Pollution
Humain
Environnement
Economique

A chemical plant that had stopped its production for the weekend released a toxic cloud containing 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzodioxin into the atmosphere : 6½ hours earlier, at the end of the shift, the production cycle of 1,2,4,5-trichlorophenol had been stopped while only 15% (instead of 50%) of the solvent (ethylene glycol) had been distilled. Agitation was stopped and the vacuum broken. No water was added to the mixture. The unit was left unsupervised for the weekend. At 12.37 pm, the safety valve, calibrated at 3.8 bar, ruptured due to the increase in temperature and pressure in the reactor. The heating of the reaction mixture’s surface at rest initiated the secondary exothermic reaction forming the dioxin. It was only the next day that the company informed the authorities that a release of herbicide had occurred. Two days later, crops were declared unfit for consumption. The company reported the dioxin release only 10 days later. In all, 11 communities were effected, including 2,000 ha contaminated. 3 zones were defined: zone A (C > 50 µg/m²) covers 110 ha, its 736 inhabitants were evacuated; zone B (5 < C < 50 µg/m²) covers 270 ha, children and pregnant women were evacuated during the day, agriculture and animal husbandry were prohibited; zone R (C < 5 µg/m²) measuring 1,430 ha. More than 250 case of chloracne were diagnosed, and 220,000 people were exposed to the pollution. In all, 81,000 animals were kill or had to be put down. The quantity of dioxin released has been evaluated between 200 g and 40 kg. The decontamination of the zone began 6 months later and lasted 5 years. The topsoil of the contaminated zones, the demolished constructions and the remains of the contaminated animals were buried in 2 pits, in zone A. Wastes and materials from the plant were placed in drums for subsequent incineration. One year later, 511 people from zone A returned home and zone R returned to agriculture. Zone A was decontaminated and zone B was again declared fit for construction in 1984. The installation was dismantled. In 1985, the plant's management was sentenced to suspended jail sentences ranging from 2.5 to 5 years. The company paid more than $240 M in damages to the residents and communities concerned. The epidemiological studies have not established a concrete link with all long-term pathologies (cancers, deformations...). Only an increase in the proportion of female births in relation to male births was observed

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