Do superfund sites affect local property values? Evidence from a spatial hedonic approach

Seven different Superfund sites located within or just outside the county border of Jefferson County, Kentucky are investigated. Our finding shows that the use of a traditional hedonic pricing model will result in inefficient estimates compared to a spatial error hedonic model. Considering two different phases of the cleanup process, we find that the median housing value is lower for houses near deleted Superfund sites but is not significantly affected by sites classified as final. Another consideration is the implications of multiple Superfund sites, and findings indicate that multiple Superfund sites do not significantly impact housing values. (c) 2020 Economic Society of Australia, Queensland. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.