Introduction
The Love Canal project performed near the Niagara Falls led to an environmental disaster that had various health effects to the population that lived in the love canal neighborhood. The project conducted by the hooker company involved dumping of the company’s chemicals to a partially dug canal off the Niagara River (Thomson, , 2015). The government sanctioned the project done from 1942 to 1953, and during this period of operation, the canal had up to 21000 tons of toxic chemicals. This led to environmental risks to the neighborhood. Attempts by the hooker company to fill the canal were fruitless as the effects had already occurred (Phillips, 2007).
The issue was made public by investigative magazines who conducted surveys on the neighborhood during the 1970s. Public activism led the president to declare a state of emergency in love canal neighborhood and the eventual evacuation of over 800 families. The love canal project results in various health issues including; birth defects, spontaneous abortions, among other effects to the neighboring population (Ploughman, 2013). This present essay will critically analyze the environmental risks posed by the love canal and the chances of the safe reoccupation of the love canal neighborhood taking into considerations the measures that have since been taken to prevent reoccurrence of a similar disaster.
Effects of the Disaster