Region 6

Louisiana
Map 1:Louisiana Landfills and Per Capita Income



The map shows Louisiana’s landfills mapped against the estimated per capita personal income of residents by county in 2003. This data is available from the 2000 census and is available at www.data.gov. This map shows that there is a larger concentration of landfills (4) located around New Orleans area. The areas where the landfills are located around the city have a medium level income. Most of the landfills in Louisiana are located in the lower level income areas.

Map 2: Louisiana Landfill Locations and Population per County
http://geocommons.com/maps/63657

The map shows Louisiana’s landfills mapped against the estimated population per county in 2003. This data is available from the 2000 census and is available at www.data.gov. This map shows that most of the landfills are located in low-density areas. There are only four landfills that are located in high-density areas, one being in New Orleans.

Map 3: EPA regulated sites and Louisiana Landfills
http://geocommons.com/maps/63970

This map shows Louisiana’s landfills mapped over the Environmental Protection Agencies, EPA, regulated sites in the state. This EPA data is available at http://www.epa.gov/enviro/geo_data.html. This map shows that most of the landfills are located in regulated site clusters. This map shows that most of these sites are located around large highways.

Map 4: Louisiana Landfills and the Average Number of Jobs per County
http://geocommons.com/maps/64312
This map shows Louisiana’s landfill mapped against the number of jobs per county in 2003. This data is available at www.data.gov. This map does not give definitive information on a correlation of jobs with the locations of landfills in the state. It seems there is a spread between job numbers and landfill locations.

Map 5:Louisiana Landfill Locations and the Housing Unit Estimate
http://geocommons.com/maps/63675
This map shows Louisiana’s landfills mapped against the housing unit value per county in 2003. This data is available at www.census.gov. This map shows that most of the landfills in Louisiana are found in areas with low cost housing. There is a concentration of landfills in the New Orleans area where housing is higher cost in comparison to other areas.


New Mexico

Map 1 - Landfills and Average Wage per Job in New Mexico

This map shows the relationship between landfills sites and the average wage per job per county in New Mexico. For the most part landfills are located in areas with low average wages and often outside of major urban areas. Areas of higher wages are clustered around urban counties and don't contain many landfills. Areas of low average wages per job contain the majority of New Mexico’s landfills.
Sources: EPA Landfill Data, U.S. Geological Survey, North American Atlas, US Census Data

Map 2 - Landfills and Seismic Hazards in New Mexico - http://geocommons.com/maps/69449

This map shows the locations of New Mexico’s landfills mapped against seismic hazards in the United States. There does not seem to be any correlation between the siting of landfills and their proximity to areas of low seismic hazards. For example, in the middle of the state near Albuquerque there is a greater risk for seismic activity, nonetheless there are a lot of landfills in this area. Seismic hazards should be considered when proposing future landfill sites.

Sources: EPA Landfill Data, Seismic Hazards Data from www.nationalatlas.gov, U.S. Geological Survey, North American Atlas

Map 3 - Landfills and Population in New Mexico - http://geocommons.com/maps/69495
This map shows the relationship between New Mexico’s landfill sites and the resident population per county, for the year 2003. New Mexico’s largest populations are concentrated in urban areas such as Albuquerque and Santa Fe; therefore there are a large number of landfills around these cities. However, the majority of landfills are located in areas of low population. This could be due to the fact that the areas of higher population create more waste and their waste "hauled" to nearby landfills in low population areas.

Sources: EPA Landfill Data, US Census Data, U.S. Geological Survey, North American Atlas

Map 4 - Landfills and Average Home Value in New Mexico - http://geocommons.com/maps/69545

This map shows the location of New Mexico’s landfills mapped against average home values per county. There is high correlation between areas of low home values and landfill sites. These areas tend to be in rural areas where property values tend to be lower than urban areas. The landfills cause home values to decrease, therefore they can be expected in counties with low average home values.

Sources: EPA Landfill Data, U.S. Geological Survey, North American Atlas, and US Census New Mexico by Tracts, Demographics 2000

Map 5 - Landfills and Ethnic Populations in New Mexico - http://geocommons.com/maps/69583

This map shows the locations of New Mexico’s landfills mapped against different ethnic populations. The ethnic groups mapped are Hispanics, African Americans, and Native Americans. There seems to be a high correlation between landfill sites and areas with high populations of Hispanics, African Americans, and Native Americans throughout the state. Nearly all of New Mexico's landfills are located in areas of ethnicities other than white.

Sources: EPA Landfill Data, U.S. Geological Survey, North American Atlas, and US Census New Mexico by Tracts, Demographics 2000

Map 6 - Proximity of Landfills to Highways and Railroads - http://geocommons.com/maps/69748

This map shows the proximity of landfill sites to major roads and railroads in New Mexico. There is a very high correlation between proximity of major roads and railroads to landfill sites. Most landfills are right along major road ways and railroads. Landfills could be situated close roads and railroads because it would be easy for “ garbage haulers” to access as well as be more cost efficient.

Sources: EPA Landfill Data, U.S. Geological Survey, North American Atlas


Oklahoma



This map shows the relationship between the African American population in Oklahoma and the sites of landfills. There is a small African American population in Oklahoma; according to the US Census, 8 percent of the population is African American. The landfills are spread all over the state but there could be some correlation between a few landfills that are located in the areas where there is an African American population.
(US Census socioeconomic data and EPA landfill data)

http://geocommons.com/maps/68887
This map shows the relationship between the sites of landfills in Oklahoma and the percent of the population in each county that are living below the poverty line. About 17 percent of the population lives below the poverty line in Oklahoma. There appears to be no correlation between counties with high poverty rates and the siting of landfills.
(US Census socioeconomic data and EPA landfill data)

http://geocommons.com/maps/68880
This map shows the relationship between the population of each county and the sites of landfills. The majority of the landfills are located in areas with high populations. These landfills are sited where they are most likely because of the proximity to major roads and highways, as well as counties with high populations that produce more trash.
(US Census socioeconomic data and EPA landfill data)

http://geocommons.com/maps/64398

This map shows the relationship between the average wage per job in Oklahoma and the sites of landfills. There are only a few landfills that are located in counties where the average wage is lower than $21,000. The majority of the landfills are actually located in counties where the average wage per job is above $26,000. Therefore, there is no correlation between average wage per job by county and the sites of the landfills in Oklahoma.
(US Census socioeconomic data and EPA landfill data)

http://geocommons.com/maps/68899
This map shows the relationship between the Hispanic population in one area of the state and the sites of landfills. Oklahoma City is located in the center of the state, where there is a small grouping of landfills. While some of these landfills in the grouping are located in counties with Hispanic populations, I believe that these landfills were sited here because of the close proximity to highways and the center of one of Oklahoma's largest cities.
(US Census socioeconomic data and EPA landfill data)