Bioaccumulation and Biomagnification: Minamata Disease History of Minamata Disease. In 1908 the Chisso Corporation, a major chemical manufacturer in Japan, opened a nitrogenous fertilizer factory in the small fishing town of Minamata (figure 1). Over time the corporation chose to branch out and began producing other chemicals such as acetylene, acetic acid, vinyl chloride and octanol. The waste product from these chemicals was released into Minamata Bay via the factories wastewater system, causing major damage to the fisheries; reducing their catch sizes by up to 91%. In 1932 the Chisso Corporation began manufacturing a chemical known as acetaldehyde (C2H4O), also known as ethanal. By 1951 production of C2H4O had jumped from 210 pounds produced in the first year of manufacturing to 6,000 tons per year. Although the large quantities of production were good for the Chisso Corporation, the effects of chemical production were beginning to effect the ecosystem and the organisms within. The reaction used to make C2H4O requires mercury sulfate (HgSO4) as a catalyst and in 1951 Chisso changed the co-catalyst from manganese dioxide (MnO2) to ferric sulfide (FeS2). When mercury sulfate and ferric sulfide react, small amounts of a highly toxic, organic mercury compound known as methylmercury (CH3Hg+ or MeHg+) is produced as a by-product (figure 2) As previously mentioned, Chisso was releasing their waste through the wastewater and into Minamata Bay; among this waste was the methylmercury produced in the manufacturing of C2H4O. On the 21st April, 1956, a five-year-old girl was admitted to the Shin Nippon Chisso Fertilizer Co. factory hospital with severe complaints including the inability to talk, walk or eat. Soon after, three more, ... ... middle of paper ... ...Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methylmercury#Environmental_sources. [Accessed 01 April 2014]. The Poisoning of Minamata . 2014. The Poisoning of Minamata . [ONLINE] Available at: http://www1.umn.edu/ships/ethics/minamata.htm. [Accessed 04 April 2014]. File:Minamata map illustrating Chisso factory effluent routes2.png - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. 2014. File:Minamata map illustrating Chisso factory effluent routes2.png - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. [ONLINE] Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Minamata_map_illustrating_Chisso_factory_effluent_routes2.png. [Accessed 04 April 2014]. Methylmercury Contamination in Fish, CSA - Discovery Guides. 2014. Methylmercury Contamination in Fish, CSA - Discovery Guides. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.csa.com/discoveryguides/mercury/review5.php. [Accessed 04 April 2014].
party in the past placed hazardous wastes there. ( The seller of a foundry was
middle of paper ... ... The Web. 22 Feb. 2014. http://www.chemheritage.org/discover/online-resources/chemistry-in-history>.
Throughout this mining process a byproduct is created called chat. The chat is leftover rock and waste from mining that did not contained the desired materials. The chat was left on the site because the Bureau of Indian Affairs thought it could be of value to the Quapaw tribe (1). This chat contained high levels of toxic lead and other harmful chemicals. It is estimated that there are 75 Million tons (150 billion pounds) of chat piles remaining exposed to the environment as well as numerous flotation ponds that haven’t been taken into account (4).
Inlander, Charles B. and Ed Weiner. Take This Book to the Hospital With You. Emmaus, Penn: Rodale Press, 1985.
After school one day in September she took a bus home from Mexico City to Coyoacin. This is the day that would change her life forever. The bus she was on was hit by a street car and the bus was crushed. One of the arm rails from the bus seat went through Frida’s hip and out her genitals. She was taken to the hospital by ambulance and doctors did not think she would survive. Frida’s spinal column and many other bones were broken and smashed. She was no longer able to go to school to be a doctor since the accident left her as an invalid. She was to stay in the hospital for a month in a full body cast. When Frida finally went home to heal, she was still in the full body cast. Unfortunately, her bones woul...
Kenneth Schiff wrote an editorial for the Marine Pollution Bulletin in 2014 where he asked environmental scientist about the effectiveness of the Clean Water Act. Three topics were discussed to support their approval; The Cuyahoga River, Platform A and declines in marine life. The Cuyahoga River in Ohio had hit a point 1969 where there was so much oil on the surface of that it caught on fire and now it has been deemed as fishable by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, thanks to the Clean Water Act. Platform A was located in Southern California. In 1969, an explosion occurred, causing 100,000 barrels of oil to devastate beaches along the Pacific Ocean and kill thousands of animals located in this region. Also discussed was the effects of hazardous substances, in this example DDT, on marine life. The use of this pesticide caused brown pelicans and California sea lions to experience intense decline in population- thanks to the Clean Water Act being followed by much research, restrictions and bans were able to be placed on these chemicals, allowing these populations to flourish once more. Within this editorial, there is also many who state that this Act has not been effective enough. One big argument is that the EPA has a list of pollutants that has not changed since the 1970’s yet in the last 40 years, there has
Author Christine Mitchell’s “When Living is a Fate Worse Than Death” told the story of a girl Haitian named Charlotte. Charlotte was born with her brain partially positioned outside of her cranium which had to be removed or she would have not survived. Her skull had to be concealed by a wrap in order not to cause further damage. Charlotte was born with less brain cells which allowed her only to breath and not feel much of the pain. Charlotte’s parents thought that the doctor’s in Haiti did not know what was best for their daughter. The doctors in Haiti thought Charlotte should not be resuscitated, undergo anymore horrible treatments and die peacefully. Charlotte’s parents were not happy with the doctor’s guidelines and thought the United States medical care would have better technology and could save their daughter. Charlotte’s parents bought her a doll which
The Chesapeake Bay is polluted with agricultural waste. We see things like 1.5 billion pounds of chicken waste that no one wants to take responsibility for. Ignoring standards, a waterway was tested for E. coli; the standard is 125 FCU/100ml of water. Yet this waterway’s level was at 48392 FCU/100ml. An industry that will go to great lengths to make sure that Congress doesn’t impose sanction against them.
Humans were a victims of the Chernobyl nuclear accident which affected their lifestyle and their health. People of Chernobyl were evacuated to clean and safe areas. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) (2006), there were 116 000 people who were evacuated from Chernobyl region to other safe areas in the summe...
I wrote this story 2009, in my personal statement for entrance into medical school. It still holds true; now 5 years later that little girl may have survived, 23 weeks is currently the youngest children survive in most hospitals, which seems like a miracle to me given what I witnessed in that nursery. Medicine is evolving and I want to take it further.
Many of the methods used in commercial fishing are very destructive to the aquatic systems. Industrial ocean trawlers scrape the bottom of the water, often dragging up the seafloor with them. This destroys the habitat and kills many of the bottom dwelling organisms that are vulnerable to these practices. There is also a large amount of marine animals that are unintentionally caught by the large nets. These animals are considered bycatch, having no value to fishermen and are usually killed. These large fishing vessels also add a significant amount of pollution to the water. Fishing vessels cause oil spills as well as discharging chemical elements and wastes into the water. The thousands of of trawlers that pass through Japanese waters create large quantities of water pollution that can devastate aquatic life by changing the chemical composition of the water and affecting all the organisms that inhabit these
In the event that you think you have a contamination, contact your essential consideration supplier
... (The Issues: Factory Farming, n.d.). Nutrients and bacteria from that waste can also contaminate waterways, disturbing the aquatic ecosystems.
Mercury exists in several forms. The forms are: elemental or metallic, inorganic, and organic mercury compounds. Elemental mercury can be found in electrical switches, glass thermometers, dental fillings, some medical equipment, and fluorescent light bulbs. Inorganic can be found in some disinfectants, batteries, folk culture medicines, chemistry labs, and red cinnabar miner...
The Union Carbide Corporation, an American based corporation, opened the Union Carbide India Limited pesticide factory in 1970 and began producing Sevin, their brand name for carbaryl, a Methyl Isocyanate (MIC)-based pesticide. In 1979, they added a MIC production plant to increase their overall profits. MIC is manufactured by reacting methylamine and phosgene and is highly reactive to water. When water is introduced to MIC, it causes an exothermic reaction subsequently causing the MIC to boil, producing a toxic gas. If confined inside a holding tank, this reaction would cause a substantial amount of pressure.