happening again.

● You will create your visual presentation with materials you have gathered online, in print, created by you, etc. ● Your presentation must be colorful, neatly designed, organized, be free of grammatical errors, and have accurate and relevant information.

“Minamata Disease” Description of Disaster Description: (explain in detail the disaster event. [Who (name of event), what, when, where, and why (what caused it)] The Minamata Disease was a severe pollution outbreak, caused by Chisso Corporations in 1956. Located in Japan, Minamata, Chisso Corporation is the developer of plastics, drugs and perfumes with the use of a chemical called acetaldehyde. This chemical is produced using mercury and when the use of mercury became outdated, the company decided the solution to pollution was dilution. With massive amounts of mercury dumped in the water the chemical turned into “methylmercury” and had a great effect on the organisms there.

General Affects: What were the immediate effects of the disaster (how did it affect the environment) The immediate effects of the disaster included numerous animals and other organisms dying. This included not only sea life such as fish and shellfish but also cats and crows. Cats and crows usually eat scraps, and if their prey is infected with mercury they get infected also. With this, populations of certain species decreased thus, disrupting the food chain. Restoration: (identify the efforts that have been made to minimize and or reverse the negative effects of the Disaster. [What was done to clean up the mess, and help/ protect organisms?]) In order to stop the spread of the disease, the consumption of fish and shellfish was banned in 1957. In 1960, the factory claimed to have waste-treatment facilities in place and 10,000 people received compensation. The Chisso company claimed to have facilities in place however all of these treatments proved ineffective. They lied to numerous people and only in 1973 did it begin to receive actual recognition. This recognition only included more “compensation” however. It has been over 65 years and it is still running rampant.

Conservation: What has been done to make sure another event like this does not happen again? Or suggest efforts that the human population can practice to minimize this event from happening again.

Nothing has been done however there are many things that they could be doing. This includes a cure, or actual filtration systems that work. With 65 years, money could have been input up and with as much technological advancements there should be actual methods in place. Instead, all this money is going to compensation, which is good, but its not actually

solving the problem.

Populations Affected Humans: (describe how the human population in the area was affected ) The human population was affected with severe symptoms. This included feeling numb or dull, pain in certain parts of your body, shaking, blindness, memory loss, and loss of blood. In addition, 2,265 people died and 2 million suffered health problems.

Animals: (describe how at least 3 different native animal species in the area were affected) The native animals that were affected included shellfish, crows, and cats. The fish were infected with the mercury which led to a decrease of the species population. In addition, stray cats that were native to that area also died. The cats there consumed scraps of the animals that were affected with mercury which caused them to cramp up and die. Due to this, this disease also was known as the “dancing disease.” Crows also ate scraps from animals that had the mercury and later died as well.

Plants: (describe how at least 3 different native plant species in the area were affected) Although it mainly affected animals, the native plant species that were affected included abalone, top shells, and whelk. These plants were affected with mercury and due to this, animals that consumed it had a strong chance of death. Also, some plants also died as a result.

Image showing 3 different animal species affected

Image showing 3 different plant species affected

At least 2 pictures showing the disaster site (before and after pictures)

Resources: Please cite the resources you used to complete your project.

https://www.adana.co.jp/en/aquajournal/nature-in-the-glass-288-01/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minamata_disease https://www.ucsfhealth.org/medical-tests/methylmercury-poisoning https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chisso https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(06)67944-0/fulltext https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2920086/#:~:text=Wildlife%20Poisonings&text=Crows%20 were%20reported%20to%20be,patients%20died%20in%201953%E2%80%931956.