What are some examples of natural disasters?
When you hear the word "disaster," you likely think of powerful events outside of human control. Hurricanes, earthquakes, and wildfires are a few examples of unavoidable natural disasters—but Mother Nature is not always to blame. Throughout history, humans have caused some of the most devastating environmental disasters.
Where did the nuclear disaster happen?
The disaster happened at Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
What was the Dust Bowl?
Beginning in 1930, dust overtook the Great Plains of the United States in a partially human-caused disaster that lasted nine years: the Dust Bowl. During that time, much of this region's land had been over-farmed and most farmers had not been practicing soil conservation. As a result, the earth was dry and barren, and severe drought only made matters worse.
What caused the Dust Bowl?
These factors sparked the Dust Bowl, an event that saw nineteen U.S. states covered in dust. Topsoil was picked up by strong winds and this created a heavy dust storm that spanned an area of 10 million acres and destroyed farms and buildings. 2 When the drought ended in 1939 and the dust settled, 400,000 people had migrated from their homes. 3
What is the Great Pacific Garbage Patch?
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is an environmental disaster caused by human waste. This mass of marine debris located in the North Pacific Ocean is made up of barely visible pieces of plastic brought together by the North Pacific Gyre (NPG). The NPG is a vortex caused by four different ocean currents—California, North Equatorial, Kuroshio, and North Pacific—that converge and send water and debris clockwise. This creates a "patch" of garbage and microplastics that get caught in these currents often end up here.
What happened to the Emory River?
On December 22, 2008, the walls of a dam in Kingston, Tennessee, crumbled, spilling 5.4 million cubic yards of coal ash into Swan Pond Embayment. The wave of ash contained arsenic, selenium, lead, and various radioactive materials. As it spread, it contaminated over 300 acres of land and spilled into the Emory River. Removing the ash from the Emory River and the surrounding area took about six years.
How many people died in the Three Mile Island accident?
Experts concluded that the amount of radiation released into the atmosphere was too small to result in health problems, and public record states that no one died as a result of the Three Mile Island accident.
How many environmental disasters have occurred in the past 50 years?
Oil spills, poisonous-gas leaks, and out-of-control wildfires have caused devastating damage to the environment and those who live in it. Here are nine environmental disasters from the past 50 years that wreaked havoc on humans, animals, and the environment.
What year was the Seveso disaster?
Seveso disaster — 1976. Technicians check the pollution degree inside "Zone A," the most polluted area fenced off to outsiders, two years after a dioxin poison cloud spread from a chemical plant in Meda, Italy. Fornezza/AP.
How many people died in the Bhopal disaster?
Thousands of people died immediately. A total of between 15,000 and 20,000 people died, and a half million people survived with respiratory and eye problems.
How many people died from asbestos in Montana?
Since 1919, 400 people have died and almost 3,000 have become sick because of toxic asbestos dust from vermiculite mining in Libby, Montana. The mining company W.R. Grace and Co. had also distributed vermiculite, often used as insulation for the construction of buildings, around playgrounds and backyards in Libby.
What was the largest oil spill in the world?
The Gulf War oil spill in 1991 was the largest oil spill. The Camp Fire of 2018 was California's deadliest wildfire. Visit INSIDER's homepage for more stories. The United Nations' World Environment Day on June 5 hopes to raise awareness and spur action to protect the environment and prevent disaster from striking.
Who was responsible for the oil spill?
This deluge of oil is considered the worst accidental marine oil spill in the history of petroleum exploration. British Petroleum or BP, the owner of the rig, was found to be criminally responsible for the disaster.
How much land was affected by the Dust Bowl?
This resultant Dust Bowl, as it became labeled, affected over one million acres of land. When thousands of people in places such as Oklahoma and Texas could no longer grow food, they moved west to states such as California, a story as dramatized in such novels as John Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath and Of Mice and Men.
Why are oil wells considered toxic waste?
These wells are considered toxic waste sites because the hydrocarbons left in them may contaminate ground water, and the toxic and flammable fumes leaking from them can waft into businesses, homes or schools. Methane, a potent greenhouse gas, also leaks from many of these wells, exacerbating climate change.
When was Bunker Hill Mine declared a Superfund site?
In 1983 , the EPA declared the Bunker Hill Mine and smelter complex a Superfund site, the nation’s second largest, actually. Then the EPA moved to the site and began cleanup operations, which cost $900 million. Unfortunately, many people think the site is still leaking heavy metals and other toxic substances into nearby lakes, streams and rivers.
How long did the Deepwater Horizon oil spill last?
The rig subsequently sank into the Gulf, killing 11 people. No longer sealed at the seafloor, the damaged rig leaked oil into ocean - and it gushed for 87 days, spilling an estimated 210 million gallons of crude oil into the sea. Oil dispersant was used to spread the oil around, but it turned out to be more toxic than the crude oil. The leak was finally tapped, but may still leak some, who knows? This deluge of oil is considered the worst accidental marine oil spill in the history of petroleum exploration.
What is the name of the documentary about uranium?
11. Atomic Homefront. The aforementioned name pertains to an HBO documentary entitled Atomic Homefront (2017). The film tells the story of scores of people who reside in two North St. Louis suburbs, near which radioactive waste – uranium, thorium and radium – was buried in a landfill in the 1940s.
Why is the Bunker Hill Mine closed?
Bunker Hill Mine. Closed since the 1980s because of environmental concerns, the Bunker Hill Mine, located in the Silver Valley of northern Idaho, may soon reopen after decades of cleanup.
What are the worst man-made environmental disasters?
The 10 worst man-made environmental disasters. NEW YORK — The oil slick in the Gulf of Mexico is now about the size of Puerto Rico. It’s already reached the marshes of Louisiana. Oil-covered wildlife are starting to show up along the shores. By Maura O'Connor.
How many people died in the Bhopal disaster?
3, 1984, and an estimated 9,000 people died immediately from the invisible, air-born poison.
How much oil was sprayed in the Exxon Valdez disaster?
Although it is the most infamous oil spill in history, the Exxon Valdez catastrophe that dumped 11 million gallons of oil into the Prince William Sound of Alaska in 1989 is actually far from the largest on record. The Gulf War oil spill in 1991, for example, resulted in at least 160 million gallons of oil entering the Persian Gulf. Nonetheless, Exxon Valdez heightened public awareness of the great environmental costs of oil spills and led Congress to pass the Oil Pollution Act in 1990. Tragically, clean-up efforts such as high-pressure washing of shorelines that followed Exxon Valdez also had detrimental effects on the once pristine ecosystem of the sound.
What are the oil-covered wildlife?
Oil-covered wildlife are starting to show up along the shores. Shrimp, fish and oyster harvest areas have been closed. Residents of Mississippi and Alabama are just waiting for the oil to hit. As environmental calamity for the Gulf Coast appears imminent, GlobalPost looks at 10 other man-made environmental disasters — both forgotten ...
How many people were displaced by the Great Depression?
An estimated 2.5 million people were displaced and the catastrophe compounded the Great Depression, creating what some have called the country’s “most hard time.”.
How much of the Amazon rainforest has been lost?
Twenty percent of the Amazon rainforest has been lost to logging, soy-farming, cattle ranches and roads in recent decades. The damage to the forest’s biodiversity is inestimable and the release of large amounts of carbon held in the forest’s flora could be accelerating global warming.
How many people have died from mercury poisoning?
To date, more than 1,700 people have died from the disease, which can cause convulsions, loss of sight and hearing, paralysis, coma and death.
What was the worst nuclear disaster in history?
First there was Windscale in 1957, then Three Mile Island in 1979, but when a nuclear reactor at the Chernobyl Nuclear Plant in Ukraine had a meltdown in 1986, it became the worst nuclear power plant disaster in history. The United Nation’s Chernobyl Forum Report estimated the total number of deaths from cancer caused by the radiation exposure to be 4,000.
How many people died in the Bhopal disaster?
3, 1984, and an estimated 9,000 people died immediately from the invisible, air-born poison. The final death toll over the ensuing weeks has been estimated at 20,000 and hundreds of thousands of residents suffered permanent injuries. Today, the Union Carbide plant, the site of the disaster, remains a toxic waste site contaminating the groundwater in Bhopal.
How is the Amazon rainforest affected?
Twenty percent of the Amazon rainforest has been lost to logging, soy-farming, cattle ranches and roads in recent decades. The damage to the forest’s biodiversity is inestimable and the release of large amounts of carbon held in the forest’s flora could be accelerating global warming. Some experts now believe the way to mitigate deforestation of the Amazon could be to create better jobs through sustainable development. “It’s no good people saying the Amazon has to be the sanctuary of humanity and forget that there are 20 million people living there,” said Brazil’s President Luiz Lula da Silva.
What caused the Great Depression?
Between 1930 and 1940, drought conditions and depleted farmland caused severe dust storms, some reaching 10,000 feet in the sky and called “Black Blizzards.” An estimated 2.5 million people were displaced and the catastrophe compounded the Great Depression, creating what some have called the country’s “most hard time.”
How much oil was sprayed in the Exxon Valdez disaster?
Although it is the most infamous oil spill in history, the Exxon Valdez catastrophe that dumped 11 million gallons of oil into the Prince William Sound of Alaska in 1989 is actually far from the largest on record. The Gulf War oil spill in 1991, for example, resulted in at least 160 million gallons of oil entering the Persian Gulf. Nonetheless, Exxon Valdez heightened public awareness of the great environmental costs of oil spills and led Congress to pass the Oil Pollution Act in 1990. Tragically, clean-up efforts such as high-pressure washing of shorelines that followed Exxon Valdez also had detrimental effects on the once pristine ecosystem of the sound.
What are some examples of man-made disasters?
Common examples of these disasters are train accidents, aero plane crashes, collapse of buildings, bridges, mines, tunnels, etc.
What are the natural hazards of disaster?
Earthquakes, floods and landslides, etc. are natural environmental hazards of disastrous consequences. In recent years these hazards took toll of thousands of lives and caused massive destruction of property.
How does flood affect the environment?
Impact on the Environment: Though the lives lost in floods may not be as high as in case of earthquakes or cyclones, the damage to the environment is immense. The problem is further aggravated if the floods last for a longer duration of time.
Where do landslides occur?
Landslides, though local in nature, occur quite often in many parts of the world. Landslides occur in the hilly regions; the Himalayan region in India is particularly prone to landslides. Every year landslides occur, especially during the monsoon season and cause much damage to life and property. For example, Malpa landslide in 1999 in the Kumaon hills, took the lives of many pilgrims who were going to Mansarovar in Tibet.
Which region is most affected by floods?
The plain areas of a region which are drained by a number of rivers, are the places most affected by floods. In India, states like Assam, Bihar and parts of Gangetic Uttar Pradesh are quite prone to floods during the rainy season (Fig. 18.3).
What are the impacts of cyclones on the environment?
Impact on the Environment: Cyclones are quite common in the Bay of Bengal and often cause much damage in Bangladesh and coastal areas of West Bengal, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. Bangladesh has been devastated by cyclones a number of times.
Why are industrial disasters so big?
Such disasters affect both local population and may even cover a much larger area. Industrial disasters result due to accidental leakage of water or air pollutants. Many of the chemicals are extremely toxic and carcinogenic which affect the human population in an adverse way. Some people die instantly while others are crippled for whole life in the form of blindness, paralysis and many other chronic diseases.
