Essay on Love Canal Environmental Disaster - 1393 Words

A beautiful city, Niagara Falls in the state of New York, ruined by careless decisions of the city of Niagara Falls and The Hooker Chemical Company. Families suffered and died from several of diseases cause by toxic waste that was place underground near homes and schools. A mother, Louis Gibbs who lived near the Love Canal said, â€Å" When I brought this American dream home my son was one and very healthy. Then he started to get very ill and experiences some liver problems, asthma, and then epilepsy. I could not understand, they came one after another, until I read a series written by Mr. Michael Brown, who explained that the Love Canal has toxic waste underneath the neighborhood school and it leaches in resident homes.† She continued on by†¦show more content†¦(Gibbs) In the 1920’s, the city bought the land at public auction, which became the municipal and chemical disposal site. (Beck) The city of Niagara Falls and The United States also participated in du mping garbage, military warfare material, and Manhattan Project. This was a disposal site for more than twenty years, until Hooker Chemical Company purchased the site for their chemical disposal. (Beck) In 1953, the Hooker Chemical Company filled the canal with twenty-two thousand tons of waste in barrels, which leaked, broke apart when being dump, and poured into the soil. (Gibbs) In addition, to avoid contaminants leaked to the top layer soil they would cover them up with cinders, ash, clay or loom to decrease the spill. (Gibbs) Hooker claimed that he warned the Board of Education not to buy the land because it was not suitable for construction of school buildings. However, The Board of Education was in desperate need of more classroom space and needed the land quickly. On April 28,1953 Hooker sold the land to Board of Education for one dollar. He turned the deed over to The Board of Education and confirmed that they were not accountable for any problems that should arise in the future. (Case Study: 6 Love Canal) Later, The Board of Education sold portion of the land to an investor that wanted to build more than hundred homes in the area, which they sold to middle class families, who were unaware of the toxic wasteShow MoreRelatedEssay about Love Canal1464 Words   |  6 PagesLove Canal When one thinks about an environmental disaster, the image of a large explosion in a highly industrial area comes to mind. Such is not the case in the Love Canal emergency. Unlike most environmental disasters, the events of Niagara Fallss Love Canal werent characterized by a known and uncontrollable moment of impact. 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