This Borrowed Earth: Lessons from the Fifteen Worst Environmental Disasters around the World (MacSci)

This Borrowed Earth: Lessons from the Fifteen Worst Environmental Disasters around the World (MacSci)

Robert Emmet Hernan

Language: English

Pages: 256

ISBN: 0230619835

Format: PDF / Kindle (mobi) / ePub


Over the last century mankind has irrevocably damaged the environment through the unscrupulous greed of big business and our own willful ignorance. Here are the strikingly poignant accounts of disasters whose names live in infamy: Chernobyl, Bhopal, Exxon Valdez, Three Mile Island, Love Canal, Minamata and others. And with these, the extraordinary and inspirational stories of the countless men and women who fought bravely to protect the communities and environments at risk.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CANAL, NEW YORK 73 on her snowmobile. On the way home, as she drove across the vacant field at the back of her property, the snowmobile suddenly got stuck in the field. Debbie got off and discovered that part of the snowmobile had sunk into a pool of black, horrid-smelling liquid that lay just below the surface of the snow. The substance got onto her gloves, and when she took off her gloves with her teeth, to try to free the snowmobile, some of it got into her mouth and made her gag. She

learn that our water or air has been poisoned and we cannot taste or see that poison, we often do not know the extent of our risk or what further danger awaits us. Such uncertainty is intensified by the fact that disaster-caused illnesses often do not manifest themselves until years or decades after an accident. Sometimes, when communities are given inadequate information, they react in ways that exacerbate the suffering of the victims of these disasters. In Minamata, before the communities

was observed particularly in children born before the accident (and thus exposed directly to radiation) and those born within six months after (and thus exposed indirectly in utero). Thyroid cancer in children is highly aggressive, and the 126 THIS BORROWED EARTH cancer often spreads to the lymph nodes with metastatic disease on both sides of the neck. Fortunately, if caught early, thyroid cancer can be successfully treated by surgically removing the thyroid gland. After surgery, a high-dose

harbor seals swam through oil and inhaled hydrocarbons; for months they crawled through oil on the rocky shores and rested on oiled rocks and algae. In some areas of the Sound, over 80 percent of harbor seals were oiled. Pups born in May and June became oiled after birth, and in some areas almost all of the pups were oiled. The oil drove the seals crazy. Oiled seals became sick, uncharacteristically tame, and lethargic, with excessive tearing, squinting, and disorientation. At least three hundred

of Chisso’s plant and conducted peaceful sit-in demonstrations with the help of a tent donated by Chisso union workers. The patients demanded financial support from Chisso to pay for medical and living expenses. Chisso dominated the economy of Minamata, contributing over half of the city’s tax revenue and over one-third of the jobs, and most of the local city officials were former Chisso employees. Because of this, most Minamata citizens were unsympathetic and even hostile to the patients.

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