Question

In the textbook, you came across ‘Three Mile Island and Chernobyl disasters’ associated with accidental leakage of radioactive wastes. In India, we had the Bhopal gas tragedy. It is associated with which of the following?
A. $CO_2$
B. Methyl Isocyanate
C. CFC′s
D. Methylcyanate

Answer 1

A type of hazardous waste that contains radioactive material is radioactive waste. Many operations, including nuclear surgery, nuclear exploration, nuclear power generation, rare-earth mining, and nuclear weapons reprocessing, produce radioactive waste. Government authorities oversee the treatment and handling of hazardous waste to safeguard public health and the environment.

Complete answer:
The Bhopal accident, also known as the Bhopal gas tragedy, occurred on the night of 2–3 December 1984 at the Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL) pesticide plant in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India, due to a gas leak. It is regarded as one of the world's greatest global disasters. Methyl isocyanate (MIC) gas was inhaled by over 500,000 people. The highly radioactive agent found its way into and through the nearby small towns. The death toll is estimated to be in the thousands. The official death toll in the immediate aftermath was 2,259. In 2008, the Madhya Pradesh government paid compensation to the families of 3,787 people killed in the gas release, as well as 574,366 injured victims.

Coughing, extreme eye inflammation, a sense of suffocation, burning in the respiratory tract, blepharospasm, breathlessness, stomach pains, and vomiting are the immediate symptoms of contact. People who were awoken by these symptoms fled the plant. Those who ran inhaled more than those who sat in cars. Children and other residents of shorter stature inhaled greater concentrations due to their height, since methyl isocyanate gas is nearly twice as thick as air and, as a result, has a propensity to spill into the ground in an open space.
- $CO_2$- carbon dioxide is the major greenhouse effect causing gas present in the air.
- CFC- Chlorofloro carbon is emitted by the jet engines.

Hence the right answer is (B) 'Methyl Isocyanate’.

Note: Methyl Isocyanate is a colorless substance that is used in the production of pesticides. When properly maintained, MIC is secure. The chemical is very heat reactive. As MIC is exposed to water, the compounds react with each other, resulting in a heat reaction. Methyl Isocyanate is no longer manufactured, but it is still used in pesticides. The Bayer CropScience plant in Institute, West Virginia, is still the only MIC storage facility left in the world.