Sonali Mehta
Faculty Sponsor: Dr. Shyam Gouri Souresh
Many studies have been conducted to determine the causes of poverty in America. Some of the most common causes that have been determined are race, family structure, and education level; however, there are many other potential causes of poverty. In this study, I attempt to isolate the effect of air pollution on poverty across US counties to investigate whether living in highly air polluted areas causes people to remain in poverty. By estimating a model of the level of air pollutants and the level of poverty at the county level, I show that air pollution does in fact have a positive relationship with the level of poverty.