Final ppt

Presented by : Group 7 Amlan pati Arpit AgarwalEkansh Tiwari Neha Balooja Shidhir Shukla Vaibhav Garg

Introduction Dow was founded in 1897 by Canadian-

born chemist Herbert Henry Dow. Headquartered : Midland, Michigan,

United States Dow Chemical : plastics, chemicals,

and agricultural products - 160 countries - 50,000 people worldwide.

They were the producers of the most harmful radioactive waste and toxins

History ( Major Facts and Events ) 1897 :

Founded by Herbert

Henry Dow

1940-1941: Expansion

and Diversificati

on

1951- 1975: Dow managed the Rocky

Flats plant

1965 :Vietn

am War : production Of napalm and agent

orange

1943: Dow Corning - JV of Dow Chemical and Corning.

Late 1970’s :

Dow produced 

DBCP, a soil fumigant

1980-1990- Breast

Implant controve

rsy

1999-2001-

Purchased

Union Carbide

DOW IN THE USA

Dow in the USA

Workplace – ‘cannibalistic environment’

-1980- 25 workers with brain tumors - Long history of explosions and

deaths within premises - 1967 - “unapologetic campaign to rid

itself of unions.” - Dead peasant Insurance - Hides the hazards of the products it

produces

Dow In the USA

Backyard of Dow : Dioxin

"What Dow doesn't tell you [about their products] is far more important than what they do.“

Dow Risk Reduction is Lobbying to Limit Litigation

Now : EPA proposes a cleanup plan for polluted river section

For property owners : Dow plans to pay for the removal and replacement of topsoil.

DIOXIN CONTROVERSY

How is it formed ? - Chlorine + organic matter

The most toxic substance known

The most potent carcinogen ever tested

Key player in this story has been Dow Chemical

1950 •dioxin was discovered to be a contaminant in herbicides

1992 Electi

on•Dow Chemicals donated more than $1.4

million to people running for Congress

1995•EPA concluded that the general

population may be exposed to unacceptably high levels of dioxins

•Dow- producing 40 million of chlorine each year.

Animal Studies

Experiments on prisoners at a Pennsylvania prison in 1965

Dosage of dioxin applied to 10 prisoners' skin to 7,500 micrograms of dioxin, which is 468 times the dosage

US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) classified dioxin as a "probable, highly potent human carcinogen" based on animal data

"All I saw before me were acres of skin ... It was like a farmer seeing a fertile field for the first time“ - Kligman

Dow Chemical Co. ranked second-largest toxic waste producer in the USA

Dow produced more than 600 million pounds of toxic chemical waste

in the reporting year 2010.

4 billion pounds of toxic chemicals were released into the environment

Dow Chemical's Toxic Waste And Michigan's Coverup

Three "Justice for Bhopal" terrorists were shot dead at a Dow Chemical facility in Piscataway, New Jersey on December 14, 2003.

Dow reluctant to consider risk reduction alternatives beyond guns and guards.

"The Long Shadow" - a critical investigation of Dow's dioxin dealings with Michigan state government

DOW CORNING BREAST IMPLANT SCANDAL

Brief Intro

Dow Corning – Only 2 shareholders(Dow Chemical and Corning, Inc.)

As a result it had operated independent of the scrutiny to which most large public companies are subject

“Attitude of Invincibility” within the company

Breast Implant Scandal

Dow Chemical conceal the hazards of liquid silicone that makes up 85 percent of the gel in silicone gel breast implants

Dow Chemical knew the truth about liquid silicone but didn’t disclose

Entered into secret development agreements with Dow Corning to develop silicone

Committed fraud and exhibited a conscious disregard for the health and safety of the women

A decision to keep manufacturing – Business was making money after all

To suspend production would be to admit the product was dangerous and would invite further legal action.

Things To Ponder

What happened to Dow Corning’s vaunted Business Conduct Committee?

Was proposed $4.25 billion global settlement a solution ? Or Was it too less for playing with human lives ?

DBCP Controversy

DBCP – soil fumigant formerly used in American agriculture

Banana workers from Latin America, the Caribbean and the Philippines faced chronic exposure to the toxic pesticide DBCP pioneered by Dow Chemical

A study in 1958 demonstrated the adverse effects of DBCP

Dow downplayed the results of the study - Approved DBCP for commercial use

35 of 114 workers at a DBCP production plant in California were found to be sterile

Although DBCP was banned in the U.S., it continued to be exported to many countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, Africa and Asia.

Over 20,000 banana workers in Latin America were sterilized due to their exposure to DBCP

To pay US$490 million in compensation to 583 banana workers injured by DBCP - company responded by counter suing and refusing to pay the amount

DOW IN VIETNAM

Napalm

Agent Orange

Section 1

DOW goes to war|’60s Protests Use of Napalm

Napalm• Thickening/gelling agent mixed with petroleum or a

similar fuel for use in an incendiary device.

• The U.S. military used Napalm-B extensively during the Vietnam War -- up to 400,000 tons

• Active protests against the use of Napalm – Dow being at focal point of these.

• DOW’S popularity grew from 38% (1965) to 91%(1969) due to the war protests

Vietnam War

Section 1

DOW goes to war|Agent OrangeAgent Orange• Agent Orange is the code used by the U.S.

military.

• 1961 – Kennedy approves the use of toxic herbicides in Vietnam war

• Dow becomes the largest supplier (about 1/3rd of the total) to the US military

• In 1963 General Delmore advises Dow that these herbicides should not affect humans and animals,.

Vietnam War

Napalm

Agent Orange

Section 1

DOW goes to war|Agent Orange

Agent Orange

• 1963 IDA reviews the toxicity of all the herbicides and asks military to take precautions which are then ignored

• In1964, incidents surface of Dow workers contracting chloracne, a severe skin rash but such news was killed.

• In 1969 Mrak Commission finds it to be teratogenic and restricts its contact with Humans

Vietnam War

Napalm

Agent Orange

Section 1

DOW goes to war|Agent Orange

Agent Orange• In 1970 EPA announces restrictions but Dow

fights it

• In 1974 EPA calls of the long planned public hearings

• Dow Scientists continue to claim that it is not harmful

• In 1981 EPA backs off on the banning of dioxins

• In 1983 Dow quits making it in US due to mounting pressure

Vietnam War

Napalm

Agent Orange

- DOW WAR- NUCLEAR PLANT

U.S.A And Germany

DOW WAR I & DOW WAR II

Magnesium Mono-chloro-

benzene & Phenol Bromine 90% of

Company’s Production for war

• Magnesium• Transfer of

technology to I.G. Farben, Germany

Post Dow War II Production Facility set up by

AEC in Rocky Flats, Denver, Colorado

Contamination from fires and radioactive waste Fire broke out in 1957 & 1969

U.S. Congress created a buffer zone – 18km2 – 1972 & 1974

Rockwell International replaced Dow Chemicals in 1975

INDIA

Story Prior to the Disaster

1969 - UCC set pesticide unit – Bhopal

UCC - 50.9 % stake in Indian subsidiary.

1981- Warning for potential of a :runaway reaction” in MIC storage tank.

January 1982 - phosgene leak, when 24 workers were exposed

February 1982- an MIC leak affected 18 workers

The Day December 3, 1984, there was a leak of

methyl isocyanate (MIC) gas and other toxins from the gas plant

The immediate death toll was 3,787 Caused 558,125 injuries including 38,478 temporary partial and apprx. 3,900 severely and permanently disabling injuries 25,000 deaths have been attributed to the disaster

Magnifying Factors

•Storing MIC in large tanks and filling beyond recommended levels.

•Safety systems being switched off to save money

•The plant was also in a densely populated area of the city which went against most known norms.

Culprits flew Away

The Chairman and CEO of Union Carbide, Warren Anderson, had been arrested and released on bail by the Madhya Pradesh Police in Bhopal on December 7, 1984

On February 1, 1992 , Warren Anderson was declared fugitive

Health Effects

•The initial effects of exposure were coughing, vomiting, severe eye irritation and a feeling of suffocation

•Long term symptoms are eye problems, respiratory difficulties, cardiac failure secondary to lung injury, female reproductive difficulties and birth defects among children born to affected women

•2,000 buffalo, goats, and other animals were collected and buried

Negotiations

The Government of India passed the Bhopal Gas Leak Disaster Act in March 1985

GOI claimed $ 3.3 billion from UCC

1989: The Supreme Court directs UCC to pay US$470 million in totality.

1991 : Bhopal victims file suit to overturn the 1989 settlement

2010 : GoM recommended a fresh Rs 1,500-crore package to help the gas victims and their families and decided to file against the curative petitions in the Supreme Court against the 1989 SC verdict

Sale Of Union Carbide Indian Subsidiary

Union Carbide sold its Indian subsidiary to Eveready Industries India Limited, in 1994

EIIL, ended its 99-year lease in 1998 and turned over control of the site to the state government of Madhya Pradesh

The Dow Chemical Company purchased Union Carbide in 2001 for $10.3 billion

Some Dow stockholders filed suits to stop the acquisition, noting the outstanding liabilities for the Bhopal disaster.

Ongoing contamination

Plant still leaks toxic chemicals such as mercury, lead

1999 analysis of groundwater shows - mercury levels at 20,000 which is 6

million times higher than expected levels; - trichloroethane is 50 times higher than

permissible amount by EPA

2002 tests show chlorinated organics, lead and mercury in breast milk of nursing mothers

Plant is still contaminated with 'thousands' of metric tons of toxic chemicals, held in open containers or loose on the ground

Dow Chemicals Responsibilities According to the “polluter pays” principle, established in

both India and USA, Union Carbide continues to be liable for the environmental damage

violation of the lease agreement signed with the MP Govt that stipulated returning the land “in its original condition”

According to the “successor liability” principle, TDCC is liable for the continuing environmental and health damage in Bhopal

According to the Bhopal Medical Appeal, Carbide "remains liable for the environmental devastation" as environmental damage was not included in the 1989 settlement

Role of Congress Arjun Singh, the CM of M.P. , fled to

his palace outside Bhopal

Arrangement of a ‘special plane’ for ‘VIP’

Abhishek Manu Singhvi’s letter as Spokesperson of Congress

Current Leaders of Congress like Digvijay Singh & Vasant Sathe are now holding its previous governments responsible for Anderson’s escape

DOW IN INDIA TODAY

Lesson Not Learnt

2010:Dow agro sciences (subsidiary) blacklisted .

Why ? - Paid bribes = Rs. 88 lakhs - Producing hazardous pesticides

which were banned in the USA .

Dow Chemical and London Olympics 2012

Dow chemical manufacturer became one of the 11 Worldwide Olympic Partners in 2010 in a multi-million pound deal which lasts until 2020

George Hamilton, the American firm's Vice-President for Dow Olympic Operations,

estimates that there will be £97bn ($150bn) spent on Olympic Games The company has paid £7m to fund a fabric wrap around the stadium that won't even carry its logo

Controversy

Lorrain Close, a nurse, set up a petition In January 2012, Meredith Alexander,

quits in protest, saying people should be able to enjoy the Games without “a toxic legacy on their conscience”

Rights groups, athletes and Indian and British politicians have spoken out against Dow, thousands have signed petitions condemning it, and.

Dow – Conclusion

Revenues : increased as they got into the mis-doings of producing hazardous chemicals

Subsidiaries formed to subdue

evidence and the impact of all the mal-practices

Wiki leaks reveals strafors alleged tracking of activist seeking redresal.

IF DOW IS WILLING TO CLEAN UP IN THE U.S.A WHY NOT INDIA ??