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Toxic Air Pollution and Cancer Report

About the Report

Researchers at the Tulane Environmental Law Clinic (TELC) analyzed data from the Louisiana Tumor Registry to determine whether cancer rates are linked to levels of toxic air pollution. Clients of TELC who live in Cancer Alley – the industrialized corridor between Baton Rouge and New Orleans – have long maintained that their communities are overburdened with cancer from toxic air pollution. But state decision-makers have repeatedly pointed to Louisiana Tumor Registry reports that show a mix of higher and lower than average cancer rates across Cancer Alley. The TELC researchers suspected there was more to this story because different neighborhoods in Cancer Alley are exposed to different levels of toxic air pollution. Plus, some neighborhoods were industrialized more recently, and cancer can take years or decades to develop. By looking at the entire picture, including race, poverty, and historic pollution levels, the researchers confirmed what TELC clients have said for decades: toxic air pollution is linked to higher cancer rates in Louisiana.

Click below to download the Report.