Four Big Pollution Diseases of Japan

The four big pollution diseases of Japan were a group of man-made diseases all caused by environmental pollution due to improper handling of industrial wastes by Japanese corporations. The first occurred in 1912, and the other three occurred in the 1950s and 1960s. Despite the moniker of 'four' becoming the prominent way to refer to the events, Minamata disease and Niigata Minamata disease were the same pollution disease spread by the same poison, just in different locations. Due to lawsuits, publicity, and other actions against the corporations responsible for the pollution, as well as the creation of the Environmental Agency in 1971, increased public awareness, and changes in industrial practices, the incidence of these kinds of diseases declined after the 1970s. These cases also set precedents for private tort law and civil law in issues of compensation for technology-related mass damage which continue to have repercussions in legal cases in Japan today. Itai-itai disease first occurred in 1912 within Toyama Prefecture. This disease was given the name "itai-itai" because this was the phrase affected people would frequently cry out; it translates into "it-hurts it-hurts disease". The cause of itai-itai disease was determined to be cadmium poisoning in the drinking water from the Jinzū River basin. The source of cadmium was discovered to be from Mitsui Mining and Smelting Company. Mitsui Mining began to discharge cadmium into the Jinzū River in 1910. The cadmium poisoned the river, thus poisoning locals' source of water. Any person who drank that water or ate food that was grown with the contaminated water, such as rice, would be likely to show signs of itai-itai disease. The first symptoms were spine and leg pain. However, as the disease progresses symptoms include: debilitating pain bone fractures from mild traumas or activities (e.g., coughing or walking) skeletal deformities anemia kidney disorders Most people with itai-itai disease were confined to bed because walking caused severe pain.