Environmental Injustice and Social Vulnerability to Hurricane Harvey in Greater Houston
Dr. Jayajit Chakraborty has been involved in a collaborative research project with Dr. Timothy W. Collins and Dr. Sara E. Grineski at the Center for Natural and Technological Hazards at the University of Utah that has examined environmental injustices and social vulnerabilities associated with the impacts of Hurricane Harvey, which caused catastrophic flooding and unprecedented damage in the Greater Houston metropolitan area of Texas in 2017. This project was funded by a RAPID Response Award from the National Science Foundation (NSF) Humans, Disasters, and the Built Environment Program. The project leverages baseline data collected before Hurricane Harvey from a representative sample of Houston area households regarding their vulnerability to hurricanes and flooding and involves the rapid collection of post-Harvey survey data from the same set of households. By clarifying how pre-event factors shape households’ experiences, impacts, and short-term recovery during and immediately following Hurricane Harvey, this project provides new insights on determinants of human vulnerability to large-scale natural disasters that will be foundational to future efforts which seek to reduce disaster vulnerability nationwide. This research has resulted in several publications in top-tier journals coauthored by Dr. Chakraborty:
- Chakraborty J, Collins T, & Grineski S. (2019). Exploring the Environmental Justice Implications of Hurricane Harvey Flooding in Greater Houston, Texas. American Journal of Public Health 109: 244-250.
- Chakraborty J, Grineski S, & Collins T. (2019). Hurricane Harvey and People with Disabilities: Disproportionate Exposure to Flooding in Houston, Texas. Social Science & Medicine 226: 176-181.
- Collins T, Grineski S, Chakraborty J, & Flores A. (2019). Environmental Injustice and Hurricane Harvey: A Household-level Study of Socially Disparate Flood Exposures in Greater Houston, Texas, USA. Environmental Research 179: 108772.
- Grineski S, Flores A, Collins T, & Chakraborty J. (2020). Hurricane Harvey and Greater Houston Households: Comparing Pre-Event Preparedness with Post-Event Health Effects, Event Exposures, And Recovery. Disasters 44(2): 408-432.
- Flores A, Collins T, Grineski S, & Chakraborty J. (2020). Social Vulnerability to Hurricane Harvey: Unmet Needs and Adverse Event Experiences in Greater Houston, Texas. International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction 46: 101521.
- Flores A, Collins T, Grineski S, & Chakraborty J. (2020). Disparities in Health Impacts and Access to Healthcare among Houston Area Residents after Hurricane Harvey. Public Health Reports. 135(4): 511-523.
- Chakraborty J, McAfee A, Collins T, & Grineski S. (2021). Exposure to Hurricane Harvey Flooding for Subsidized Housing Residents in Harris County, Texas. Natural Hazards. DOI: 10.1007/s11069-021-04536-9.