Minamata disaster case study

Minamata Disaster

I.  IDENTIFICATION

1.  The Issue

Over 3,000 victims have been recognized as having "Minamata

Disease".  It has taken some of these people over thirty years to

receive compensation for this inconceivable event.  In 1993, nearly

forty years later, the Japanese courts were still resolving

suitable compensation for the victims.  Many people have lost their

lives, suffered from physical deformities, or have had to live with

the physical and emotional pain of "Minamata Disease".  This

suffering is all a result of the very wrongful and negligent acts

of the Chisso Corporation who dumped mercury into the sea water and

poisoned the people of Japan.

2.  Description

Minamata is a small factory town dominated by the Chisso

Corporation.  The town faces the Shiranui Sea, and Minamata Bay is

part of this sea.  In Japanese, "Chisso" means nitrogen.  The

Chisso Corporation was once a fertilizer and carbicle company, and

gradually advanced to a petrochemical and plastic-maker company.

From 1932 to 1968, Chisso Corporation, a company located in

Kumamoto Japan, dumped an estimated 27 tons of mercury compounds

into Minamata Bay.  Kumamoto is a small town about 570 miles

southwest of Tokyo.  The town consists of mostly farmers and

fisherman.  When Chisso Corporation dumped this massive amount of

mercury into the bay, thousands of people whose normal diet

included fish from the bay, unexpectedly developed symptoms of

methyl mercury poisoning.  The illness became known as the

"Minamata Disease".  The mercury poisoning resulted from years of

environmental destruction and neglect from Chisso Corporation.

In 1907 the villagers of Minamata convinced the founder of Chisso

Corporation to build a factory in their town, hoping to benefit

from the wealth of industrialization.  The owner, Jun Noguchi

agreed to the development, but used the people from Minamata as

simple factory workers  The more elite positions, such as engineers

and managers were "imported" as he termed it, from the finest

universities, like Tokyo University.

By 1925, the Chisso Corporation was dumping waste into Minamata Bay

and destroying the fishing areas.  The theory behind Noguchi's

industry was to pay off the Minamata fisherman in exchange for

damaging their fishing environment.  According to Eugene Smith's

interview of the people who lived in Minamata, the company believed

that it was much cheaper to pay off the few people who were opposed

to the dumping, rather than implement an environmentally safe

technique of waste removal.  Therefore, since the villagers

accepted this practice through compensation of money, and the

government was behind the industry, the entire process appeared

ethical.

Chisso Corporation started developing plastics, drugs, and perfumes

through the use of a chemical called acetaldehyde in 1932.

Acetaldehyde is produced using mercury as a compound, and was key

component in the production of their products.  The company was

considered an economic success in Japan, particularly because it

was one industry that maintained development despite Japan's

suffering throughout and right after W.W.II.  As other companies

economically ripened during Japan's post-war period, so did the

Chisso Corporation.  Sales augmented with Japan's economic success.

In addition, Chisso Corporation's sales increased dramatically,

considering Chisso was the only manufacturer of a primary chemical

called D.O.P, a plasticizer (diotyl phthalate).  Having a monopoly

on the chemical enabled Chisso to expand rapidly.  Since Chisso

Corporation was the main industry in the small Minamata town, the

town's growth period from 1952 to 1960 paralleled Chisso's

progress.

Not until the mid-1950's did people begin to notice a "strange

disease".  Victims were diagnosed as having a degeneration of their

nervous systems.  Numbness occurred in their limbs and lips.  Their

speech became slurred, and their vision constricted.  Some people

had serious brain damage, while others lapsed into unconsciousness

or suffered from involuntary movements.  Furthermore, some victims

were thought to be crazy when they began to uncontrollably shout.

People thought the cats were going insane when they witnessed

"suicides" by the cats.  Finally, birds were strangely dropping

from the sky.  Series of these unexplainable occurrences were

bringing panic to Minamata. 

Dr. Hajime Hosokawa from the Chisso Corporation Hospital, reported

on May 1, 1956 that, "an unclarified disease of the central nervous

system has broken out".  Dr. Hosokawa linked the fish diets to the

disease, and soon investigators were promulgating that the sea was

being polluted by poisons from the Chisso Corporation.  The Chisso

Corporation denied the accusations and maintained their production.

However, by 1958, Chisso Corporation transferred their dumping from

the Minamata Bay to the Minamata River hoping to diminish

accusations toward the company.

The Minamata River flows past the town Hachimon, and into the

Shiranui Sea.  The people of this area also began developing the

"strange disease" after a few months.  The Kumamoto Prefecture

government responded by imposing a ban which allowed fisherman to

"catch" fish, but not to "sell" fish from the bay.  Since this was

their main food source, the people continued to eat fish at home,

but the ban released government officials from any responsibility

for those who developed the illness.

Finally, in July 1959, researchers from Kumamoto University

concluded that organic mercury was the cause of the "Minamata

Disease".  A number of committees, of which Chisso Corporation

employees were members, formed to research the problem.  The

committees denied this information and refuted the direct link of

mercury to the strange disease.  Finally, Dr. Hosokawa performed

concealed cat experiments in front of the Chisso Corporation

management, and illustrated the affects of mercury poisoning by

feeding the cats acetaldehyde.  Dr. Hosokawa was the first person

who made a valiant effort in proving to Chisso Corporation that

they were the ones accountable for the mercury poisoning.  After

the meeting with Chisso officials, Dr. Hosokawa was restricted from

conducting any further research or experiments, and his findings

were concealed by the corporation.

Chisso Corporation began to make deals with the victims of the

"Minamata Disease".  People who were desperate and legally ignorant

signed contracts which stated that Chisso Corporation would pay

them for their misfortunes, but would accept no responsibility.  In

fact, there was even a clause which read, "if Chisso Corporation

were later proven guilty, the company would not be liable for

further compensation". 

The fishermen began protesting in 1959.  They demanded

compensation, but soon became intimidated by the threats of Chisso

management.  The victims feared that if they did not settle, they

would never receive any kind of compensation.  Chisso paid off some

of the people while continuing to profit from increased sales.

Chisso installed a "Cyclator" which was designed to treat waste

water.  The management however, often ignored this crucial step in

their production process.  Not until 1968, did Chisso Corporation

quit poisoning the waters in Minamata.  The company was forced into

court in 1969, and the only reason why the polluting stopped was

simply because the method of mercury production became outdated.

It was later determined in court that Chisso Corporation

consistently polluted the waster of Minamata Bay from 1932-1968. 

By 1974 only 798 victims had been officially recognized as having

"Minamata Disease".  Approximately 3,000 more people were waiting

verification from the board of physicians in Kumamoto Prefecture.

Thousands of people continue to eat fish from the Shiranui Sea, but

there are no reportings of significant health hazards or mercury

poisoning like those people who suffered in Minamata.  In 1993,

almost forty years later, victims were still being compensated for

damages.

3.  Related Cases

     BHOPAL case

     DOOSAN case

     KAIDA case

     Keyword Clusters   

     (1): Forum                    = JAPAN

     (2): Bio-geography            = TEMPerate

     (3): Environmental Problem    = MANUFacture

4.  Author  Angie Littlefield   

B.  LEGAL CLUSTER

5.  Discourse and Stage:  DISagree and COMPlete

Victims are still in the process of suing Chisso Corporation for

damages.  The Japanese government is attempting to help Chisso

Corporation from going bankrupt, but Chisso Corporation is already

in substantial debt from paying past victims. 

6.  Forum and /Scope: JAPAN and UNILATeral

     The Kumamoto District Court, Japanese government, and Central

Pollution Board are all involved in the case.  The courts in

Kumamoto District determined rulings for the hearings.  Victims

testified their cases at the UN Environmental Conference in Sweden,

but the UN did not intervene.

7.  Decision Breadth: 1

8.  Legal Standing:  Law

On March 20, 1973, Japan's Kumamoto District Court ruled:

     "It must be said that a chemical plant, in discharging

     the waste water out of the plant, incurs an obligation to

     be highly diligent; to confirm safety through researches

     and studies regarding the presence of dangerous

     substances mixed in the waste water as well as their

     possible effects upon the animal, the plan, and the human

     body, always availing itself of the highest skill and

     knowledge; to provide necessary and maximum preventive

     measures such as immediate suspension of operation if a

     case should arise where there be some doubts as to

     safety... in the final analysis...no plant can be

     permitted to infringe on and run at the sacrifice of the

     lives and health of the regional residents.

     The defendant's plan discharged acetaldehyde waste water

     with negligence at all times, and even though the quality

     and content of the waste water of the defendant's plan

     satisfied statutory limitations and administrative

     standards, and even if the treatment methods it employed

     were superior to those taken at the work yards of other

     companies in the same industry, these are not enough to

     upset the said assumption...the defendant cannot escape

     from the liability of negligence". 

C.  GEOGRAPHIC FILTERS

9.  Geography

      a.  Geographic Domain:       Asia

      b.  Geographic Site:         East Asia

      c.  Geographic Impact:       Japan

10.  Sub-national Factors:  No

The waters and marine life were affected by the waste dumping of

Chisso Corporation.  Minamata Bay is a rich fishing and farming

village.  Therefore, when the water was polluted, it had a dramatic

effect on the main resource of Minamata.  The issue was decided by

Kumamoto District Court.

11.  Type of Habitat:  Ocean

Minamata is known for its marine life, and is a fishing village.

D.  TRADE FILTERS

12.  Type of Measure:  REGSTD

13.  Direct vs. Indirect Impacts:   IND

14.  Relation of Measure to Impact

      A.  Directly Related to Product:  Yes - mercury

      B.  Indirectly Related to Product:  No

      C.  Not Related to Product:  No

      D.  Related to Process:  Yes - fishing

15.  Trade Product Identification: PLASTic

16.  Economic Data

17.  Degree of Competitive Impact:  High

The many years of dumping was extremely costly to the Minamata town

and Chisso Corporation.  Chisso lost money in boycotts of their

products, in compensation to the victims, and in the overall stress

to the company as a result of the mercury scandal.  There is no

known figure on exactly how much money Chisso paid to the victims.

The payment was in the millions, and people are still fighting for

money today.  In addition, the people who were fishermen in

Minamata suffered greatly since they had no source of income when

the waters were poisoned.  Minamata was known as a fishing town,

and the ocean was their main environmental resource.  When the

water became polluted, they could no longer depend on this as a

viable resource, and had no other way to make a living.   

18.  Industry Sector:  (N)  [PLAST]

19.  Exporter and Importer: Japan and MANY

E.  ENVIRONMENT FILTERS

20.  Environmental Problem Type:  Pollution Sea [POLS]

The mercury affected both the marine life and the people of

Minamata.  Because the water was contaminated, eating the fish

caused mercury poisoning in people, cats, and birds.

21.  Species Information

     Name:          MANY

     Type:          MANY

     Diversity:     ?

22.  Impact and Effect: HIGH and PRODuct

23.  Urgency and Lifetime: HIGH and 10-20 years

Chisso Corporation no longer uses the chemicals which caused

"Minamata's Disease", or dump any kind of waste into the bay.

However, the victims have not received full retribution.  Some

people of Minamata are still trying to sue for monetary

compensation from Chisso Corporation.

24.  Substitutes:  Bio-Degradable [BIODG]

Chisso Corporation has implemented environmentally safe technology

in their production process.  The factory quit using the mercury

method of production in 1968, because the system became outdated.

F.  OTHER FACTORS

25.  Culture:  Yes

      Although cultural factors did not play a direct role in the

dispute between Chisso Corporation and the "Minamata Disease"

victims, it did have an indirect impact.  Traditionally, Japanese

people are known to be culturally humble and loyal.  Humility and

loyalties are virtues which are part of Japanese religious

background.  In the Confucian ethic, humility is a honorable

attribute, and people are expected to be loyal and show respect to

their elders.  This relates to the Minamata victims, because it was

the Japanese humility which kept them from initially pressing

charges against Chisso Corporation.  The Japanese people most

likely did not want to believe that a company would intentionally

dump waste into their fishing waters, and then out rightly deny the

accusations.  Another example is Dr. Hosokawa's loyalty.  Dr.

Hosokawa was the first person to prove that Chisso Corporation was

responsible for dumping the mercury, but his loyalty to his company

kept him quiet.  It was noted by researchers that he was internally

tormented by knowing this information, but felt he could not say

anything.  Finally, on his deathbed, Dr. Hosokawa testified to the

court that Chisso Corporation knew their waste dumping had caused

the mercury poisoning.  His statements were crucial to the courts

final verdict in 1973.

      In sum, cultural explanations can help illustrate why the

Minamata cases have prolonged over the years.  The legal system in

Japan is much different than the United States, and this case is

unusual compared to the norm.  Furthermore, Japanese citizens feel

a loyalty to their government and to their companies.  These people

were outwardly victimized by an authority figure which is quite

uncommon in Japanese culture.       

26.  Human Rights:  Yes

The people in Minamata and Niigata have suffered from gross

deformities, brain damage, and death.  The health problems are

endless, and people are still suffering.  This case is definitely

a human right violation.  Chisso Corporation may have not realized

the effects of mercury poisoning, but they negligently dumped waste

into the water.  The company also denied their negligence and tried

to misrepresent their accountability.  Therefore, not only were the

people violated physically, but the victims were disregarded

mentally.

27.  Transboundary Issues:  Yes

The company supplied a chemical called diotyl phthalate, D.O.P.,

which many other factories need for their goods.  Therefore, since

this chemical was unavailable for the short period of time while

Chisso Corporation was shut-down, it affected the import/export

business of other companies and affected global trade.