Living in America's wealthiest communities may not make you safer

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One of the privileges the wealthiest Americans enjoy is living wherever they want. But new research published in Risk Analysis suggests they should be cautious when choosing their Shangri-La.

In their nationwide analysis, Rutgers University geographers Michael Greenberg and Dona Schneider compared the concentration of hazards and associated risks impacting the richest and poorest counties and the richest and poorest municipalities in all 50 states (200 locations).

When they compared their results to the national averages for each risk, they found that residents of America's wealthiest communities face higher economic consequences from natural hazard events (like hurricanes and drought) and exposure to air pollution compared to the poorest, mostly rural communities. People living in the lowest-income municipalities have lower economic consequences from natural hazards, but at least 50% higher suicide rates, homicide rates, and firearm fatalities compared to the national average.

The purpose of the study, says Greenberg, was to illustrate that "relationships between income and the geography of hazards and risks are not that simple. Low-income areas are burdened by many hazards, yet even the most affluent suburban residents cannot escape the hazards of living near industrial and waste management facilities."

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