EnviroAtlas

Community Summary
Fact Sheet

\

people 4 health 4 nature 4 economy

www.epa.gov/enviroatl as

Brownsville, TX and surrounding area

Towns and cities rely on clean air, clean water, green space,
and other natural amenities for economic sustainability and
quality of life, yet their benefits are not always fully
understood or considered in local decisions. EPA and its
partners are producing EnviroAtlas to help communities
better use environmental assets for public good.

EnviroAtlas includes an online interactive mapping
application that anyone can use. The interactive map
contains over 300 maps available for the U.S., as well as
100+ fine-scale maps for selected U.S. communities about
existing and potential benefits from the local natural
environment. The EnviroAtlas community component is
based on 1-meter resolution land cover data. Information
derived from these data is summarized by census block
groups; more spatially explicit map layers are also provided.
This fact sheet highlights some of the many community data
layers available for the featured area of Brownsville, Texas.

Background

The EnviroAtlas boundary for the Brownsville area was
determined using the 2010 Census definition of an Urban
Area, hi addition to Brownsville, it includes Indian Lake,
Los Fresnos, Qlmito, and Rancho Viejo, and parts of
Bayview and San Benito. The area measures 721 square
kilometers, and encompasses 120 census block groups.

The Brownsville area is in the Lower Rio Grande Alluvial
Floodplain ecoregion. It has a humid subtropical climate.
The area was historically vegetated with palm trees and
floodplain forests; however, much of the natural vegetation
has been removed for urbanization .

Percent Land Cover in Community Area

Water

¦	Imprevious
Soil & Barren

¦	Trees & Forest
Shrubs

I Grass & Herbaceous
Agriculture

¦	Orchards
Woody Wetlands
Emergent Wetland

Sourcn Esn, DeUrme. NAVTEG, Tom Tom lntwn»p. mcremer.1 PGOfp,
GE8CO, USGS. FAO, NPS. NSCAN. G«58*»e, fGN. KadaMw KL Ordnante
,, Survey, Ewt Japan, MET), £sil China (HangKcool, swIuJopo. »nd the GISUW
Corgrvmty	

The leading industry sectors in the area are educational
services, healthcare, government, and retail trade.
Brownsville Independent School District, Caring for You
Home Health, and Cameron County are the area's largest
employers. The demographics of the Brownsville
community area indicate that the potential exists for income
and other disparities in the distribution of environmental
assets. EnviroAtlas includes demographic maps that can
help screen for potential health and well-being disparities
resulting from disproportionate distribution of urban
greenery.

Brownsville Area Demographics
2010 Census

Total population

223,572

Under 13 years old

23.65%

Over 70 years of age

7.81%

Other than white/non-
Hispanic

93.47%

Below twice the U.S. poverty
level

66.81%

CONTINUED ON BACK ~


-------
Ecosystem Services Overview
In EnviroAtlas, the benefits humans receive
from nature are grouped into seven categories
that demonstrate the interconnectedness of
these ecosystem services:

•	Clean air

•	Clean and plentiful water

•	Natural hazard mitigation

•	Climate stabilization

•	Recreation, culture, and aesthetics

•	Biodiversity conservation

•	Food, fuel, and materials (data
available only for communities with
farm land)

Examples of some of the data included in
EnviroAtlas are detailed below:

Near-Road Environments

Studies indicate that the capacity of trees to filter and
deflect airflow may reduce the health impacts of vehicular
pollution on nearby populations. In EnviroAtlas, you can
find detailed maps of tree coverage along both high-speed
and walkable roads. In the Brownsville community area,

•	An estimated 48 percent of the population lives within
300 meters of a high-speed roadway (small, dark blue
block groups in the figure above). This distance is
within the zone of air pollutant drift from unobstructed
roadways.

•	For 3 8 percent of the estimated population living within
this 300-meter zone, nearby high-speed roads have less
than 25% adjacent tree cover.

•	Depending on local factors, specific areas (along red
and orange lines in the figure above) may benefit from
vegetative or other physical barriers to reduce vehicular
air pollutant drift.

Access to Parks
Parks provide access to green space, encourage physical
activity, and improve the livability and aesthetics of urban
areas. Those who live closer to parks may be more likely to
receive the multiple benefits associated with this proximity.
Easily accessible parks are generally considered to be
within 500 meters" walking distance, which takes less than
15 minutes for an average healthy person.

•	An estimated 5 percent of the Brownsville area is
located within 500 meters" walking distance of a
park entrance.

•	An estimated 80 percent of the Brownsville area
population lives beyond easy walking distance of a
park entrance.

EnviroAtlas Tools and Features

•	Learn more about EnviroAtlas data: https://www.epa.gov/enviroatlas/enviroatlas-data

•	Search our data layers and access their fact sheets: https://www.epa.gov/enviroatlas/enviroatlas-dvnamic-data-matrix

•	Explore data for the Brownsville community area in our interactive mapping application:
https://www.epa.gov/enviroatlas/enviroatlas-interactive-map

•	Use our Eco-Health Relationship Browser to explore ecosystems, the services they provide, and their benefits to human
health and well-being: https://www.epa.gov/enviroatlas/enviroatlas-eco-health-relationship-browser

•	Contact us with questions about EnviroAtlas: https://www.epa.gov/enviroatlas/fomis/contact-enviroatlas

Estimated percent of tree
cover within 26m of a road
edge

— 0-12.5

12.5-25

25 - 50

50 - 75

	 75-100

Percent of residential
population within 30Qm of
busy roadway

^ 76-100
^ 60-75
fe] 41 - 59
|>| 19-40
0-18

Near-Road Environments in Brownsville, TX

EnviroAtlas combines maps, graphs, and other analysis tools, fact sheets, and downloadable data into an easy-to-use, web-based
educational and decision-support tool. EnviroAtlas helps users understand the connections between the benefits we derive from
ecosystem services and the natural resources that provide them. For more information, please visitwww.epa.gov/enviroatlas.

March 2018


-------