Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
the individual matures. They are known to alter hormones,
and to cause reproductive problems, liver damage, wasting
syndrome, and cancer. Judging from the Seveso and other
incidents, humans appear to be much less susceptible to the
immediate acute effects than other species. At Seveso, most
farm animals died, while people just got skin hematoma.
How do they get into the marine environment?
There is an estuarine/marsh dioxin-contaminated site in
Newark in the lower Passaic River right before it enters
Newark Bay. The Diamond Shamrock Company manufac-
tured the herbicide Agent Orange there during the Vietnam
War and released dioxins as a byproduct. Newark Bay and the
lower Passaic have layers of polluted sediment contributing
to dangerous dioxin levels in blue crabs, fish, and fish-eating
birds. The dioxin levels recorded in Passaic River and Newark
Bay blue crabs are among the highest ever measured in aquatic
animals, and crabbing is banned in the area because the con-
tamination poses a high cancer risk.
The presence of dioxins in Newark Bay sediments has made
the disposal of dredged materials from deepening the channel
for the Port of Newark a highly controversial issue. In February
2004, the EPA determined that pollution in the bay posed an
imminent and substantial risk to human health and to the
environment, and it ordered the company that was respon-
sible for the pollution in the lower Passaic River to carry out a
comprehensive study under EPA supervision and to design a
cleanup plan. At this site and at many others in need of reme-
diation, there is concern that when the bottom is dredged as
part of the cleanup process, sediments could be stirred up and
contaminants that are tightly bound to the sediments will
be mobilized and released, causing additional exposure and
risk of toxicity to animals and plants in the area. Under the
Superfund Program, the clean up of the lower Passaic finally
started in 2012.
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