Variation in Proximity to Oil and Gas Well Pads across Race-Ethnicity and Income Groups in Colorado: An Inquiry into Distributive Environmental Justice Patterns

Proximity to oil and gas (OG) wells is associated with health risks. Evidence on the relationship between sociodemographic characteristics and OG well proximity is mixed. To investigate this question in Colorado, we combined OG location data with data on birthing people's race-ethnicity and Medicaid eligibility from the state's birth registry. We applied two OG proximity definitions: (1) living within 2,000 ft of an active well and (2) OG well density (inverse distance-weighted sum of wells within 2 miles). Our analysis includes people who gave birth between 2007 and 2017 and resided in one of seven OG-producing counties across three different OG basins. In the Denver-Julesburg basin (DJB), which accounted for 93% of the study sample, White and Medicaid ineligible people are more proximate than Hispanic and Medicaid eligible people. In some DJB counties, People of Color (non-Hispanic) are more proximate than Hispanic people. In the Piceance basin, White non-Hispanic people have higher proximity than Hispanic people, while Medicaid eligibility is associated with higher proximity. In the San Juan basin, Hispanic and Medicaid-eligible people were more proximate than White and Medicaid-ineligible people. Further research should examine differential exposure/proximity across other sensitive groups, and policies should pursue equal protection from OG well exposures.