Understanding Toxic Waste and Substances

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Toxic Waste
Toxic wastes are hazardous materials that can cause injuries, chronic disorders, or deaths to exposed individuals if not disposed of well. They are poisonous, mutagenic, explosive, radioactive, carcinogenic, teratogenic, and bio-accumulative (Mmereki et al. 1). In particular, toxic wastes might come from farming, manufacturing, commercial wastes, and biological processes and can cause environmental pollution. Therefore, hazardous materials should be disposed of appropriately to prevent air, land, and water contamination. The federal government of the United States of America (USA), through the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA, 1970), regulates and controls how companies and individuals handle toxic substances. The EPA requires all companies dealing with chemicals to handle hazardous materials with precaution and dispose of them in designated areas or facilities. In some cases, firms are obliged to treat their waste products before releasing them to the environment to avoid their adverse impacts on plants and animals. Therefore, toxic wastes should be handled with precaution, and society should be responsible for dealing with the disposal of hazardous materials appropriately.
Hazardous materials are potentially dangerous byproducts that emanate from various activities, including laboratories, farming, hospitals, manufacturing, construction, automotive garages, and water treatment systems. They might be in solid, sludge, or liquid form and contain pathogens, radiation, chemicals, and heavy metals (Wolters). Although chemical companies are significant sources of toxic wastes, it does not mean that households do not contribute to this problem. For instance, some hazardous materials generated by households are lithium-ion batteries, pesticides, leftover paints, and computer equipment. Regardless of where toxic substances are disposed of, they usually end up harming animals, plants, and people. For example, some firms might dispose of waste products with lead or mercury to rivers, lakes, or seas. In that case, these hazardous materials end up in fish or other aquatic creatures. When humans eat these fish or other water animals, they become affected by these toxic substances. In some cases, hazardous materials kill creatures that feed on them. That is why the EPA is strict when it comes to managing toxic wastes since if unregulated, they can lead to substantial contamination of the environment and the affected communities.
Toxic substances can lead to health problems if not well dumped. Fazzo et al. gathered 57 research papers that focused on epidemiological investigations on health statutes of populations residing near the sites where hazardous materials are disposed of. The studies were associated with 95 health outcomes (Fazzo et al. 1). Sufficient evidence was collected that portrayed acute health issues for communities with high hydrogen sulfide concentrations. Some of the renowned health problems associated with toxic substances are testes, breast, bladder, and liver cancers. Others include asthma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, low birth weight, neural tube, and musculoskeletal system deformity (Fazzo et al. 7). Fazzo and colleagues identified that effective waste management policies should be formed to safeguard the health of communities living near firms that release hazardous materials. With improper toxic substance regulations, industrialized countries, such as the USA, increase the burden of waste-related diseases. The issue might be more detrimental to middle and low-income nations that lack proper waste management policies. Consequently, one of the primary ways to improve people’s health is by ensuring proper disposal and management of toxic wastes.
The EPA holds significant responsibilities in managing the disposal of toxic wastes. On 14 December 2005, it forwarded DuPont Chemical Company’s case to the USA’s Environmental Appeals Board. Indeed, it was among the biggest civil, administrative penalties that EPA has ever obtained under the federal environmental statute. DuPont was involved in the inappropriate disposal of synthetic chemical perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) (EPA). As a result, the EPA was obliged to act under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) and the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). DuPont also ignored two complaints that were filed against how the company disposed of hazardous materials. The case ended after DuPont was fined around $10.25 million. In addition, the company was forced to start Supplemental Environmental Projects that were worth $6.25 million (EPA). Without the regulation of toxic waste by the EPA, many people and communities can suffer since they cannot stop large companies, such as DuPont, from disposing of hazardous materials on the land, air, or water.
Society has vital responsibilities to play to ensure that toxic wastes are disp...