Proximity of Urban Farms to Contaminated Sites in Baltimore, Maryland

Abstract

The proliferation of urban farming in Baltimore City has helped counter the lack of available healthy food but raises concerns regarding public health and environmental justice because of its potential proximity to environmental hazards and toxic sites. We used GIS mapping and a Getis–Ord Gi* hotspot analysis to determine if specific environmental hazards were disproportionately located in census tracts with urban farms or in low-income communities of color. These analyses found that most urban farms were in pockets of lowincome communities of color. However, most environmental hazards were not proximate to urban farms but in regions with more White populations bordering the Inner Harbor, including Federal Hill, and in historically industrial centers such as Curtis Bay. These findings are hopeful with respect to the notion of urban farming as a healthy and sustainable solution to food insecurity with low risk of contamination. Even so, there were cases of hazardous sites in census tracts deemed urban farm hotspots. Some urban farms located in areas with high percentages of lowincome communities and Black or African American populations have the potential to be contaminated by hazardous sites. The methodology in this study could be used in the siting of future urban agricultural ventures in cities with legacy pollution as a first step in ensuring that growing operations are not sited near toxic hazards that could threaten the safety of produce for consumption.