to collect baseline demographics and health and environment perceptions of residents at the time the plant began operations. We focus here on associations with the environmental health risk perception statements: “My health has been harmed by exposure to air pollution” and “My health has been harmed by exposure to unsafe drinking water.”
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, other, White), sex, marital status (married/ domestic partnership, not married/single, other), education level (less than high school, high school diploma/GED, college or higher, other), employment status (disabled/ unable to work, full-time employment, not employed, part-time employment, retired, stay-at-home parent/caregiver, student), income level (<$20,000, $20,000–$29,999, $30,000–$49,999, ≥$50,000, prefer not to answer), and health insurance coverage (pri- vate health insurance, Medicare, Medicaid, Veterans Administration, self-pay/no insur- ance, other). Participants self-reported tobacco use and history of asthma, cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), depression, dia- betes, heart attack, and stroke. A single-item self-related health statement was assessed by agreement with the statement: “My overall health is very good or excellent” (Bowling, 2005). Additionally, 12 health habits and per- spectives were measured, including: • Eating products from local hunting, fish- ing, or gardening • Using well water as their primary water source • Using a home water filtration system • Changing their furnace filter regularly (2–3 times/year) Environmental health risk perception was assessed by 13 statements. Responses to each statement were measured using a 5-point Likert scale and subsequently collapsed to “agree,” “neutral,” or “disagree.” Environ- mental health risk statements included: • Individual attitudes toward current expo- sure to air pollution • Individual attitudes toward current expo- sure to water pollution •Experiences of adverse health effects attributed to exposure to air pollution • Experiences of adverse health e§ects attrib- uted to exposure to unsafe drinking water • Existing and future industrial environmen- tal practices • Local government role and performance in addressing community concerns Statistical Analysis Submitted surveys that contained an invalid or missing ZIP Code were excluded. Cat- egorical variables were dichotomized as yes or no (the latter category included no and not
sure). We calculated chi-square tests of inde- pendence to assess the associations between the sentences “My health has been harmed by exposure to unsafe drinking water” and “My health has been harmed by exposure to air pollution” with the questions about envi- ronmental health risk perception. Statistical analyses were performed using RStudio ver- sion 4.2.3 (RStudio Team, 2023). Results From July 2022 through August 2023, the survey was distributed to 677 individu- als. Of residents who received the survey, 74% (498/677) started it, and out of that group, 93% (465/498) completed the survey. Respondents without a valid ZIP Code (26) were excluded. In total, 439 responses were included in our analysis. Survey respondents self-reported as female (54%), college-educated (82%), married/ in a domestic partnership (79%), having an income >$50,000 (64%), employed full-time (60%), and having health insurance (96%). The largest age group was 25–39 years (36%). A total of 81% of respondents reported that their health was very good or excellent. Depression was reported as the most com- mon diagnosis among participants (30%), followed by asthma (16%). Most respondents agreed with the state- ment “My health can be harmed by exposure to air and water pollution” (92%) and with the statements about concern for current lev- els of exposure to air pollution and unsafe drinking water (77% and 66%, respectively). More than one third (39%) of all survey respondents, however, agreed with the state- ment “Overall, I am satisfied with the envi- ronmental practices of local industry.” More than one half (56%) of respon- dents agreed with the statement: “Fossil fuel sources, such as coal or natural gas, are economically important to the future of Bea- ver County.” Three out of four respondents (77%) agreed with the statement: “Alterna- tive energy sources, such as solar or wind, are economically important to the future of Bea- ver County.” Approximately one third (32%) of respondents indicated that they rely on well water as their primary drinking source, and 52% of respondents reported never hav- ing had their well water tested. Many respon- dents reported taking preventive measures against exposures to pollutants, such as using
Methods
Study Setting This study was conducted in Beaver County, approximately 20 miles northwest of Pitts- burgh, Pennsylvania. Beaver County, particu- larly along the Ohio River Valley, has a history of industrial manufacturing, including glass and steel production, and is home to the Shell Polymers Monaca plant. The current site of the Shell plant was once home to the Horsehead Corporation zinc smelter, which at the time was one of the largest zinc refineries in the U.S. Since the opening of the ethylene cracker plant in November 2022, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection has filed 15 violations against Shell due to their lack of adherence to state air quality guide- lines (Glabicki, 2023). Within 6 months of operation, the ethylene cracker plant already had reached its 12-month volatile organic compound (VOC) emission limit. Since then, Shell has been mandated to submit monthly emission levels, was issued a $10-million fine, and was shut down for repairs for 2 months (Frazier, 2023). Survey The self-administered online survey was developed in collaboration with members of a community advisory board and approved by the University of Pittsburgh (UPitt) Institu- tional Review Board (Study 19080112). The survey was disseminated via Pitt+Me, an ini- tiative of the UPitt Clinical and Translational Science Institute, and via community organi- zations. Participants received a $10 gift card after completion of the survey. Before enroll- ing, participants were screened for study eli- gibility criteria: being a current resident of Beaver County and at least 18 years of age. The survey collected demographic infor- mation. Participants were asked their age (≤25, 26–39, 40–54, 55–64, ≥65 years), race and ethnicity (American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Black or African American,
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May 2025 • Journal of Environmental Health
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