program a program supported by the Delaware General Assembly and the University of Delaware October 2003 Preface It is a pleasure to present you with this report of the 2002 Science, Engineering & Technology (SET) Services Program. The report is designed to provide the Delaware General Assembly and the citizens of this State with an environmental profile that encompasses social, economic and environmental conditions in the City of Wilmington. CEEP received valuable assistance in preparing this report from many individuals in academia, state and local government. We owe our debt to Sally Wasileski, analytical chemist, and Terra Dassau, atmospheric chemist, both PhD. students at Purdue University Department of Chemistry. Their technical expertise of the properties and conversion equations of the chemical compounds discussed in this report was a critical component of our analysis. We would also like to show our gratitude to Marcos Luna of the University of Delaware for his GIS expertise. The staff of the Water Resources Agency has also contributed a great deal of GIS knowledge and technical information. We would like to specifically thank Gerald Kauffman, Vern Svatos, Martin Wollaston and Justin Bower for their tireless help. DNREC also supported our research efforts and assisted us in obtaining essential information. We would like to specifically show our gratitude to David Fees, William Fischer, Betsy Frey, Rick Greene, R. Peder Hansen, Karissa Hendershot, Paul J. Janiga, Lynn Krueger and Dennis Murphy. The health data in this report depended upon our cooperation with the Delaware Health Statistics Center and the Department of Public Health. We would like to express thanks to Mawuna D. Gardesey, Ted Jarrell, Tony Ruggierio, and George Yoker, as well as Dr. Jaime Figueras of the City of Wilmington for their assistance. We would also like to thank Tom Fikslin of the Delaware River Basin Commission and Bijaya Cherya of the City of Wilmington Water Quality Laboratory. I hope that this report will be useful in your discussions and deliberations on sustainability issues regarding our towns and neighborhoods. With knowledge of the environmental concerns faced by our communities and existing policy responses, the communities of our State can be leaders in building a livable future for Delaware. John Byrne Director COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL PROFILES A TOOL FOR MEETING ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE GOALS: An Analysis of the City of Wilmington EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ................................................................................. xi I. Introduction .................................................................................................1 1.1 Background............................................................................................1 1.2 Purpose of the Report.............................................................................2 1.3 Methodology..........................................................................................2 II. Overview of Research and Literature.......................................................5 2.1 What is an Environmental Profile..........................................................5 2.2 Purpose and Benefits of Environmental Profiles...................................6 2.3 What is an Environmental Indicator ......................................................7 2.4 Purpose and Benefits of Environmental Indicators ...............................8 2.5 Indicators and the Community Environmental Profile ..........................8 2.6 Status of Relevant Research on the City of Wilmington .....................10 2.7 Use of Environmental Indicators .........................................................11 2.8 Other Environmental Assessments ......................................................11 III. The City of Wilmington: An Overview ..................................................13 3.1 History and Location............................................................................13 3.2 The Physical and Natural Environment ...............................................13 3.3 Industry, Commerce and Economic Development ..............................15 3.4 Current Infrastructure...........................................................................16 3.5 Demographic Characteristics...............................................................17 3.6 The City, the Future and the Ecosystem ..............................................18 IV. Air Quality ................................................................................................21 4.1 Air Quality Indicators ..........................................................................21 4.1.1 Criteria Air Pollutants.......................................................................22 4.1.2 Air Toxics .........................................................................................29 4.2 Legislative, Judicial and Administrative Responses to Air Pollution in Wilmington ................................................................35 4.3 Conclusion............................................................................................40 V. Land ........................................................................................................43 5.1 Underground Storage Tanks ...............................................................43 5.2 Former Tannery Sites..........................................................................44 5.3 Hazardous Waste Generators..............................................................45 5.4 Legislative, Judicial and Administrative Response to Land Contamination in Wilmington ............................................................48 5.5 Conclusion ..........................................................................................58 i VI. Water Quality ..........................................................................................61 6.1 Water Quality Indicators......................................................................62 6.2 Pollutant Discharges ............................................................................62 6.3 Impervious Cover.................................................................................72 6.4 Water Supply and Demand ..................................................................73 6.5 Legislative, Judicial and Administrative Response to Water Pollution and Water Supply Issues in Wilmington..............................77 VII. Socio-Economic Profile ............................................................................85 7.1 Population ...........................................................................................85 7.2 Demographic and Environmental Profile ...........................................85 7.3 Socio-Economic Profile......................................................................86 7.4 Regulatory Responses.........................................................................99 7.5 Health................................................................................................102 7.6 Legislative and Administrative Responses to Health Issues in Wilmington...................................................................................123 References........................................................................................................131 Contacts ...........................................................................................................148 Appendix A-1 General Outline for the Development of an Urban Environmental Profile ................................................151 Appendix A-2 Outline for the Development of a Wilmington City Environmental Profile ....................................................152 Appendix B Wilmington Air Toxics, Non TRI ...........................................153 Appendix C Conversion Equations for Air Pollutants.................................156 Appendix D Risk Exposure Threshold Assessments...................................158 Appendix E-1 Symptoms of Exposure to Air Toxics ....................................161 Appendix E-2 Air Toxics Target Organs .......................................................165 Appendix E-3 Air Toxics Carcinogenic Risk ................................................166 Appendix F-1 Arsenic RBC Exposure Levels and Samples from Contaminated Sites in Wilmington