Children’s environmental health, environmental justice and PM2.5 regulation in the US, 1997–2024

Abstract

Children are uniquely susceptible to air pollution. US EPA is required to set National Ambient Air Quality standards that protect susceptible populations from air pollution within an “adequate margin.” Additionally, environmental justice communities are often disproportionately exposed to air pollution, therefore children living in these communities may experience increased vulnerability. PM2.5 contributes significantly to air pollution attributable morbidity and mortality. This research analyzes each PM2.5 rulemaking starting with the first in 1997 to determine for how children and children living in environmental justice communities were considered at each stage of the rulemaking process.