Period+1+-+Bhopal

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**BHOPAL **
Summary **__When:__ Dec. 2nd 1984

__Where:__ Union Carbide plant, Bhopal India**


==__What:__ 27 tons of the deadly gas of Methyl Isocyanate leaked out. All safety systems put in place to stop this sort of disaster were "out of order". The gas spread throughout the city of Bhopal. == ==  == ==<span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">__Casualties:__ 500,000 people were exposed to the gas and 20,000 have died to date as a result of their exposure. More than 120,000 people still suffer from ailments caused by the accident and the subsequent pollution at the plant site. == ==<span style="FONT-SIZE: 70%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 70%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">  <span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">       == ==<span style="FONT-SIZE: 70%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 70%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">  <span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">__Symptoms of Exposure:__ blindness, extreme difficulty in breathing, and gynecological disorders. == ==<span style="FONT-SIZE: 90%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 70%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> <span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">      == <span style="FONT-SIZE: 90%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 90%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 70%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> **<span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">__Effect on Environment:__ Due to improper clean-up the site remains contaminated. In 1999, local groundwater and wellwater testing near the site of the accident revealed mercury at levels between 20,000 and 6 million times those expected. Cancer and brain-damage- and birth-defect-causing chemicals were found in the water; trichloroethene, a chemical that has been shown to impair fetal development, was found at levels 50 times higher than EPA safety limits. **    <span style="FONT-SIZE: 70%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">  **<span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Testing published in a 2002 report revealed poisons including 1,3,5 trichlorobenzene, dichloromethane, chloroform, lead and mercury in the breast milk of women **  <span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">  **. The new generations continue to be sickened, from both cancer and birth defects to common illness/symptoms of of aches and pains, rashes, fevers, boils, headaches, nausea, appetite-loss, dizziness, and exhaustion.** <span style="FONT-SIZE: 90%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 90%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> <span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">**__Aftermath:__ Union Carbide, the owner of the chemical factory negotiated a settlement with the Indian Government in 1989. The sums cameout to 470 million dollars but only $370-$533 per victim. This is by far not enough to cover the many medical bills associated with the poisonings. Too this day the victims in Bhopal have not recieved the justice they deserve as Dow, whom merged with Union carbide, will not accept the liability in India or volunteer to clean up the site.

Info: <span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/campaigns/toxics/justice-for-bhopal <span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">http://bhopal.net/index1.html** <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> Poster: http://www.bhopal.org/pictures/poster.jpg    <span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> Map: <span style="FONT-SIZE: 70%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 90%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">__ <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"> http://www.boston4bhopal.org/images/map_india.jpg    __ Dow: <span style="FONT-SIZE: 80%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> http://india.targetgenx.com/files/2008/05/bhopalposter-indra-dowliable.JPG   <span style="FONT-SIZE: 80%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"> <span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Info: http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/campaigns/toxics/justice-for-bhopal http://bhopal.net/index1.html** <span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">


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