Complete 2 of the mini-research projects listed below individually or with a group of no more than 3 students from this class ( crime/safety evaluation, toxins analysis). Decide which neighborhood(s) you will use. Make sure to use neighborhood(s) where one of you now lives. Complete your 2 projects in those neighborhood(s). (must to talk about Oregon city).

Research Project: Toxins Analysis

In this exercise, you will find out how many toxic sites are in a   neighborhood. If you live in Oregon, go to the Department of Environmental Quality Click on the database link on the sidebar. On the database page, select the Environmental Clean-Up Site Information (ECSI) database, a search menu will pop-up. Enter the zip code for your neighborhood. The database will display all the known contaminated sites in your area. For each site, you will see an ID number, an address and its clean-up status with DEQ. If you click on the ID number you can read more about toxic issues at that site.  If you do not live in Oregon, check your state DEQ website to see if you can find a list of toxic sites in your community.

If you are unable to find any information on your state DEQ website, go to the EPA Superfund website and search for toxic sites in your state. If you live outside of the U.S. contact the instructor. Work to organize the data you find in the ECSI, the Superfund, or your state’s databases. You may want to group your data by source of contamination (residential heating oil tanks, manufacturers, etc.), type of contaminant (benzene, lead, etc.), environmental impact (ground, water, air contamination), or by clean-up status. Choose one site and conduct further research on it as a team. Read the DEQ reports for the site to find out how the contamination occurred. Which toxins are present? What are potential health impacts? You will need to conduct some more research to find out more about the health impacts of these substances.

Create a map or graphs that summarize the health threats posed by contaminants in your community. Write a one-page reflection based upon the data you collected from the ECSI database, and your case study addressing the question: Do toxic substances pose a threat to the health of your community? Why or why not? Please refer to at least two course materials in your reflection.

Research Project: Crime and Health in Your Community

Visit your local police or sheriff department’s website to find some crime statistics for the neighborhood you live in. Decide how you will collect this information. Portland residents can find neighborhood crime data by using this link to Crime Stats: Portland Crime Index

Research shows that while crime has a negative impact on a community’s health, the fear of crime can also lead to poor health outcomes. Residents’ perceptions of the safety of their community may or may not connect to actual crime rates. To understand how residents in your community feel about crime, conduct a brief interview, or survey with 3-5 of your neighbors. First, create the survey as a team. Then, share in the interviewing/surveying tasks of the neighborhood you chose. Record the responses you receive.  Share your data with your team and organize it into a graphic. In addition to any graphs or tables you create about the crime statistics in your area, write a one-page narrative that summarizes what you learned about crime perceptions among residents. Include in your findings a reflection that assesses how safe or unsafe your team feels your community is based on the data collected. What impacts do crime and the fear of crime have on the health of your community? What aspects of the built environment in your neighborhood deter or encourage criminal activity or perceptions of safety or danger? Please refer to at least 2 course materials in your one-page reflection.