Love Canal

1. Love Canal By: Kelly Lowery and Annalise Bath

2. The Beginning • The Love Canal is located on the eastern edge of Niagara Falls, New York • William T. Love thought that by building a canal between the upper and lower parts of Niagara Falls, he could generate power cheaply to fuel industries and homes. • However his plan did not work out, and in 1910 all that was left was a partial ditch where construction was never finished on the canal.

3. The Transition • In 1942 the ditch was used as a dumpsite for chemical waste. • This continued until 1953 when the Hooker Chemical Company covered the ditch with earth and sold it for a dollar. • In then in the late 50s about 100 homes and a school was built on the site. • in 1959 problems of chemical sinkage are reported

4. The Effects • Consecutive wet winters caused leaching of chemicals into basements, yards, and the playground of the elementary school. • Yards were breaking up, and trees and gardens were turning black and dying • There were birth defects. • Also people were being watched for high white-blood-cell count, which can be a precursor of leukemia. • Public awareness of these crisis began in the 1970s

5. Public Awareness • In 1974 the surface of dump items begin to collapse and barrels of chemicals are exposed. • 1977 • Local reporters begin to investigate possible links of contamination to illness. • There are reports of contamination • The site is surveyed by a Congressman. • In 1978 health studies are conducted and reviewed. • Also in 1978 the Love Canal Homeowners Association is formed

6. State of Emergency • On August 7th, 1978 New York Governor Hugh Carey announced that the Government would buy the houses affected by the chemicals. • On the same day President Carter allowed financial aid for the Love Canal (the first emergency fund approved for something other than a natural disaster.) • The U.S. Senate approved an amendment saying that Federal aid should be given to relieve the serious environmental disaster which had occurred.

7. State of Emergency Continued... • In 1978 the federal government relocated 239 families • Around 700 families were left because federal offices viewed them as being at an insufficient risk to warrant relocation. • However due to activists, Carter was forced to declare a second state of emergency during 1981. • The cost of relocating was about $17 million.

8. Aftermath • Cancer rates had risen due to the chemicals. • The Love Canal came to symbolize the environmental disaster represented by untold numbers of toxic waste disposal sites scattered throughout America. • Lawmakers used the national publicity of the Love Canal to push for new legislation to hold polluters financially responsible for cleaning up their toxic waste sites. • The result was the 1980 Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act.

9. Works Cited Beck, Eckardt C. “The Love Canal Tragedy.” EPA.gov. United States Environmental Protection Agency, Jan. 1979. Web. 27 Feb. 2014. <www2.epa.gov/aboutepa/love-canal-tragedy>. “History Love Canal.” History Love Canal. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Mar. 2014. “Love Canal - A Brief History.” Geneseo.edu. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Feb. 2014. <https://www.geneseo.edu/history/love_canal_history>. “Resources.” News Rss. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Mar. 2014