Groundwater Contaminant: Lead (Pb)
Lead is a naturally occurring metal used in various industrial goods from pipes, paints, and well linings. Lead is a greyish heavy metal that is harmful if swallowed or breathed in. Lead can be handled without gloves, but should be limited and a thorough hand cleaning is needed afterwards 1. Lead originates from the Greek word “Protos”, which means first 2. Lead is known to be introduced into groundwater by contact with old lead pipes, runoff of lead based paint, leaded gasoline leakage, and automobile air emissions 3. Lead poisoning can greatly affect people such as “brain and nervous system damage, and particularly mental development impairment in children; reproductive system interference including effects such as premature infant and low births; circulatory system damage such as O2 absorption decrease and increase in blood pressure; and kidneys malfunctioning” (Kinder, 1997) 4. Lead contamination can be found anywhere lead is used or refined. As it is a naturally occurring metal, lead tends to seep into the ground easily with the assistance of water and its abundant use in manufacturing. Lead is transported into the system mainly by leeching by contact into the water source by older lead pipes, fittings, and various lead lined containers 5. Currently there is no other viable way to remove lead contamination from groundwater other than to pump and treat either in mass quantities or through reverse osmosis, distillation, or carbon filters 6. The main course of action and most reliable is to remove the source of the lead from contact with water 7.
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Lead Contamination In Our Environment, 1997 http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1997/7/97.07.05.x.html#b
2 Bentor, Yinon. Chemical Element.com - Lead. Mar. 4, 2016
... water crisis will have a long term affect on those who are consuming this water on a daily basis. Lead attack the brain and can cause coma and possibly death. Children who survive lead poisoning are left with serious health issues such as metal defects and leave a child mentally unstable. Even at lower levels of exposure symptoms such as behavioural changes such as reduced attention span, reduced intelligence quotient (IQ). Children with smaller amount of lead exposure also showed increased anti social behaviour, it also reduces educational attainment. These side effect of high lead exposure can leave children scarred for life. The water crisis in Flint Michigan car scar children for life. This could all be resolved if they could come to an agreement and replace the water pipes, allowing for cleaner and healthier water to be accessible to citizens in Flint Michigan.
The novel Crispin: The Cross of Lead, written by Avi, is a medieval tale that intertwines drama and action with an underlying theme of the intersection of fate and social status. The book is set in England in 1377, during Europe’s dark ages, and its protagonist is a peasant boy on a feudal manor. Social structure during this time was very rigid, and Avi uses it as both context and a theme. Crispin, as a serf bound to his lord’s land, is at the bottom of the hierarchy. But as he grows and becomes more independent, Crispin discovers that he can transcend the social boundaries that precluded his freedom for so long.
Lead is a metal found virtually everywhere even today. Sources of lead include auto body shops, electric storage batteries, glazes for china dishes, crockery, insecticides, electric cable insulation, hose, pipe, sheet and floor coverings. Lead is associated with stain glass work, jewelry making and antique ceramic doll painting. Although lead in paint was outlawed, there are still many homes that have lead paint (White et al, 1990). Lead found in gasoline was found in one study to account for 23--27% of the lead blood levels in the people tested (Wagner, 1991). This exposure to lead sources is more of a concern for children due to the characteristic habit of children to taste everything they touch; this characteristic is known as pica. Children are also in closer contact with their lead polluted environment during play. They are more active and exposed to outdoor contaminates and they inhale dust and dirt that are lead contaminated. Furthermore, the adsorption rate of lead in the digestive tract is up to 10 times greater in chil...
Being raised in Ghana, receiving higher education in England and working as a professor in the United States certainly helped Kwame Anthony Appiah receive a fair share of different cultures. Appiah is a recognized philosopher with several published books and an impressive track record of accomplishments. His article The Case for Contamination, which was published in The New York Times, speaks on the topic of how globalization affects individuals in many aspects of their life. He discusses how forcefully preserving cultures can harm a culture more than help it. While the article is lengthy, it goes into great detail about how globalization affects people in countries all over the world, even Ghana. Globalization makes a large impact on the world we see today and cultural groups can benefit from the effects of globalization because it promotes diversity, creates cosmopolitan citizen development, and allows economic growth.
Breast cancer is the second leading cancer to cause death in women. A combination of factors contributes to the etiology of breast cancer, such as genetic and environmental dynamics [ACS, 2014]. One particular area of interest is the study of metalloestrogens, which are inorganic compounds that can bind to the estrogen receptor and mimic the biological functions of estrogen in breast cancer cells. Arsenic is one such metalloestrogen and has been classified as carcinogenic to humans [IARC]. Studies in humans have shown that long-term exposure to arsenic is associated with bladder, kidney, lung and liver cancers [1,2,3]. Arsenic exposure has also been correlated with an increase in the incidence of breast cancer [4]. People can be exposed to arsenic in different settings such as in the workplace, in drinking water or from medical treatments. Through these methods of exposure, various mechanisms of internalization can take place through inhalation, ingestion, or through skin contact. We hypothesize that prolonged arsenic exposure results in the expression of genes that promote breast cancer progression. In this study, we propose to investigate the effect of prolonged arsenic exposure on gene expression, by comparing the global gene expression of a breast cancer cell line that has been chronically exposed to low-dose arsenic with that of a control cell line. Genes found to be differentially expressed in arsenic adapted cells will be examined further. We also aim to extend our understanding of the direct effect of arsenic, by studying the signal pathway that results in gene expression when arsenic binds to the estrogen receptor.
A huge fascination of arsenic started in the 19th century when people got word of a province in southeastern Austria where people ate arsenic. Women would eat arsenic to help gain weight and fix their complexion to look more beautiful and men would eat arsenic because they believed it helped them breath easier when they were climbing high up in the mountains. One doctor by the name of Dr. Robert Craig MacLagan, was particularly interested in this and visited the town to see for himself what was really occurring. He observed the people and tested their urine to prove that they have been indeed ingesting arsenic. He wrote about the things he witnessed in the Edinburgh Medical Journal. The men in the town would eat 6 grains/dose at least twice a week, sometimes eating it on their bread or just drinking it with their water. As a result many Victorians began self-medicating themselves with arsenic.
Review the effects of arsenic as a soil pollutant on human health. You need to consider the major sources of arsenic (both natural & man-made), pathways for uptake by people and the impacts on human health.
Due to an above average level of poverty, many homes in New Orleans had very high levels of lead and arsenic in them. (Pastor) This combined with eighty percent of the city being flooded, released significant amounts of lead and arsenic into the environment which still exist today. Soil samples taken before and after Katrina showed elevated levels of lead, iron and arsenic. (Reible)A new study on one-hundred and nine households found that sixty-one percent had lead measurements above federal standards with twenty-seven percent greater than one-thousand two hundred ppm which was significantly higher than the five-hundred and sixty ppm collected before Hurricane Katrina. (Rabito) These inorganic compounds are related to cancer risks of which New Orleans already has a significant problem with. This complicates the decision on when and where to conduct environmental clean-ups in New Orleans to remove the lead, iron and arsenic.
Recently, the environment impacts on our health have become a large concern of our societies worldwide. Lead is a pervasive and persistent environmental pollutant and recognized to be a major public health problem; therefore it has been paid attention by researchers in probing further into its toxicity. Lead poisoning is an insidious disease which is often detected late after being confused with other disorders such as digestive, hepatic, hematologic and behavioural disorders where it decreases the activity of certain enzymes by binding their sulfhydryl groups, or even to replace other metal ions
Lead and lead compounds can be highly toxic when eaten or inhaled. Although lead is absorbed very slowly into the body, its rate of excretion is even slower. Thus, with constant exposure, lead accumulates gradually in the body. It is absorbed by the red blood cells and circulated through the body where it becomes concentrated in the soft tissues, especially the liver and kidneys. Lead can cause damage in the central nervous system and apparently can damage the cells making up the blood-brain barrier that protects the brain from many harmful chemicals.
In spite of knowing that safe drinking water is a problem across all the developing nations, people of India have been polluting these precious treasures at an alarming rate. According to a study, every year close to 1.5 lacs of idols of lord Ganesha are immersed in the sea-shore of Mumbai during Ganesh Chaturthi and nearly 50,000 idols of Goddess Durga are immersed in the river Ganga in West Bengal. However, the examination of water before and after immersion shows that the concentration of toxic substances like calcium, magnesium along with metals like lead and mercury (which particularly affect neurological development) increases considerably. According to a survey by the West Bengal Pollution Control Board and the Indian Toxicology Research Institute, each gram of colour used for painting consists of a high quantity of lead – ranging from 6-10 micrograms. To top it up, the Plaster of Paris (which contains calcium sulphate hemihydrates and is created by heating Gypsum to around 150 degree C) does not get dissolved fast (gets transformed into Gypsum on contact with water and accumulate at the bottom) thereby, reducing the level of oxygen in the water. The garlands and plastic materials thrown into the river also choke the aquatic life. Various researches suggest that the pH level of water also increases tremendously after immersion. This is
There are many types of pollution. The main types of pollution are water, air, soil, thermal, radioactive, noise, and light. The topic for this experiment is Water Pollution. Water Pollution became a problem in the 1900’s when water started being treated like sewage. Earth Day was founded by United States Senator Gaylord Nelson on April 22, 1970 because of 1900’s pollution. Water Pollution also affects humans and animals. There was a Cholera outbreak in 1854, before water pollution became a problem, and a Typhoid outbreak in New York from 1900 to 1915. There are multiple possible causes to Water Pollution. Humans let out chemicals into the environment, and when some of those chemicals
The Causes of Water Pollution Water pollution is very harmful to the environment and living things. Water pollution can come from many different sources. If the pollution comes from only one source, such as an oil spill, it is called point-source pollution. If it comes from many different sources, it is called nonpoint-source pollution. Most water pollution affects the immediate area surrounding the source, but there are some types of pollution, such as hazardous, that can affect areas miles away from the source.
What is pollution? Pollution is a detrimental enemy to all species that walk on earth. It is a product of mankind carbon foot print on the environment. It consists of chemicals or particles in the air that can harm the health of humans, animals, and plants. Pollution occurs when pollutants contaminate the natural surrounding; which brings about changes that affect our normal lifestyles adversely. Pollutants are the key elements of pollution which are generally waste materials of dissimilar forms. Pollution disturbs our ecosystem and the balance in the environment. With innovation and development in our lives pollution has reached its peaks; giving rise to global warming and human illness. When raw materials, water, energy and other resources
One of the greatest events of twentieth century was the use of radioisotope as a source of energy and as medical and industrial tools. Using radioactivity has been a global issue owing to its very nature. When it is used for peaceful purposes, it is a triumph of science because it can solve energy problems in the form of nuclear energy but the side effects in the form of harmful radiation and harmful radioactive waste is the real limitations of science. This essay will attempt to analyze the application of science in the use of radioactivity and radioactive isotopes and how science is not so effective in dealing with the side effects.