Trespass against US : Dow Chemical and the toxic Century
"Just out! The Dow Chemical Company has been trespassing on private property for decades and getting away with it. The trespass in this case is harmful and it is toxic. For the transgressors at issue are man-made synthetic chemicals, more then 100,000 of which have been "invented" and...
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Institution: | ETUI-European Trade Union Institute |
| Format: | TEXT |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Cambridge, MA
2004
Common Courage Press |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.labourline.org/KENTIKA-19294058124910122309-Trespass-against-uS-Dow-Chemic.htm |
| Summary: | "Just out! The Dow Chemical Company has been trespassing on private property for decades and getting away with it. The trespass in this case is harmful and it is toxic. For the transgressors at issue are man-made synthetic chemicals, more then 100,000 of which have been "invented" and let loose in the world since the 1930s. Yet many of these chemicals are toxic to life and have been doing harm for years, insinuating themselves into blood, body tissue, sperm and egg. "Body burdens" of toxic chemicals are now being measured in humans and wildlife all over the globe. The result is not a pretty picture: cancers, birth defects, poisoned workers, and polluted communities. The guilty parties in these transgressions, however, have not been brought to account, and they have not been stopped. To this day, "toxic trespass" continues, and it is poisoning all of us.
Trespass Against Us is a story of how one company's chemical products and byproducts have damaged, and continue to damage, public health and the environment. Known in the 1960s for producing the lethal Vietnam War defoliant, Agent Orange, and more recently for acquiring Union Carbide's still-unresolved Bhopal legacy, Dow Chemical today is a company at the manufacturing headwaters of many of the world's most problematic chemicals, including pesticides, plastics and solvents. Dow's organochlorines have unleashed dioxins and dioxin-like compounds, among the most lethal substances on the planet. Dow pollutants and known carcinogens also continue to spew from its factories, waste dumps, and incinerators worldwide.
Trespass Against Us is a story of "invent-first-and-ask-questions-later" chemistry; of toxic and hazardous materials pushed into commerce before being fully tested; and of future generations burdened with toxic chemicals that will persist in the environment for decades. Dow's story is also about corporate power: of a company accustomed to getting its way and not above manipulating science, pushing aside safety, or spending millions in the courts and Congress to achieve its ends. Yet Trespass Against Us is also a hopeful story; an account of everyday moms and dads, Vietnam veterans and villagers, chemical workers and communities fighting back; of people standing up to power and seeking a better way. What they are saying is clear and unequivocal: no trespassing-no more invasive toxic chemicals. "
(Editor's Abstract) |
|---|---|
| Physical Description: | 486 p. Paper |