WASHINGTON — Twenty organizations have called out the federal government for living conditions in public housing, asking for them to protect the health of residents living in the homes.
According to a news release, the 900,000 households living in federal public housing often time face conditions that could affect their health and safety, including indoor air pollution from fossil fuel appliances and other asthma triggers.
The Public Health Law Center and 20 housing, public health, environmental justice, energy, and climate organizations filed a petition Tuesday calling on the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to reduce these health harms through electrification upgrades.
“Your home shouldn’t be hazardous to your health. Public housing residents, who are disproportionately Black and Hispanic, experience higher rates of asthma – a condition that is exacerbated by in-home triggers like fossil fuel appliances, mold, and pests,” said Dani Replogle, staff attorney at Public Health Law Center. “As the nation’s largest landlord, the federal government has the authority and responsibility to ensure healthier homes for these residents.”
The petition calls on HUD to upgrade public housing by replacing older polluting gas appliances with clean, electric models. This change, along with weatherization and other home upgrades, would 'significantly' improve indoor air quality, while lowering energy costs, and avoiding healthcare costs for asthma-related hospitalizations and emergency room visits, the release said.
A 2013 analysis found children living in homes that cook with gas are 42% more likely to experience asthma symptoms and 24% more likely to be diagnosed with asthma.
The petition also calls for the revival of the Green Physical Needs Assessment rule to ensure housing authorities are making plans for housing that reduces climate risks and to provide updated housing standards.
By adopting the actions recommended in the petition, the petition notes that HUD would be addressing environmental justice and climate change, each in line with the White House’s clear direction of federal agencies, petitioners added.