We are back with another post on cotton! A few days ago, we talked about why cotton crop production is a big source of pollution – today we want to dive deeper into the consequences of said pollution on human health.
The case of the Aral Sea
When talking about the perils of cotton crop production, we cannot escape one of the greatest visual representations of the ecological failures of industrialization – a side by side image of the Aral Sea, one taken in the year 2000 and the other in 2014.
Source: The Guardian/NASA
The Aral Sea, which is actually an endorheic lake, is located between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, and since the 1960s, it has been shrinking as a result of irrigation projects (read: irrigation for cotton production, as cotton is often touted as "white gold" in the region) that diverted the rivers that fed the lake – and it still continues to this day. Only a small portion of the lake remains – the eastern basin of the lake has completely dried up, as seen as the picture above. As a result, the surrounding land is salinized and water supplies are polluted by salt and agricultural chemicals (1). With this, it has been argued that the extensive agricultural production of cotton and the subsequent desiccation of the Aral Sea might have contributed to the decreasing quality of health in the region.
I say 'might' here because it is difficult for researchers to isolate the cause of ill health – they would have to compare the data of the medical examinations from the region to an equivalent to an equivalent data obtained from other remote regions in Central Asia where people live under comparable conditions with the exception of the desiccated lake (2). However, both local residents and experts have long argued that environmental issues affected the former's health dramatically, and some have found direct and indirect links between public health and the environment (3). Sadly, little action has been taken to help the people in the region, as the lack of empirical evidence that pinpoints the environment as the determining cause of illnesses, as well as international disinterest in the crisis, were cited as obstacles to action (3).
Aral Sea Children. Source: UNDP
The population whose health is most vulnerable to pollutants and contaminants in the Aral Sea region are children, as their physiological systems and organs are still immature (3). Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and heavy metals from agricultural chemicals were found to be present at high levels in the Aral Sea environment, and studies show that exposure to POPs affects children's "reproductive, endocrine and immune systems, pre- and post-natal growth, and neurological development" (3). Additionally, anemia rates in children in the Aral Sea region were found to be among the highest in the world, and it is reported that anemia rates are significantly higher in the district adjacent to the sea – with this, exposure to pollutants is ruled to be a potential cause, though exactly what pollutant is not described (3). It is also found that acute respiratory conditions account for almost half of all infant deaths – this is believed to be caused by inhalation of dust particles as dust storms containing salt and pesticides frequently occur in the area (4). The dust storms are also speculated to cause tuberculosis and kidney problems.
Do these health problems only happen in the Aral Sea?
As the Aral Sea is considered as "one of the worst environmental disasters of our time", the health cost of cotton production is magnified there. But of course, that does not mean that other people working in, or living near cotton fields do not also experience health problems. Cotton farmers in Pakistan reported symptoms of pesticide intoxication, which include irritation of skin and eyes, headaches, and dizziness (5). Another study of cotton farmers in Pakistan found traces of organochlorine-pesticides (OCPs) in their blood and breast milk – while these OCP levels are not considered to be a health hazard, long-term health effects might arise as a result of continuous exposure (6).
Moreover, in my previous post, I mentioned that dicamba and glyphosate are two of the most-used herbicides in cotton farms in the US. Some of their health effects include:
Increases the risk of developing liver and intrahepatic bile duct cancers, acute and chronic lymphocytic leukemia, and mantle cell lymphoma (7)
Liver disease
Birth defects and reproductive problems
So what can we do?
While these health costs do not directly affect us, I think we should still keep these externalities in mind when purchasing cotton products. An alternative might be organic cotton, which uses fewer pesticides and fertilizers – however, organic cotton might not be as environmentally friendly as previously believed, so I guess the best thing we can do is just to reduce our consumption and if need be, to consume responsibly.
Until next time!
Yours truly,
Katya
References
Small, I., J. van der Meer, & R. E. G. Upshur. (2001). Acting on an environmental health disaster: The case of the Aral Sea. Environmental Health Perspectives,109(6), 547-549. DOI:10.1289/ehp.01109547
Erdinger, L., Hollert, H., & Eckl, P. (2019). An ecological disaster zone with impact on human health: Aral sea. (Second ed., pp. 87-94) Elsevier B.V. DOI:10.1016/B978-0-12-409548-9.11727-0
Crighton, E. J., Crighton, E. J., Barwin, L., Barwin, L., Small, I., Small, I., . . . Upshur, R. (2011). What have we learned? A review of the literature on children’s health and the environment in the Aral Sea area. International Journal of Public Health,56(2), 125-138. DOI:10.1007/s00038-010-0201-0
Whish-WIlson, P. (2002). The Aral Sea environmental health crisis. Journal of Rural and Remote Environmental Health, 1(2), 29-34.
Khan, M., & Damalas, C. A. (2015). Occupational exposure to pesticides and resultant health problems among cotton farmers of Punjab, Pakistan. International Journal of Environmental Health Research, 25(5), 508-521. DOI:10.1080/09603123.2014.980781
Yasmeen, H., Qadir, A., Mumtaz, M., Eqani, Syed Ali Musstjab Akber Shah, Syed, J. H., Mahmood, A., . . . Zhang, G. (2017). Risk profile and health vulnerability of female workers who pick cotton by organanochlorine pesticides from southern Punjab, Pakistan: Health vulnerability of female workers who pick cotton.Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry,36(5), 1193-1201. DOI:10.1002/etc.3633
Catherine C Lerro, Jonathan N Hofmann, Gabriella Andreotti, Stella Koutros, Christine G Parks, Aaron Blair, Paul S Albert, Jay H Lubin, Dale P Sandler, Laura E Beane Freeman. (2020). Dicamba use and cancer incidence in the agricultural health study: an updated analysis. International Journal of Epidemiology.
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