Almost thirty years ago, Toxic gas leaked from the Union Carbide factory In Bhopal,

Almost thirty years ago, Toxic gas leaked from the Union Carbide factory In Bhopal,

Almost thirty years ago, Toxic gas leaked from the Union Carbide factory In Bhopal, claiming over 5,000 lives and exposing close to half a million with toxic fumes. The human tragedy and negligence made Bhopal the case study of various industrial disasters and showed the harmful, disastrous effects of chemical pollution on one’s well-being and health. This large-scale calamity not only calls for the need to remember the people who lost their lives, but also the demand for more robust environmental health and pollution management strategies.

Differing Safety Standards

Drawing lessons from the aftermath of the disaster, I believe that there’s a need to develop and implement a global Environmental Health and Safety Policy. Currently, countries are using different methods of dealing with chemical strategies, and some are effective, while others are ineffective. For the third world or developing countries like India, the Bhopal disaster brought about drastic environmental changes in activism and awareness. In 1986, it passed the ecological and safety act, paving the way for the creation of the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF). This was to strengthen the country’s commitment towards avoiding another similar calamity.

Hence, with such an Environmental Health and Safety Policy, states can show intent to prevent both economic and human losses caused by accidents, environmental events. However, to achieve this, there should be management commitment and proper planning. These policies will make sure that the required stakeholders can use energy more effectively, prevent accidents, and reduce waste. Furthermore, local governments should not allow the building of industrial companies in urban areas, no matter the cost.

Lastly, not many countries are doing enough to improve their public health infrastructure, something which has become a massive challenge amid the current Covid-19 pandemic. In Bhopal, such systems were very weak with essential services like tap water being accessed by only a few people and for short hours. The city also had only four hospitals, a few hospital beds, and physicians. Most notably, though, there was no disaster management system causing many to lose their lives and go blind within a short time.

Dow Chemical Company And The Clean Up Recommendations

The Dow Chemical Company took control of Union Carbide in 2001, the latter being the industrial firm responsible for the 1984 gas leak tragedy. Shockingly, efforts to clean up the site have never happened since the calamity hit, infuriating locals who lose one member of the society every year; and are always live in fear. While companies such as the Tata group have volunteered to clean up the site, they have faced a backlash from activists who feel that Dow must pay for the clean up as the company has a legal obligation to do so, something which Dow greatly refutes.

• Moral Obligation

In my view, Dow, having taken control of Union Carbide, has not only the legal but also the moral responsibility of cleaning up the chemical dumping site. It should consider the massive loss of lives, infrastructure, and livelihoods of Bhopal residents who’ve seen they’re once industrial city reduced into a shantytown. The residents can no longer access essential services like education, safe drinking water, and health care services. They have been set behind almost 50 years from the rest of the Indian population, and by removing the chemical wastes left behind, it will give such individuals a new lease of life.