Cleaning Up Without Clearing Out? A Spatial Assessment of Environmental Gentrification

The environmental gentrification hypothesis predicts that environmental quality improvements in poor communities may spur gentrification and the displacement of residents. The author analyzes the relationship between hazardous site cleanups and gentrification in Portland, Oregon, during the 1990s. Using resident-defined neighborhoods as the unit of analysis, the author finds that there is no relationship between the extent of gentrification a neighborhood experiences and the perceived or actual environmental improvement that precedes it. Based on this evidence, the author suggests that similar types of cities may be able to improve environmental conditions relatively equitably without exacerbating concerns related to gentrification and social justice.