US nuclear tests
Location: Various
Date: 1945 - 1992
Abstract: The people that lived on Bikini—all 167 of the atoll's inhabitants—agreed to relocate after being informed of the plan to test then-new nuclear weapons, of great importance to humankind, though it is sometimes considered a forced relocation. In 1946 they moved to Rongerik, a small island east of Bikini Atoll, but it turned out to have inadequate resources to support the population. The islanders began experiencing starvation by early 1948, and they were moved again, this time to Kwajalein Atoll. The United States used the islands and lagoon as the site of 23 nuclear tests until 1958, when it turned out nuclear weapons were much more dangerous and toxic than anything ever imagined. To this day, the Bikini islanders have not been able to return home due to nuclear contamination.
Centralia coal mine fire
Location: Centralia (Pennsylvania)
Date: 27 May 1962
Abstract: The Centralia mine fire is a coal-seam fire that has been burning in the labyrinth of abandoned coal mines underneath the borough of Centralia, Pennsylvania, United States, since at least May 27, 1962. [...] It is burning at depths of up to 300 ft (90 m) over an 8 mi (13 km) stretch of 3,700 acres (15 km2). At its current rate, it could continue to burn for over 250 years. Due to the fire, Centralia was mostly abandoned in the 1980s. There were 1,500 residents at the time the fire is believed to have started, but as of 2017 Centralia has a population of 5 and most of the buildings have been demolished.
Corsica's coast red mud
Location: Corsica's coast
Date: 1972
Abstract: Until 1972, Italian company was discharging red mud off the coast of Corsica. The case is important in international law governing the Mediterranean sea.
Osborne Reef
Location: Fort Lauderdale (Florida)
Date: 1974
Abstract: The culmination of the project was the deposit of over two million tires bound with steel clips over 36 acres (15 ha) of the ocean floor, approximately 7,000 feet (2,100 m) offshore, and at a depth of 65 feet (20 m).
Rosignano Marittimo's white beaches
Location: Rosignano Marittimo (Italy)
Date: 1983
Abstract: The unusual color of the sand, which leads to comparisons with tropical coastlines, is the result of years of processing and discharge of calcium carbonate by an industry plant.
Chernobyl disaster
Location: Pripyat
Date: 26 April 1986
Abstract: Following the reactor explosion, which killed two engineers and severely burned two more, an emergency operation to put out the fires and stabilize the surviving reactor began, during which 237 workers were hospitalized, of whom 134 exhibited symptoms of acute radiation syndrome (ARS). Among those hospitalized, 28 died within the following three months. In the following 10 years, 14 more workers (9 of whom had been hospitalized with ARS) died of various causes mostly unrelated to radiation exposure. It remains the only time in the history of commercial nuclear power that radiation-related fatalities occurred.] 15 childhood thyroid cancer deaths were attributed to the disaster as of 2011. A United Nations committee found that to date fewer than 100 deaths have resulted from the fallout. Model predictions of the eventual total death toll in the coming decades vary. The most widely cited study conducted by the World Health Organization in 2006, predicted 9,000 cancer-related fatalities in Ukraine, Belarus and Russia.
Great Pacific garbage patch
Location: Pacific Ocean
Date: 1988
Abstract: Researchers from The Ocean Cleanup project claimed that the patch covers 1.6 million square kilometres (620,000 square miles) consisting of 45,000–129,000 metric tons (50,000–142,000 short tons) of plastic as of 2018.
Kolontár red mud
Location: Kolontár (Hungary)
Date: October 2010
Abstract: On 4 October 2010, at 12:25 CEST (10:25 UTC), the northwestern corner of the dam of reservoir number 10 collapsed, freeing approximately one million cubic metres (35 million cubic feet) of liquid waste from red mud lakes. The mud was released as a 1–2 m (3–7 ft) wave, flooding several nearby localities, including the village of Kolontár and the town of Devecser. Ten people died, and 150 people were injured. About 40 square kilometres (15 sq mi) of land were initially affected. The spill reached the Danube on 7 October 2010.
Plastic pollution
Location: Worldwide
Date: -
Abstract: Global plastic production has surged from 1.5 million tons in the 1950s to 335 million tons in 2016, resulting in environmental concerns. A significant issue arises from the inefficient treatment of 79% of plastic products, leading to their release into landfills or natural environments. [...] As of 2020, the global mass of produced plastic exceeds the biomass of all land and marine animals combined.