Summary: GAO did not find that minorities or poor persons were overrepresented near a majority of nonhazardous municipal landfills. According to GAO's nationwide sample of municipal landfills, less than half of such landfills had a percentage of minorities or low-income people living within one mile of the facility that was higher than the percentage in the rest of the county. The 10 studies that GAO summarized, which focused on the demographics of people living near waste facilities, had varied conclusions. Some asserted that minorities and low-income persons were disproportionately found near waste facilities, while others did not. The studies' conclusions are difficult to generalize because the authors examined different kinds of facilities and used different methodologies and definitions of "racial minority." The Environmental Protection Agency's limited requirements on where hazardous waste facilities may be built have not addressed "environmental justice," a concept that argues for alleviating any disproportionate burden imposed by waste facilities and environmental pollution on some groups of individuals. GAO found that few data were available on the health effects of hazardous and nonhazardous waste sites on minorities or low-income persons.
