Polluted Places

I N I T I A L R E P O R T

Aruputo Village, Kolkata, India

Site Description
Human Exposure & Health Impact
Site Progress

Site Description

Location & Size of Site
Aruputo lies to the east of Kolkata near Science City. There are around 40 large unlicensed facilities processing leather trimmings. The scrap leather trimmings, which appear blue from chromium tanning, are processed into fertilizer by boiling them in large pots; and the water is then dumped into local water bodies. The resulting black pieces are left to dry in the open after which they are bagged and sold as fertilizer to the tea estates in the northern districts.

Contaminant Type, Source & Quantity
Scrap leather trimmings are processed into fertilizer and sold. These scraps contain chromium from tanning and people are exposed to it in every step of its processing. The water used to boil the scraps is dumped into local water bodies, which are used for drinking water purposes. The scraps are then dried in the open streets where children play and applied as fertilizers.

Transmission Pathways
Water: water used for boiling the scrap leather is dumped into open water bodies
Soil: from solid waste

Human Exposure & Health Impact

Number of Potentially Affected People
1,000 employees and many more who drink the contaminated water

Health Impact of Pollutant
No studies have been conducted here to study the human health impacts. When interviewed the local population did not have any health complaints. However common effects from exposure to chromium are as follows:

Inhalation of chromium (VI) can cause irritation to the nose, such as runny nose, nosebleeds, and ulcers and holes in the nasal septum;

Ingesting large amounts of chromium (VI) can cause stomach upsets and ulcers, convulsions, kidney and liver damage, and even death;

Skin contact with certain chromium (VI) compounds can cause skin ulcers;

The World Health Organization (WHO) has determined that chromium (VI) is a human carcinogen.

Site Progress

January 2005: This site was visited by Blacksmith Institute in January of 2005. A study will be conducted in cooperation with the West Bengal State Pollution Control Board authorities and local NGOs to test the water for contaminants.