Here are a few sources that continue to threaten every single person today, whether they are in direct contact with them or not.
RADIOACTIVE OCEANS AND SEAS
Since 2017, when a satellite image of the Pacific Ocean was taken, scientists have begun to talk about the so-called "dying" of this part of the world, due to the accumulation of plastic waste, the accumulation of heavy metals, environmental accidents, and even radiation. Moreover, the situation is dramatically worsened by the continuous leakage of radioactive waste from the site of the Fukushima accident (March 2011). It is estimated that 300 tons of radioactive waste has been leaking into the Pacific Ocean every year since the date of this tragedy!
In the 1990s The Italian mafia dumped radioactive waste into the Somali seas. It is estimated that approximately 600 barrels, which represents about 10 000l of waste. These barrels were washed up on the coast of the Somali towns of Hobbio and Benadir by the 2004 tsunami, along with an underwater landfill containing hazardous lead, mercury, cadmium and other constituents. Around 300 people have died.
HEAVY METALS AND CYANIDES IN RIVERS AND BAYS
There have also been several accidents in the mining industry over the last 50 years. In the year 2000, the unprofessional handling of 100 000 m leaked at the Baia Mare gold mine in Romania3 cyanide-contaminated sludge and almost completely destroyed the rivers' aquatic ecosystem, The pollution then partly affected the Tisza River, which forms the border between Slovakia and Hungary. Slovakia faced a similar toxic flood in 1971, when a cyanide sludge tailings pond in the village of Horná Ves near Žiar nad Hronom ruptured and contaminated adjacent gardens and fields. From around the world, mention should also be made of Wassa Ghana - discharge of cyanide into a water body, Jindunicheug China 2001 and Les Frailes Spain 1998 - discharge of heavy metals into a river.
Cyanides are violently toxic substances that cause red blood cells to lose their ability to oxygenate muscles. Heavy metals, in turn, are classified as neurotoxins and carcinogens. Their metabolic processing is so demanding on the cell that they easily accumulate in the organs and thus cause many chronic diseases. Just because heavy metals entered the cycle a long time ago does not mean that they are not found in nature! On the contrary, they accumulate and become part of human organisms.
PLASTICS IN THE FOOD CHAIN
The world produces 300 million tonnes of plastic waste every year! More than 10 million tonnes of this waste ends up in the seas and oceans. The action of sea waves and sunlight breaks down plastics and they become food for fish. These plastics gradually release PCBs, DDT, lead and enter the food chain. Today's figures for the volume of plastic in the Pacific Ocean speak of 7.25 million tonnes, and they even have their own island called Hendson. But let's not forget that these are carcinogens!
Solutions to the enormous volume of plastic consumption are often rushed and ill-considered. One of them is the use of bioplastics produced from biomass. Here, however, we run into a problem. The modified starches from which these bioplastics are made have the same composition as non-biodegradable plastics! Czech scientists from the Institute of Experimental Botany of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic did not observe any biodegradation after 5 years of research. On the contrary, they concluded that these bio-based plastics release substances into the environment that negatively affect the hormonal system and the reproduction of organisms.
All pollution catches up with us in the form of increased incidence of chronic diseases and various health complications, food allergies and nervous system disorders. Although humans have adapted to a certain dose of such substances, the question remains as to what is a tolerable limit of concentration in the human body. As an example, according to research, every Slovakian has an average of 2500 µg of PCBs per 1 kg of fat in their body. Chemical production of the 1990s in Slovakia.
Image source:
Cosmic Convergence, 2012 - http://cosmicconvergence.org/
Snopes, 2016 - https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/fukushima-emergency/
Onedio, 2015 - https://onedio.com/haber/kamuoyuna-cok-fazla-yansimayan-trajik-oykusuyle-somali-de-korsanligin-ortaya-cikisi-618962
