Built Environment and Public Health

RUSSELL P. LOPEZ, MRP, DSC, has taught courses on the built environment and environmental health at Brown, Boston, and Northeastern Universities. He has published extensively on issues related to health equity and impacts of the built environment.

“An exceptional book for professionals and students alike. Planning, community health, and design issues are nested in well structured sections. The author does an incredibly good job documenting the sources of both historical and contemporary aspects of such a wide ranging subject matter.” —Robert Voigt, in Civic Blogger“Written in an easy-to-understand style, The Built Environment and Public Health by Russell P. Lopez contains a wealth of information. The data supplied substantiate the author’s concern that public health is definitely affected by the environment that we have built for ourselves… a must-read for all who work in public health.” —Dorothea M. Volzer, MFA, in Florida Journal of Environmental Health

• Preface xiThe Author xvPart One Background and History1 Introduction to the Built Environment and Health 3Dimensions of the Environment 4Is the Built Environment Really an Environmental Factor? 6How to Evaluate the Built Environment? 7Public Perceptions and Assumptions Regarding the Built Environment 8Cross-Disciplinary Nature of the Study of the Built Environment 9Placing the Analysis of the Built Environment into a Broader Context 11Influences on the Built Environment 132 History 17The Pre-Industrial Era 18The Era of Industrialization and Urbanization: 1825–1930 19Reform Movements, New Technologies, and Changes in Urban Planning and Architecture: 1825–1930 25Later Reforms and New Initiatives 1930–1980 32The Current Era: 1980–2010 and Beyond 38Part Two Community Design3 Planning and Urban Design 43Demographic, Economic, and Social Trends 44Land Use and Planning Controls 48Metropolitan Structure and Health 544 Transportation Policies 67Current Patterns of Transportation in the United States 68Automobiles and Health 73Highways and Health 77Mass Transit and Health 78Bike Safety and Infrastructure 81Walking and Health 825 Healthy Housing and Housing Assistance Programs 91The Housing Problem 92The Regulatory Framework 936 Infrastructure and Natural Disasters 115Natural Disasters: An Introduction 116Natural Disaster Response 125Part Three Environmental Media7 Indoor and Outdoor Air Quality 137Overview 137Land Use, the Built Environment, and Air Quality 139Air Pollutants 141Air Pollution–Associated Health Conditions 1498 Water 155Impact of Water on Health 155Infrastructure 157Drinking Water 1599 Food, Nutrition, and Food Security 171Foodborne Illnesses 172Food Insecurity 174Environmental Effects of Farming and Food Production 182Part Four Population Health10 Vulnerable Populations 193The Built Environment and Vulnerability 195The Definition of Race 195Poverty 200Children and Environmental Health 203The Elderly and the Built Environment 205Persons with Disabilities 20711 Mental Health, Stressors, and Health Care Environments 209The Beginnings 210Biophilia 212The Role of Stressors and Allostatic Load 21912 Social Capital 227Theory and Historical Beginnings 228Measuring Social Capital 231Improving Social Capital 23613 Environmental Justice 247The Environmental Justice Movement 248A History of the Environmental Justice Movement 249Disproportionate Burden 256Additional Limitations of Environmental Justice Actions 262Lessons 265Part Five Tools and Applications14 Assessment Tools and Data Sources 269Tools to Inform Decision Making 270Information Tools 27515 Health Policy and Programs 287Public Health Interventions 289Community Interventions 292School-Based Interventions 293Individual Level Interventions 296Legal Basis for Built Environment Regulation 297Inserting Health into City General Plans 29816 Sustainability 301Defining Sustainability 302Sustainability and Equity 303Measures of Sustainability 304The Local Sustainability Movement 307The Role of Environmental Design in Sustainability 308Global Climate Change and Greenhouse Gases 316Glossary 321References 329Index 401