By Sophie Weinberg, Intern
Last week marked the 75th anniversary of the two bombings that changed the course of the world, Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Not only did these two bombings obliterate the populations of two Japanese cities, but they also still impose lasting health effects on those residents.
Thousands of people died in both Hiroshima and Nagasaki following the explosions. These immediate deaths were due to the explosion, the fires that followed, and radiation poisoning. Although many people did immediately die from exposure to radiation, there were many survivors of the explosions who faced the health consequences of radiation later in life. A major consequence of this radiation is the mutation and damage of genes, which therefore leads to cancer. For bomb survivors, the risk of cancer, specifically Leukemia, was shown to be 46%. This type of cancer typically appeared a couple years after the bombings. The United States government obviously understood the immediate civilian casualties that would occur from dropping the bombs but did not take into account the suffering and death that would continue decades later.
Similarly, the U.S. also failed to acknowledge the lasting health effects of other chemicals used during wartimes. Specifically, the use of Agent Orange in Vietnam is still poisoning people today. Both U.S. and Vietnamese military forces together used more than 20.2 million gallons of herbicides to destroy trees as a military tactic. These herbicides, and specifically Agent Orange, contain dioxins. Dioxins are a highly toxic group of chemicals that, among other health effects, can cause cancer. U.S. Veterans of Vietnam are still suffering from the effects of Agent Orange and are being compensated for their health issues. On the other hand, Vietnamese citizens who are battling similar consequences have not been awarded the same considerations.
Today, chemical companies in the U.S. are still disregarding human health in the manufacturing, use, and disposal of various chemicals. Many communities are suffering from health complications due to toxins in their air, water, and soil. In order to avoid the lasting health consequences of toxic chemicals, the government must do more to protect residents of these communities. Specifically, the government needs to provide more regulation on industries to avoid long-lasting health complications in sacrifice zones. In addition to this, the government should compensate communities that already have faced these adverse health effects, just as was done for Vietnam Veterans.
Day: August 12, 2020
While the EPA continues to cut environmental regulations, the country’s most polluting industries are now turning their focus to state environmental regulatory agencies. Many companies have recently asked state regulators to relax or delay pollution monitoring requirements, claiming that Covid-19 has made them unable to comply with laws that protect the public from the health hazards of pollution. The majority of states do not publish any information about companies that say they are struggling to comply with environmental laws, meaning that most Americans that live near large polluting factories, refineries, and farms are unaware whether the pandemic has led to more pollution in their areas or not. Read More
A pandemic can’t stop people from protesting. As the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline begins, the Indigenous Environmental Network has found a creative way to express their disapproval of the project by posting a “virtual banner” as a video on social media. The banner reads,”Not Today. Not Tomorrow. Not Ever. No KXL. Mni Wiconi.” TC Energy began construction on the project, despite orders by a federal judge to halt work after it was determined that the company did not receive a proper permit from the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers. The Indigenous Environmental Network continues to find creative ways to fight the construction of the pipeline at a time when traditional protests are not an option. Read More.
Peter Dykstra, journalist for the Environmental Health News, pays tribute to the 30 years of reporting from the Society of Environmental Journalists. Founded in 1990, the SEJ is comprised of over a thousand reporters from various news media across the United States and a number of countries across the world. Every year, the group hosts an annual conference to bring together some of the greatest minds in environmental journalism, research and activism, including CHEJ’s own Lois Gibbs. Even through the ups and downs of reporting, journalists continue to report on the pressing issues concerning the environment today. Read More.
The EPA has released the 2018 Annual Toxics Release Inventory Report. Published every year, the report shows TRI reported data from manufacturing, mining, electric utilities and commercial hazardous waste facilities and analyzes trends and interprets that data. The 2018 report revealed a lower than expected release of “TRI-covered chemicals” than expected compared to economic activity and an increase in recycled chemical waste. In addition, the EPA has publish a new tool to assist in understanding the metal mining sector. Read More.
Categories
What is Under the Surface?
By Liz Goodiel
Across the country, there has been a growing awareness for communities affected by water and soil samples contaminated with hazardous substances, including lead, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), dioxin, arsenic, and more. The presence of such dangerous chemicals have disrupted the lives of residents, children and susceptible individuals that come involuntarily into contact with them on a daily basis. The concern comes when communities operate as normal with no knowledge of what could potentially be sitting below the surface.
In 2018, a community on the western side of Atlanta discovered unhealthy levels of lead in their soil. The contamination was discovered when Emory University’s PhD student Sam Peters, conducted an investigation on the presence of heavy metals in the soil of residential gardens. As the research project grew, Emory students tested the soil for the presence of lead, in addition to a number of other heavy metal and found levels of lead exceeding the EPA’s residential screening level. Maintaining a personal garden is very popular on the west side of Atlanta, with over 160 families participating in the practice. Residents have in fact been encouraged to garden as a way to provide low-income families with a source of healthy and sustainable food options.
Two years later, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has taken to testing and digging up contaminated soils for cleanup. Located west of the Mercedes-Benz Stadium, the lead investigation covers 368 properties over a span of 35 city blocks. Although it has not been confirmed, the EPA has speculated that the source of the contamination is the result of properties having been constructed on top of slag, a by-product of smelting, or the melting of metals, that leaves behind an array of heavy metals.
According to the EPA, lead exposure can lead to long-term nerve damage, increased blood pressure, reproductive problems, and hearing and vision impairments. Among children, lead poisoning can cause damage to the brain and nervous system, liver and kidney damage, developmental delays, behavioral problems and in extreme cases, death. The question that arises from the discovery of such high levels of lead in the soil is how long people have been exposed to the dangerous chemical through the consumption of gardened produce, children playing on top of contaminated soil and everyday proximity inhalation.
The question that also arises is how far the contamination can actually be spread and how many additional families could be affected? As part of the EPA cleanup project, many residential trees have been removed, resulting in increased instances of flooding. Although there are plans to replace removed trees and shrubs, flooding could spread the lead contamination to areas outside the site’s boundaries. Families outside the boundaries could potentially be at risk of contamination if they have not already been contaminated.
Soil and water contamination continues to be a growing concern across the country from operating or abandoned facilities, landfills, mining operations, pipelines, etc. Community members and susceptible populations (children, the elderly, pregnant women, etc.) are consistently exposed to the dangers of hazardous pollutants. Areas such as Atlanta, Georgia, Flint, Michigan and Asheville, North Carolina, to name a few, continue to work for the clean up of their communities. It is important to continue to encourage the appropriate and accurate testing of water and soil samples that people are exposed to on a daily basis and to monitor and enforce the safe cleanup of all communities.
Families within the Atlanta area are continuing to sign up for the testing of their properties and to have their children tested for possible lead poisoning.
For more information or questions on lead testing please contact our Science Director, Stephen Lester at slester@chej.org.
Photo credit: Curtis Compton for AJC
The Virginia House and Senate passed sweeping energy legislation yesterday that would overhaul how Virginia’s utilities generate electricity and moves the state to the forefront of renewable energy policy in the United States.
The measure, called the Clean Economy Act, lays out a plan to get Virginia to 100% renewable generation. Read more.