Dioxins are everywhere

OCTOBER 4, 2000

Often known as persistent organic pollutants, or POPs, dioxins are everywhere -- in the air, the ecosystem, in the food system, and in humans.

Dioxins are really a group of chemical compounds closely related to one another. These compounds are mostly created inadvertently by activities of humans, although one type, known as polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, is man-made.

Used in a wide variety of products, from electrical equipment to plastics, the United States government stopped the production of PCBs by law in 1976. But two other types of dioxins remain and are an important health issue facing humans everywhere.

Since dioxins are created by combustion of certain chemicals, a number of situations causes them to enter the environment. An everyday activity as simple as burning household trash creates dioxins.

Other significant sources of dioxins are municipal waste incinerators, cement kilns which burn hazardous waste, and medical waste incinerators. But not every type of dioxin contains the same amount of toxicity.

Dioxins enter the water, animals, and the ecosystem through the air. Because of this, Native people, particularly in the Arctic, who depend on the environment for subsistence are significantly affected by them. Additionally, since dioxins tend to accumulate in fat, Native people face twice the threat of contamination from dioxins.

The health risks include chloracne, a severe form of acne, skin rashes, skin discoloration, and cancer. In animals, dioxins have affected reproductive health and the development of offspring.

The problem facing control of dioxins is that the environment itself cannot be shielded from them. People can be advised to lower their consumption of high-fat animals, but for Native populations whose lives depend on subsistence, such a recommendation is almost impossible to follow.

For this reason, controlling dioxins has to occur at their source. According to a new report, the United States is responsible for much of the dioxin in Nunavut, the Inuit territory in Canada.

Currently, the United Nations is negotiating the Treaty on Persistent Organic Pollutants. Dioxins are a major component of the treaty.

Read more on the Report:
Scientists trace Arctic pollution to US (Enviro 10/4)

Relevant Links:
Persisent Organic Pollutions, the United Nations - irptc.unep.ch/pops
Dioxin and Related Compounds, from the Environmental Protection Agency - www.epa.gov/ncea/dioxin.htm
Dioxin Homepage - www.enviroweb.org/issues/dioxin/index.html