"The Love Canal landfill contained approximately 21,800 tons of chemical wastes. Substantial migration and contamination of soil, groundwater and basement air of nearby homes was apparent in the late 1970s."

-Epidemiology Journal

Love Canal was infested with toxins and wastes that not only harmed human health, but also destroyed the environment around it. This is a perfect example of groundwater pollution, which is something we learned in our class! Specifically, the types of pollutants included water-soluble inorganic materials that were acids, salts, and other toxic metals and organic chemicals as well.

Chemicals found in homes in Love Canal

chloroform benzene trichloroethene

toluene chlorobenzene tetrachloroethene

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chlorotoluene

trichlorobenzene

Environmental Impacts of Chemicals

For example, benzene has been known to react with other chemicals to create smog. Toluene can cause membrane damage in plants. When it rains/snows, which when it did in Love Canal, these chemicals can be carried through into the groundwater and create contamination. Aquatic life can be affected from this tremendously, resulting in infertility.

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Wildlife Impacts

Animals that live near Love Canal were studied by a John J. Christian of SUNY Binghamton during the 80s, a few years after evacuation occurred. spe
Specifically, he looked at voles, which are rodents, that lived near the fenced-off area and had a life expectancy of around 54 days. These voles tended to have damaged livers, excess fat, premature reproductive organs, and low amounts of glycogen. It is unknown as to what chemical causes this outcome. On the other hand, those who lived further away lived 100 days after their first month, which was the normal life span.

Additionally, dioxin concentrations were taken from multiple fish species across different rivers and creeks near Love Canal. The tables below display the high amounts of different types of dioxins found in the fish species. These emphasize the intense effects that most people may not realize.

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Cleanup Process

The chemicals had reached nearby creeks, and finding a way to contain everything was difficult. All of the homes and schools that were demolished were placed on top of the original canal and covered with clay. A synthetic liner was placed over the 40 acre area, as well as a plastic liner that protected the chemicals from being displaced when it rained. The runoff would be collected in an underground drainage system, and this would re-enter the top of the canal to be treated with carbon filters. This would then travel via storm sewers and would enter the City of Niagara Falls Wastewater treatment plant and be filtered further. Around 200 water wells are placed in the canal to ensure that there is no contamination of groundwater.

To learn more about the cleanup activities for Love Canal:

Cleanup activities are laid out by the EPA:

https://cumulis.epa.gov/supercpad/SiteProfiles/index.cfm?fuseaction=second.cleanup&id=0201290

References

Benzene. National Pollutant Inventory. (n.d.). Retrieved April 23, 2022, from http://www.npi.gov.au/resource/benzene#:~:text=What%20effect%20does%20benzene%20have,to%20contaminate%20water%20and%20soil.

Department of Health. Love Canal - Public Health Time Bomb. (n.d.). Retrieved April 23, 2022, from https://www.health.ny.gov/environmental/investigations/love_canal/lctimbmb.htm\

Dioxins and Furans in Fish Below Love Canal, NY. (1993, August). Retrieved April 23, 2022, from https://www.dec.ny.gov/docs/fish_marine_pdf/lovecanalrpt.pdf

Engelhaupt, E. (2008, November 17). Happy Birthday, Love Canal. Chemical and Engineering News. Retrieved April 23, 2022, from https://cen.acs.org/articles/86/i46/Happy-Birthday-Love-Canal.html

Hilts, P. J. (1983, October 3). Study says chemicals in Love Canal are killing nearby animals. The Washington Post. Retrieved April 23, 2022, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1983/10/03/study-says-chemicals-in-love-canal-are-killing-nearby-animals/7dbc604c-e871-4147-9735-fa86d81b7efe/

Houghton, W. (1879). Carassius auratus. Wikimedia Commons. Retrieved April 23, 2022, from https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Carassius_auratus.jpg.

Love Canal: Case study in contamination. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrWtd1P-NoU

MilliporeSigma | United States. (n.d.). Retrieved April 23, 2022, from https://www.sigmaaldrich.com/

The continuing impact of Love Canal. (2000). Epidemiology, 11(4). https://doi.org/10.1097/00001648-200007000-00399

Toluene. National Pollutant Inventory. (n.d.) Retrieved April 23, 2022, from http://www.npi.gov.au/resource/toluene-methylbenzene#:~:text=Toluene%20has%20caused%20membrane%20damage,is%20expected%20to%20minimally%20bioaccumulate.