Environmental damage from hydroelectric, mining, energy and forestry projects, chemical pollution from industry, nuclear energy and weapons testing, toxic waste mismanagement, depletion of the ozone layer and global warming, to name a few pressing environmental problems, have created serious human health hazards. The impact of environmental damage is intimately connected to the well-being of the natural environment and all other life forms.
While environmental damage affects everyone, it has a particularly adverse impact on people whose lives remain closely tied to the land and who stay in the vicinity of that area. Industry and resource development projects release environmental contaminants which pose hazards to human health into the air, water and soil. The availability and purity of traditional foods and medicines are diminished as a result of industrial contamination and the disruption of wildlife habitat. The ensuing erosion of traditional ways of life dependent on the purity of the land, the water and all living things, constitutes an assault on mental and spiritual health and deepens the processes of cultural disruption.
Environmental contamination has been a long-standing concern .A contaminant is a substance that is found in a place where it should not be, depending on what it is and the amount present, it may be harmful. Contaminants generally mean chemicals and can constitute health hazards because of persistence, toxicity levels or mobility. "Point" sources of chemicals include industrial discharges, waste incinerators, sewage treatment plants, and solid waste disposal sites. "Non-point" sources include runoff from land treated with pesticides, fertilizers or herbicides, car exhaust, contaminated sediments, storm water runoff, atmospheric deposits and domestic sewage. Contaminants have entered into our air, water and soil, affecting wildlife and entering the food chain. This if not taken seriously can lead to adverse effects on health of many.
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