By its very nature, Earth is constantly changing. Some of these changes become so devastating in their aftereffects that they are recognized as environmental disasters.
Not all environmental disasters result from natural change. Many are the result of human error, carelessness, or a combination of human-caused factors that create a disastrous outcome.
What Is An Environmental Disaster?
Because the range of causes is so broad, people become overwhelmed when categorizing environmental disasters. The most significant confusion when using the term “environmental disaster” is using it interchangeably with “natural disaster.”
Environmental disasters can sometimes result from natural disasters, but they do not have to be. They can also result from human-caused incidents such as an oil spill or a nuclear blast.
Environmental disaster – A natural or human-caused incident resulting in a negative or “disastrous” environmental impact.
Some individuals use the term environmental disaster to describe incidents that result from human-caused actions. However, it is important to note that this is only one category of environmental disaster.
Various Types Of Environmental Disasters
Agricultural disasters occur when something impacts the farming industry. An example is the Dust Bowl, which occurred in the U.S. and Canada between 1934 and 1939.
Biodiversity disasters result as an after-effect of a new species moving into a territory and damaging existing species or the environment. An example is the introduction of rabbits in Australia.
Industrial disasters occur when large industries impact the natural environment, either locally or globally. An example is the leak of methyl isocyanate in the Bhopal disaster or CFCs depleting the ozone layer.
Human Health disasters result from the spread of disease or other causes of mass death among humans. The bubonic plague is an example.
Natural disasters occur as a result of weather patterns or other factors affecting Earth. These can include earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, tsunamis, wildfires, mudslides, sinkholes, and droughts.
Nuclear disasters result from a spill or damage to a power plant that causes a radiation leak. An example is the damage to the Fukushima power plant that resulted from the 2011 tsunami.
10 Major Environmental Disasters
Mount Sinabung erupting in Indonesia on October 6, 2016. One of many environmental events that did not make our top 10. Photo by Josh Ginsu, licensed via Unsplash.
We focus on a few of the thousands of disasters that have affected the globe. This doesn’t indicate that one catastrophe is more notable than another. Every environmental disaster is devastating and significant.
1. Fukushima Nuclear Plant Disaster (2011, Japan)
After being struck by a 9.0-magnitude earthquake, a massive tsunami followed, destroying Okuma in Fukushima, Japan. The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant failed.
To date, this disaster comes in second only to the Chernobyl nuclear accident in terms of the devastation it created. The atomic meltdown began when the water could not flow in to cool the reactors, and subsequently, overheating occurred. As the situation worsened, radiation began seeping from the damaged reactor and affecting the local environment.
According to officials, it could take multiple decades to clean up the devastation left by the nuclear meltdown of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. No one is certain of the extent of the damage that has already occurred.
Radiation poisoning killed many workers who tried to contain the damage caused by the meltdown. Additionally, trace amounts of radiation affect water supplies and grasses on which livestock feed.
With water and food sources both becoming tainted by radiation, this event is expected to have long-lasting effects on Japan’s population. Radiation effects on the environment are unknown regarding marine life and local wildlife.
2. Bhopal, India Gas Leak (1984, India)
In December of 1984, a pesticide plant in Bhopal, India, released a toxic gas cloud of methyl isocyanate that killed approximately 3,000 people. This gas cloud is the deadliest human-made environmental disaster in history.
According to the NBC News, some 15,000 individuals died as a result of the immediate and delayed after-effects of the toxic gas cloud. The toxins released created a poison that harmed and killed many living creatures in the area.
3. The Great Smog Of London (1952, UK)
In December 1952, a thick fog descended upon London. It formed from thick air pollution that collected due to diverse weather conditions. The cold weather, windless conditions, and an anticyclone caused the pollutants to accumulate close to the ground, making the usual London fog much thicker and more toxic.
Because coal was the primary heating source in the 1950s, much of the pollution in the atmosphere was thick coal dust, which caused respiratory irritation. Over four weeks, some 4,000 people died from respiratory distress and other illnesses prompted by pollution.
Another 8,000 deaths were later attributed to the pollution present in the smog. While the smog was thick with many chemical pollutants, researchers believe sulfur dioxide caused the most deaths.
4. Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Explosion (1986, Ukraine)
No list of environmental disasters would be complete without the mention of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant explosion that occurred in 1986.
When the nuclear reactor core of the power station exploded, over 50 tons of radioactive material polluted the atmosphere. The explosion and the subsequent radiation poisoning left cities abandoned and still stand isolated from the modern world. One example of this is the city of Prypriat.
Around 350,000 individuals were evacuated to minimize their exposure to radiation due to the explosion. According to officials in the cleanup efforts, 4,000 deaths and over 70,000 cases of disability due to radiation exposure occurred. Children born after Chernobyl experienced high incidences of Down syndrome, chromosomal aberrations, and neural tube defects.
Adults and older children exposed to the radiation were more likely to develop cancer and other illnesses. Many went untreated due to the poor healthcare system made available to them after their radiation exposure.
Here is a video that shows what Chernobyl looks like today:
5. The Dust Bowl
The Dust Bowl occurred in the 1930s during a drought in the U.S. and Canada. Farming land that didn’t use crop rotation methods experienced severe winds, and a dust bowl occurred on the prairie lands. The most famous book based on this topic is The Grapes of Wrath.
During the Dust Bowl, the over-farmed land was arid, and as winds picked up, they blew vast clouds of dust that reached as far east as New York. The thick dust stuck to people’s lungs and made it impossible to farm the land and grow fertile crops.
An estimated 100 million acres of land in Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado, Kansas, and New Mexico were affected. As a result, hundreds of thousands of people left their homes due to a lack of food and economic opportunity.
6. Contribution Of CFC’s To Ozone Depletion
The use of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) may not seem to compare to environmental disasters like the Fukushima nuclear power plant meltdown, but the results are just as long-lasting.
Up until recently, many of the products we used in our daily lives contained CFCs. Overuse of these CFC-containing products contributed substantially to the depletion of the Earth’s ozone. As CFCs are released into the environment, they are photo-dissociated and create halogen atoms, which destroy the ozone.
Before we discovered the ozone-depleting properties of substances like CFCs, much of the ozone was already depleted. It is estimated that it takes 5 to 7 years for these substances to reach the atmosphere, and they can continue depleting the ozone for up to 100 years.
When the ozone layer is damaged, life on Earth is exposed to increased levels of UV light. Some researchers expect the ozone layer to recover over time as we reduce the use of these ozone-depleting substances. However, many scientists are not as confident since humans continue to find new ways to destroy our planet’s protective atmosphere.
7. The Bubonic Plague
The Bubonic Plague was introduced to Europe from Africa in the 7th century, killing about 100 million individuals. Central Asia introduced A second plague to Europe in the 14th century. This episode is recognized as the Black Death.
The second outbreak of the Bubonic Plague claimed 200 million lives, and it took 150 years for Europe’s population to recover.
8. Introduction Of Rabbits To Australia
Introducing something as “harmless” as a rabbit may not seem significant. However, in Australia, rabbits are believed to be one of the most devastating factors responsible for destroying native species. As European rabbits were introduced, they fed on native plant species, and with such a rapid reproduction rate, plant species could not maintain their population.
The rabbits also contributed to the erosion as they fed on plant species and left topsoil ravaged by weather conditions. Rabbits first came to the country in 1788, but efforts are still in place to control the rabbit population, including the release of rabbit-borne diseases, shooting and poisoning them, and destroying their warrens.
9. Africanized Bee
The Africanized bee’s development by hybridizing African and European honey bees created an extremely aggressive bee. The aggressiveness of these bees drove many European bee colonies from their hives and killed the queen bee.
This invasion reduced the population of European honey bees, which in turn affected agriculture as fewer honey bees lived on to promote honey production.
10. Exxon Valdez Oil Spill
On March 24, 1989, the Exxon Valdez oil tanker struck Prince William Sound’s Bligh Reef and, as a result of the collision, spilled 260,000 to 750,000 barrels of crude oil.
While the Exxon Valdez spill is not the largest oil spill in history (Deepwater Horizon in 2010 suffered the most oil spilled), it is one of the most recognized.
One thing that makes the Exxon Valdez spill so devastating is that oil spilled in a location where cleanup was laborious. This made it much harder to reduce the environmental impact, and much of the wildlife, including sea otters, sea birds, seals, and salmon, was affected.
Due to the slow response of cleanup crews, much of the shoreline was exposed to the oil. However, once cleanup efforts launched, they were extensive. Unfortunately, the extensive cleanup efforts resulted in only 10% of the spilled oil being recovered.
Is Climate Change Causing Wildfires In California?
With fires raging in Southern California and 70+ degree temperatures in October on the East Coast, how can anyone doubt the realities of climate change? Find out in our coverage of the impact of global warming on California wildfires.
Are you seeing the impact of climate change where you live? Let me know in the comments.
One of Kimberly’s favorite things to do is cook. She is trying her best to be more conscious about the nutrients she puts into her body and enjoys trying new recipes. Kimberly grew up helping her dad with the family garden and hopes to have her own garden some day. She enjoys brightening up her dishes with the food mother nature can provide and enjoys composting her produce scraps. Her work has appeared in many notable brands, including The New York Times' Wirecutter, Reader's Digest, Forbes, People, Woman's World, and Huffington Post.
