Cadmium is a heavy metal found naturally in the earth’s crust. It is usually found as a mineral combined with other elements such as oxygen, chlorine, or sulfur. Cadmium is used in many industries and is essential in the production of batteries, certain alloys, coatings, solar cells, plastic stabilizers, and pigments. It is also found in significant quantities in cigarette smoke.

Mining and other similar industrial activities are the main source of cadmium in the environment. Once released, cadmium and cadmium compounds are relatively water soluble and, as a result, are more mobile in most mediums such as soil and water. Furthermore, they are generally more bioavailable and tend to accumulate in plant and animal life. Because of this, the main source of cadmium exposure in non-smokers is their diet. Among smokers, cigarette smoke is the main source of exposure, with numerous studies identifying cadmium blood levels 4-5 times higher than the normal population.

Cadmium is toxic to humans, affecting multiple organs/systems including the kidneys, bones and lungs. Additionally, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classifies cadmium as a Class 1 carcinogen. Cadmium bioaccumulates in the human body, especially in the kidneys. The accumulation of cadmium in the kidneys leads to loss of kidney function due to decreased reabsorption of proteins, glucose, and amino acids. Skeletal damage in both human and animals exposed to high levels of cadmium has been observed, while chronic obstructive airway disease has been documented among workers.

Farm workers and other residents of China’s Hunan province have experienced an epidemic of cadmium poisoning as recently as 2014. Since the early 2000s, smelting plants proliferated in the area, operating with very little government oversight. The result was heavily contaminated rice and other vegetables grown in the area. Locals developed multiple complications, including “itai-itai” disease – a sickness first recognized in Japan in the 1960s. Although some regulations from the Chinese government have limited farming activities in land with high cadmium levels, the health effects in the population remain- yet another example of industry putting profit over a community’s health.

Mercury is a naturally occurring metal that can be found in combination with other elements. It can be mined from the earth and also released as a byproduct from industrial facilities that manufacture chemicals. If mercury waste is not disposed of properly, it can enter the air, soil, and water. When mercury enters the water, it can build up in the tissues of fish in a process called bioaccumulation. Then, if people eat these contaminated fish, they can be exposed to high levels of mercury. Throughout the world, eating contaminated fish is the most common way people become exposed to mercury.

Most of the health effects of mercury exposure are related to function of the brain. It can impair vision or hearing, cause mood changes such as irritability, and even induce memory loss. Some of these effects can be permanent, persisting even after the affected person is no longer exposed to mercury. Children are especially sensitive to mercury, and damage to their brains can be particularly devastating because they are still developing. Because mercury can pass from a pregnant person to their fetus, mercury exposure during pregnancy can cause fetal brain damage and mental retardation. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) warns that some forms of mercury may cause cancer.

In 1956, residents of Minamata, Japan were falling sick with a mysterious illness that caused convulsions, difficulty walking, difficulty speaking, and blindness. In extreme cases, it lead to paralysis, coma, and death. This illness became known as Minamata disease, and researchers determined that patients were eating local fish that was contaminated with a dangerous metal. They identified the metal as mercury and discovered that a nearby chemical factory was releasing mercury-containing wastewater. After this was determined, the company that owned the factory hid information from government officials and did not install effective wastewater treatment mechanisms.

By 2001, over 2,000 people were identified as having Minamata disease and by 2004, the company paid over $86 billion in compensation. Starting in 2010, the United Nations held a convention to address mercury exposure and its effects on human health, called the Minamata Convention. A treaty supporting controls to protect human health from mercury exposure was signed in 2013 by 128 countries including the United States. The Minamata Convention on Mercury now runs an annual conference for treaty signatories to propose new regulations and evaluate the efficacy of existing ones in protecting people from exposure to mercury. Global efforts to reduce mercury use and regulate its disposal will be crucial to ensuring no other communities will have to face toxic mercury exposure like Minamata did.

Furthermore, In 2014, the FDA and EPA issued a guideline recommending the appropriate types and amounts of fish to eat when pregnant. A 2016 study by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) invalidated this guideline, finding that these measures failed to limit mercury exposure amongst 60 percent of a group of 300 women who followed them. For the women who regularly ate fish, they were 11 times more likely to have been exposed to toxic levels of mercury compared to the women who do not eat fish. Although this finding seems to indicate all pregnant women should avoid eating fish, this is a misdirection since fish contains vitamins like omega-3 fats which promote healthy fetal development. Instead, federal guidelines should be more limited on fish choices and caution against larger fish like tuna, which seem to be the most popular source of mercury exposure.  

Manganese is a naturally occurring metal found in the environment. It is present in most foods (especially grains and beans), and our bodies need small amounts of it to function. Manganese is also used in manufacturing, most commonly to improve the strength of steel. Manufacturing use and improper disposal can release manganese into the air, water, and soil. Once in the environment manganese does not break down, so people can be exposed to high levels of manganese by breathing contaminated air, drinking contaminated water, or eating foods grown in contaminated soil.

Exposure to high levels of manganese has devastating effects on the nervous system. This includes movement defects, behavioral changes, psychiatric episodes, and death of brain cells. In the long term, symptoms are similar to those of Parkinson’s Disease. While little is known about how manganese exposure affects children, a 2011 study found that high levels of manganese in drinking water was associated with intellectual impairment in children ages 6-13.

For over a decade the residents of East Liverpool, Ohio have been exposed to dangerous levels of manganese from the SH Bell manufacturing plant. In 2010, the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA) conducted air sampling and found that manganese levels were 30 times higher than the concentration US EPA deems safe. The facility was required to reduce manganese emissions, but in 2012, US EPA air sampling at a local elementary school still found dangerous levels of manganese, raising questions about damage to children. Despite this evidence, residents were still unprotected – according to the US EPA a 2016 evaluation “found that the exposures in this community represent a public health hazard.”

The ongoing manganese exposure has had serious effects on residents’ health. In 2013, the local community advocacy group Save Our County (including former CHEJ board member Alonzo Spencer) partnered with researchers at the University of Cincinnati to determine if air exposure to manganese had an effect on the cognitive function of East Liverpool children from ages 7-9. Published in 2018, the study found that increased manganese in children’s hair was associated with a lower IQ. This means that the failure to clean up the source of manganese exposure, even after multiple state and federal agencies have stated that cleanup should happen, is having real consequences on people’s health. The residents of East Liverpool deserve to live and raise children in a community free of toxic chemicals in the air.

Chromium is a metal element found in rock. A common form is called hexavalent chromium, used in manufacturing settings for textile dyeing, wood preservation, and metal plating. Through release and disposal of waste from these facilities, hexavalent chromium can end up in the surrounding water and soil. People can then be exposed to it through drinking contaminated water, breathing in contaminated particles, or skin contact with contaminated materials.

Exposure to hexavalent chromium is known to have many adverse health effects. When ingested, it can cause stomach and intestinal ulcers. When inhaled, it can cause breathing problems, nose ulcers, and asthma. When absorbed on the skin, it can cause skin ulcers and swelling. Hexavalent chromium exposure causes development defects in animals, but little is known about how it might impact children. The US Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have also determined that hexavalent chromium is known to cause cancer, in particular stomach and lung cancer.

Hexavalent chromium is one of many heavy metal contaminants found at Lane Plating Works, a metal plating factory turned Superfund site in southern Dallas, Texas. For over 90 years, the factory performed manual chromium and cadmium plating processes that involve dipping metal objects in multiple types of highly toxic chemical baths. After being investigated for worker safety violations and filing for bankruptcy, the owner of Lane Plating shut down the facility in 2015 without properly disposing of the plating chemicals. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and EPA removed large volumes of plating wastes from the site, but found that soils, surface water, and groundwater had become contaminated. EPA tested for five heavy metal contaminants and found levels well above safety guidelines, in some cases four orders of magnitude (10,000 times) higher.

EPA testing also confirmed that the chemicals are spreading from the site, contaminating nearby wetlands, surface water, and neighborhoods. Lane Plating is located next to a bus stop on a busy road and there are daycares, schools, churches, and residential neighborhoods within half a mile of the property. Passersby can easily breathe in toxic dust and pick it up on their shoes and clothing. The wetlands and streams near the site lead to outdoor recreation areas and a high school sports field that floods with contaminated water when it rains.

South Dallas is predominantly Black, low-income, and already overburdened. Residents face food deserts, transit deserts, and housing insecurity on top of living near Superfund sites, toxic dumps and other environmental justice issues. Many have had enough of the government’s apathy around Lane Plating. CHEJ is working with a group of community members to bring residents together and demand a swift remediation for the site.

Lead is a naturally occurring element present in small amounts in the Earth’s crust. It has historically been used in many consumer products including gasoline, paint, plumbing materials, batteries, and cosmetics. This makes lead common all around us, in the air, water, soil, and buildings. Exposure to lead most commonly happens through ingestion or inhalation from lead paint, gas, pipes, or waste from industrial facilities that produce these products.

Lead has been known to be toxic since the 19th century, and it can have adverse effects on most human organs by interfering with the function of enzymes in our cells. In adults, lead exposure can lead to reproductive dysfunction, kidney failure, and cardiovascular problems. However, the most potent and devastating effects of lead are on children because they are more likely to be exposed through play and exploration and because growing bodies absorb more lead. Lead is a neurotoxin, interfering with the growth and development of children’s brains. This can cause hearing and vision loss, behavioral problems, and learning disabilities, which may be irreversible. These effects occur at even low levels of lead exposure, and in extreme cases lead exposure can lead to death in children and adults. Alarmingly, even though the toxic effects of lead are well known, a recent study estimates that 800 million children worldwide are exposed to lead today.

The Flint, Michigan water crisis is one of the most famous examples of toxic chemical exposure in recent memory. In 2014 the city changed the source of its drinking water from Lake Huron to the Flint River but did not administer corrosion inhibitors. Lead from old pipes leeched into the drinking water and 100,000 residents, including 12,000 children, were likely exposed. In 2015 scientific studies by two groups established that there were elevated lead levels in Flint residents’ blood. As residents and activists complained about symptoms of lead poisoning such as rashes and hair loss, the city then told them to use bottled water, returned to its previous water sourcing system, and publicly claimed that there was no longer any danger. It has been replacing lead pipes since 2016, but many have yet to be replaced. Nonetheless, it is already clear that the children of Flint have suffered irreparable harm. A 2019 study in which 174 children went through rigorous cognitive exams found that 80% of participants require special education assistance for language or learning disorders, as opposed to 15% of Flint children who required this assistance before 2014. The government’s suggestions for keeping safe have caused their own health problems as well: point-of-use water filters recommended for use in people’s homes have now been linked to bacterial infections like Legionnaire’s Disease in the city.

In August 2020, victims in Flint were awarded a $600 million settlement as restitution. It is important to note that Flint is majority Black and has one of the highest poverty rates in the country, illustrating how exposure to toxic chemicals and inaction from government agencies disproportionately affects Black and poor communities. While lawsuits and government responses can mitigate some of the damage, communities must be kept safe by preventing their exposure to toxins. October is Children’s Health Month, and the water crisis in Flint underscores how children are especially vulnerable to toxic exposures. Prioritizing health is essential for allowing future generations to grow and thrive.

Arsenic is a naturally-occurring element found throughout the Earth’s crust. It is usually found combined with other elements creating a powder that is odorless and tasteless and can exist
either in an organic or inorganic form. Inorganic arsenic compounds are highly toxic and for years were used to preserve wood. Copper chromated arsenate (CCA) was used to make “pressure-treated” lumber. Though no longer used for residential uses, CCA is still used in industrial applications. Organic arsenic compounds are used as pesticides, primarily on cotton fields and orchards.

Common ways people are exposed to arsenic include living near hazardous waste sites and industrial facilities that release arsenic air emissions; living near or working in occupations such
as metal smelting, wood treatment, or pesticide applications that use arsenic. Living in areas that have naturally high arsenic levels in rock can also result in exposure. Arsenic cannot be destroyed in the environment, so once it is released by either natural or human activity it can enter the air, soil, and water.

Arsenic is classified as a human carcinogen, meaning exposure to it can cause cancer. Skin, liver, bladder, and lung cancer are the most commonly reported cancer types. There are also non-cancer health effects including circulatory, neurological, and endocrine effects. Arsenic may also cause developmental effects in children.

Residents of a North Birmingham, Alabama neighborhood located next to two coke manufacturing plants know first-hand what it’s like to be exposed to arsenic. For years, the residents there have been suffering from air emissions that contain arsenic, lead and other metals. They have complained of soot inside and outside their homes,
and have been plagued with health problems such as cancer and premature deaths. The residents organized People Against Neighborhood Industrial Contamination (PANIC) and raised enough pressure to get EPA and ATSDR’s attention. Only problem was the EPA thought the residents could live with the contamination following some limited cleanup. Now residents are saying enough is enough and they want to be relocated. One way the residents thought they might achieve this is by convincing the state to request that EPA place the 35th Avenue waste site on the federal Superfund list. PANIC and the state-wide group GASP hoped to convince the governor to do this by holding a protest caravan of over 50 cars that went around the city of Birmingham asking people to contact Governor Kay Ivey and ask her to put the 35th Avenue contaminated site on the federal Superfund list. The group is planning a follow-up to Montgomery to help convince the governor.