Ukraine, land and water poisoned by war
Bombs and other munitions use materials such as lead, mercury and TNT. This means that even after the war ends, the threats to humans, animals and the environment will not end
The war in Ukraine will eventually end, but even after the end of the war, the threat posed by toxic substances will continue to wreak havoc for a long time. Grenades, landmines and explosives are causing destruction to buildings, while their emissions are damaging the environment. Refineries have also been targeted by these bombs, releasing oil and other chemicals into the soil and water, while the munitions themselves contain a variety of toxic substances.
According to Reuters, at least 10.5 million hectares of agricultural land in Ukraine have been contaminated by toxic substances in the recent war.
When these chemicals enter soil and groundwater, it is not difficult to transfer them to humans through plants, animals, and water.
Explosives and heavy elements
According to Edmund Mazer, director of the Institute for Toxicology at the University Clinic in Kiel, Germany, “we are currently dealing with munitions dumped in the oceans.”
There are many unanswered questions about this, but Mazer and his team’s research agrees on one conclusion, and that is that toxins are life-threatening.
According to Mazer, there are 1.6 million pieces of rusty bard material on the sea floor in the German area of the North Sea and the Baltic Sea. According to them, this material degrades over time and toxic substances become part of the water and endanger the ecosystem. These substances can reach the human body through fish.
TNT is a carcinogenic substance
Among many other dangerous and toxic hazardous substances and heavy elements, trinitrotoluene, also known colloquially as TNT, is a nitromating compound, which has great explosive power. According to Mazer, “We know from experiments on mice that TNT is a toxic substance.”
Mazer has described TNT as a major threat to aquatic life in the light of his experiments. “TNT adversely affects reproduction, growth and development in aquatic life. We know that TNT and other explosives are carcinogenic
Mercury, arsenic and lead are dangerous to cells
Some heavy metals such as arsenic and cardamium are carcinogenic. According to Mazer, “Detonators are loaded with heavy metals like mercury. The explosion of TNT is intensified by them as they act as a catalyst. However, mercury attacks nerve cells, which can even cause birth defects in babies in the mother’s womb.
Such effects can lead to growth problems in children and even pregnancy loss.
According to Kateryna Smirova, a researcher in the Department of Soil and Agrochemistry at the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, lead and cadmium pollution are increasing in areas of the country where fighting is ongoing.