A 2020 study conducted by the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA) revealed that homelessness in L.A. County increased by 13% from the previous year. That means that within L.A., over 66,000 residents were living in tents, temporary shelters, RVs and cars. Researchers expect that the number of homeless people will grow even more in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Homeless people have been shown to be 50% more likely to die from severe illness caused by infection of the COVID-19 virus. This is not only due to increased exposure to other potentially infected people- in overcrowded shelters and tent encampments- but also because of the higher prevalence of preexisting medical conditions- a known risk factor that increases vulnerability to severe illness.

A major contributor to preexisting conditions like asthma- is chronic, cumulative exposure to pollution and other environmental hazards. Unsheltered homeless people living in encampments near highways and in industrialized areas of the city suffer from higher rates of air pollution, chemical waste, and other environmental hazards.

This is another example of a broader phenomenon of environmental injustice inextricably linked to Los Angeles’s intensifying housing crisis. Environmental injustice, put simply, describes a situation where environmental burdens- such as negative public health outcomes, exposure to pollution, and impacts from climate change- disproportionately affect disadvantaged communities, particularly communities of color and those experiencing poverty.

Los Angeles’s housing crisis is composed of many distinct yet interrelated issues, all of which create layers of environmental burdens on vulnerable communities. Low income people of color are exposed to the highest rates of pollution because of the placement of factories, oil wells, and other toxic facilities in their neighborhoods. This puts them at greater risk of developing medical conditions that are costly to treat and may inhibit their ability to work- exacerbating poverty.

This beat will explore the connections between Los Angeles’s historic housing crisis, institutionalized racism, and modern issues of environmental injustice. But this is not a blog just about problems; it is also about solutions!  I will examine the actions that residents, policy makers, and community organizers have been taking to adapt, mitigate, and build resilience against the harms of environmental injustice.