What did we learn from the Love Canal?
These included asthma, epilepsy, migraines, and nephrosis (kidney disease), along with abnormally high rates of birth defects and miscarriages. News of this tragedy began to build momentum thanks to local activists, which culminated in 1978 when President Carter declared the area a federal health emergency and ordered …
What are the key lessons learned from the Love Canal eco disaster?
One key lesson is that a blue collar community with few resources can win its fight for justice and open the eyes of the nation and the world to the serious problems of environmental chemicals and their effects on public health.
What impact did the Love Canal have on the environment?
The canal families didn’t know that they were being exposed to poisonous chemicals, nor were they aware that chemical wastes were being dumped in our rivers, soil, and air. Love Canal awoke a community to the unpleasantness and unfortunate realization of how toxic wastes affect out lives, and destroy our environment.
What is the significance of Love Canal?
Love Canal quickly came to symbolize the looming environmental disaster represented by untold numbers of toxic waste disposal sites scattered throughout America. Legislators and activists alike have tapped the momentum generated by Love Canal activism in their efforts to deal with this dangerous and costly problem.
Is Love Canal An example of environmental justice?
Love Canal awoke a community to the unpleasantness and unfortunate realization of how toxic wastes affect out lives, and destroy our environment. Residents at Love Canal always believed that the government would automatically protect them.
How much did the Love Canal clean up cost?
The removal of Love Canal from the Superfund list will be mostly symbolic. The cleanup at the toxic waste site, the nation’s most notorious, took 21 years and cost close to $400 million, but most of the work was completed a few years ago.
How did they fix Love Canal?
Clean up of Love Canal, which was funded by Superfund and completely finished in 2004, involved removing contaminated soil, installing drainage pipes to capture contaminated groundwater for treatment, and covering it with clay and plastic.