The Zero Mercury Working Group (ZMWG) has been investigating mercury-added skin lightening products (SLPs) for several years, primarily due to their health risks, their illegality under many national laws, and the prohibition by the Minamata Convention on Mercury against the manufacture and trade of mercury-added SLPs, which generally became effective …
start telling stories: Being a maths wizard and a great storyteller may appear completely different, but a new study by Canada's University of Waterloo suggests that preschool children's storytelling abilities are predictive of their mathematical ability. In the study, children aged three and four were shown a book that contained …
faced with fervent censure in the us, Kellogg Company has decided to withdraw its Spiderman toys "Spidey Signals' fitted with mercury batteries, which were distributed in its sugared cereal boxes. The toy was a promotion for the movie Spiderman ii. The company also announced its resolve to never use mercury …
the use of mercury (Hg) in India's healthcare sector constitutes a major threat to public health. While merely 1 gramme (gm) of mercury is enough to contaminate a lake bigger than 8 hectares, an average hospital in Delhi releases about 3 kilogrammes (kg) of the metal annually, according to a …
A row is raging in the us over reports that the Bush administration meddled in a policy proposed to tackle the last uncontrolled source of mercury pollution
eating seafood with high levels of mercury can affect the brain development of older children, indicates a study published in the online edition of the journal Nature. The finding intensifies the ongoing debate about the health effects of methylmercury
in what is being seen as yet another attempt by the Bush government to promote its pro-industry policies, the us Environmental Protection Agency (epa) has proposed a lenient plan to limit mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants. The proposal envisages giving the units 10 more years to implement changes than …
a us study shows that one should not be sceptical about efforts to clean up pollution. It proves that tough regulations to control mercury emissions almost immediately remove the toxic pollutant from the environment. The findings offer compelling evidence that regulators can swiftly address public health problems associated with mercury, …
Bhopal is the name of the place where, once upon a time, a vast plume of poison burst upon 5,20,000 people. But that happened 20 years ago. Now Bhopal is a metaphor for disaster, industrial and human. It has been the object of much speculation and typically endless litigation. A …
As the Bhopal tragedy enters its twentieth year, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has identified the country's newest disease: the Bhopal Gas Disease. Down To Earth has exclusive access to an unpublished ICMR document which defines the disease as "a condition of ill-health due to exposure to Bhopal's …
Asha, 24, visits the Bhopal Memorial Trust Hospital once every 2 days. She has a hole in her heart. But the hospital won't operate her, because she has overshot the hospital quota of Rs two lakh per victim. She cannot get herself operated privately. "I have spent the compensation of …
Forty year old Ganga stays in a slum close to the derelict Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL) plant in Bhopal. She came to the city long after the gas leak. But Ganga shows symptoms associated with victims of the leak, nevertheless
at a time when most countries are phasing out mercury, India has donned the dubious mantle of the world’s toxic capi tal. Its import of elemental mercury doubled from 254 tonnes in 1996 to 531 tonnes in 2002, making it the biggest consumer of the hazardous element across the globe. …
With temperatures in Europe at an all-time high, German nuclear plants have become too hot to handle. The soaring mercury has forced authorities to switch off the reactor at one plant and reduce the capacity of two others. Obrigheim, the country's oldest nuclear power plant, has had its reactor deactivated …
the location of your house plays a crucial role in determining your newborn's health. A recently published study links living close to an incinerator with the chances of a newborn suffering from spina bifida (spinal cord malformation) and heart defects. On the other hand, close proximity to a crematorium was …
toddlers in trouble: A research institute has found high levels of mercury in 60 per cent of newborns at hospitals in Itaituba city, in the Brazilian Amazon. Out of the 1,666 babies born during 2002 in the hospitals, 1,000 were detected with mercury contamination. Some of the kids had 80 …
Ecuadorean Indians have sued oil conglomerate ChevronTexaco for a billion dollars. They have accused ChevronTexaco's unit, Texaco Petroleum Company, of discharging water contaminated with oil and metal salts such as mercury and cadmium into Amazon rivers from 1972 to 1992. They also allege that toxins seeped into the soil because …
High levels of mercury have been found in whales caught off Japan's coast. Experts have noticed that the levels of the metal are highest in mammals snared in southern waters. The mercury density in the meat of one whale measured more than 57 times the prescribed safety limit. Tetsuya Endo, …
The mercury issue is back to haunt Hindustan Lever Limited (hll). The Hazardous Waste Management Committee (hwmc) of the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board has ordered the company to submit all documents necessary to determine the actual extent of contamination caused by the company's mercury thermometer factory. The panel has …
