Inequity of Exposure to Unconventional Natural Gas Development in Northeastern British Columbia, Canada─An Environmental Justice Analysis

In the past two decades, northeastern British Columbia, Canada, has experienced rapid growth in unconventional natural gas production and is home to Indigenous and rural communities. Living near oil and gas production can lead to deteriorated air quality that negatively impacts human health. This study explores whether three oil- and gas-related exposure metrics: modeled concentrations of 12 gases and particles; oil and gas facility-reported emissions; and active wells are disproportionately distributed in areas with higher concentrations of Indigenous people and community socioeconomic vulnerability. We calculated exposure metrics from 2018 to 2020 in geographic dissemination areas (DAs). We used a rural deprivation index that included income, education, employment, and access to amenities to identify areas of high socioeconomic vulnerability. We estimated that DAs with greater than 90% Indigenous population experience 1.2–1.8 times higher median air pollution concentrations than DAs with less than 10% Indigenous population. We estimated that DAs with high community vulnerability experience higher modeled air pollution and higher odds of exposure to facility emissions, with the most vulnerable areas experiencing 11–96 times higher median air pollution concentrations. Overall, these results suggest the presence of environmental injustice in an area that is expected to continue producing a large portion of Canadian natural gas.