Title: Tainted earth : smelters, public health, and the environment /
Authors: Sullivan, Marianne, 1970-
Publisher: Rutgers University Press,
Year: 2014
Subjects: Environmental Pollution; Industrial Waste adverse effects; History, 20th Century; Extraction and Processing Industry; Carcinogens, Environmental toxicity; Environmental Pollution history; Environmental Pollution adverse effects; Pollution Health aspects Texas.; Pollution Health aspects Idaho.; Pollution Health aspects Washington (State); Smelting Health aspects Texas.; Smelting Health aspects Idaho.; Smelting Health aspects Washington (State); Environmental Pollution adverse effects Idaho.; Environmental Pollution adverse effects Texas.; Environmental Pollution adverse effects Washington.; Environmental Pollution history Idaho.; Environmental Pollution history Texas.; Environmental Pollution history Washington.; Carcinogens, Environmental toxicity Idaho.; Carcinogens, Environmental toxicity Texas.; Carcinogens, Environmental toxicity Washington.; Extraction and Processing Industry Idaho.; Extraction and Processing Industry Texas.; Extraction and Processing Industry Washington.; History, 20th Century Idaho.; History, 20th Century Texas.; History, 20th Century Washington.; Industrial Waste adverse effects Idaho.; Industrial Waste adverse effects Texas.; Industrial Waste adverse effects Washington.; Environmental Pollution Idaho History.; Environmental Pollution Texas History.; Washington; Texas; Idaho
Abstract: Smelting is an industrial process involving the extraction of metal from ore. During this process, impurities in ore—including arsenic, lead, and cadmium—may be released from smoke stacks, contaminating air, water, and soil with toxic-heavy metals. Thoroughly grounded in extensive archival research, Tainted Earth traces the rise of public health concerns about nonferrous smelting in the western United States, focusing on three major facilities: Tacoma, Washington; El Paso, Texas; and Bunker Hill, Idaho. Marianne Sullivan documents the response from community residents, public health scientists, the industry, and the government to pollution from smelters as well as the long road to protecting public health and the environment. Placing the environmental and public health aspects of smelting in historical context, the book connects local incidents to national stories on the regulation of airborne toxic metals.
Contents: The Tacoma Smelter -- City of destiny, city of smoke -- Uncovering a crisis in El Paso -- Bunker Hill -- Tacoma : a disaster is discovered -- A carcinogenic threat -- Sacrificed.