A recent report by the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) highlights the need to consider warehouses as pollution hotspots due to their increasing prevalence and proximity to residential areas in the United States.
While warehouses are rapidly expanding across the country, bringing truck traffic and emissions, there is no federal database to track their locations, unlike other sources of pollution. In response, the EDF conducted its own analysis in ten states where warehouses have experienced significant growth. It found that warehouses have become the most common type of commercial building in the US, and at least 15 million people, including over a million young children, live within a half-mile of a warehouse. Unlike typical neighbors, warehouses operate continuously, resulting in a constant flow of truck and delivery van activity. The report also suggests that communities of color are disproportionately affected by the placement of warehouses, exacerbating public health risks in those areas.
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