The impact of deprivation and socioeconomic factors on inequalities in volatile organic compound emissions in communities in England

Abstract

Poor air quality is one of the leading environmental threats to global public health; deprived communities endure disproportionately higher ambient concentrations of primary pollutants such as NOx and PM2.5. Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are ubiqitious in the indoor and outdoor environment and can be harmful to human health, yet their relationship with deprivation has not been widely explored. Modelled emissions of VOCs from 2019 across England are linked to indices of multiple deprivation (IMD), land classification, and ethnicity data, to explore the spatial relationship between VOCs, deprivation and social parameters within English communities. VOC emissions are shown to increase as deprivation increases across London and the rest of England, with higher emissions rates in London. Solvent emissions are the dominant source of VOCs across England, and the only source which exhbits a relationship with deprivation. Urban settings demonstrate a higher inequality in emissions in deprived communities, with relative contribution of different sources dependent on geogrpahical location. Population density and minority ethnicity—both proxies for deprivation—correlate with higher VOC emissions, particularly in densely settled minority communities. This research idenfities an association between VOC emissions and deprivation in England which has not been seen before. Communities at risk of environmental inequality from VOC emissions are areas of higher ethnic minority populations and increased population density. The relationship with solvent emissions helps to understand the emission sources within these communities, to try to reduce emissions and tackle inequality of air pollution.