“We Called It ‘Cancer Park’”: Soil Contamination and Outdoor Leisure in Southeast Los Angeles

Environmental justice work has long sought to illuminate and challenge the inequitable impacts of pollution. In this case study, we evaluated the impact of soil lead contamination on outdoor leisure in Southeast Los Angeles, where more than 2000 residential properties near a lead-acid battery recycling facility indicated high soil lead levels. This study employed an embedded case study design to (1) evaluate the impact of soil lead contamination on residents’ outdoor leisure and (2) illuminate the socio-political institutions that wield power to shape daily life. Embedded survey results indicated that neither objective nor subjective soil lead measures were associated with outdoor leisure time of adults or children; however, additional forms of evidence illuminated how compounding environmental hazards, inadequate communication, and power inequities shaped outdoor leisure activities in Southeast Los Angeles. These findings sought to critically illustrate that health promoting outdoor leisure spaces are a privilege afforded to some, but not all.