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This article throws light upon the top five examples of international incident of hazardous waste.
1. Large amounts of dioxins were released in a serious accident at a chemical factory in Seveso, Italy, in 1976. A cloud of toxic chemicals, including 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin, or TCDD, was released into the air and eventually contaminated an area of 15 square kilometers where 37,000 people lived.
Extensive studies in the affected population are continuing to determine the long-term human- health effects from this incident.
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2. In 1999, high levels of dioxins were found in poultry and eggs from Belgium. Subsequently, dioxin-contaminated animal based food (poultry, eggs, pork), were detected in several other countries. Several fatal risk like adverse birth outcomes in populations living near landfill sites of Great Britain was observed.
3. In July 2007, the European Commission issued a health warning to its Member States after high levels of dioxins were detected in a food additive-guar gum-used as thickener in small quantities in meat, dairy, dessert or delicatessen products. The source was traced to guar gum from India that was contaminated with pentachlorophenol (PCP), a pesticide no longer in use. PCP contains dioxins as contamination.
4. In the year of 2001, Poly-brominated diphenyl ether has been detected among workers at an electronic waste dismantling region in Guangdong, China.
5. Beside this Minamata incident due to accumulation of methyl mercury in food chain is well known hazardous waste in early sixties. Steps in hazardous waste management strategies are shown in Table 22.6.
Existing waste management technology status as practiced in India are given in Table 22.7
Further it is interesting to note that currently a number of Indian Companies are associated with hazardous waste management. The details are in Table 22.8.
