Environmental risk and (re)action: air quality, health, and civic involvement in an urban industrial neighbourhood

This paper explores the links between (perceived) environmental risk and co mmunity (re) action in an urban industrial neighbourhood in Hamilton, Ontar io, Canada. In-depth interviews were conducted with residents of an area wi th a documented history of adverse air quality, in order to determine the r elative influence of social capital (networks, norms, and social trust) and place attachment (sense of belonging in a neighbourhood) in deciding to ta ke civic action around this particular environmental issue. The interviews illustrate the complexity of lay understandings of air pollution, and indic ate that social capital is a primary contributor to the decision to take ce rtain kinds of action, while attachment to place plays a lesser role. (C) 2 001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.