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Environmental justice in the context of commuters’ exposure to CO and PM10 in Bangalore, India

Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology volume 25, pages 200–207 (2015)Cite this article

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Abstract

The Information Technology (IT) industry in the globalizing city of Bangalore has transformed the socio-economic characteristics of the city. The intent of this study, developed from an environmental justice framework, was to determine whether air pollutant exposure while commuting to and from work is related to a commuter’s income characteristics and whether differences are larger for the IT economy when compared with a traditional manufacturing-oriented economy of the city. The study measured exposures to CO and PM10 using personal samplers for a sample of employees of a traditional public sector manufacturing industry (n=20) and an IT industry (n=26). This approach overcomes the methodological limitations of previous environmental justice studies. Socio-economic characteristics were obtained from a questionnaire-based survey of 436 employees in two firms. The results do not support the environmental justice hypothesis for commuting in Bangalore mainly because longer commuting times of higher-income groups offsets the benefits of lower pollutant concentrations. The study nevertheless demonstrates the use of personal exposure for environmental justice assessments.

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Acknowledgements

The lead author gratefully acknowledges the research grant and the exposure-monitoring equipment provided by the East West Center in Honolulu to perform the field work related to the study. This manuscript was prepared during the lead author’s Fulbright–Nehru Environmental Leadership Program supported by the United States–India Educational Foundation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. East-West Center, Honolulu, HI, USA

    Ashwin Sabapathy & Sumeet Saksena

  2. Department of Urban and Regional Planning, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Saunders Hall, Honolulu, HI, USA

    Ashwin Sabapathy & Peter Flachsbart

Authors
  1. Ashwin Sabapathy
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  2. Sumeet Saksena
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  3. Peter Flachsbart
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Correspondence to Ashwin Sabapathy.

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Sabapathy, A., Saksena, S. & Flachsbart, P. Environmental justice in the context of commuters’ exposure to CO and PM10 in Bangalore, India. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol 25, 200–207 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/jes.2014.34

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