Understanding variation in neighbourhood environmental inequalities: The influence of residential segregation, gentrification, and other city-level factors

Exposure to environmental burdens, such as air and noise pollution or a lack of green space, is linked to various adverse outcomes. Prior research shows that poor residents and foreign minorities in European cities often face disproportionate exposure to environmental burdens, yet substantial regional differences within countries remain poorly understood. We address this gap using fine-grained 1 km-by-1 km neighbourhood grid data on air and noise pollution and green space availability, combined with administrative information on poverty rates and the share of foreign minorities for all German cities with at least 100,000 inhabitants in 2017. We examine whether poor residents and foreign minorities experience higher environmental burdens, how patterns of environmental inequality vary across cities, and which contextual factors contribute to account for these differences. Our results indicate that foreign minorities are consistently more exposed to single and multiple environmental burdens, whereas poor residents generally are not. However, the magnitude of environmental inequality varies markedly across cities. The most important factor explaining this variation is the extent to which disadvantaged groups reside in central neighbourhoods, rather than levels of segregation or the overall supply of “clean and healthy” neighbourhoods. Finally, we consider how ongoing inner-city gentrification may shape environmental inequality. We find little to no environmental inequality in more gentrified cities—measured by a higher share of academics in the local labour force—while environmental disadvantages for foreign minorities remain substantial in less gentrified cities.