Abstract
The problem investigated in this research is about the potential risk of technological hazards, which poses a perilous threat to humankind and the environment. Rapid urbanization has been increasing the population density in an area, elevating the risk of exposure to technological disasters. Therefore, it is necessary to detect the areas with higher chemical risk to spread awareness about the potential risk zones and reduce actual damage and casualties resulting from the hazardous substance events. The basic design of the study utilizes geospatial analysis to map the TRI (Toxics Release Inventory) facilities in the communities of Texas to establish a relationship between potential hazardous material release zones and the human population at risk. The study identified the vulnerable counties as well as investigated how those risk areas are related to race/ethnicity, income and education. The research would contribute to the policymakers acting on the hazard situation and keep them better prepared for chemical hazards. In addition, it would help the residents and emergency managers to better understand the circumstance to mitigate the consequences as well as increase their awareness to be ready for the uncertainties in the hotspots involved in high risk of the hazards.
Highlights
Technological hazards can be defined as a threat to the natural and manmade environment, including human beings and their properties, which results from various human actions such as producing, shipping, storing, and utilizing toxic chemical materials
Each of which is overlaid with a dot density layer showing the number of Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) facilities to represent relationships between race/ethnicity and the risk
It is apparent that identifying and tracking technological hazards and the community at risk should be conducted through what is referred to as risk identification and vulnerability analysis. It is primary step in the risk management and hazard reduction paradigm. Such confirmed risk factors will be communicated to the risk managers and policymakers to establish communication and develop hazard-related public policies and regulations, which, in turn, contribute to leading to improving emergency management
Summary
Technological hazards can be defined as a threat to the natural and manmade environment, including human beings and their properties, which results from various human actions such as producing, shipping, storing, and utilizing toxic chemical materials. Stakeholders, local governments, should identify which geographic areas are at risk and what segments of their population are vulnerable to the hazard before enforcing any collective actions to protect lives and properties from it. To this end, this research is designed to investigate how the scientifically estimated risk of hazardous material releases is associated with community at the levels of census tracts and counties in the state of Texas. TRI is a database that contains information about “toxic chemical releases and pollution prevention activities” conducted by businesses and governments (EPA, 2021)
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