April Banayan, Eli Lloyd, Jonathan Berger
MAP OF MINAMATA
Causes:
 Cultural:
 Culturally dependent eating
seafood
 Social:
 Seafood cheap and accessible to
poor Japanese
 Physical:
 Minamata city’s Chisso Co.
dumped toxic materials into the
bay

Methyl mercury chloride
Effect on Environment:
 Death of fish
 Mercury in sludge and ocean
water
 Water sources ruined
Effects on Humans:
 Disease of central nervous
system (Minimata disease)
 Mercury poisoning
 36.7 mortality rate
 Loss of sensation and
eventual death
 Convulsions
How did they fix the problem?
 Kumamoto University began to




research the disease
Found animals with same
problems realized it dealt with
food
Fish main diet traced back to
ocean
Compensation of patients
Wastewater treatment
Prevention
 Prevention of Pollution-
related Health Damage
 Rules and regulations for
pollution and dumping
into the ocean
 Companies like Chisso
under more scrutiny
Status
 Water and food sources
have been cleaned
 Now facing pollution
from other sources like
nuclear reactors
 Regulations placed on
fishing industry
By:
Ashley Aviram, Paul Park, Daniella Shoenburg
The Great Smog of ‘52
“Big Smoke”
Why did this occur?!?!?
 A mass of stagnant air had collected above the sky of
London, trapping all the pollutants in the air
 The cold weather present during that time meant
millions of Londoners would be burning more coal
than usual
 Vehicle exhaust also contributed to the pollution,
especially the diesel-fueled buses
Environmental Effects :(
 Poor visibility – people could not see past a few yards
I cant see!!!!
Effects on Humans :(
 An estimated 12,000 people died
 Most of the victims were young, old, or had had
respiratory problems
 About 25,000 people became ill
Solutions?!?!?!?!
 Luckily, a change of weather removed the stagnant air
and the Big Smoke dispersed
YAYYYYYYY!!!!!
Prevention!!
 New regulations were created to restrict the use
of dirty fuels and black smoke
 Clean Air Act of 1956 and 58
 banned emissions of black smoke
 residents of urban areas and operators of factories
must convert to smokeless fuels
Currently?
 The London Fog lasted only from 12/5/52 to 12/9/52, so
it does not exist today 
 Smog is also less prominent due to the new laws 
Bibliography
 http://www.environmentaltrends.org/single/article/fl
ashback-air-quality-trends-before-1970.html
 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId
=873954
 http://www.martinfrost.ws/htmlfiles/great_smog.htm
l
 http://www.nickelinthemachine.com/2008/11/aproper-pea-souper-the-terrible-london-smog-of-1952/
THREE MILE ISLAND
By: Shawn Hakakian
Jonny Lalezari
David Hakakian
Map of three mile island
Sequence of Certain Events
•1) EQUIPMENT MALFUNCTIONS
•2) DESIGN-RELATED PROBLEMS
•3) WORKER ERRORS
•ALL LED TO MELTDOWN
Causes
•FIRST FAILURES ON WEDNESDAY, MARCH 28, 1979 AT 4A.M.
•WATER PUMPS STOPPED WORKING.
•TURBINE AND REACTOR SHUT DOWN.
•PRESSURE INCREASE, PRESSURE VALVE OPENED
•COOLANT WATER POURS OUT , REACTOR OVERHEATS
ENIVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS
-Most radiation contained
-Some radioactive gas released
-Low radiation levels released
-Water/plants cleaned
EFFECT ON HUMANS
•DEATH TOLL: 0
•2 MILLION PEOPLE, AFFECTED W/ ONLY 1 MILLIREM
(RADIOACTIVITY)
•(A CHEST X-RAY IS 6 MILLIREMS)
•INCREASE IN PUBLIC FEAR AND DISTRESS
•NRC REGULATIONS BECAME BROADENED
•5-mile radius cleared
•10-mile radius, stay at home, windows closed.
Problem Fixed
-60 workers
-Cooled it down, shut it off
-High pressure water injection
-Restarted one reactor coolant pump
Prevention
-Better operator training/ instruction.
-Emergency preparedness
-NRC public report requirement
-Additional monitoring equipment
-High standards by INPO
Current Environmental Status
- TMI-2 Reactor Permanently shut down
-Radioactive water decontaminated
-Waste/Debris shipped off-site.
-Long term monitored storage
-TMI-2 will run once TMI-1 plant operating
license expires
Bibliography
-"Three Mile Island | TMI 2 |Three Mile Island Accident." World Nuclear Association | Nuclear
Power - a Sustainable Energy Resource. Web. 06 Oct. 2011. <http://www.worldnuclear.org/info/inf36.html>.
-"Three Mile Island: The Rest of the Story..." Potassium Iodide Pills Anti-Radiation Pill &
Nuclear Emergency FAQ. Radiation Detectors, Meters, Geiger Counters & Potassium Iodine
Iodate Pills. Web. 06 Oct. 2011. <http://www.ki4u.com/three_mile_island.htm>.
-"NRC: Backgrounder on the Three Mile Island Accident." NRC: Home Page. Web. 06 Oct.
2011. <http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/fact-sheets/3mile-isle.html>.
-"A Nuclear Nightmare -- Printout -- TIME." Breaking News, Analysis, Politics, Blogs, News
Photos, Video, Tech Reviews - TIME.com. Web. 06 Oct. 2011.
<http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,920196,00.html>.
Nuclear Disaster
Maps
hi
Chernobyl nuclear power
plant is located in Ukraine,
20km south of the border
with Belarus.
Causes Of Disaster
26 April 1986
 Caused by inexperienced staff working at the Chernobyl Power Plant
 The staff wanted to test reactor 4 but another power plant went down
 The Chernobyl plant had to produce more power than it was supposed
to so it could compensate
 The night staff who were less experienced thought they could test the
reactor, but did not know that you couldn’t test while it was producing
double the power
 The emergency shutdown mechanism couldn’t stop the plant, and their
Geiger counters weren’t advanced enough to tell them how high the
radiation levels were
 The crew stayed 3 days after the explosion not knowing the high
radiation levels, as they were attempting to pump water into the reactor
to control it
Effect Of Disaster On The Environment
 Largest uncontrolled radioactive release in environment





residentially and large amounts of radioactive substances
released into the air
Deposited in the urban areas near the power plant
The deposition of radioactive iodine contaminated
agricultural plants, grazing animals
Particularly contaminated mushrooms and berries
Radioactive materials from Chernobyl deposited on rivers,
lakes and some water reservoirs
The radioactive materials released by the accident had
immediate harmful effects on plants and animals living
within 20 to 30 km of the Chernobyl power plant
Effect Of Disaster On Humans
 The current death toll =1 million people
 Around 1800 children ages 0 to 14 were
diagnosed with Thyroid Cancer
 Up to 2.4 million Ukrainians had negative
effects on their health
 Explosion effected all of Europe
 Higher rates of Birth defects have been
linked to disaster
What Is Being Done To Fix This Problem?
 During the first years, settlements in contaminated
regions of the USSR were cleaned up at a very high cost
 In order to reduce long term contamination of milk
and meat with radioactive cesium, the animals were
fed crops that would trap the radioactive chemicals
 Between May and November 1986, a Shelter was built
to contain the damaged reactor to prevent further
release
 The overall plan for the long term development of the
Exclusion Zone is to make the less affected areas
available for use by the public.
Prevention Of Future Disasters
 The Soviet Union and, later, the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS)
spent large amounts of money to deal with clean-up and repair.
 To prevent the release of more radiation a Shelter was quickly built to contain
the damaged reactor. (Problems become apparent with the first shelter and a
new “more durable” shelter is being built.)
 New Safe Confinement (NSC) should provide more than 100 years of service
life and is planned to cover over the existing Shelter.
Current Environmental Status Of Area
 Large amounts of radioactive waste was generated and placed in
temporary near-surface waste storage and disposal facilities.
 An “exclusion Zone” was created extending up to 30 km in all
directions around the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.
 Restrictions have been placed on fresh water,
hunting, and forest products (berries, mushrooms,
and firewood) in the areas surrounding Chernobyl.
 Since the disaster, the radiation levels have reduced
significantly, but are still very high.
 Although some animals have returned, very few
people go there.
Sources
 "Causes of the Chernobyl Disaster | Chernobyl-Disaster.com." The Chernobyl Disaster |
Chernobyl-Disaster.com. Http://www.chernobyl-disaster.com/. Web. 04 Oct. 2011.
<http://chernobyl-disaster.com/causes-of-chernobyl-disaster.php>.
 "Chernobyl Global Radiation Patterns." Web. 04 Oct. 2011.
<http://users.owt.com/smsrpm/Chernobyl/glbrad.html>.
 Fernandez, Marisa. "Scientific Facts on the Chernobyl Nuclear Accident." Green Facts Facts on Health and the Environment. Green Facts' Scientific Board, 12 Apr. 2006. Web.
04 Oct. 2011. <http://www.greenfacts.org/en/chernobyl/index.htm>.
 Preuss, Simone. "Chernobyl 1984-2009: Then and Now | Environmental Graffiti." Popular
| Environmental Graffiti. Environmentalgraffiti. Web. 04 Oct. 2011.
<http://www.environmentalgraffiti.com/featured/chernobyl-then-now/14634>.
 "WHO | Health Effects of the Chernobyl Accident: an Overview." Www.who.int. World
Health Organization, Apr. 2006. Web. 04 Oct. 2011.
<http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs303/en/index.html>.
By:
Natan Dorenbaum, Andrew Loewy, Jacob Roeder, Jack
Wagner
Map and General Area
 Capital of
Hiroshima
Prefecture
 First city
destroyed by
nuclear bomb
Causes (Why Hiroshima?)
 Was a major army
depot and port in an
urban industrial area
 US believed that the
bomb would save
more lives than
destroy than if their
was a full invasion
 Large part of city
would be effected
Effects On The Environment
 Air pollution from
radioactive debris
 Water sources were
polluted by radioactive
particles
 Agricultural production
was damaged
 Soil polluted and ruined
 Dead stalks of rice could
be found up to 7 miles
from ground zero
•
•
•
•
Effects
On
Humans
Wiped out 90% of
Hiroshima
100,000 people
immediately killed
Between 100,000200,000 people died in all
from both immediate
death and radiation
sickness later on
 Hair loss, nose
bleeds, fever,
nausea, death, etc.
Feelings of fear,
What is Being Done to Fix the
problem?
 Hiroshima was rebuilt after
the war
 Proclaimed a city of peace
 Hiroshima Peace Memorial
City Construction law was
passed and provided
financial assistance for
reconstruction
 “Atomic Dome” is the closest
building to ground zero that
survived and became the
Hiroshima Peace Memorial
Park
Atomic Dome
Prevention
 International Atomic
Energy Agency
established to encourage
peaceful applications of
nuclear tech
 Comprehensive Test Ban
Treaty prohibits all
testing of nuclear
weapons
International Atomic Energy
Agency Symbol
Environmental Status
 Background radiation
now at normal levels
 Population today-about
1.12 million
 City was rebuilt and is a
major urban center
 Now one of Japans
largest supplier of
nuclear power… how
ironic
Bibliography
Works Cited
"Environmental Effects of War." Water Treatment and Purification Lenntech. Web. 06 Oct. 2011. <http://www.lenntech.com/environmentaleffects-war.htm>.
"Hiroshima, 64 Years Ago - The Big Picture - Boston.com." Boston.com Boston, MA News, Breaking News, Sports, Video. Web. 06 Oct. 2011.
<http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/08/hiroshima_64_years_ago.ht
ml>.
"Hiroshima Plant | Environmental Conservation | Elpida Memory." Elpida
Memory, Inc. Web. 06 Oct. 2011.
<http://www.elpida.com/en/environment/hiroshima.html>.
"Nuclear Files: Timeline of the Nuclear Age: 1945." Nuclear Files - From
Nuclear Proliferation to Nuclear Testing, from Hiroshima to North Korea,
Nuclear Files Offers the A to Z on Nuclear Issues. Web. 06 Oct. 2011.
<http://www.nuclearfiles.org/menu/timeline/timeline_page.php?year=194
5>.
China was
the country
which was
affected by
the “Kill a
Sparrow
Campaign”
• Initiated in 1958 as a hygiene
campaign by Mao Zedong
• Zedong identified the need to
exterminate mosquitoes, flies,
rats, and sparrows
• Tried increasing rice yields
• Culturally influenced by TVB
drama series Rosy Business

-peasant came up with idea
of killing sparrows to improve
agricultural output

• Increase in insects and worms
since their predators (sparrows)
died off
• One of China’s greatest locus
invasions of history
• Crops died from being eaten by an
abundant amount of pesticides
• Famine
• 30-43 million
deaths resulted
from starvation
• Mao ordered end to campaign against sparrows
•
•
•


•

replacing them with bed bugs
Too late
Locust population increases
Increases ecological problems caused by Great Leap
Forward
-widespread deforestation
-misuse of poisons and pesticides
Great Chinese Famine
-more than 30 million died of starvation
•This disaster was easily
preventable
•Humans shouldn’t get
involved with nature
•In the future, humans
should allow natural
regulation to take its
course
• STILL did not stop: in 1998 had
campaign to kill cockroaches
instead of sparrows
• June 19, 1998: poster at Southwest
Agricultural University in
Chongqing
• Cockroaches instead of sparrows
• Similar campaign in the spring of
1998 in Beijing
• Liker, András. "Site of Sparrows - Dark Era of Sparrows." Sparrows. Web. 04
•
•
•
•
Oct. 2011. <http://sparrow.elte.hu/mao.htm>.
Summers-Smith, J. Denis (1992). In Search of Sparrows. London: Poyser.
pp. 122–124. ISBN 0-85661-073-9.
McCarthy, Michael (2 August 2006). "The secret life of sparrows". The
Independent. http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/the-secret-lifeof-sparrows-410252.html. Retrieved 30 January 2009.
Shapiro, Judith Rae (2001). Mao's War Against Nature: Politics and the
Environment in Revolutionary China. Cambridge University Press.
ISBN 0521786800.
Dikotter, Frank (2010). Mao's Great Famine. New York: Walker & Co.. p. 188.
Love Canal
Mix 82 Chemicals
Place in Canal for 25 Years
Yield: Sickness + Death
Background
Information
 Love Canal –
neighborhood in Niagara
Falls, NY
 Used as Toxic Waste
Dump by Niagara Falls &
US Army in WWII
 1942 - Hooker
Electrochemical
Company dumped waste
in the canal
Causes
 Growing population - over
85000
 City needed land for new
schools
 Hooker Chemical Company
sold the land for $1
 City of Niagara Falls warned
of toxicity, but still bought
land
Effects on Environment
 Vegetation died
 Water contaminated
 Canal began to crack
Effects
on
Humanity
 Chemicals seeped




into homes
Miscarriages
Birth Defects:
Physical & Mental
Contaminated Breast
Milk
High rate of cancer
What’s Being Done in Response?
 Government relocated > 800
families
 Comprehensive Environmental
Response, Compensation, and
Liability Act passed
 Occidental Petroleum (H.E.C)
fined $129 Million
 Most toxic areas reburied + fence
built
Current Status of Love Canal
 Today less than 90 of the original 900 families remain.
 Most of the toxins in soil remain
 Toxic rain
Bibliography
 Dean, Cornelia. "Superfund News - The New York Times." Times Topics - The New
York Times. 06 Oct. 2011. Web. 06 Oct. 2011.
<http://topics.nytimes.com/topics/reference/timestopics/subjects/s/superfund/index.h
tml>.
"Love Canal Follow-up Health Study - April 2002." New York State Department of
Health. Web. 06 Oct. 2011.
<http://www.health.state.ny.us/environmental/investigations/love_canal/402news.htm>.
 "Love Canal Superfund Site | Region 2 | US EPA." US Environmental Protection
Agency. Web. 06 Oct. 2011.
<http://www.epa.gov/region2/superfund/npl/lovecanal/images.html>.
64
By: Brian Aminpour
Chanel Taghdis
Map of Region
Affected
auses of Disaster
 Loss of control over
the pressure in the well
 Failure of wells
blowout preventer
 Blowout preventers
emergency functions
failed to seal the well
causing leak
 Social cause: Huge amounts
of oil found underwater
 Practice underwater drilling,
has since been halted
 Wanted oil for technological
advances
Effect of Disaster on Environment
 Oil gushing for 3 months into the gulf
 Fire burned for 36 hours and hydrocarbons leaked into




gulf
Infects the food chain
Affects life forms in the ocean
Kills turtles, fishes, and other endangered species
Layering areas of ocean floor with deposits
Effect of Disaster on Humans
 Oil spills take a toll on
human communities
 Eleven people died and
others were injured
 Damage caused to
livelihoods of those
living in the
communities that were
affected
 Fisheries closed
xing the Problem
 $17.7 billion for response activities
 Cleaning up and restoring the gulfs beaches with new
technologies
 Wildlife groups developed rescue programs for
wildlife
 Compensating individuals, businesses, and other
agencies
 The conservancy is expanding our work project to
restore ecological infrastructure
Prevention of Future Disasters
 Companies like earth
justice try to stop the
expansion of offshore
drilling
 Force federal agencies
to do their jobs instead
of depending on BP
Oil company
 National institute of
health conducting
studies on health
effects and educating
people
 New technology which
monitor for the
presence of oil in water
Current Status of Area
 The oil has stopped
flowing
 Large scale restoration
is needed for: marshes,
oyster beds, and
coastal forests
 The fisheries have now
re-opened
 Demand for oil grows
Bibliography
 http://earthjustice.org/features/preventing-more-bp-
type-oildisasters?gclid=CMTa__Ob0KsCFQdzgwod4TwM
VQ
 http://www.bp.com/sectionbodycopy.do?categoryId
=41&contentId=7067505
 http://www.nature.org/ourinitiatives/regions/northa
merica/areas/gulfofmexico/gulf-of-mexico-1-yearafter-the-oil-spill.xml