Dioxin controversy
Encyclopedia
There has been a controversy about the health and environmental effects of dioxins and dioxin-like compounds
for more than years.
Dioxins are by-products of many industrial processes including waste incineration, chemical manufacturing, chlorine bleaching of pulp and paper, and smelting. Any process "in which chlorine and organic matter are brought together at high temperatures can create dioxin". Greenpeace
and some other environmental groups have called for the chlorine industry to be phased out. However, chlorine industry supporters say that "banning chlorine would mean that millions of people in the third world would die from want of disinfected water".
One of the key players in the dioxin controversy has been the Dow Chemical Company
. Dow is a large manufacturer of chlorine
, producing an estimated 40 million tons of chlorine each year, much of which is used to make plastics, solvents, pesticides and other chemicals. In 1965 "a Dow researcher warned in an internal company document that dioxin 'is extremely toxic' but Dow has always publicly claimed it is not".
Sharon Beder
and others have argued that the dioxin controversy has been very political and that large companies have tried to play down the seriousness of the problems of dioxin. The companies involved have often said that the campaign against dioxin is based on "fear and emotion" and not on science.
Dioxins and dioxin-like compounds
Dioxins and dioxin-like compounds are by-products of various industrial processes, and are commonly regarded as highly toxic compounds that are environmental pollutants and persistent organic pollutants . They include:...
for more than years.
Dioxins are by-products of many industrial processes including waste incineration, chemical manufacturing, chlorine bleaching of pulp and paper, and smelting. Any process "in which chlorine and organic matter are brought together at high temperatures can create dioxin". Greenpeace
Greenpeace
Greenpeace is a non-governmental environmental organization with offices in over forty countries and with an international coordinating body in Amsterdam, The Netherlands...
and some other environmental groups have called for the chlorine industry to be phased out. However, chlorine industry supporters say that "banning chlorine would mean that millions of people in the third world would die from want of disinfected water".
One of the key players in the dioxin controversy has been the Dow Chemical Company
Dow Chemical Company
The Dow Chemical Company is a multinational corporation headquartered in Midland, Michigan, United States. As of 2007, it is the second largest chemical manufacturer in the world by revenue and as of February 2009, the third-largest chemical company in the world by market capitalization .Dow...
. Dow is a large manufacturer of chlorine
Chlorine
Chlorine is the chemical element with atomic number 17 and symbol Cl. It is the second lightest halogen, found in the periodic table in group 17. The element forms diatomic molecules under standard conditions, called dichlorine...
, producing an estimated 40 million tons of chlorine each year, much of which is used to make plastics, solvents, pesticides and other chemicals. In 1965 "a Dow researcher warned in an internal company document that dioxin 'is extremely toxic' but Dow has always publicly claimed it is not".
Sharon Beder
Sharon Beder
Sharon Beder is a professor in the Faculty of Arts at the University of Wollongong in New South Wales, Australia. Her research has focussed on how power relationships are maintained and challenged, particularly by corporations and professions...
and others have argued that the dioxin controversy has been very political and that large companies have tried to play down the seriousness of the problems of dioxin. The companies involved have often said that the campaign against dioxin is based on "fear and emotion" and not on science.
See also
- Dioxin exposure incidents
- Dioxin Affair
- Viktor Yushchenko#Dioxin poisoning controversy