Toxic Hotspots
Polluting Planet Earth
Hotspots Background
British Columbia, Canada/Washington State, United States
PCBs
Orcas in the waters off Washington State in the U.S. and British Columbia, Canada are some of the most heavily
polluted marine mammals in the world, according to research from the Institute for Ocean Studies (IOS). In studies of
three pods of orcas – often referred to as killer whales – researchers found levels of PCBs up to 500 times higher than
those found in humans.
PCBs are linked to reproductive abnormalities, weakened immune systems, cancer, and other health disorders in marine
mammals. These problems have shown up in the beluga whales that populate Canada’s St. Lawrence Estuary, which
feeds into the heavily polluted Great Lakes. The British Columbia area orcas are five times more polluted than the St.
Lawrence belugas.
More research is needed to determine if recent declines in Northwest orcas are related to PCB contamination, but
studies show that the chemicals are accumulating in the fat of mothers who then pass them on to their offspring.
Because they are at the top of the food chain, eat 60-180 kilograms (100 to 300 pounds) of food a day and live up to 90
years, orcas build up a tremendous amount of contaminants during their lifetimes.
The IOS study sampled blubber and skin from 47 orcas. Some of the whales live year round in the Pacific Northwest
waters where they consume a salmon-based diet. Other orcas who travel the oceans eat mainly marine mammals such
as seals, sea lions, and porpoises. The transient whales had the highest PCB levels, at 251 parts per million, while the
two local populations had levels of 46 and 146 parts per million. Humans in the U.S. generally have PCB levels around
½ parts per million. Researchers say that immune system dysfunctions can leave orcas susceptible to life threatening
diseases.
Pakistan
Medical Waste Incineration
Management of waste, especially hospital waste, is an ongoing major problem in most countries. In recent years,
medical waste disposal has become even more difficult due to the use of disposable syringes, needles and similar items.
In Pakistan, around 250,000 tons of medical waste are produced annually from all healthcare facilities. In the Punjab
region, medical waste is produced at the rate of 1.8 kilograms per day per bed. There are 250 hospitals with a total
capacity of 41,000 beds in the Punjab.
In Pakistan, hospital waste is usually mixed with municipal waste in roadside collection containers. Some waste is
buried with no appropriate safeguards. Recently, however, incineration has been introduced in public and private
hospitals and is becoming the preferred method of waste management.
Incinerators for medical and municipal waste emit dioxins and other toxic substances and have been linked to severe
public health threats as well as pollution. Dioxins and related chlorinated organic compounds are extremely potent toxic
substances that produce adverse effects in humans and animals at extremely low doses.
The combination of scientific findings on the health effects of dioxin, strong public opposition to incineration and
increasingly strict environmental pollution regulations has forced the closure or cancellation of many incinerators in
industrialized countries. As a result, many incinerator companies are targeting overseas markets where people are not
yet aware of the serious health and environmental threats associated with incineration or the advantages of alternatives.
These companies are now targeting Asia, Africa and Latin America.
Alternatives to incineration are available to hospitals in many developed countries. However, as these methods seem
complicated and expensive, they are not being used in Pakistan. Alternative methods include steam autoclaving,
chemical treatment with anti-microbial chemicals, microwave radiation, and other thermal systems such as infrared
radiation or gamma radiation.
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Midway Island, North Pacific
PCBs, DDT, Dioxins, Furans
A study of black-footed albatrosses nesting on one of the most remote and “pristine” places on Earth – Midway Island
in the Pacific – illustrates the ability of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) to travel long distances. In the study,
researchers noted that these long-lived seabirds carry combinations of POPs such as PCBs, DDT, furans, and dioxins
that are as high as those found in much more industrialized, highly populated areas. These chemicals are known to
cause reproductive and health effects in fish in the Great Lakes area of the US and Canada.
Midway Island is 3,100 miles from Los Angeles, 2,400 miles from Tokyo and 1,150 miles from Honolulu. The
albatrosses feed on the open ocean far from pollution sources.
The albatrosses showed symptoms of exposure such as deformed embryos, eggshell thinning and a three percent
reduction in nest productivity. DDT compounds in the birds’ eggs were found at just under two parts per million.
Serious population-level effects can occur at levels just above two parts per million. The study author, Dr. James
Ludwig, suspects the DDT probably originated off the coast of Southeast Asia.
Ethiopia
Obsolete Pesticide Stockpiles
About 40 meters from the largest grain silo in Ethiopia sits a heavily guarded shed containing an estimated 10 tons of
pesticides, many of them in barrels and containers that have burst or are leaking. It is difficult to determine exactly how
much and what types of chemicals are in the shed, according to Mark Davis of Pesticide Action Network-UK, who has
documented the issue of obsolete pesticide stockpiles and what needs to be done with them. In total there are over 600
stores containing around 1,500 tons of obsolete pesticides in Ethiopia. That does not include massive amounts of soil
soaked in pesticides that have leaked from their containers.
Several factors have contributed to the accumulation of pesticide stockpiles in Ethiopia and other developing countries.
Centralized systems often did not take into account actual need; pesticides were over-ordered and over-supplied. In
some cases, well-intentioned donor agencies supplied pesticides of the wrong type, in the wrong place, or in
inappropriate packaging or formulations.
It was not only misguided good intentions, however, that led to this type of accumulation. There were and there
continue to be many cases of unscrupulous behavior such as dumping of obsolete chemicals, intentional oversupply to
boost sales, and provision of products with labels in foreign languages or with no labels as all.
The only currently available method for disposing of large quantities of obsolete pesticides is to repackage and ship
them to Europe and incinerate them in a dedicated high temperature toxic waste incinerator. Costs range between US$3-4 per kilogram. The estimated cost for clearing Ethiopia of its obsolete pesticides is US-$4.5 million. The US
Agency for International Development (AID) has pledged $1 million, the Government of the Netherlands has made
$2.5 million available, and the Government of Sweden has pledged support, but final amounts are not known. The
Global Crop Protection Federation, which represents the major pesticide manufacturers, has allocated $1 for every
kilogram or liter of pesticide that is attributed to one of its member companies.
Ethiopia’s obsolete pesticide burden is a striking example of the need for industrialized countries to support strong
financial and technical assistance wording in the UN Treaty on Persistent Organic Pollutants.
Great Lakes
PCBs
The contamination of the Great Lakes of the U.S. and Canada is well known. These lakes lie in one of the world’s most
industrialized areas and are constantly assaulted by chemical contamination from factories and agricultural pesticides.
An ongoing study by Drs. Joseph and Sandra Jacobson at Indiana’s Wayne State University has documented significant
deficits in intelligence, behavior, and learning in children exposed to PCBs and other contaminants in the womb.
Children whose mothers had eaten contaminated fish from Lake Michigan in the six years prior to pregnancy exhibited
these developmental problems.
In their most recent examination of these children at 11 years of age, the Jacobsons found the most highly exposed have
difficulty paying attention, suffer from poorer short- and long-term memory, were twice as likely to be at least two
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years behind in reading comprehension, and were three times as likely to have low IQ scores. This work is striking not
only because of the lasting impact seen in children, but also because the fish-eating mothers are not considered highly
contaminated. The levels measured in their bodies fall on the high end of what is considered the “normal” background
range for PCBs in the human population.
In a similar study at the State University of New York (Oswego), researchers found measurable neurobehavioral
deficits in the newborn children of women who had eaten the equivalent of 40 pounds of Lake Ontario salmon in a
lifetime, thereby replicating the Lake Michigan study. In additional tests, these children showed abnormal reflexes, a
shorter attention span, and an intolerance to stress. The Oswego study was the first to document a wide range of effects
on temperament stemming from prenatal exposure to contaminants.
“[T]he collective weight of the evidence indicates that certain PCB/dioxin-like compounds found in fish…can cause
neurobehavioral deficits. Further, the evidence indicates that these compounds have produced some effects in some
Great Lakes fish consumers,” according to an assessment by the U.S. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease
Registry.
Japan
Dioxins
In a study presented to this year’s International Whaling Commission (IWC) conference in Australia, Japanese
researchers reported finding dioxin levels up to 172 times the tolerable daily intake in marketed whale meat. The study
was headed by Koichi Haraguchi of Daiichi University in Fukuoka, Japan. Researchers looked at 38 types of whale and
dolphin meat sold in 1999 and early 2000 in Japan.
Dolphin meat recorded the highest concentration of dioxins, followed by minke whales from the North Pacific.
Antarctic Ocean minke whales were the least contaminated by dioxin. The researchers also found high levels of
mercury in the samples.
Japanese whale meat isn’t alone in its contamination from POPs. A WWF study released on Norwegian minke whale
meat and blubber samples destined for human consumption found a toxic soup of contamination. Also released at this
year’s IWC conference, the WWF Norway analysis found over 50 types of PCBs, including some dioxin-like PCBs,
along with several chemicals known to disrupt the hormonal system. The test also revealed 25 metals, including organic
mercury.
South Africa
Incineration
The Aloes waste site in Port Elizabeth, South Africa is home to one of the dozens of hazardous waste dumps and
medical waste incineration sites scattered across the country and throughout many other developing countries. Nearby
communities are exposed to the toxic fumes emitted from the incinerator’s chimney, which is at the same level as many
houses. Since the incinerator was built 20 years ago, residents have complained of nasal problems, chest infections, and
tuberculosis.
South Africa now threatens to greatly expand its reliance on waste incineration. The additional incinerators would
process municipal, medical, and hazardous wastes, exposing the population to dangerous levels of dioxins and other
chemical releases. Many proposed and existing incinerators are located close to poor, residential areas.
To address the threats associated with incineration, a grassroots movement has begun in regions throughout South
Africa. In Cape Town, a coalition of environmental, civic, youth, and political organizations is working against
ammunitions, medical, and hazardous waste incinerators. According to the Anti-Incineration Alliance, many hospital
incinerators were built before the 1960s, burn without filters, and are not equipped to handle large amounts of waste.
Norway
PCBs
Scientists in Norway’s remote Svalbard region have found alarmingly high levels of PCBs in polar bears—up to 20
times higher than levels found in Alaskan polar bears. These high PCB levels are associated with a suppression of the
immune function and reproductive problems in top predators. The research has shown that the concentrations of
chemicals—particularly PCBs—are the same as those in experimental animals in which they found reduced immunity
and infection resistance.
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In one study, scientists found “relatively low yearly pup survival.” They suspect that “the high intake of PCBs at a
crucial period could adversely influence the early development of cubs and lead to higher mortality.”
More recently, scientists on Svalbard found that some female polar bears they tested have abnormal external genitalia,
most likely the result of the hormone disrupting effects of PCBs. The condition was unknown 10 years ago. Scientists
are concerned and are continuing to study the polar bears for further evidence.
The PCBs are thought to originate in European industrial areas and be carried to Svalbard in air and water currents.
They enter the food chain through plankton, which is eaten by fish, which are then eaten by seals. Polar bears mainly
eat seals, especially in the spring following hibernation.
Florida, United States
DDT, Dieldrin, Chlordane
Cases of reproductive and developmental problems in alligators in one polluted Florida water body, Lake Apopka, have
turned up in other Florida lakes that are much less polluted, leading scientists to believe that problems can happen at
much lower exposure levels.
In the 1980s, researcher Dr. Lou Guillette of the University of Florida began noticing that the alligators in Lake Apopka
had penises that were often only one third the normal size. The abnormality was assumed to result from a massive
pesticide spill years earlier. However, additional studies in other Florida lakes that were not contaminated by pesticide
spills have shown alligators with similar reproductive problems. Researchers have found elevated levels of a variety of
contaminants in alligator eggs, including dieldrin, toxaphene, chlordane, and the DDT breakdown product DDE.
Guillette and his colleagues studied 50 alligators each on Lake Okeechobee (Florida’s largest lake), Lake Apopka and
Lake Woodruff. Testosterone levels in males were reduced by 75-80 percent. These studies show that chronic
contamination is often just as damaging as acute contamination, such as the Apopka spill. In addition to the lower
testosterone levels and reduced penis size found in the Florida alligators, a new problem was found – changes in the
levels of thyroid hormones.
Russia
PCBs
In Russia, PCB production and use began in the late 1930s. Production was terminated in the 1990s, but use of existing
PCB-containing equipment continues. The Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme estimates that
approximately 180,000 tons of PCBs were produced between 1939 and 1993. The major producers of PCBs were
associations such as Orgsteklo in the city of Dzerzhinsk and Orgsintez in the city of Novosibirsk.
Evidence of PCBs’ environmental persistence and carcinogenicity led most countries to outlaw production in the
1970s. Large quantities, however, are still in use today in Russia as well as many other countries.
PCBs are used in electrical transformers and capacitors, heat transfer and hydraulic systems, industrial oils, paints,
adhesives, plastics, and flame retardants. The very attributes that made PCBs so useful in industry – low flammability,
low electrical conductivity, high resistance to thermal breakdown and to other chemical agents, high degree of chemical
stability – also threaten the health of workers, wildlife, and communities. Since the time they were first produced, PCBs
have caused serious accidents, resulting in disease and environmental pollution.
According to a report by the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme, there is no collection of PCB waste and no
disposal facilities within the Russian Federation. PCB contaminated wastes – including PCB containing equipment
taken out of operation and PCBs emptied from equipment – are usually stored on site in the open air or in storage
rooms or warehouses.
PCBs can enter into the environment through direct releases from equipment still in use, emissions from PCB
contaminated waste, or from contaminated sites and disposal areas. They also can enter into the groundwater, soils, and
atmosphere from sources such as recycled oil and materials, chemical manufacturing, landfills, and incineration of
industrial and municipal waste.
December 2000
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