Chemical Fire Health Risks
Dependent on the material, hazardous waste exposure to humans can potentially lead to respiratory illnesses, skin diseases (including cancer) and elevated levels of toxic materials in the blood and tissues. In extreme cases death could occur. Hazardous material fires can also adversely affect surface waters, killing aquatic life, destroying wildlife and stripping areas of vegetation, as well as ground water, a primary source of drinking water.
Most hazardous material fires consist of one or more of the following dangerous properties or characteristics:
- Corrosive β A corrosive material can wear away (corrode) or destroy a substance. For example, most acids are corrosives that can eat through metal, burn skin on contact, and give off vapors that burn the eyes.
- Ignitable β An ignitable material can burst into flames easily. It poses a fire hazard; can irritate the skin, eyes, and lungs; and may give off harmful vapors. Gasoline, paint, and furniture polish are ignitable.
- Reactive β A reactive material can explode or create poisonous gas when combined with other chemicals. For example, chlorine bleach and ammonia are reactive and create a poisonous gas when they come into contact with each other.
- Toxic β Toxic materials or substances can poison people and other life. Toxic substances can cause illness and even death if swallowed or absorbed through the skin. Pesticides, weed killers, and many household cleaners are toxic.
Coming into contact with a substance is called anΒ exposure. The effects of exposure depend on:
- How the substance is used and disposed of
- Who is exposed to it
- The concentration, orΒ dose, of exposure
- How someone is exposed
- How long or how often someone is exposed.
Humans, plants, and animals can be exposed to hazardous substances through inhalation, ingestion, or dermal exposure.
- Inhalation β we can breathe vapors from hazardous liquids or even from contaminated water while taking a shower.
- Ingestion β we can eat fish, fruits and vegetables, or meat that has been contaminated through exposure to hazardous substances. Also, small children often eat soil or household materials that may be contaminated, such as paint chips containing lead. Probably the most common type of exposure is drinking contaminated water.
- Dermal exposure β a substance can come into direct contact with and be absorbed by our skin.
Exposures can be either acute or chronic. An acute exposure is a single exposure to a hazardous substance for a short time. Health symptoms may appear immediately after exposure; for example, the death of a fly when covered with bug spray or a burn on your arm when exposed to a strong acid such as from a leaking battery.
Chronic exposure occurs over a much longer period of time, usually with repeated exposures in smaller amounts. For example, people who lived near Love Canal, a leaking hazardous waste dump, did not notice the health effects of their chronic exposure for several years. Chronic health effects are typically illnesses or injuries that take a long time to develop, such as cancer, liver failure, or slowed growth and development.
One reason chronic exposure to even tiny amounts of hazardous substances can lead to harm is bioaccumulation. Some substances are absorbed and stay in our bodies rather than being excreted. They accumulate and cause harm over time.