We have used a limited data set—comprised of a sector-level emissions inventory and original emissions estimates for a small sample of industrial facilities—to shed light on the links between maquiladoras, air pollution, and human health in Paso del Norte. We found that particulate emissions from maquiladoras undoubtedly have significant impacts on human health—collectively, these plants are probably responsible for dozens of cases of premature mortality and thousands of cases of respiratory disease each year. However, particulate emissions generate health damages of similar magnitudes regardless of the source, and maquiladoras are clearly not the region’s leading sources of.
