Abstract
Love Canal, a neighborhood in Niagara Falls, New York, became the symbol of the dangers to human health of buried hazardous wastes when it was discovered that industrial activity had severely polluted the soil on which homes and public buildings had been constructed. It came to public attention through the efforts of local citizens, and the contamination was the catalyst for federal legislation, the Superfund Act, to address the multitude of other disposal sites across the United States. The Love Canal situation revealed the potent role that citizen activism could play and also the problems of objectively applying toxicological knowledge in contentious situations. After extensive remediation of the Love Canal Landfill and surrounding areas and a 10-year comprehensive testing and monitoring program the Love Canal area was deleted from the US National Priorities List in 2004.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Encyclopedia of Toxicology, Fourth Edition |
| Subtitle of host publication | Volume 1-9 |
| Publisher | Elsevier |
| Pages | V5-951-V5-953 |
| Volume | 5 |
| ISBN (Electronic) | 9780128243152 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 1 Jan 2023 |
Keywords
- Chromosome damage
- Environmental legislation
- Environmental Protection Agency
- Hazardous waste
- Hooker Chemical Corporation
- Love Canal
- New York State
- Superfund Act also known as CERCLA (Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act)
