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- Here are 15
ABSTRACTS/EXCERPTS documenting the ever-increasing
global fluoride
contamination of air, water and the food supply.
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- Gritsan NP; Babiy AP -
"Hazardous materials in the
environment of Dnepropetrovsk region
(Ukraine)." J Hazard Mater 76(1):
59-70 (2000)
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- "The
investigations were aimed at assessment of
environmental pollution in
one of the most industrialized regions of Ukraine
- Dnepropetrovsk
Region. The following types of environmental contamination
were
considered in the study: emissions and concentrations of 16 air
pollutants;
content and distribution of 15 elements in soils and plants
at the polluted
and unpolluted territories. The investigations were
conducted at 28 urban
sites and 18 rural sites of the Region during
1991-1998 years. Level and
character of air, soil and plants
contamination were investigated. Statistical
methods were used to
describe quantitatively the relationships between
contents of hazardous
materials in the environment. It was found that concentrations
of
fluoride, iron, copper, zinc, and lead in the soil and contents of
fluoride,
iron, nickel, cadmium, and aluminum in plants were several
times higher
than normal."
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- Woo, NC, Moon JW, Hahn JS, Lin
XY, Zhao YS - "Water
Quality and Pollution in the Hunchun Basin,
China" Environmental Geochemistry
and Health 22(1):1-18
(2000)
-
- "Chemical properties and pollution of water resources
were
studied in the Hunchun basin, which is located in northeast China
and
borders directly North Korea and Russia along the Tumen river. Water
quality was characterised according to its major constituents and
geological
features. ...Hunchun city is a pollution source for local
water resources
due to its uncontrolled sewage and urban discharge. ...
this study identified
Cd and F as prevailing contaminants in the water
resources. Pollution
of water resources by these contaminants appeared
to be affected by the
application of fertilisers, irrigation practice,
variation of aquifer characteristics,
solubility of mineral phases,
and discharge of domestic sewage. Wide distribution
and high levels of
Cd and F in surface- and ground waters could pose significant
problems
if they are utilised as major water supply sources."
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- Patra RC, Dwivedi SK, Bhardwaj
B, Swarup D - "Industrial
fluorosis in cattle and buffalo around
Udaipur, India" Science of
the Total Environment 253(1-3):145-150
(2000)
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- "Signs of dental discolouration, difficulty in mastication,
bony lesions, lameness, debility and mortality in domesticated animals,
reared around superphosphate fertiliser plants located approximately 15
km north of Udaipur, Rajasthan promptedus to investigate for the
occurrence
of fluorosis. Out of 166 animals clinically examined, the
prevalence rate
was 17.4% (4/23) in calves below 1 year of age, 37.2%
(16/43) in cattle
between 1 and 3 years, 61.3% (46/75) in cattle above
3 years and 72% (18/25)
in buffalo above 1 year. Dental fluorosis was
common in buffalo compared
to cattle of all the age groups. Fluoride
levels in fodder and water, consumed
by the animals were much higher
than the recommended permissible limit.
It was concluded that the
consumption of fodder and water contaminated
by the fumes and dusts
emitting from superphosphate fertiliser plants resulted
in the
development of chronic fluorotic lesions in cattle and
buffalo."
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- Godal O - "Metal
industry in Norway: Economy, employment
and emission of climate
gases" Govt Reports Announcements & Index
(GRA&I), Issue
12 (2000)
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- "This document presents various types of data on
the metal
industry in Norway as a basis for further analysis and discussion.
Being energy intensive, the Norwegian metal industry has profited from
the availability of hydroelectric power. The factories are often located
in sparsely populated areas. In the production of aluminium, carbon
dioxide
is emitted to the atmosphere. A table lists all the Norwegian
smelteries
and their emissions of the greenhouse gases. Some of these
emissions are
fluoride gases with heating potentials up to 9200 times
that of carbon
dioxide. The emissions of SF6 are small in mass, but
large in heating effect,
23900 times that of carbon dioxide. The total
emission of climate gases
from Norway is 59 million ton CO2 equivalents
and 11% of this is due to
the part of the metal industry described in
this document. The total consumption
of electricity of the factories
included in this analysis is 25 TWh, which
is 2/3 of the consumption by
private households. The metal industry is
not work intensive; the last
twenty years the numbers of employees have
decreased by 50%. But these
factories are very important for the local
communities. The metal
industry is exposed to competition; the large fluctuation
in prices on
metals leads to fluctuation in the profit of the companies.
Finally
the report discusses the metal industry in a global context. Norway
is
committed to the Kyoto Protocol and the impact of this commitment on
the metal industry is not clear."
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- Diaz-Barriga F, Navarro-Quezada
A, Grijalva MI, Grimaldo
M, Loyola-Rodriguez JP, Ortiz MD
-"Endemic fluorosis in Mexico"
Fluoride 30(4):233-239
(1997)
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- "The significant mining of fluorspar in Mexico is
evidence
of the presence of fluoride in the Mexican subsoil. Therefore,
the
appearance of endemic fluorosis in some areas of our country may be
a
consequence of the contamination of aquifers by fluorspar deposits. In
endemic areas, fluoride levels in drinking water are higher than the
Mexican
guideline of 1.5 mg/L inboth urban and rural locations.
Furthermore, health
risk effects related to fluoride exposure have been
identified in at least
two states. Nevertheless, endemic fluorosis is
still an essentially unrecognized
environmental health problem in
Mexico, although it is affecting around
five million people. Some
improvements have been obtained by the introduction
of educational
programs and by the emerging of research programs in some
universities.
However, more work is needed in order to reduce the prevalent
risks."
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- Ando M, Tadano M,
Asanuma S, Tamura K, Matsushima S,
Watanabe T, Kondo T, Sakurai S, Ji
R, Liang C, Cao S - "Health effects
of indoor fluoride pollution
from coal burning in China" Environ Health
Perspect 106(5):239-44
(1998)
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- "The combustion of high fluoride-content coal as
an energy
resource for heating, cooking, and food drying is a major exhaust
emission source of suspended particulate matter and fluoride. High
concentrations
of these pollutants have been observed in indoor air of
coal-burning families
in some rural areas in China. Because airborne
fluoride has serious toxicological
properties, fluoride pollution in
indoor air and the prevalence of fluorosis
have been analyzed in a
fluorosis area and a healthy nonfluorosis area
in China and in a rural
area in Japan. For human health, fluoride in indoor
air has not only
been directly inhaled by residents but also has been absorbed
in stored
food such as corn, chilies, and potatoes. In the fluorosis area
in
China, concentrations of urinary fluoride in the residents have been
much higher than in the nonfluorosis area in China and in the rural area
in Japan. In the fluorosis area, almost all elementary and junior high
school students 10-15 years of age had dental fluorosis. Osteosclerosis
in the skeletal fluorosis patients was very serious. Urinary
deoxypyridinoline
in rural residents in China was much higher than in
rural residents in
Japan. Data suggest that bone resorption was
extremely stimulated in the
residents in China and that fluoride may
stimulate both bone resorption
and bone formation. Because indoor
fluoride from combustion of coal is
easily absorbed in stored food and
because food consumption is a main source
of fluoride exposure, it is
necessary to reduce airborne fluoride and food
contamination to prevent
serious fluorosis in China."
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- Wyatt CJ, Fimbres C, Romo L,
Mendez RO, Grijalva M -
"Incidence of heavy metal contamination in
water supplies in northern
Mexico" Environ Res 76(2):114-9
(1998)
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- "Contaminants in drinking water present public health
risks. The objective of this study was to analyze water samples taken from
wells or storage tanks, direct sources for domestic water in Northern
Mexico,
for the presence of lead (Pb), copper (Cu), cadmium (Cd),
arsenic (As),
and mercury (Hg). The samples were analyzed by atomic
absorption coupled
with a hydride generator or a graphite furnace. High
levels of Pb (0.05-0.12
ppm) were found in Hermosillo, Guaymas, and
Nacozari. Forty-three percent
of the samples in Sonora exceeded the
action level (0.015 ppm) established
by the EPA for Pb. For As, 8.92%
exceeded the limit with a range of 0.002-0.305
ppm. Several studies
have indicated a possible link between As and fluoride
(F) in drinking
water. This study showed a positive correlation between
F and As (r =
0.53, P = 0.01, and n = 116). One location in Hermosillo
had 7.36 ppm
of F and 0.117 ppm of As, 3.5 times the recommended F levels
in
drinking water and 2 times higher than the level permitted for As. Hg
contamination was found in 42% of the samples..."
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- Meng Z, Zhang B -
"Chromosomal aberrations and micronuclei
in lymphocytes of workers
at a phosphate fertilizer factory" Mutation
Resaerch
393(3):283-288 (1997)
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- "The frequencies of chromosomal aberrations (CA)
and micronuclei (MN) in peripheral blood lymphocytes of 40 workers at a
phosphate fertilizer factory in North China, were studied. HF and SiF4
are the main air pollutants and small amounts of dust containing fluoride,
NH3 and SO2 were also present in the factory. It was shown that the
chemicals
caused an increase in both CA and MN. The mean frequencies
per 100 metaphase
of major CA type (chromosome rings, translocations,
and dicentrics) of
the workers and the non-exposed controls were 0.91
and 0.24 (p < 0.01),
respectively. The average percentages of
lymphocytes with MN of the workers
and the controls were 1.55 : 0.71
and 0.62 : 0.54 (p < 0.01), respectively.
Both CA frequency and MN
frequency of the workers increased with length
of the chemical exposure
period up to 10 years."
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- Geeson NA, Abrahams
PW, Murphy MP, et al - "Fluorine
and metal enrichment of soils and
pasture herbage in the old mining areas
of Derbyshire, UK."
Agriculture Ecosystems & Environment 68 (3):217-231
(1998)
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- "Mining for
lead, and more recently fluorspar, in
the Peak District area of
Derbyshire, UK, has resulted in extensive contamination
of agricultural
land with lead, zinc and fluorine. In this study the content
of
fluorine, determined as the fluoride ion, and other elements in soils
along three traverses across the area, and at sites on seven farms, were
determined. In addition, the seasonal variation in the content of fluorine
and other elements in the pasture herbage on the farm sites was
investigated.
Some health problems affecting young lambs in spring have
in the past been
attributed to lead toxicity, but it is possible that
excess fluorine in
the diet may contribute to these symptoms. The
agricultural significance
of the concentrations of fluorine
encountered, and possible antagonistic
interactions between elements
within the diet on the metabolism of livestock
in the area studied, are
discussed."
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- Skachkov MV,
Verashchagin NN, Skachkova MA, Kalinina
TN, Osiian SA -
"Anthropogenic environmental factors and their role
in the
occurrence of acute respiratory diseases" Gig Sanit ISS 6:11-13
(1998)
-
- "The incidence of acute respiratory diseases (ARD)
in two
districts of the Orenburg Region which have different levels of
environmental pollution was comparatively analyzed. The higher incidence
of ARD in the more polluted district (Kuvandyksky) than in the control
one (Belyaevsky). The incidence rate (41.8%) of ARD correlated with the
level of the ambient air pollution by dust, CO, NO2, NF and fluoride
aerosols
in the Kuvandyksky district."
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- Kierdorf U, Kierdorf H -
"The fluoride content of
antlers as an indicator of fluoride
exposure in red deer (Cervus elaphus):
A historical biomonitoring
study" Arch Environ Contam Toxicol 38(1):121-7
(2000)
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- "Bone fluoride
concentrations were analyzed in 141
red deer antlers grown between the
17th/early 18th century and 1997, that
originated from four study areas
(Arnsberg, Bad Berleburg, Dammerwald,
Schmidtheim) in the federal state
of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Fluoride
concentrations in the
specimens ranged between 27.7 and 1, 392.1 mg F(-)/kg
ash and varied
significantly both between samples collected during different
time-spans in the same area and between samples taken from different study
areas over the same period. For antlers (n = 8) collected prior to 1860
in the study areas Arnsberg and Schmidtheim, values between 27.7 and 78.7
mg F(-)/kg ash were recorded. It is assumed that antler fluoride contents
in this range are quite close to baseline levels for these regions, i.e.,
represent concentrations largely unaffected or only slightly influenced
by fluoride from anthropogenic sources. With the onset and expansion of
large-scale industrial activities, bone fluoride concentrations in the
antler samples markedly increased over these baseline values, indicating
fluoride deposition from industrial emissions into the red deer habitats.
In the later 1980s and the 1990s, a pronounced decline in antler fluoride
content was observed, which is attributed to the reduction of industrial
fluoride discharges due to effective emission control programs. However,
even the lowest fluoride values recorded for antlers grown in the 1990s
(study area Schmidtheim, n = 10, range 158.5-367.3 mg F(-)/kg ash) clearly
exceeded the concentrations found in the antlers collected prior to 1860,
thereby indicating an additional fluoride burden from anthropogenic
sources
on the recent populations. The present study has corroborated
the view
that antlers are good indicators of fluoride exposure in deer.
The facts
that they grow during a seasonally fixed time-span and thus
constitute
relatively well "naturally standardized" samples
and are often
kept over long periods of time make antlers suitable
monitoring units for
historical biomonitoring studies."
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- Chand D - "Fluoride and
human health - Cause for
concern" Indian Journal of Environmental
Protection 19(2): 81-89 (1999)
-
- "Intake of excess fluoride causes dental, skeletal
and non-skeletal fluorosis through continued use of fluoride contaminated
water, air and agricultural produce. High fluoride intake over a period
of time can cripple one for life. Apart from fluorosis, it may also cause
gastrointestinal complaints, namely loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting,
pain in the stomach, constipation and intermittent diarrhoea and
flatulence
in expectant and lactating mothers, hardworking young
adults, foetus and
children. The adolescent age group is most
vulnerable. Fluorosis has been
considered as one of the incurable
diseases and prevention is the only
solution. At this juncture, it
becomes essential to identify all possible
sources of fluoride and
their possible impact on health of human beings."
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- Mayer R, Liess S, Silveira
Lopes M, Kreutzer K -"
Atmospheric pollution in a tropical
rainforest:Effects of deposition upon
biosphere and hydrosphere:II.
Fluxes of chemicals and element budgets"
Water and soil pollution
121 (1-4):79-92 (*2000)
-
- "Three rain forest ecosystems in the Serra do Mar,
the atlantic coastal mountain range of Brazil, have been investigated in
the frame of an interdisciplinary German-Brazilian research project on
dispersion, transformation and deposition of air pollutants in and around
the industrial area of Cubatao....The forests under investigation are
characterized
by a very high input from the atmosphere. Between 100 and
200 kg S ha-1
are annually carried into soil by precipitation in the
form of sulfate,
20 to 70 kg of nitrogen mainly in the form of
ammonium, 3 to 24 kg of fluoride....
Soil acidification associated with
turnover of sulfur and nitrogen is followed
by the release of aluminum
from soil minerals, and leaching of ionic forms
of Al (up to 280 kg Al
ha-1 annually). Transfer of aluminum ions to groundwater
and surface
water can have serious ecological effects. Alkalinity is consumed,
and
the water is subject to acidification."
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- Jedrychowski W, Maugeri U,
Bianchi I - "Environmental
pollution in central and eastern
European countries: a basis for cancer
epidemiology" Rev Environ
Health 12(1):1-23 (1997)
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- The main objective of this paper is to discuss the
environmental
issues in the countries of central and eastern Europe
(CCEE) and to show
their significance for cancer epidemiology. ...Among
other factors, the
most common environmental exposure in the CCEE that
has potential adverse
effects on health in terms of cancer incidence is
related to high levels
of ambient and indoor pollutants exceeding the
air quality guidelines of
the World Health Organization. Millions of
people, usually in urban areas,
are estimated to be exposed to such
levels of pollution. Outdoor air pollution
is a substantial
environmental problem in many areas of the CCEE, where
heavy industries
are concentrated without adequate technology for emission
control.
Chemically contaminated drinking water provides a major route
of
exposure for many potential environmental health hazards. The pollution
of water resources, including groundwaters, by industrial and agricultural
wastes is a widespread problem in both the CCEE and the former USSR. An
estimated 13% of treatment plants in the Russian Federation lack the
necessary
equipment to treat drinking water, particularly for
disinfection, to meet
the required standards. Many countries in the
region have problems in rural
areas, where the networks are small or
consumers depend on private wells,
and treatment of drinking water is
either poor or nonexistent. ... The
main concern is nitrate, arsenic,
fluoride, and pesticides. . .Lack of
appropriate data hamper valid
estimates of the extent of unhealthy working
conditions or of poor
housing conditions. Unsafe industrial installations
are potential
environmental health hazards, the possible scale of which
is difficult
to estimate reasonably."
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- Ecotoxicity Risks Associated with the Land
Treatment of
Petrochemical Wastes
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- "Although many consider
land treatment of petrochemical
industrial wastes to be a viable and
safe management practice, recent field
studies by our laboratory raises
serious environmental concerns regarding
immunotoxicity and fluorosis
risks to wild vertebrates. We will address
these concerns by monitoring
immunologic and pathologic responses of cotton
rats (Sigmodon hispidus)
in situ by seasonally collecting resident animals
from replicated Land
Treatment and Reference Sites throughout Oklahoma.
Biomarker responses
(immune system function, biotransformation enzyme activities,
pathology) will be compared to soil and tissue contaminant levels to
identify
probable causative agents. We hypothesize that fluoride, lead,
arsenic,
and other contaminants are universally high in land-treatment
soils and
that these contaminants behave in a dose-response fashion to
cause a high
incidence of dental fluorosis and immune system
dysfunction in resident
small mammal populations."
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- Sponsor:
Environmental Protection Agency
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- PIs: Charles W. Qualls, Jr.
- Robert Lochmiller (Zoology)
- Nick Basta
(Plant and Soil Sciences)
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- "Steel plant belches poison"
- China Daily - 08/06/98
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- A MAJOR steel plant
in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous
Region spews thousands of tons of
fluoride every year, which has caused
bone deformities among local
herders and has killed thousands of sheep.
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- The impact on livestock is so
great that many herders
have decided to leave their flocks, the only
source of income in the region.
Those who remain have seen their living
standard spiral downward.
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- Although the local government has protested the
pollution
for almost 20 years, the problem has not been resolved. The
cause is the
deeply-rooted protectionism of some government departments
which show no
concern for people's well-being and the
environment.
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- Like many large State-owned enterprises, the steel plant
in
Inner Mongolia is subject to the direct administration of a department
under central government control.The local government's complaints are
thus ineffective unless it can persuade the central government department
in charge of the plant to take action.
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- Although it may be the case
that some large State-owned
enterprises need more financial and
technical resources to improve waste
treatment, some firms with
adequate resources use their supervisory departments
as a shield to
dump wastes freely and escape the enforcement efforts of
local
governments.
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- This problem is not checked because of the attitude and
practices of some officials who ignore the well-being of local residents
while making efforts to fulfill their profit targets. (Chen Yali)
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- Source:
-
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