Word: dioxins
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 1980-1989
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...Chemical Co.'s headquarters in Midland, Mich. Without any corporate fanfare, Dow scientists met with colleagues from three rival firms, Hooker Chemical, Diamond Alkali and Hercules Powder. On the agenda that day was a discussion of the effects on human health of a family of chemicals known as dioxin. The chemicals, including Agent Orange, later used by the U.S. to defoliate the jungles of Viet Nam, are an unwanted byproduct in the making of herbicides. At the time, most chemists were only vaguely aware of dioxin, or its problems. But Dow had just experienced an outbreak of dioxin poisoning...
...haunt Dow. According to a report in the New York Times, memorandums from participants in that almost forgotten session indicate that Dow's objective may not have been corporate benevolence. Rather, the documents show, the meeting appears to have been part of an effort to keep discoveries about dioxin's perils from exploding into a public scandal, which could have brought a new outcry for governmental regulation of the chemical industry. Wrote a participant from Hercules Powder: "They [Dow] are particularly fearful of a congressional investigation and excessive restrictive legislation on the manufacture of pesticides...
...seems, Adamkus may have the last word. The preliminary findings of a new EPA study of the site, released last week by the agency's Midwest office, indicate that more than 40 toxic chemicals, among them the most dangerous form of dioxin, are being released by Dow into the Tittabawassee River. The report estimates that there are up to 35 lbs. of toxic organic pollutants in the approximately 61.4 million gal. of waste water Dow discharges daily...
...study found 2,3,7,8T, a highly toxic form of dioxin, in the edible parts of fish in amounts twice as high as the level established by the Food and Drug Administration as a "level of concern." Environmental officials contend that the buildup of the poison in fish over time, a process known as bioaccumulation, poses a long-range, if not immediate, health hazard. Warned Adamkus: "This is going to be a ticking bomb for human beings if it is accumulated over the years." The sample fish in the study were bottom feeders, such as carp and catfish, which...
...asserts that its responsibility for the contamination is limited because dioxin is coming not from its plant but from "normal combustion" sources, such as natural fires and furnaces. The health risks, says Dow, have been exaggerated. "You would have to eat more than 25 tons of fish per year," contended Company Spokeswoman Sarah Rowley, "to reach a level of dioxin that has been shown to cause cancer in animals...