Contamination of The Hudson River
GE Manufacturing Plant
Source: Photostogo.com
  The Hudson River is the thirty-third most polluted river in the United States. Contaminants such as PCB's (Polychlorinated biphenyl's) and DDT are present in the Hudson River. Two GE facilities alone contaminated over 200 miles of the river from Hudson Falls to the New York Harbor. It has been declared as a superfund site. GE was guilty of dumping more than one million pounds of PCB's for 30 years. Some of the fish were said to be deformed and abnormal.

PCB's and DDT can be very harmful to humans, especially pregnant woman. If pregnant woman eat a large amount of contaminated fish from the Hudson River their children are more likely to be born with birth defects. These contaminants are also known to cause damage to the nervous system, immune system, and the reproductive system.

These contaminants are very dangerous to the surrounding areas because the Hudson River is a very important source of drinking water for much if not all of the people in New York State. There are two reservoir systems in the Hudson River Valley which are the Catskill and Delaware watersheds. Together these watersheds deliver 1.4 billion gallons of water every day to almost 9 million people in New York City, Westchester County, and some of Orange, Putnam, and Ulster Counties. So, as you can see the clean up of the Hudson River is essential if we want to continue to be able to use all of its resources.

 

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