Project Title: Residential Behavior and Environmental Hazards in Arizona-Sonora Colonias

SCERP Project Number: EH98-2

Principal Investigator: Edward Sadalla

Task Manager's affiliation: Arizona State University

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Goal: This project involves three interrelated objectives. First, surveys of the environmentally relevant behaviors of colonia residents will be conducted. The surveys will explore behaviors related to environmental degradation from such practices as trash burning, residential burns for heating and cooking, and waste disposal practices. Assessment of residential behavior is a necessary antecedent to the development of educational and intervention programs. This study will result in a profile of colonias along the Arizona-Sonora border region. Second, the project will explore residents' perception of health risks associated with the behaviors surveyed. The accuracy of the residents' perception of behavioral practices that may affect their health will be assessed. In some cases, environmentally hazardous behavior may result from a lack of knowledge. Third, the project will conduct an outreach-educational program to share information with residents about conditions or behaviors that may pose health risks. Since previous studies have shown that colonia residents are willing to modify their behavior when provided with relevant information, this part of the project is anticipated to have an impact on the health of residents and on the level of environmental pollution produced by these communities.

Analyses of the environmental impact of the maquila industry on the U.S.-Mexico border region have focused primarily on the contribution of industrial practices. Less is known of the environmental degradation engendered by substandard conditions in communities populated by the workforce of the maquiladoras. Because of the size of the population attracted by the maquila industry, the environmental impact of the workforce and their families is likely to be significant.

In response to the development of the maquila industry, population growth along Mexico's northern border has resulted in residential areas characterized by substandard housing and inadequate infrastructure. Residents are at increased risk from environmental hazards associated with air pollution, inadequate plumbing, poor access to clean water, and makeshift sewage disposal systems. This research will describe and quantify the environmental pollution produced by residential behavior of colonia inhabitants in Mexico along the Arizona-Sonora region. Such data will complement studies of the environmental impact of industrial practices.

Since residents on both sides of the border share ecosystems, air sheds, and watersheds, the pollution and environmental hazards generated by substandard living conditions in colonias may impact a much larger population on both sides of the border.

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