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 Third Edition

ENVIRONMENTAL
TOXICOLOGY
Biological and Health Effects
of Pollutants
 Third Edition

ENVIRONMENTAL
TOXICOLOGY
Biological and Health Effects
of Pollutants

Ming-Ho Yu
Humio Tsunoda
Masashi Tsunoda

Boca Raton London New York

CRC Press is an imprint of the

Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
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Version Date: 20110617

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Contents
Preface to the Third Edition...................................................................................xvii
Acknowledgments....................................................................................................xix
About the Authors....................................................................................................xxi

Chapter 1 Introduction........................................................................................... 1
1.1 Study of Environmental Toxicology...........................................1
1.2 Importance of Environmental Toxicology as an Area
of Science................................................................................... 1
1.3 Introduction to This Book.......................................................... 1

Chapter 2 Environmental Changes and Health......................................................7

2.1 Our Changing Environment.......................................................7
2.1.1 Introduction................................................................... 7
2.1.2 World Population...........................................................7
2.1.3 Global Climate Changes: Global Warming..................8
2.1.3.1 Impact on Plants.......................................... 10
2.1.3.2 Impact on Birds and Animals...................... 10
2.1.3.3 Impact on Tropical Species......................... 12
2.1.3.4 Impact on Freshwater Fish........................... 12
2.1.4 Impact on Marine Oxygen.......................................... 12
2.1.5 Rising Acidity of Seawater.......................................... 13
2.1.6 Rise in Diseases.......................................................... 15
2.2 Air Pollution............................................................................. 15
2.2.1 Introduction................................................................. 15
2.2.2 Air Pollution and Developing Economies................... 16
2.3 Indoor Air Pollution................................................................. 19
2.4 Water Pollution......................................................................... 19
2.5 Soil Pollution............................................................................ 23
2.6 The Changing Diseases............................................................24
2.6.1 Cancer.........................................................................24
2.6.2 Birth Defects and Child Mortality.............................. 30
2.6.3 Reproductive Damages................................................ 30
2.6.4 Respiratory Diseases................................................... 31
2.6.5 Endocrine Disruption.................................................. 33
2.6.6 Diseases Induced by Metals........................................ 33
2.6.7 Foodborne Illnesses....................................................34
Review Questions................................................................................ 35
References........................................................................................... 36

v
vi Contents

Chapter 3 Occurrence of Toxicants..................................................................... 39

3.1 Introduction.............................................................................. 39
3.2 Visible Smoke or Smog............................................................ 39
3.3 Offensive Odors........................................................................40
3.4 Agricultural Damage................................................................40
3.5 Intoxication of Animals............................................................ 41
3.6 Injuries to Humans................................................................... 41
3.7 Chronic and Acute Effects....................................................... 42
3.7.1 Chronic Effects........................................................... 43
3.7.2 Acute Effects............................................................... 43
3.7.2.1 Donora, Pennsylvania, United
States, 1948..................................................44
3.7.2.2 Poza Rica, Mexico, 1950.............................44
3.7.2.3 London, England, 1952................................44
3.7.2.4 New York, United States, 1953.................... 45
3.7.2.5 Los Angeles, California, United
States, 1954.................................................. 45
3.7.2.6 New Orleans, Louisiana, United
States, 1955.................................................. 45
3.7.2.7 Worldwide Episode, 1962............................ 45
3.7.2.8 Tokyo, Japan, 1970...................................... 45
3.7.2.9 Bhopal, India, 1984...................................... 45
3.7.2.10 Chernobyl, Soviet Union, 1986....................46
3.7.2.11 Gas Leak on the Platform in the North
Sea, 1988...................................................... 47
3.7.2.12 Oil Spill in Alaska’s Prince William
Sound, 1989................................................. 47
3.7.2.13 Coal Mine Explosion in Western
Virginia, United States, 2010....................... 48
3.7.1.14 Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill, United
States, 2010.................................................. 48
3.7.2.15 Raspadskaya Coal Mine Explosion in
Russia, 2010................................................. 49
3.7.2.16 Gas Explosion and Chemical Leak in
Nanjing, China, 2010................................... 49
3.7.2.17 Toxic-Sludge Spill in Hungary, 2010........... 49
3.7.2.18 Gas Explosion in Henan, China, 2010......... 50
3.7.2.19 Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant,
Japan, 2011................................................... 50
References........................................................................................... 52

Chapter 4 Toxic Action of Pollutants................................................................... 53

4.1 Introduction.............................................................................. 53
4.2 Effects on Plants....................................................................... 53
4.2.1 Source of Pollutants.................................................... 53
Contents vii

4.2.2 Uptake of Pollutants.................................................... 53

4.2.3 Transport of Toxicant.................................................. 55
4.2.4 Plant Injury.................................................................. 55
4.3 Mammalian Organisms............................................................ 56
4.3.1 Exposure...................................................................... 56
4.3.2 Uptake......................................................................... 57
4.3.3 Transport..................................................................... 58
4.3.4 Storage......................................................................... 58
4.3.5 Metabolism.................................................................. 59
4.3.6 Excretion..................................................................... 59
4.4 Mechanism of Toxic Action..................................................... 59
4.4.1 Disruption or Destruction of Cellular Structure.........60
4.4.2 Direct Chemical Combination with a
Cell Constituent...........................................................60
4.4.3 Effect on Enzymes...................................................... 61
4.4.3.1 Enzyme Inhibition by Inactivation
of Cofactor................................................... 62
4.4.3.2 Enzyme Inhibition by Competition
with the Cofactor......................................... 62
4.4.3.3 Enzyme Inhibition by Binding to the
Active Site.................................................... 63
4.4.3.4 Inhibition of Enzyme Activity by
Toxic Metabolite..........................................64
4.4.4 Secondary Action as a Result of the Presence of
a Pollutant....................................................................64
4.4.4.1 Allergic Response to Pollen......................... 65
4.4.4.2 Carbon Tetrachloride................................... 65
4.4.4.3 Chelation...................................................... 65
4.4.4.4 Metal Shift...................................................66
4.4.5 Free-Radical-Mediated Reactions...............................66
4.4.6 Endocrine Disruption.................................................. 68
Review Questions................................................................................ 69
References........................................................................................... 70

Chapter 5 Factors Affecting Xenobiotic Action.................................................. 73

5.1 Introduction.............................................................................. 73
5.2 Physiological Properties........................................................... 73
5.3 Dose or Concentration.............................................................. 73
5.4 Duration and Mode of Exposure.............................................. 74
5.5 Environmental Factors............................................................. 75
5.5.1 Temperature................................................................. 75
5.5.2 pH................................................................................ 76
5.5.3 Humidity..................................................................... 76
5.6 Interaction................................................................................. 76
5.6.1 Additive, Synergism, and Potentiation Effects............ 76
viii Contents

5.6.2 Antagonism................................................................. 77
5.7 Biological Factors..................................................................... 78
5.7.1 Plants........................................................................... 78
5.7.2 Animals and Humans.................................................. 78
5.7.2.1 Genetic Factors............................................ 78
5.7.2.2 Developmental Factors................................ 79
5.7.2.3 Diseases....................................................... 79
5.7.2.4 Behavioral Factors....................................... 79
5.7.2.5 Gender.........................................................80
5.8 Nutritional Factors....................................................................80
5.8.1 Introduction.................................................................80
5.8.2 Fasting and Starvation.................................................80
5.8.3 Proteins........................................................................ 81
5.8.4 Carbohydrates............................................................. 81
5.8.5 Lipids........................................................................... 83
5.8.6 Vitamin A....................................................................84
5.8.7 Vitamin D....................................................................84
5.8.8 Vitamin E (α-Tocopherol)........................................... 85
5.8.9 Vitamin C.................................................................... 86
5.8.10 Minerals...................................................................... 88
Review Questions................................................................................ 89
References...........................................................................................90

Chapter 6 Biotransformation: Metabolism of Xenobiotics.................................. 93

6.1 Introduction.............................................................................. 93
6.2 Types of Biotransformation...................................................... 93
6.3 Mechanism of Biotransformation.............................................94
6.4 Characteristics of Biotransformation.......................................94
6.5 Consequence of Biotransformation..........................................97
6.5.1 Biotransformation of Endogenous Substances............97
6.5.2 Activation of Xenobiotics............................................ 98
6.6 Factors Affecting Biotransformation...................................... 100
6.7 Characteristics of the Cytochrome P450s.............................. 101
6.7.1 Induction.................................................................... 102
6.7.2 Genetic Polymorphisms............................................ 103
Review Questions.............................................................................. 103
References......................................................................................... 104

Chapter 7 Responses to Environmental Toxicants............................................. 105

7.1 Introduction............................................................................ 105
7.2 Responses of Plants................................................................ 105
7.3 Responses of Humans and Animals....................................... 106
7.3.1 The Respiratory Tract............................................... 106
7.3.1.1 Nasopharynx.............................................. 106
Contents ix

7.3.1.2 Tracheobronchial Areas............................. 106

7.3.1.3 Alveoli....................................................... 107
7.3.2 Membranes................................................................ 108
7.3.3 Liver.......................................................................... 110
7.3.4 Kidneys...................................................................... 111
Review Questions.............................................................................. 113
References......................................................................................... 114

Chapter 8 Air Pollution: Inorganic Gases.......................................................... 115

8.1 Introduction............................................................................ 115
8.2 Sulfur Dioxide........................................................................ 115
8.2.1 Sources of SO2.......................................................... 115
8.2.2 Characteristics of SO2............................................... 116
8.2.3 Effects on Plants........................................................ 116
8.2.4 Effects on Animals.................................................... 120
8.2.5 Health Effects............................................................ 120
8.3 Nitrogen Dioxide.................................................................... 122
8.3.1 Forms and Formation of Nitrogen Oxides................ 122
8.3.2 Major Reactive Nitrogen Species in the
Troposphere............................................................... 122
8.3.3 Effects on Plants........................................................ 123
8.3.4 Health Effects............................................................ 124
8.3.5 Biological Effects...................................................... 124
8.3.6 N2O and Stratospheric O3 Layer Depletion............... 125
8.4 Ozone...................................................................................... 128
8.4.1 Sources of Ozone...................................................... 128
8.4.2 Photochemical Smog................................................. 129
8.4.3 Effects on Plants........................................................ 129
8.4.4 Effects on Animals and Humans.............................. 131
8.4.5 Biological Effects...................................................... 132
8.5 Carbon Monoxide................................................................... 134
8.5.1 Introduction............................................................... 134
8.5.2 Formation.................................................................. 134
8.5.3 Human Exposure....................................................... 135
8.5.4 Health Effects............................................................ 135
Review Questions.............................................................................. 138
References......................................................................................... 139

Chapter 9 Air Pollution: Particulate Matter....................................................... 143

9.1 Introduction............................................................................ 143
9.2 Characteristics of Particulate Matter...................................... 143
9.3 Formation of Particulates....................................................... 144
9.3.1 Physical Processes..................................................... 144
9.3.2 Chemical Processes................................................... 144
x Contents

9.4 Health Effects......................................................................... 145

9.5 Silica....................................................................................... 147
9.5.1 Silicosis..................................................................... 147
9.5.2 Pathogenesis.............................................................. 147
9.6 Beryllium................................................................................ 148
9.6.1 Sources of Exposure to Beryllium............................ 148
9.6.2 Health Effects............................................................ 150
9.6.3 Biological Effects...................................................... 150
9.6.4 Therapy...................................................................... 151
9.7 Asbestos.................................................................................. 151
9.7.1 Chemical and Physical Properties............................. 152
9.7.2 Use............................................................................. 152
9.7.3 Exposure.................................................................... 152
9.7.4 Health Effects............................................................ 153
9.8 Lead........................................................................................ 154
9.8.1 Sources of Lead......................................................... 154
9.8.2 National Lead Emissions........................................... 154
9.8.3 Lead Air Quality Standards...................................... 155
9.8.4 Effect of Lead on Health........................................... 155
Review Questions.............................................................................. 155
References......................................................................................... 156

Chapter 10 Environmental Fluoride.................................................................... 159

10.1 Introduction............................................................................ 159
10.2 Occurrence and Forms of Fluoride........................................ 159
10.2.1 Introduction............................................................... 159
10.2.2 Airborne Fluoride...................................................... 159
10.2.3 Natural Waters........................................................... 160
10.2.4 Minerals and Soils..................................................... 160
10.2.5 Foods and Water........................................................ 160
10.3 Industrial Sources of Fluoride Pollution................................ 161
10.3.1 Introduction............................................................... 161
10.3.2 Manufacture of Phosphate Fertilizers....................... 162
10.3.3 Manufacture of Aluminum....................................... 163
10.3.4 Manufacture of Steel................................................. 163
10.3.5 Combustion of Coal................................................... 163
10.3.6 Other Sources............................................................ 164
10.4 Effects on Plants..................................................................... 164
10.5 Effects on Animals................................................................. 166
10.5.1 Introduction............................................................... 166
10.5.2 Acute Effects............................................................. 167
10.5.3 Chronic Effects......................................................... 167
10.6 Effects on Humans................................................................. 170
10.6.1 Daily Intake of F....................................................... 170
10.6.2 Absorption................................................................. 170
Contents xi

10.6.3 Acute Effects............................................................. 171

10.6.4 Chronic Effects......................................................... 171
10.7 Biochemical Effect of Fluoride.............................................. 172
10.7.1 In Plants..................................................................... 172
10.7.2 In Animals and Humans........................................... 175
10.8 Nutrition and Fluoride Toxicity.............................................. 177
Review Questions.............................................................................. 178
References......................................................................................... 179

Chapter 11 Volatile Organic Compounds............................................................ 181

11.1 Introduction............................................................................ 181
11.2 Sources................................................................................... 181
11.3 Petroleum Hydrocarbons........................................................ 181
11.3.1 Alkanes..................................................................... 182
11.3.1.1 Health Effect.............................................. 183
11.3.2 Alkenes...................................................................... 184
11.3.2.1 Health Effects............................................ 184
11.3.3 Aromatic Hydrocarbons............................................ 184
11.3.3.1 Benzene..................................................... 185
11.3.3.2 Toluene....................................................... 187
11.3.3.3 Xylenes....................................................... 187
11.4 Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons........................................ 188
11.4.1 Sources...................................................................... 189
11.4.2 Physical and Chemical Properties............................. 189
11.4.3 Transport................................................................... 189
11.4.4 Exposure.................................................................... 189
11.4.5 Metabolism and Toxicity........................................... 191
Review Questions.............................................................................. 193
References......................................................................................... 193

Chapter 12 Soil and Water Pollution: Environmental Metals

and Metalloids................................................................................... 195
12.1 Introduction............................................................................ 195
12.2 Lead........................................................................................ 196
12.2.1 Characteristics and Use............................................. 196
12.2.2 Sources of Lead Exposure......................................... 196
12.2.2.1 Airborne Lead........................................... 196
12.2.2.2 Waterborne Lead....................................... 197
12.2.2.3 Lead in Food.............................................. 198
12.2.2.4 Lead in Soils.............................................. 198
12.2.3 Lead Toxicity............................................................. 198
12.2.3.1 Lead Toxicity to Plants.............................. 198
12.2.3.2 Lead Poisoning in Animals and Fish........ 199
12.2.3.3 Health Effects of Lead in Humans............ 199
xii Contents

12.2.4 Biological Effects of Lead.........................................202

12.2.5 Lead Toxicity and Nutrition...................................... 203
12.3 Cadmium................................................................................204
12.3.1 Introduction...............................................................204
12.3.2 Characteristics and Use of Cadmium........................205
12.3.3 Exposure to Cadmium...............................................205
12.3.3.1 Airborne Cadmium....................................205
12.3.3.2 Waterborne Cadmium................................206
12.3.3.3 Cadmium Pollution of Soils.......................206
12.3.3.4 Cadmium in Food......................................206
12.3.4 Metabolism of Cadmium...........................................207
12.3.5 Cadmium Toxicity.....................................................208
12.3.5.1 Toxic Effects on Plants..............................208
12.3.5.2 Effects of Cadmium on Animals...............209
12.3.5.3 Effects of Cadmium on Humans............... 210
12.3.6 Cadmium and Nutrition............................................ 212
12.4 Mercury.................................................................................. 213
12.4.1 Introduction............................................................... 213
12.4.2 Extraction and Uses of Mercury............................... 213
12.4.3 Sources of Mercury Pollution................................... 214
12.4.4 Biotransformation of Mercury.................................. 214
12.4.4.1 Biomethylation of Mercury........................ 215
12.4.4.2 Demethylation of Methylmercury............. 215
12.4.4.3 Methylmercury Biosynthesis and
Diffusion into Cells................................... 215
12.4.5 Toxicity of Mercury................................................... 216
12.4.5.1 Effects of Mercury on Algae..................... 216
12.4.5.2 Effects of Mercury on Plants..................... 216
12.4.5.3 Effects of Mercury on Animals................. 216
12.4.5.4 Effects of Mercury on Human Health....... 217
12.4.6 Biological Effects...................................................... 219
12.4.7 Mercury and Nutrition.............................................. 221
12.5 Nickel...................................................................................... 222
12.5.1 Introduction............................................................... 222
12.5.2 Sources of Environmental Nickel Pollution.............. 223
12.5.3 Health Effect............................................................. 223
12.6 Arsenic................................................................................... 225
12.6.1 Occurrence and Properties........................................ 225
12.6.2 Uses of Arsenic......................................................... 225
12.6.3 Sources of Exposure to Arsenic................................ 226
12.6.4 Human Exposure to Arsenic..................................... 226
12.6.5 Animal Exposure to Arsenic..................................... 227
12.6.6 Distribution of Arsenic in the Body.......................... 227
12.6.7 Toxicity of Arsenic.................................................... 227
12.6.7.1 Toxicity to Plants....................................... 227
Contents xiii

12.6.7.2 Toxicity of Arsenic to Animals and

Humans...................................................... 228
12.6.8 Biological Effects of Arsenic.................................... 229
Review Questions.............................................................................. 231
References......................................................................................... 232

Chapter 13 Pesticides and Related Materials....................................................... 237

13.1 Introduction............................................................................ 237
13.2 Insecticides............................................................................. 237
13.2.1 Introduction............................................................... 237
13.2.2 Chlorinated Hydrocarbons........................................ 237
13.2.2.1 Introduction............................................... 237
13.2.2.2 DDT........................................................... 238
13.2.3 Organophosphorus Compounds................................ 243
13.2.3.1 Introduction............................................... 243
13.2.3.2 Toxicity of Organophosphorus
Compounds................................................244
13.2.3.3 Action of Acetylcholinesterase
and Organophosphates...............................244
13.2.4 Carbamates................................................................246
13.3 Herbicide................................................................................246
13.3.1 2,4-D and 2,4,5-T......................................................246
13.3.2 Atrazine.....................................................................248
13.4 Polychlorinated Biphenyls...................................................... 249
13.4.1 Introduction............................................................... 249
13.4.2 Properties of PCBs.................................................... 249
13.4.3 Uses of PCBs............................................................. 250
13.4.4 Environmental Contamination of PCBs................... 250
13.4.4.1 Wildlife Exposure to PCBs....................... 251
13.4.4.2 Human Exposure to PCBs......................... 252
13.4.5 Metabolism of PCBs................................................. 253
13.4.6 Toxicity of PCBs....................................................... 253
13.4.7 Biological Effects of PCBs........................................ 254
13.5 Polybrominated Biphenyls...................................................... 255
13.5.1 Introduction............................................................... 255
13.5.2 Chemistry of PBBs.................................................... 255
13.5.3 Toxicity of PBBs........................................................ 256
13.5.4 Biological Effects of PBBs........................................ 256
13.6 Dioxin..................................................................................... 256
13.6.1 Introduction............................................................... 256
13.6.2 Exposure to PCDDs.................................................. 257
13.6.3 Toxicity of Dioxins.................................................... 257
13.6.3.1 Toxicity of Dioxins in Animals................. 257
13.6.3.2 Toxicity of Dioxins in Birds...................... 258
13.6.3.3 Toxicity of Dioxins in Humans.................. 259
xiv Contents

13.6.4 Gene Regulation by Dioxins.....................................260

13.6.5 Environmental Degradation of TCDD...................... 261
Review Questions.............................................................................. 261
References......................................................................................... 262

Chapter 14 Occupational Toxicology................................................................... 265

14.1 Introduction............................................................................ 265
14.1.1 Antiquity to Middle Ages: Diseases
among Miners............................................................ 265
14.1.2 After the Industrial Revolution: Metal Diseases....... 265
14.1.3 After the Nineteenth Century: Organic
Compounds, Organic Metals, and Gases.................. 267
14.1.4 Modern Era: Toxicology and
Preventive Medicine.................................................. 268
14.2 Changing Workplace Environment........................................ 269
14.3 Threshold Limit Values.......................................................... 270
14.4 Biological Exposure Indices................................................... 270
14.5 Respiratory Toxicity............................................................... 271
14.5.1 Irritation of Airways and Edema.............................. 272
14.5.2 Occupational Respiratory Diseases........................... 273
14.6 Other Occupational Diseases Caused by
Toxic Substances.................................................................... 274
14.6.1 Metal Fume Fever..................................................... 274
14.6.2 Fluorosis.................................................................... 275
14.6.3 Diseases Caused by Sensitizers................................. 275
14.7 Recent Chemicals of Concern................................................ 276
14.7.1 Nanoparticles............................................................. 276
14.7.2 Rare Metals............................................................... 277
Review Questions.............................................................................. 277
References......................................................................................... 278

Chapter 15 Endocrine Disruption........................................................................ 281

15.1 Introduction............................................................................ 281
15.2 Review of Hormonal Function............................................... 281
15.3 Characteristics of Endocrine Disruptors................................ 282
15.4 Mode of Action....................................................................... 285
15.5 Examples of Endocrine Disruption........................................ 287
15.5.1 Induction of Developmental Toxicity........................ 288
15.5.2 Estrogen Mimics....................................................... 288
15.5.3 Induction of Sterility................................................. 288
15.5.4 Antiandrogens........................................................... 289
15.5.5 Induction of Imposex................................................. 290
15.5.6 Hypothyroidism......................................................... 290
15.5.7 Changing Behavior.................................................... 290
Contents xv

15.6 Hormonal Cancers.................................................................. 290

15.6.1 Introduction............................................................... 290
15.6.2 Hormonal Cancers in Farmers.................................. 291
15.6.3 The Toxic Substance Control Act.............................. 292
15.7 Testing Estrogenicity.............................................................. 292
Review Questions.............................................................................. 293
References......................................................................................... 294

Chapter 16 Mutagenic Pollutants......................................................................... 297

16.1 Introduction............................................................................ 297
16.2 Types of Mutation................................................................... 297
16.2.1 Chromosomal Aberrations........................................ 298
16.2.2 Gene Mutations......................................................... 299
16.3 Effects of Mutation................................................................. 299
16.4 Induction of Mutation.............................................................300
16.4.1 UV Light...................................................................300
16.4.2 Ionizing Radiations................................................... 301
16.4.3 Chemical Mutagens...................................................302
16.4.3.1 Alkylating Agents......................................302
16.4.3.2 Intercalating Agents...................................304
16.4.3.3 Metals........................................................304
Review Questions.............................................................................. 305
References......................................................................................... 305

Chapter 17 Environmental Cancer......................................................................307

17.1 Introduction............................................................................307
17.2 Causes of Cancer....................................................................307
17.3 Three Stages in the Development of Cancer..........................309
17.4 Metastasis............................................................................... 311
17.5 Classification of Carcinogens................................................. 311
17.5.1 Radiation................................................................... 312
17.5.2 Chemical Carcinogens.............................................. 312
17.6 Metabolism of Chemical Carcinogens................................... 313
17.6.1 Free Radicals............................................................. 314
17.6.2 DDT........................................................................... 315
17.6.3 Formaldehyde............................................................ 315
17.6.4 Vinyl Chloride........................................................... 315
17.6.5 Alkylating Agents..................................................... 316
17.6.6 Trichloroethylene (TCE)........................................... 317
17.6.7 Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons........................... 317
17.6.7.1 Benzo(a)pyrene.......................................... 318
17.6.7.2 Halogenated Aromatic Hydrocarbons....... 320
17.7 Respiratory Cancer Death Rates............................................ 320
17.8 DNA Repair............................................................................ 321
17.8.1 DNA Damage............................................................ 321
xvi Contents

17.8.2 Sources of Damage.................................................... 321

17.8.3 Types of Damage....................................................... 322
17.8.4 DNA Repair............................................................... 322
17.8.4.1 Introduction............................................... 322
17.8.4.2 Direct Reversal.......................................... 323
17.8.4.3 Single-Strand Damage............................... 323
Review Questions.............................................................................. 324
References......................................................................................... 324

Appendix 1: Ecological Risk Assessment........................................................... 327

Appendix 2: 11th Report on Carcinogens........................................................... 335
Appendix 3: List of Cigarette Smoke Carcinogens............................................ 341
Appendix 4: Polychlorinated Biphenyl (PCB) Nomenclature........................... 343
Preface to the Third Edition
Many changes have occurred since the second edition of this book was published.
Some of the changes include further global warming, growing world population,
advancing technology and world economy, and expanding industrialization. Yet
other changes include worsening air and water pollution, acid rain, and depletion
of the ozone layer. In this volume, the information covered previously is updated
or expanded.
I welcome Professor Humio Tsunoda and Dr. Masashi Tsunoda as coauthors.
Together, they contributed a new chapter, “Occupational Toxicology” (Chapter
14). I am convinced that the material covered in the chapter enriches the content
of this volume.
This book is written primarily as an introductory textbook for upper-level under-
graduate and beginning graduate students majoring in environmental science,
environmental toxicology, environmental health, and related fields. It is hoped that
students as well as professionals interested in knowledge concerning the health and
biological impacts of pollutants on living systems will find this volume a useful text
or source book.
To assist with the students’ studies, review questions are placed at the end of each
chapter. A Solution Manual has also been prepared separately.

xvii
Acknowledgments
I wish to express my sincere appreciation to my former advisers and mentors: the
late Professor Ho Fang-Kai at National Taiwan University and Professor Gene W.
Miller and the late Professor D.K. Salunkhe at Utah State University. Their guid-
ance and kind help have contributed much to my teaching and research career. I am
indebted to my wife, Ervena, for her support and encouragement, and I thank my
three children, Albert, Christina, and Charlie, for their technical assistance. I thank
Joseph Clements and his associates at CRC Press/Taylor & Francis Group for their
patience and assistance.

Ming-Ho Yu

xix
About the Authors
Dr. Ming-Ho Yu is professor emeritus at Huxley College of the Environment,
Western Washington University. He taught environmental toxicology and environ-
mental health at the university from 1970 to 1997. He received his BS from National
Taiwan University in Taipei, Taiwan, and MS and PhD from Utah State University
in Logan, Utah. He undertook postdoctoral study at Utah State University and the
University of Alberta in Canada. While teaching at Western Washington University,
Dr. Yu took a year of sabbatical leave and pursued research as a visiting professor at
the Department of Hygiene and Public Health at Iwate Medical University in Japan.
He also spent a summer as visiting professor to conduct research at the Institute of
Whole Body Metabolism in Chiba, Japan.
Dr. Yu served as the vice president and president of the International Society
for Fluoride Research (ISFR) from 1986 to 1996 and is the associate editor of
Fluoride, the official publication of the society. He is a founding coeditor of
Environmental Sciences, a journal published in Tokyo, Japan. He was also coeditor
of Environmental Fluoride 1985, published by Elsevier Science in 1986. Dr. Yu is
the author of Environmental Toxicology—Impacts of Environmental Toxicants on
Living Systems and Environmental Toxicology, 2nd Edition, Biological and Health
Effects of Pollutants and is coauthor of Introduction to Environmental Toxicology,
editions 1–4, published by CRC Press.

Dr. Humio Tsunoda, professor emeritus at Iwate Medical University in Morioka,

Japan, received his PhD from Hokkaido University in Japan. He received his MD
by passing a national examination. He was a professor and chair in the Department
of Hygiene and Public Health at Iwate Medical University for 27 years. Between
1997 and 2007, Professor Tsunoda served as a member of the Science Council of
Japan, specializing in the area of environmental health. He received a Green Cross
Award from the Japan Industrial Safety and Health Association, and awards for
distinguished service from the Ministry of Construction; the Ministry of Labor;
the Japanese Association of Rural Medicine; Japan Society for Atmospheric
Environment; and Japanese Society for Occupational Health. In 2010, Professor
Tsunoda received the Order of the Sacred Treasure, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon
from the government of Japan.

Dr. Masashi Tsunoda is an associate professor at the Department of Preventive

Medicine and Public Health, Kitasato University School of Medicine in Japan. He
received a PhD in social medicine from Niigata University in Japan, an MPH from
the University of Pittsburgh, and a PhD in toxicology from the University of Georgia.
He is a councilor of the Japan Society for Biomedical Research on Trace Elements;
an editorial board member of the International Society for Fluoride Research; and
a board member of the Japanese Society of Immunotoxicology. He is coeditor of
Kitasato Medical Journal and a guest reviewer of Toxicological Sciences.

xxi
 1 Introduction
1.1 STUDY OF ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY
Environmental toxicology is concerned with the effects of environmental toxicants
on the health of living organisms and the environment. Environmental toxicants
are agents released into the general environment that can cause adverse effects on
health. The study of environmental toxicology stems from the recognition that (a)
human survival depends on the availability of clean air, water, and food and on the
welfare of plants and animals; and (b) anthropogenic chemicals as well as naturally
occurring chemicals can cause adverse effects on living organisms and ecological
processes. The study of environmental toxicology thus focuses on how environmen-
tal toxicants, through their interaction with humans, animals, and plants, influence
the health and welfare of these organisms.

1.2 I MPORTANCE OF ENVIRONMENTAL

TOXICOLOGY AS AN AREA OF SCIENCE
Environmental toxicology is a multidisciplinary science that encompasses several
diverse areas of study. Related areas include biology; chemistry (inorganic, organic,
and analytical chemistry and biochemistry); anatomy; genetics; physiology; micro-
biology; ecology; soil, water, and atmospheric sciences; public health; epidemiology;
statistics; and law. Compared with many other fields of study, environmental toxicol-
ogy is a relatively young branch of science. However, its importance has been widely
recognized. Indeed, it is one of the most rapidly growing branches of study. A grow-
ing number of colleges and universities across the United States and Canada have
been offering the course and related programs. A similar trend is seen in a growing
number of institutions in other parts of the world.
Obviously, a large number of scientists in the United States and various other
countries are pursuing careers directly or indirectly associated with environmental
toxicology. The importance of their contributions to the enhancement of environ-
mental quality and human welfare has become increasingly recognized.

1.3 INTRODUCTION TO THIS BOOK

This book provides fundamental information concerning the effects of environmen-
tal toxicants on living systems. The book consists of 17 chapters. Appendix 1 pres-
ents information on ecological risk assessment.
This chapter discusses the purpose of the study of environmental toxicology. It
stresses that its study stems from the recognition that human survival depends on the
availability of clean air, water, and food; the welfare of plants and animals; and the

1
2 Environmental Toxicology: Biological and Health Effects of Pollutants

environment, and that naturally occurring as well as anthropogenic toxicants can

cause a variety of adverse effects on the health of living organisms and ecological
processes. This is followed by pointing out the importance of the study of environ-
mental toxicology as an area of study that is a rapidly growing in the United States,
Canada, and other countries in the world.
Chapter 2, “Environmental Changes and Health,” reviews the dramatic envi-
ronmental changes that have occurred in recent decades and discusses how these
changes have impacted the environment and living systems. Environmental changes
discussed include world population; climate changes, particularly global warming;
rising seawater acidity; air pollution; water pollution; and soil pollution and how
these changes have an impact on plants, animals, and humans. A special emphasis is
placed on changing human diseases such as cancer, birth defects and child mortal-
ity, reproductive damages, respiratory diseases, endocrine disruption, and diseases
induced by metals.
The sources of environmental toxicants and the way in which they are produced
are reviewed in Chapter 3, “Occurrence of Toxicants.” The chapter also provides a
brief review of several major pollution episodes or disasters that occurred in recent
decades in the world.
The general manner in which environmental pollutants exert their toxic actions on
plants, animals, and humans is discussed in Chapter 4, “Toxic Action of Pollutants.”
For plants, the sources, uptake, transport of pollutants, and the resultant injury
are presented. For mammalian organisms, exposure to pollutants, uptake, trans-
port, storage, metabolism, excretion, and mechanism of toxic actions are covered.
Detailed examples are given explaining the mechanism of the toxic action of pollut-
ants. These include disruption or destruction of cellular structure, combination with
cellular constituents, and inhibition of enzyme activities. For the last aspect, inacti-
vation of cofactors, binding to the active site of the enzyme itself, and inactivation by
toxic metabolites through chelation and metal shift are reviewed. The discussion also
includes free-radical reactions and a basic concept on endocrine disruption.
Many factors can influence the toxicity of xenobiotics. In Chapter 5, “Factors
Affecting Xenobiotic Action,” some of the general factors are addressed. For exam-
ple, physicochemical properties of toxicants; concentration, mode, and duration of
exposure; environmental factors; interaction among different toxicants to produce
additive, potentiating, synergistic, or antagonistic effects; and a variety of biologi-
cal factors are presented. In addition, nutritional factors are discussed, including a
review of such nutrients as carbohydrates, protein, lipids, minerals, and vitamins
such as vitamins A, D, E, and C.
“Biotransformation: Metabolism of Xenobiotics” is presented in Chapter 6. It
reviews the process whereby xenobiotics are converted in the body and the sum of all
chemical reactions that occur within a living cell. The discussion begins with the two
phases of biotransformation, phase I and phase II reactions, which include oxidation,
reduction, hydrolysis, and conjugation. In addition to the mechanism of biotransfor-
mation, its characteristics, consequence, and the factors that affect the reaction are
addressed. The chapter closes with the discussion of cytochrome P450s.
As is clear, living organisms are exposed to a variety of environmental toxicants.
On the other hand, living organisms often possess certain defense mechanisms
Introduction 3

that enable them to defend against the actions of those toxicants. In addition, they
take in various essential nutrients from their diet and the immediate environment.
Examples are given in Chapter 7, “Responses to Environmental Toxicants,” showing
how plants, animals, and humans are equipped with such defense mechanisms. For
example, in plants a kind of polypeptide called phytochelatin is produced in the cell
that is capable of alleviating the toxic effect of heavy metals such as cadmium (Cd)
and lead (Pb). Different endogenous antioxidants, such as vitamins C and E and glu-
tathione, are also present in cells, together with antioxidant enzymes such as super-
oxide dismutase (SOD), catalase, gluthione peroxidase, and glutathione reductase.
All these can help counteract the toxic effect of free radicals in plant cells.
In humans and animals, the respiratory tract, membranes, liver, and kidneys are
equipped with mechanisms that can counteract the toxic effects of various toxicants.
For example, the liver plays a foremost role in detoxifying xenobiotics. An interest-
ing phenomenon concerning the toxicity of Cd is the role that metallothioneins play.
Metallothioneins are nonenzymatic proteins and are ubiquitous in the animal king-
dom. The proteins are rich in cystein and are capable of binding metals such as Cd,
thus alleviating its toxicity.
Inorganic gases, including SO2, NO2, O3, and CO, as they relate to air pollution
are covered in Chapter 8. The sources, characteristics, and effects on plants, animals,
human health, and biological effects are presented in this chapter. Among the nitro-
gen oxides, the importance of nitrous oxide (N2O) is also addressed. N2O has recently
been shown to be an extremely important gas in contributing to stratospheric ozone
layer depletion. In Chapter 9, “Air Pollution: Particulate Matter,” discussion begins
with physical and chemical formations of this type of air pollutant, followed by its
influence on health. Special emphasis is placed on the occurrence and health effects
of silica and silicosis, asbestos and asbestosis, and beryllium and berylliosis.
The sources and forms of fluorine found in the environment and how they
have an impact on the health of living organisms are discussed in Chapter 10,
“Environmental Fluoride.” Even though fluoride is not listed by the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) as one of the six “criteria air pollutants,” it is nevertheless
an important air pollutant. It is known that fluorine has an impact on tens of millions
of people throughout the world, particularly in the less-developed countries. As an
air pollutant, fluoride is known to be most phytotoxic and can damage plants at a
very low concentration. In addition, it is an important waterborne pollutant because
at an elevated level it is hazardous to both humans and animals. The chapter begins
with how fluoride is produced as a result of different industrial processes. This is
followed by discussion of the chronic and acute effects of fluoride on plants, ani-
mals, and humans and the biochemical effects on these organisms. The relationship
between nutrition and fluoride toxicity is also discussed.
The volatile organic compounds (VOCs) presented in Chapter 11 are another
important group of air pollutants. A large number of VOCs are emitted from indus-
trial and nonindustrial facilities in the United States and the world. Chemically,
VOCs include both aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons, halogenated hydrocar-
bons, some alcohols, esters, and aldehydes. Both natural and anthropogenic sources
contribute to VOC emissions. Natural sources include petroleum, forest fires, and
the transformation of biogenic precursors, whereas anthropogenic sources include
4 Environmental Toxicology: Biological and Health Effects of Pollutants

high-temperature combustion of fuels, emission from crude and refined oil, munici-
pal incineration, emissions from power boats, and burning of crops before or after
harvesting as an agricultural practice. The sources of exposure and health effects,
including carcinogenic impacts, of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and
their metabolism are presented. In addition, the controversies related to the use of
bisphenol A (BPA) are discussed.
Chapter 12 covers the environmental metals and metalloids involved in soil and
water pollution. The chapter contains the characteristics and uses of lead (Pb), cad-
mium (Cd), mercury (Hg), nickel (Ni), and arsenic (As). Because of its importance
as an air pollutant, Pb has been included as one of the six criteria air pollutants des-
ignated by the EPA. Lead poisoning is the most common and serious environmen-
tal disease affecting young children in the United States. The characteristic health
and biological effects of the metal are discussed in some detail. The biochemical
effect of Pb, particularly its inhibitory effect on heme biosynthesis, is discussed, and
the relationship of nutrition with Pb toxicity is also covered. Two well-known out-
breaks termed itai-itai-byo and “Minamata disease” were caused by Cd and methyl
Hg poisonings, respectively. Their toxic effects on plants, animals, and humans are
reviewed in this chapter, together with the alleviating effect of nutrition. The chapter
also discusses the occurrence and health effects of Ni and As, including their carci-
nogenic effects.
Chapter 13 is about pesticides and related materials. It discusses the chemistry,
characteristics, and health effects of several representative groups of pesticides and
herbicides. In addition, several halogenated hydrocarbons, such as polychlorinated
biphenyls (PCBs) and dioxins, are reviewed. These have become of much concern
in recent years. The review covers chlorinated hydrocarbons and organophosphorus
compounds. In the discussion of herbicides, 2,4-D (2,4-dichlorophenoxy acetic acid)
and 2,4,5-T (2,4,5-trichlorophenoxy acetic acid), PCBs, polybrominated biphenyl,
and dioxin (2,3,7,8-tetrachlorobenzo-p-dioxin) (TCDD) are stressed, including their
effect on gene regulation.
Chapter 14 deals with occupational toxicology. The discussion traces a short
history of different occupational diseases beginning with the pre- and postindus-
trial revolution, followed by toxicology and preventive medicine in the modern era.
Special emphasis is placed on respiratory toxicity, irritation of airways and edema,
occupational respiratory diseases, diseases caused by sensitizers, and nanoparticles,
as recent chemicals of concern.
One of the most pressing environmental issues facing environmental toxicology
is endocrine disruption. This general concept is discussed in Chapter 15. The general
perception on this issue is that exposure to certain anthropogenic chemicals that can
interact with and disrupt the endocrine system may cause some form of malfunction
and ultimately pose serious health problems in humans and wildlife, fisheries, or
their progenies. Chemicals that can induce endocrine disruption are called endocrine
disrupters (EDs) or endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs). The chapter begins with
a brief review of hormonal function. This is followed by a discussion of the character-
istics of EDs and their mode of action. Several examples of endocrine disruption are
then reviewed. They include induction of developmental toxicity, estrogen mimics,
induction of sterility, imposexes, antiandrogens, hypothyroidism, and hormonal
Introduction 5

cancers. A number of methods have been developed and used for studying the pres-
ence and action of EDs. A widely used method of vitellogenin measurement together
with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) technique is discussed.
Chapter 16 presents mutagenic pollutants. Mutation is a process in which the
hereditary constitution of a cell is altered, ultimately leading to a genetically altered
population of cells or organisms. Mutagen is the agent that causes mutation. Although
mutations can occur in the RNA of viruses and the DNA of cytoplasmic organelles,
the mutations of greatest interest occur within genes in the nucleus of the cell. This
chapter reviews mutagens that are commonly found and that are of most concern to
humans. Included in the discussion are ultraviolet light, ionizing radiation, micro-
toxins, and organic and inorganic chemicals. The way in which these agents interact
with DNA to cause mutation, leading to carcinogenicity, are reviewed.
The last chapter of this book, Chapter 17, presents information on environmen-
tal cancer. Cancer is a group of diseases characterized by uncontrolled growth and
spread of abnormal cells. In recent years, there has been a growing concern about
the possible effects of a large number of environmental toxicants on carcinogen-
esis, the production of cancer. Studies showed that nearly 30% of the total mortality
in many industrialized countries is attributed to cancer. The chapter covers cancer
causes, stages in development, metastasis, and mechanism of chemical carcinogens.
In chemical carcinogens, such chemicals as free radicals, DDT, vinyl chloride, alky-
lating agents, trichloroethylene (TCE), and PAHs are discussed. A special emphasis
is placed on the increase in respiratory cancer death rates in the United States. DNA
repair is the topic at the end of the chapter.
 2 Environmental
Changes and Health

2.1 OUR CHANGING ENVIRONMENT

2.1.1 Introduction
Our environment has been changing dramatically in recent decades. Important fac-
tors contributing to the changes include a growing world population, global warm-
ing, expanding industrialization, and advancing technology and economics. Some
other changes are worsening air and water pollution, mounting solid waste, acid rain,
depletion of the ozone layer, and increasing endocrine disrupters in the environment.
These changes have profound impacts on the health and well-being of living organ-
isms. Some of the major issues are discussed here.

2.1.2 World Population

The world population has been increasing steadily and reached about 6.8 billion
in 2010. The increases differ from country to country, however. The United States
Census Bureau projected that China and India alone account for 37% of the world’s
population, and that with China’s overall population growth rate being slowed to
0.5% annually, the projected peak is 1.4 billion people, lower than previously esti-
mated. In comparison, India’s annual growth rate is 1.4%, which is attributed to the
fertility rate of 2.6 births per woman, compared to China’s fewer than 1.6 births
per woman. Furthermore, with almost 1.2 billion people, India is disproportionately
young; roughly half the population is younger than 25. It is estimated that in the
coming decades, India is projected to surpass China as the world’s most populous
nation, with estimates ranging from 1.5 billion to 1.9 billion people (Roberts 2009).
India’s leaders recognize that this must be avoided. Many researchers also con-
sider that it is high time for India to act. To cope with the serious situation, dif-
ferent programs to slow birth rates are being tried in India. For example, a pilot
program has been initiated in Satara, a city in the state of Maharashtra. The city
has provided cash bonuses to young women to slow birth rates (Yardley 2010).
In contrast to both China and India, Russia has been experiencing a declining
population in recent years. According to projections by the United Nations, Russia’s
population, currently 140 million, will likely be decreased to 116 million by 2050
(The Wall Street Journal, September 11, 2010), a decrease of more than 17%, or more
than 4% a year.

7
8 Environmental Toxicology: Biological and Health Effects of Pollutants

2.1.3 Global Climate Changes: Global Warming

According to the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
the global tropospheric temperature for 1978 to 2002 increased 0.22 to 0.26°C per
10 years. The increase was consistent with the global warming trend derived from
surface meteorological stations (Vinnikov and Krody 2003).
A recent New York Times report showed that the icecap atop Mount Kilimanjaro
in Tanzania is retreating at such a pace that it will disappear in less than 15 years.
In addition, its glaciers are also rapidly thinning, with one spot having lost nearly 1
m of thickness since early 2002. Some scientists report that the mountain has lost
82% of the icecap it had in 1912, when it was first carefully surveyed. The summits
of both the Northern and Southern Ice Fields atop the mountain have thinned by 1.9
m and 5.1 m, respectively. At 5,896 m high, the mountain is one of Tanzania’s top
tourism draws. It brings in an estimated US$50 million a year, a revenue that is now
under threat.
Climate changes have also been shown to affect ocean temperature, salinity, and
flow patterns. Warmer temperatures weaken the ice, making it vulnerable to cur-
rent changes and other forces. Scientists think that this has already influenced the
stability of ice shelves in the Antarctic. Indeed, two chunks of ice, the size of a small
country, broke off the Antarctic Peninsula’s Larsen Ice Shelf in 1995 and 2002,
respectively (Kaiser 2003).
Only 100 years ago, the whole northern coast of Ellesmere Island was edged by a
continuous ice shelf. About 90% of the shelf is now gone. Existing records show an
increase of 0.4°C every 10 years since 1967, and the average July temperature has been
1.3°C since that year (Burton 2001). Under the most extreme scenario, global warm-
ing could thaw the top 3.3 m of permafrost near the ground surface in most areas of
the Northern Hemisphere by 2100, altering ecosystems across Alaska, Canada, and
Russia, on a scale unseen for thousands of years. An ice chunk four times the size
of Manhattan broke off a Greenland glacier. The Petermann glacier cracked early
in August 2010, creating the biggest arctic ice island in half a century (USA Today
2010). The chunk of ice 100 miles square is a reservoir of freshwater that, if collapsed,
would raise global sea levels by a devastating 6 m. Researchers are scrambling to plot
the trajectory of the floating ice shelf, which is moving toward the Nares Strait sepa-
rating Greenland’s northwestern coast and Canada’s Ellsemere Island.
The Anchorage Daily News (O’Hara 2005) also reported that warming tempera-
tures could melt the top 11 feet (3.3 m) of permafrost in Alaska by the end of the
century. This will damage roads and buildings with sinkholes, transforming forest
and tundra into swamps, and releasing large amounts of greenhouse gases into the
air. This meltdown forecast comes amid other signals that the Arctic climate has
been changing fast: shrinking sea ice cover, warmer temperatures, and shifting veg-
etation. According to The New York Times (Gillis 2010), scientists are trying hard to
answer one of the most urgent, and most widely debated, questions facing humanity:
How fast is the world’s ice going to melt? Many scientists now consider that sea level
is likely to rise perhaps 0.9 m (3 feet). Others suggest that the rise could conceivably
be double that figure. A rise of even 0.9 m would inundate low-lying lands in many
countries, rendering some areas uninhabitable. For example, in the United States,
Environmental Changes and Health 9

parts of the East Coast and Gulf Coast would be hit hard. And, some of the world’s
great cities, such as London, Venice, Cairo, Bangkok, and Shanghai would be criti-
cally endangered.
Another recent study also showed that the Pine Island Glacier in Antarctica is
accelerating its retreat. Glaciologists are not sure what caused the retreat. Together
with policy makers, they wonder whether it is because of global warming, the ozone
hole, or simply a random variability.
Onboard a cruise ship, one of the authors of this volume (Yu) visited the Antarctic
Peninsula in February 2010. He saw countless ice chunks and ice-sheets floating in
the seawater. Figure 2.1 shows a picture taken from the ship.
Many environmental researchers believe that the burning of fossil fuels is slowly
causing the climate to change. Exhaust from the fuel burning increases the level of
CO2 and NOx and particulate matter in the atmosphere. This in turn causes Earth to
retain heat, warming the globe. The CO2 level in the atmosphere is already dangerously
high. The current level is reported to be 384 ppm and rapidly rising. According to the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), an atmospheric CO2 level of 540
to 970 ppm and a global temperature rise of 1.4 to 5.8°C could occur by 2100. Similarly,
scientists around the world have found that climate change is altering natural ecosys-
tems, making profound changes in the ways that animals live, migrate, eat, and grow.
While some species have benefited from the shift, others have been left disastrously
short of their food supply. Some are known to have simply disappeared. Many scientists
consider that, if warming continues as predicted, 20% percent or more of the planet’s
plant and animal species could be at increased risk of extinction (Hogue 2010).
Meanwhile, Russia battled drought and wildfires while sweltering in record heat
that claimed thousands of lives. In Pakistan, flooding caused displacement of mil-
lions of Pakistanis. The eastern United States chalked up record numbers of days with
high temperatures. According to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO),

FIGURE 2.1 Ice chunks and ice sheets floating in Antarctica seawater. (Picture by M. H.
Yu, February 2010.)
10 Environmental Toxicology: Biological and Health Effects of Pollutants

all of these events are extreme—they compare with or exceed previous records for
intensity, duration, or geographic extent.
The melting glaciers in the state of Washington are also causing concerns. With
more glaciers than any state in the lower 48, Washington has emerged as a leader in
demonstrating global warming. A national environmental group recently reported that
the North Cascades and Mt. Rainier are among the dozen national parks most suscep-
tible to climate change. According to the National Park Service at Mt. Rainier, which is
among the best-studied sites in the nation, the area covered by glaciers shrank by more
than a fifth from 1913 to 1994, and the volume of the glaciers by almost one-fourth
from 1912 to 2001; the Nisqually Glacier on Mt. Rainier retreated nearly 1.6 km.
According to a recent U.N. Convention of Biodiversity report (UN News Service
2010), the globe falls short of biodiversity. The report found that far too many of the
world’s plants and animals—and the wild places that support them—are at risk of
collapse, despite a global goal set in 2002 for major improvement by 2010. The report
showed that the species most at risk of extinction are frogs and other amphibians,
and that coral reefs are the species deteriorating most rapidly; the survival of nearly a
quarter of all plant species is threatened. Pollution, climate change, drought, defores-
tation, and overfishing are among the culprits named by the agency in May 2010.

2.1.3.1 Impact on Plants

The U.N. Convention of Biodiversity report was echoed by the observation of Weis
at the University of Toronto (Franks et al. 2007). He showed that the field mustard
weed has responded to repeated recent droughts in California—believed to be con-
nected to climate change—by flowering earlier in the year and producing strong
seeds before the soil dries out in the summer. The reproductive cycle of the weed has
also sped up, allowing the plant to respond faster to the changing climate. In gen-
eral, species that can reproduce rapidly will adapt more easily to the pace of climate
change than old trees. According to Randolph E. Schmid of the Associated Press,
global warming apparently drives plants to higher ground (Schmid 2008). A study
of 171 forest species in Western Europe showed that most of them are shifting their
favored locations to higher, cooler spots. For the first time, research can show the
“fingerprints of climate change” in the distribution of plants by altitude, not only in
sensitive ecosystems. The researchers pointed out that the quickest to relocate were
plants such as herbs, ferns, and mosses with shorter life spans and faster reproduc-
tion cycles. In contrast, long-lived plants like trees that reproduce slowly are more
threatened by climate change because they cannot quickly relocate.

2.1.3.2 Impact on Birds and Animals

A new assessment showed that a quarter of the world’s wild mammal species are
at risk of extinction. The new assessment, which took 1,700 experts in 130 coun-
tries 5 years to complete, covered all 5,487 wild species identified since 1500 and
indicated that “mammals are definitely declining, and the driving factors are habi-
tat destruction and over harvesting,” according to Jan Schipper, a lead author of
the global mammal assessment of the International Union for the Conservation of
Nature (IUCN 2009). The researchers concluded that 25% to 36% of the mammal
species are threatened with extinction. Land and marine mammals face different
Environmental Changes and Health 11

threats, and large mammals are more vulnerable than small ones. For land species,
habitat loss and hunting represent the greatest danger; marine mammals are more
threatened by accidental killing, ship strikes, and pollution. Primates face some of
the most intense pressures: According to the survey, 79% of primates in South and
Southeast Asia are facing extinction.
Researchers reported that autumn temperatures in the Arctic are at record levels,
9°(F) above normal. The Arctic Ocean is getting warmer and less salty as sea ice
melts, and reindeer herds appear to be declining.
A unique observation has been made. In the summer of 2009, researchers from
the Imperial College London noticed that the wild Soay sheep off the western coast
of Scotland had shrunk. On average, they have become 5% smaller (Walsh 2009).
This was surprising because bigger is generally better for sheep. They fatten up
on grass during the fertile, sunny summer; when the harsh Scottish winter comes,
the grass disappears, and the smallest, scrawniest sheep tend to die off while their
heftier, fitter cousins survive to reproduce in the spring. Researchers considered that
it is not that evolution has been repealed in Scotland. They think rather that global
warming has simply made it easier for smaller, less-fit Soay sheep to survive. And,
plenty of other species are quickly adapting to the changing climate in smaller ways.
Bryan Walsh reported that as the planet warms, species like the wild Soay sheep are
evolving in response. They have been getting shorter and milder, largely as a result
of climate change. That makes food more abundant and allows some of the smaller,
younger sheep not only to survive but also to have offspring that tend to be tiny, yet
have a better chance of survival because of the warmer winters. But, they may not
keep pace with the astonishing speed of climate change (Time, 2009).
Tim Coulson and his colleagues at the Imperial College London found the sur-
prising fact about evolution and global warming, but they also recognized that the
relationship is not linear. It is not only rising temperatures that trigger evolution but
also changing seasonal patterns, especially among species that live in the temper-
ate or polar regions and are finely tuned to the seasons. Earlier springs and later
falls confuse wildlife, which tell the time of year by the length of the days. They
are using the most reliable environmental cue they have: “light,” said Bradshaw and
Holzapfel (2001), at the University of Oregon. Holzapfel considered that means big
shifts in fundamental survival behavior. As the environment changes, individuals
that cannot change are lopped off. “What’s left is a different kind of population
that can evolve and move forward.” Global warming may outrun even the fittest
wildlife, and the short-term success of animals like the Soay sheep may not last.
The outcome of when evolution cannot keep pace with climate change is “extinc-
tion,” unfortunately.
A report by the Interior Department showed that changes in the global climate are
imposing additional stress on hundreds of species of migratory birds in the United
States that are already threatened by other environmental stressors. The latest ver-
sion of the department’s annual “state of the birds report” showed that nearly a third
of the nation’s 800 bird species are endangered, threatened, or suffering from popu-
lation decline. For the first time, the report added climate changes to other factors
threatening bird populations, including destruction of habitat, hunting, pesticides,
invasive species, and loss of wetlands (Broder 2010). The report indicated that
12 Environmental Toxicology: Biological and Health Effects of Pollutants

oceanic and shorebirds are among the most vulnerable to climate change because
of rapidly changing marine ecosystems and rising sea levels. Goose populations are
increasing as they expand their range within the Arctic. NOAA reported that the
surface of the ocean is growing warmer, and record temperatures were set (NOAA
2010). Kenneth Rosenberg, director of conservation science at Cornell University’s
Lab of Ornithology, reported that “birds are excellent indicators of the health of our
environment, and right now they are telling us an important story about climate
change” (Rosenberg 2010).

2.1.3.3 Impact on Tropical Species

While the most significant harm from climate change so far has been in the polar
regions, tropical plants and animals may face an even greater threat. Researchers
at the University of Connecticut (Colwell 2008) warned that some tropical species
are living near their maximum temperatures already, and warmer conditions could
cause them to decline. The researchers estimated that a temperature increase of
3.2°C (5.8°F) over a century would make 53% of the 1,902 lowland tropical species
they studied subject to attrition. In addition, the tiny Kihansi spray toad, which once
numbered at least 17,000 at Kihansi Falls in Tanzania, has been shown to be extinct
in the wild.

2.1.3.4 Impact on Freshwater Fish

According to the IUCN, which lists over 47,000 of the world’s species, more than
1,000 freshwater fish species are threatened with extinction, reflecting the strain on
global water resources. Overall, the 2009 survey found that over a third, or 17,292
species out of 47,677 assessed, are now in danger of extinction (The Straits Times
(Singapore), 2009).

2.1.4 Impact on Marine Oxygen

According to the Associated Press, some researchers warn that low-oxygen zones
where sea life is threatened or cannot survive are growing as the oceans are heated by
global warming. Oxygen-depleted zones in the central and eastern equatorial Atlantic
and equatorial Pacific oceans appear to have expanded over the last 50 years.
Low-oxygen zones in the Gulf of Mexico and other areas have also been studied
in recent years, raising concerns about the threat to sea life. Continued expansion of
these zones could have dramatic consequences for both sea life and coastal econo-
mies. Most marine species have a minimum oxygen threshold that they need for sur-
vival. As oxygen levels decrease, these animals will suffer or be compelled to move
to other areas. Over time, the optimal area for various species will be compressed.
The general pattern is for colder ocean waters in the north and south to absorb oxy-
gen, cool and sink below the surface, and then flow toward the equator.
Scientists reported that 2007 was the warmest year on record in the Arctic (Rice
2008), resulting in a record loss of sea ice. The sea ice melt in 2008 was second only
to 2007. Rising temperatures help melt the ice, which in turn allows more solar heat-
ing of the ocean. That warming of the air and ocean affects land and marine life and
reduces the amount of winter sea ice that lasts into the following summer. The study
Environmental Changes and Health 13

also noted a warming trend in Arctic and increase in greenness as shrubs move north
into areas that were formerly permafrost. The Arctic Ocean continued to warm and
freshen due to ice melt. This was accompanied by an “unprecedented” rate of sea-
level rise of nearly 0.1 inch per year. Warming continued around Greenland in 2007,
resulting in a record amount of ice melt. The Greenland ice sheet lost 24 cubic miles
of ice, making it the largest single contributor to global sea-level rise.
Some scientists are concerned about an even more worrisome effect on future
generations. With the long residence time of CO2 in the atmosphere and warmer
oceans, what are the prospects for the twenty-second century? Many scientists con-
sider that, because of their wealth and advanced technology, the United States and
other industrial nations may be able to cope with global warming effects in their
own lands in this century but are unlikely to escape serious impacts in the following
century (Burton 2001).
Knowledge about the contribution of CO2 and other greenhouse gases to global
warming has led a number of countries to lower their emissions. This trend is par-
ticularly marked in several European countries, such as Germany, France, Italy, and
the United Kingdom. By contrast, some Asian countries, including China, India,
and South Korea, have markedly increased their energy-related carbon emissions
over the past three decades. An annual report by the International Energy Agency
showed that global energy use will grow 36% by the year 2035, spurred mostly by
China’s rapid increase in energy consumption. According to the report, China over-
took the United States in 2009 to become the largest energy user in the world, and its
per capita consumption—currently one-fifth that of the United States—is expected
to rise over the coming decades, with automobile use projected to increase 10-fold
(Time, November 22, 2010, p. 21).

2.1.5 Rising Acidity of Seawater

According to a panel of marine scientists in Seattle, Puget Sound faces an uncertain
future due to the increasing acidity of seawater. These changes are coming more rap-
idly than expected and could disrupt food chains and threaten the shellfish industry
in Washington (BellinghamHerald.com, May 28, 2008). The acidic seawater is mov-
ing closer to shallow waters containing the bulk of marine life. The increasingly cor-
rosive waters threaten the survival of many marine organisms. The latest research
showed that acidic water is appearing along the Pacific Coast decades earlier than
expected. The acidified water does not pose a threat to humans, but it could dissolve
the shells of clams, oysters, and other shellfish. The state of Washington is known to
produce 85% of all shellfish on the West Coast.
According to the Associated Press, Victoria, British Colombia’s capital, plans
to stop pouring a huge volume of untreated sewage into the marine waters between
Vancouver Island and Washington State. Regional politicians approved a $1.2 billion
plan to build four treatment plants by 2016 to handle about 34 million gallons (about
130 million liters) of raw sewage that Victoria and six suburbs pump into the Strait of
Juan de Fuca each day. The cities are home to about 300,000 people.
Global ocean currents make the Pacific Northwest’s coastal ecosystems particu-
larly vulnerable to acidification effects. A worldwide “conveyor belt” slowly carries
14 Environmental Toxicology: Biological and Health Effects of Pollutants

colder water from the North Atlantic to the North Pacific. Along the way, the water
accumulates CO2 from the dead organisms, so it naturally has a higher CO2 concen-
tration before human-made CO2 is added. A process known as “upwelling” drags
this water into shallower, coastal areas. As long as CO2 continues to increase in the
atmosphere, the oceans will continue to absorb that, but what we are seeing is only
going to get worse. Some scientists indicated that even though we will not see a total
collapse in food chains, we will see substitutions; we may end up with food chains
or food webs that are highly undesirable and not productive for the means that we
use them today.
Increased use of fossil fuels has caused the levels of CO2 in the atmosphere to
nearly double since the Industrial Revolution. According to Richard A. Feely (Feely
et al. 2004), a senior scientist with the NOAA’s Pacific Marine Environmental
Laboratory in Seattle, “Over the past 200 years the oceans have absorbed approxi-
mately 550 billion tons of CO2 from the atmosphere, or about a third of the total
amount of anthropogenic emission over that period.” That means the ocean currently
absorbs about 22 million tons of CO2 per day, he added. The high levels of human-
generated CO2 are the main reason that oceans are acidifying. The global pH of sur-
face ocean waters is currently about 8.1 and is expected to drop by approximately 0.3
units in the next 50–100 years. As the ocean becomes more acidic, scientists antici-
pate myriad changes to the ocean’s chemistry. Changing pH is likely to affect many
aspects of biochemistry, development, and reproduction for many marine organisms.
The scientists recognize that ocean acidification threatens marine ecosystems, but
few studies have examined effects on fish. This acidity dissolves CaCO3, which con-
stitutes shells. If diatoms, corals, clams, and oysters succumb to this, it will wipe out
not only the shellfish industry but also potentially the entire marine food chain.
Scientists have been concerned for many years that lower ocean pH caused by
absorption of emitted CO2 could decrease calcification processes underlying the
growth of shells and the hard exteriors of corals. Scientists are also looking into
some unexpected consequences of ocean acidification, such as disruptions to sound
propagation and transmission of chemical cues. For example, Philip L. Munday of
James Cook University in Australia and colleagues raised clownfish (Amphiprion
percula) in seawater acidified with CO2 (Munday et al. 2011). At pH 7.8, a condition
that could arise around 2100 if the oceans continue to absorb CO2 at the current rate,
the fish lost the ability to distinguish between chemical cues that might help them
locate a proper habitat. At pH 7.6, the fish did not respond to any environmental
cues. If the pH drop is widespread, it could threaten the survival of a broad range
of marine species. More studies are needed to see whether the effect is reversible.
Another example was given in a recent C&EN report indicating that ocean acidity
affects fish senses (C&EN, February 9, 2009). Some scientists believe that the net
effect of these and other yet-undiscovered changes may threaten the survival of a
wide variety of marine organisms.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) stressed that states should consider
acting against ocean acidity. It advised that states with coastal water that is becoming
more acidic because of CO2 should be listed as impaired under the Clean Water Act
(TheBellinghamHerald.com, May 24, 2010). The federal agency’s memo to states
recognized CO2 as not only an air pollutant but also a water pollutant and noted the
Environmental Changes and Health 15

serious impacts that ocean acidification can have on aquatic life. Currently, about
40,000 bodies of water are listed nationwide as impaired.

2.1.6 Rise in Diseases

Another concern about the impact of global warming is the possible rise in diseases.
For instance, a variety of diseases broke out in several countries during the 1990s
after extraordinary heat followed by drastic weather conditions, such as heavy mon-
soons and floods. As a result, significant numbers of deaths occurred worldwide
induced by diseases such as cholera, pulmonary hantavirus, plague, and dengue
fever. Some scientists cautioned that perhaps an even more immediate threat of the
warming trend is the rapid spread of disease-bearing bugs and pests (Linden 1996).
A U.N. report predicted that global temperature would rise by between 2°C and 4°C
by the end of this century. The best estimate is that if emission of the greenhouse gases
continues to rise, the global average temperature may rise 3°C by 2100 (UNEP 2011).

2.2 AIR POLLUTION

2.2.1 Introduction
Air pollution is generally defined as the presence of substances in air at such con-
centrations, duration, and frequencies that it causes adverse effects on the health of
living organisms and the environment. The problems related to air pollution have
increased steadily since the end of World War II. The extent to which air pollution
influences public health is shown by many air pollution-related episodes. One of
those episodes is the widely known 4,000 “excess deaths” that occurred in London
in 1952 (see Figure 3.1). Similar but less-serious air pollution-related injuries also
occurred in other major cities in the world, including Osaka, Los Angeles, and New
York, although the air pollutants involved were often different from one another.
A wide range of pollutants is present in indoor and outdoor air. They include SO2,
NOx, CO, and O3 and other photochemical oxidants, different types of particulates,
heavy metals such as lead, and various kinds of volatile organic compounds (VOCs).
The major sources of air pollution are combustion of fossil fuels for electricity and
transportation, a variety of industrial processes, heating, and cooking.
According to the North American Commission for Environmental Cooperation
(CEC), in the United States, electric power plants accounted for one-quarter of the
industrial pollution released into the North American environment in 1998. This was
closely followed by pollution from the primary metals sector, the chemical industry,
and hazardous waste management sectors (Benner 2001). While problems associated
with air pollution remain of global concern, encouraging results have been shown
with its control in the United States and other industrialized countries. For example,
according to an EPA report, a substantial improvement in air pollution has occurred
in the United States since 1970. Emissions of six principal air pollutants (i.e., SO2,
NOx, CO, O3, particulate matter, and lead) have declined 48% since 1970. SO2 emis-
sions from power plants are 9% lower than in 2000 and 41% lower than in 1980,
while NOx emissions declined 13% from 2000 and 33% from the 1990 level. The
16 Environmental Toxicology: Biological and Health Effects of Pollutants

levels of ground-level O3, however, have decreased the least. The 10-year trend has
been relatively unchanged. According to a report by the EPA, total annual emission
of 188 regulated toxics in the United States has declined by 36% since 1980 (USEPA
2010). Still, there are some unacceptable risks posed by industrial air pollution in
some parts of the country.

2.2.2 Air Pollution and Developing Economies

Many of the rapidly growing cities in the world are experiencing growing air pol-
lution problems. Serious concerns have been voiced about the health hazards of
air pollution in a number of less-developed countries. With unprecedented growth
shown in urban centers, megacities with populations of 10 million or more have
emerged in many less-industrialized countries, including China and India. In India
alone, for example, there are four such cities, with three others expected to join
the ranks in the next 20 years. The majority of the 300 million urban dwellers in
India, representing 30% of the country’s population, are experiencing deteriorating
air quality. India’s major cities are reportedly among the most polluted in the world,
with concentrations of several air pollutants well above the levels recommended by
the World Health Organization (WHO). Some scientists in the country caution that
the residents of its megacities face significant risks to their health from exposure to
air pollutants (Kandlikar and Ramachandran 2000).
China’s Environmental Protection Administration acknowledged early in June
2010 that, despite tougher measures, pollution is increasing as the country’s economy
rebounds, quashing hopes that China had turned a corner in 2009 when emissions
dropped. Emissions of SO2, for example, rose 1.2% in the first quarter compared
with 2009, as exports and domestic demand picked up and China burned more coal
in power plants and factories, according to Zhang Lijun, vice minister of the environ-
ment in the country. He also indicated that authorities now are “not very optimistic”
on the prospects of emission cuts. Ground-level ozone (O3) is formed by reactions
between CO and other pollutants and sunlight. O3 irritates the respiratory system
and may increase the risk of heart diseases. The country’s EPA authorities estimated
the annual number of premature deaths in China caused by air pollution at 358,000
(TheBellinghamHerald.com, June 4, 2010).
As is widely known, China has achieved extreme economic growth for the past
several decades. The growth is coupled with accelerated industrialization, greatly
increased energy consumption, and urbanization (He et al. 2002). The accelerated
urbanization is evidenced by marked increases in the proportion of urban popula-
tion to the total population in China, from 18% in 1978 to 31% in 1999, a growth rate
three times the world average during this period. The explosive economic growth
also made China the world’s largest energy consumer. Coal accounts for roughly
25% of the world energy supply and 40% of the carbon emissions (http://energy.
gov/carbongraph). Coal is the primary energy source in China, accounting for about
80% of the total energy consumption. In China, the use of coal is the origin of many
air pollution problems, such as SO2 pollution, particulate matter, and acid rain (He
et al. 2002).
Environmental Changes and Health 17

FIGURE 2.2 A smoggy day in Guangzhou, China. (Courtesy of C. Y. Yu, October 2010.)

Furthermore, crude oil consumption has also increased, with an average growth
rate of 6% per year in the past decades. Part of this increase is the result of growing
use of motor vehicles. This has accelerated ambient pollution by NOx, CO, and other
pollutants in large cities. Indeed, China’s growing energy consumption, reliance on
coal, and rapidly increasing use of vehicles place a heavy burden on the urban atmo-
sphere, and urban air pollution has become a major environmental problem in the
country. Many cities have suffered from increasingly serious air pollution since the
1980s. During the 1990s, some megacities, such as Beijing, Shanghai, Shenyang, and
Guangzhou (Figure 2.2), were always listed among the top 10 most polluted cities
in the world.
According to Tom Friedman, a columnist with The New York Times, one of his
friends living in Beijing wakes up every morning and does his own air quality test—
as many Beijing residents do. He looks out his 24th-story window and checks how
far he can see. On a rare pristine day, when the wind has swept Beijing, he can see
the Fragrant Mountain rising to the northwest. On a “good pollution day,” he can see
the China World building four blocks away. On a bad day, he cannot see the building
next door (TheBellinghamHerald.com, November 20, 2006).
Some researchers in China have expressed serious concerns about the public
health effects of urban air pollution in that country (He et al. 2002). The concerns
were strongly supported by the studies of Xu et al. (1995). They concluded that the
existing air pollution levels in Beijing are associated with adverse health outcomes.
The scientists studied the data on the average number of daily hospital outpatient
visits at a community-based hospital in Beijing and compared the data with the lev-
els of SO2 and total suspended particles (TSP) in the atmosphere. They found that
increases in the levels of the two types of pollutants were significantly correlated with
the increase in visits to local internal medical clinics in both winter and summer.
The effects of air pollution affecting human health were also reported by scien-
tists in Seoul, South Korea. For example, Ha et al. (2003) studied the effect of air
18 Environmental Toxicology: Biological and Health Effects of Pollutants

pollution on mortality among postneonates, those aged 2 to 64 years, and those over
65 years of age. The study included daily counts of total deaths and deaths due to
respiratory problems, along with analyses of daily levels of particulate matter less
than 10 µm (PM10). The results showed that children’s mortality rates, particularly
those related to the respiratory system, were most correlated with PM10.
According to Pan Yue, China’s vice minister for environmental protection, “It will
only come from a shift of attitudes from the very top to the very bottom (Economy
2007). My job is to educate and encourage this shift, so that officials don’t just think
about economic growth as GDP [gross domestic product] growth but also factor in
environmental health.” China’s tenth 5-year plan, which began in 2000, called for a
10% reduction in the SO2. When that plan concluded in 2005, air pollution in China
is said to have increased by 27%.
In its first report on China’s environment, the International Organization for
Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) found that the country is harming
its environment and the health of its citizens as its economy leaps forward (Tremblay
2007). OECD estimated that unless the current trend is changed, by 2020 air pollution
will lead to 600,000 premature deaths annually in Chinese cities. Citing data from
the Chinese Ministry of Health, OECD said 300 million rural residents already lack
access to safe drinking water. The report also indicated China consumes resources
inefficiently. It found that the country generates more pollution and consumes more
resources per unit of GDP than OECD average. “China is aiming to quadruple its
GDP between 2000 and 2020, but the country requires commensurate strengthening
of environmental management and finance so that economic growth is environmen-
tally sustainable,” the report said.
In the richer parts of China, local officials are responding to citizens’ demands for
less pollution. But in much of the country, the report said, one of the primary obsta-
cles to progress is that local leaders have to raise revenues locally and face “limited
accountability.” As a result, economic growth takes precedence over environmental
preservation. OECD recommends improving the enforcement capabilities of China’s
local Environmental Protection Bureaus and turning the state Environmental
Protection Agency into a ministry. The report noted that the state of China’s envi-
ronment is an international issue because it involves global energy consumption pat-
terns, global manufacturing patterns, and transboundary pollution. The conclusions
and recommendation in the report were approved by a Chinese government delega-
tion that took part in the project.
In 2007, the WHO called on governments to improve air quality in their cities
because air pollution prematurely kills 2 million people a year, with more than half
the deaths in developing countries (TheBellinghamHerald.com, August 26, 2007).
Reducing pollution from particles that are too small to be filtered in the nose and
throat and settle in the lungs could save as many as 300,000 lives every year, accord-
ing to the regional office of WHO in Manila. And, reducing levels of those extremely
small particles could cut the deaths from air pollution by about 15%. More than 10
million people are at risk for lung infection, cancer, and shortened life expectancy
because they live in the 10 worst-polluted cities in the world, according to the report.
The National Health Bureau in Taiwan reported a similar observation. The report
showed that men exceeded women in 9 of the 10 most serious disease deaths, and
Environmental Changes and Health 19

life span for men was 6.6 years less than that of women. The death rate was 748.6
per 100,000 for men compared to 481.9 per 100,000 for women. Of these, the cancer
death rate for men was 33.6% higher than that for women. High blood pressure was
the top preventable contributing factor to the deaths, followed by cigarette smoking,
physical inactivity, and being underweight. Lung cancer was the top cause of death
in that disease category, and 63% of the men surveyed were smokers.
The 2006 Environmental Performance Index, jointly produced by Yale and
Columbia universities, shockingly ranked the United States 28th in overall perfor-
mance, behind most of Western Europe, Japan, Taiwan, Malaysia, Costa Rica, and
Chile but ahead of Russia and South Korea (TheBellinghamHerald.com, January
23, 2006).

2.3 INDOOR AIR POLLUTION

Indoor air pollution is one of the top five most urgent environmental risks to public
health, according to the U.S. EPA. Risk can rise in winter, as people tightly shut the
windows and doors and unwittingly trap unhealthy air inside (BellinghamHerald.
com, November 20, 2006). Poor indoor air quality can exacerbate chronic lung dis-
eases such as asthma. It also can cause headaches, dry eyes, nasal congestion, nau-
sea, and fatigue.
Major sources of indoor air pollution include tobacco smoke, mold that grows in
poorly ventilated basements and bathrooms, smoke from wood-burning fireplaces
and stoves, fumes from housecleaning products, smoke and gas fumes from cooking,
dust trapped in carpets, cancer-causing radioactive radon gas, and CO that can result
from poorly vented heaters and other fuel-burning appliances. CO can affect human
health even at low levels. Nearly 300 Americans die each year from CO exposure,
but less than 30% of those people have detectors at home.

2.4 WATER POLLUTION

Historically, the concern about water pollution was related to its health effects. While
in many countries this remains true, in the United States and other developed coun-
tries the results of improved treatment and distribution methods have, to a certain
degree, shifted the emphasis. Many citizens in these countries generally regard water
pollution not so much in terms of health, but rather of conservation, aesthetics, and
the preservation of natural beauty and resources. Many of the world’s lakes, rivers,
and streams have suffered from the effects of water pollution. Moreover, the prob-
lems associated with water pollution are worsening in many countries, particularly
in some of the less-developed countries.
The main sources of water pollution include both inorganic and organic wastes,
heat from industries, petroleum compounds, municipal wastes, agricultural wastes,
pesticides, and acid mine drainage. Many industrial processes have the potential
of discharging different types of wastes that could cause significant water pollu-
tion problems.
Human diseases and casualties arising from water pollution attracted worldwide
attention after “Minamata disease” and itai-itai-byo (“ouch-ouch disease”) broke
20 Environmental Toxicology: Biological and Health Effects of Pollutants

out in Japan during the 1940s and 1950s. Minamata disease was caused by eat-
ing fish and shellfish laden with highly toxic methylmercury, while itai-itai-byo was
attributed to ingestion of rice contaminated with high levels of cadmium (Cd) (see
Chapter 12).
In addition to heavy metals, a variety of inorganic and organic compounds can
contaminate streams, lakes, and rivers, threatening their water quality. The observa-
tion that stream water or garden fertilizers may be contaminated with perchlorate
is an example. Industrial and military operations and fireworks manufacturers use
perchlorate as an oxidizing agent, and they appear to be the primary sources of
contamination. Perchlorate is potentially harmful to thyroid function and could be
widespread in some American agricultural areas because earlier studies by the EPA
research laboratory showed that common garden fertilizers contained perchlorate
concentrations up to 0.84% by weight. However, a subsequent study released by the
agency showed that the majority of fertilizers used in the United States are not con-
taminated with perchlorate salts (Benner 2001).
Water pollution not only can influence human health directly but also can threaten
aquatic life, particularly fish. For instance, in the early 1960s millions of fish in
the lower Mississippi River died from the effects of chlorinated organic pesticides,
particularly endrin. In the early 1970s, contamination of fish with DDT and PCBs
(polychlorinated biphenyls) caused an abrupt halt to commercial salmon fishing in
the upper Great Lakes. Although much progress has been made since, and the public
is encouraged by the reports on the decreased levels of chlorinated hydrocarbons and
other toxicants in fish crops, problems of water pollution in the Great Lakes appear
to have persisted for some time (see Case Study 2.1).

Case Study 2.1

The Detroit News published a report, “Disappearing Shrimp Pose Threat to Great
Lakes Whitefish.” According to the report, one of the principal food sources for white-
fish is disappearing rapidly in the Great Lakes, a change that threatens to shake up
the food chain and impede the state of Michigan’s large commercial fishing industry
(Hirai 2010). The report shows that about 17,000 square miles in the Great Lakes no
longer have diporeia, about a half-inch-long, shrimp-like organism. Research biolo-
gists indicated that they have never seen such a phenomenon before. In the 1980s, the
scientists found densities of diporeia between 10,000 and 20,000 per square mile of
sediment in parts of the Great Lakes. The researchers state that no diporeia are now
found in many of the same spots. Diporeia is a main food source for many fish in the
Great Lakes. Whitefish have become one of the first casualties of the loss of diporeia.
Until recently, whitefish could be found that were about 2 feet long and 5 pounds. Now,
whitefish range from 20 to 22 inches. The decline of the diporeia population remains
somewhat of a mystery to fish researchers. They have examined whether the decline is
a result of contaminants, but so far, there is no conclusive answer.

Case Study 2.2

Around the middle of 1960s, New York City’s Hudson River was found to be dying as
a result of severe pollution. The sources of the pollution were found to be raw sewage
Environmental Changes and Health 21

being dumped into the river by the city; discharge of large quantities of paint from a
plant; oil dumping from Penn Central Railroad; and discharge of water at elevated
temperatures from a nuclear power plant.
There is reason to be encouraged, however. In 1966, several fishermen formed the
Hudson River Fishermen’s Association. Mainly because of their effort and that of oth-
ers who joined subsequently, much improvement was made. Beginning in 1968, a num-
ber of polluters were forced to spend millions of dollars remediating the Hudson. The
by-product of these actions is considered one of the greatest environmental success
stories of the century. Today, the Hudson produces more fish per acre than most other
major estuaries of the North Atlantic. Fish and fishermen, boaters, and swimmers have
reportedly returned to the river (Kennedy 1999).

A global census report published in 2004 showed that nearly a third of the world’s
amphibians were on the verge of extinction. Of the 5,743 known species of toads,
frogs, salamanders, newts, and wormlike caecilians, 1,856, or 32.5%, were in danger
of extinction, according to the Global Amphibian Agency (GAA), a joint effort by 500
researchers in 60 counties. Already, 122 amphibian species have disappeared since
1980, some apparently wiped out by illnesses fostered by warming temperatures;
others were poisoned by pesticides. According to the GAA, since most amphibians
depend on freshwater and feel the effects of pollution before many other forms of
life, their rapid decline tells us that one of the earth’s most critical life-support sys-
tems is breaking down (Attenborough 2008).
According to a 2005 report by the International Herald Tribune (Singapore),
the Chinese government blamed China’s biggest oil company, the China National
Petroleum Corporation (known as CNPC), for a spill of an estimated 100 tons of
benzene compounds into Songhua River. The spill was caused by an explosion of
the plant, and state media reported that five people were killed in the explosion. An
80-km slick of the toxic compounds reached Harbin, the northern city of almost 4
million people on the river that normally supplies it with running water.
In Harbin, residents continued to stockpile bottled drinking water for several days
after the authorities stopped pumping from the river to minimize the risk of poi-
soning. With the municipal water system shut down, schools and many businesses
remained closed. The biggest environmental disasters forced the Chinese authorities
to mount an investigation. China warned neighboring Russia about the toxic spill,
which was being carried toward the border city of Khabarovsk, about 3,800 miles
southeast of Moscow, and with 580,000 residents. The spill eventually reached the
city, and these residents got water provided by city authorities.
The contamination of one of China’s major rivers has drawn attention to the
environmental price that the country is paying for an economic boom lasting three
decades. Living standards have risen dramatically in many regions of China, par-
ticularly the provinces along the east coast, but severe environmental degradation
has emerged as a threat to further development. According to news media, China’s
major cities are among the most polluted in the world, and vast tracts of farmland
are being lost to erosion, industry, and desertification. But, it is the pollution of vital
rivers, lakes, and groundwater in a country that is already short of water that looms
as the biggest immediate threat, environmental experts indicate.
22 Environmental Toxicology: Biological and Health Effects of Pollutants

Even before the benzene spill, there were serious problems with water qual-
ity along the 1,850-km Songhua River, according to the Asian Development Bank
(Lague 2005). The agency indicated in a July 19, 2005, statement that 62 million
people lived in the Songhua River catchment area. The river, however, is one of
the most polluted in the 47 major rivers in China. Contaminated with a number
of organic chemicals, heavy metals, and other conventional pollutants, the river is
considered unsuitable for municipal domestic water use. The bank was helping local
authorities develop plans for pollution control along the river.
As if the benzene spill was not enough, a second human-made disaster hit a
Chinese river 6 weeks later. According to an Associated Press news report, a dam
temporarily blocked a toxic spill of cadmium from flowing downstream and reach-
ing the country’s southern business center, Guangzhow, a city of 7 million (The
Seattle Times 2005). Authorities in southern China dumped water from reservoirs
into the Bei River to dilute the cadmium spill.
According to news media, research showed that marine life in the Pearl River,
China’s third-longest river, contains excessive trace metals that may cause cancer.
The research was started in 2003 and analyzed 58 marine samples collected in the
Pearl River estuary in southern China; samples included fish, shrimp, and crab. The
research showed that 1 kg of shrimp contained 0.835 mg of cadmium, more than 16
times the national standard. The content of lead in fish was 2.2 mg/kg, which also
exceeds the national standard of 1 mg/kg.
Another large oil spill in northwest China heavily polluted a tributary of the
Yellow River and threatened to reach one of the country’s longest and most impor-
tant sources of water. China’s state-run news media said later that a “large amount
of diesel oil had leaked out of pipeline in Shaanxi Province. The leak was caused by
construction work, and a crew of 700 people struggled to contain the damage. The
provincial government officials said that oil had been detected downstream from
the leak and warned local residents not to use water in the region.” The Yellow
River, which stretches for about 5,500 km (about 3,400 miles), is a source of water
for approximately 140 million residents, and it also provides water to factories and
farms through northern China. As the spill threatened the Yellow River, residents
were urged to find alternative sources of drinking water as authorities tried to stop
the damage (Time, January 18, 2010, p. 18).
According to a report released by scientists at the U.S. Geological Survey
(USGS), mercury (Hg) levels in the Pacific Ocean are expected to double relative
to 1995 levels by 2050 if the emission rates of the metal continue as projected. The
work showed for the first time that mercury originating from atmospheric emis-
sions off the coast of Asia can be transported long distances by ocean currents.
Previously, such long-range transport was thought to occur only in the air. The
researchers sampled 16 sites in the eastern North Pacific Ocean and found that
water samples collected in 2006 had 30% more mercury than samples collected in
the mid-1990s. Although the scientists have yet to measure mercury levels in fish
harvested from the Pacific to determine whether these levels also are on the rise, the
National Fisheries Institute pointed out that “peer-reviewed research shows no mer-
cury increase in oceangoing fish over the past 30 years” (Science News 2009). In
Environmental Changes and Health 23

response to the USGS study, the EPA administrator pledged to work with interna-
tional partners to reduce mercury emissions from sources such as coal-fired power
plants (USEPA 2010).

2.5 SOIL POLLUTION

Another major concern is the possible deleterious effect of the release of an increas-
ing number of toxic synthetic chemicals into the environment. This leads to soil
pollution, in addition to air and water pollution, and food contamination. Moreover,
the release of these chemicals is not limited to areas adjacent to point sources such
as industrial facilities. Rather, the chemicals can be transferred to distant areas and
regions where they may elicit adverse effects on living organisms.
In the United States, an assessment of the extent and severity of contamination
is further complicated by the nearly exponential growth of the synthetic organic
chemistry industry since the early 1940s. Nearly 8,000 chemicals are estimated in
common industrial and commercial use in the United States, and the number contin-
ues to grow every year. Only a limited number of ecological assessments on the bulk
of the chemicals on the market or those introduced each year have been undertaken.
The human health effect of many of these chemicals, particularly over long periods
of time at low exposure levels, is largely undefined.
One of the widely known episodes related to disposal of hazardous wastes is that
of Love Canal. It was an abandoned canal bed near Niagara Falls, in the state of New
York. The episode is briefly discussed in Case Study 2.3.

Case Study 2.3

In the 1940s and 1950s, Hooker Chemical and Plastics Corporation dumped 23,000
tons of chemical wastes into the Love Canal landfill (Kirschner 1994). After the canal
was filled and covered with earth, the land was transferred to the city of Niagara Falls.
Homes and a school were then built on the edge of the old canal. The area of covered
chemicals became a playground. In 1968, Occidental Chemical (OxyChem) purchased
Hooker Chemical. In 1977, black oily fluids oozed from the ground in the vicinity
of the canal. The fluids were subsequently identified as a mixture of potent chlori-
nated hydrocarbons. Children attending the school showed unusual health problems,
such as skin rashes, chemical burns, and severe physiological and nervous disorders.
Furthermore, an unusually high number of miscarriages and birth defects were noted.
A lawsuit amounting to nearly $3 billion in health claims was then filed against the
city of Niagara Falls. Eventually, the state purchased and demolished about 100 homes
in the area, and state officials evacuated 500 houses in 1978. Federal and state crews
cleaned up the landfill and surrounding contaminated areas. Litigation against each
other followed between New York State and the company. In 1994, OxyChem and the
state finally agreed to settle their conflicting claims stemming from the incident. (Note
that remediation of the land eventually took place, and this was followed by resettle-
ment of the area. By 1994, nearly 70% of the 280 available houses had been sold. A
survey showed that about 30% of the purchasers were the residents in the area before
the evacuation; Kirschner 1994.)
24 Environmental Toxicology: Biological and Health Effects of Pollutants

2.6 THE CHANGING DISEASES

Associated with the changes in our environment are the changing patterns and dis-
tribution of diseases. For instance, at the turn of the twentieth century, pneumonia
and tuberculosis were the two leading causes of death in most countries. Because
of improved sanitation and public health measures, together with advancing medi-
cine and technology, tuberculosis and other contagious diseases have largely been
eradicated. In place of these illnesses, however, are diseases that are more complex
and have multiple causes. These include chronic heart diseases, chronic respiratory
diseases, and cancer. It is widely known that, since about 1950, heart diseases and
cancer have become the two leading causes of deaths in the United States. These
two diseases as well as chronic lower respiratory diseases, chronic liver disease, and
cirrhosis are considered environmentally related (U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services [USDHHS] 2003, 2009) (Table 2.1).
Many diseases have long been known to be related to occupation. The British
doctor Percivall Pott is widely recognized as the scientist who, in 1775, first pointed
out the direct connection between an occupational exposure and the risk of a specific
cancer (i.e., chimney sweeps and cancer of the scrotum) (Cole and Goldman 1975).
Miners, stone cutters, and lens grinders often developed respiratory disease from
inhaling large quantities of dust. Many hatters suffered brain damage as a result of
absorbing highly toxic mercury vapors from mercurials (chemical compounds con-
taining mercury) used in making felt. Asphalt, coal tar, and pitch workers; textile
dyers; and shoe and leather workers are suspected of having an increased risk of
developing bladder cancer because of their association with coal products and aro-
matic amines. However, in the past several decades, environmental diseases have
spread beyond those in a few specialized occupations (Maltoni and Selikoff 1988).
Several of the diseases are briefly discussed next. The discussion includes cancer,
respiratory diseases, birth defects, heavy metal poisoning, and impact on reproduc-
tive systems. More detailed information is presented in subsequent chapters.
The changes in disease pattern have also been observed in many other coun-
tries, including the less-developed world. In Brazil, for example, in 1940 infectious
diseases caused 39% to 60% of all deaths, depending on the region of the coun-
try. But, by 1980 these diseases accounted for only 3% to 16% of deaths. On the
other hand, cardiovascular diseases accounted for only 9% to 13% of mortality in
1940 but rose to 20% to 38% in 1980 (Moran and Fleming-Moran 1996). Scientists
consider that environmental pollution may play a role in such shifts. Many human
diseases are traceable to substances in the air, water, and the foods we consume.
Some of the industrial agents released into the general environment are known to
be carcinogenic or suspected carcinogens. These are in the next section and sub-
sequent chapters.

2.6.1 Cancer
The United States has one of the world’s highest incidences of cancer associated
with environmental pollution. “Exposure to environmental toxicants poses a seri-
ous threat to Americans, causing a grievous harm” that government agencies have
TABLE 2.1
Changing Causes of Death in the United States between 1950 and 2000
Year
1950 1980 2005
Rank % Rank % Rank %
1 a
Disease of heart 40.7 b 1 a
Disease of heart 39.6 b 1 a
Disease of heart 26.4b
2 Malignant neoplasmb 13.4 2 Malignant neoplasmb 23.0 2 Malignant neoplasmb 23.3
Environmental Changes and Health

3 Cerebrovascular diseases 12.5 3 Cerebrovascular diseases 9.2 3 Cerebrovascular diseases 5.8

4 Unintentional injuries 5.4 4 Unintentional injuries 4.4 4 Chronic lower respiratory diseasesb 5.4
5 Influenza and pneumonia (chronic 3.3 5 Influenza and pneumonia 3.0 5 Unintentional injuries 4.9
nephritis)
6 Diabetes mellitus 1.6 6 Chronic lower respiratory diseasesb 2.7 6 Diabetes mellitus 3.0
7 Suicide 0.9 7 Diabetes mellitus 1.7 7 Influenza and pneumonia 2.5
8 Chronic liver diseaseb 0.8 8 Chronic liver diseaseb 1.4 8 Suicide 1.3
9 Chronic lower respiratory diseasesb 0.5 9 Suicide 1.1 9 Chronic liver diseaseb 1.1
10 Homicide 0.3 10 Homicide 1.0 10 Homicide 0.7

Source: USDHHS. Health, United States, 1996–97 and injury chartbook. 1997; USDHHS: Health, United States, 2009.
a Diseases that are considered environmentally related.

b Percentage of total deaths from all causes.

25
26 Environmental Toxicology: Biological and Health Effects of Pollutants

not adequately addressed, according to a strongly worded report released on May

6, 2010, by the President’s Cancer Panel, a body of experts that reports directly to
President Obama.
According to the American Cancer Society’s estimates (ACS 2010), about 6%
of cancer deaths—nearly 11,000 a year—are caused by environmental pollutants.
Nearly 80,000 chemicals are used in the United States currently, many of which are
not studied thoroughly and largely unregulated.
Since about 1950, cancer has been second only to heart diseases as the cause of
death among the U.S. population. Moreover, until recently the rate of cancer deaths
had been increasing steadily (Table 2.1) (Figure 2.3). Actual number of deaths from
cancer, however, is still rising. For example, 416,509 Americans died of cancer in
1980. The figure increased to 505,322 in 1990 and to 549,838 in 1999 (USDHHS
2003). According to the American Cancer Society, the toll for 2003 was 556,500,
and for 2006, it was 560,102—about 1,534 deaths a day (USDHHS 2009).
The northeast region of the United States is known as a highly industrialized
and polluted area. This region is also known to be one with a particularly high inci-
dence of cancer. According to the National Cancer Institute, areas where iron and
lead smelters are located have high rates of lung cancer. Other studies showed that
nearly 30% of the total mortality in several industrialized countries is due to cancer
(C&EN, April 18, 1994, p. 13). Cancer incidence and mortality in most of these coun-
tries have been consistently increasing in recent decades. In particular, this trend is
independent of the aging of the population.
Main types of cancer include brain/nervous system, female breast, colon and
rectum, leukemia, liver, lung and bronchus, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, ovary, pan-
creas, and prostate (USDHHS 2003). Among the suggested causes of cancer, envi-
ronmental factors such as lifestyle, personal habits, diet, chemicals and radiation,
and infectious diseases account for about three-quarters of all cancers. According
to the American Cancer Society (2003), smoking, obesity, and physical inactivity
have a greater effect on individual cancer risk than do exposure to trace amounts

FIGURE 2.3 A smoggy day (August 2008) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

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usually adopted; but, in deference to public opinion, he put two chains,
though he doubted if they would expand equally. ‘A rigid platform would in
some degree prevent the unequal distribution of load thus caused, but he
endeavoured to lessen the effect of unequal expansion by arranging a stirrup
at the top of each suspending rod, so as to hold equally at all times on both
chains, and thus to cause each to sustain its proportion of the load.’
The road platform was to have had beneath it ‘a complete system of
triangular bracing, which would render it very stiff.’
In order to lessen the action of wind on the bridge, he brought down the
main chains in the centre nearly to the level of the platform, and intended to
apply the system of brace chains at a small angle to check vibration. There
were, moreover, to be two curved chains lying horizontally, and attached
underneath the platform, so as to resist the lateral action of the wind.[33]
He here introduced movable saddles to carry the chains on the top of the
towers, with rollers running on perfectly flat and horizontal roller beds.[34]
By this arrangement no pressure except a vertical one could come on the
towers.
He also devised means, by levers and hydraulic presses, for relieving the
rollers and roller beds from pressure, in the event of their requiring renewal.
Mr. Brunel ultimately determined to adopt the Egyptian style of
architecture. His brother-in-law, Mr. John Callcott Horsley, R.A., gives the
following account of the proposed designs for the towers:—
‘His conception of the towers or gateways at either end of the bridge was
peculiarly grand and effective, as may be seen from his sketches still
existing. They were to be purely Egyptian; and, in his design, he had caught
the true spirit of the great remains at Philæ and Thebes. He intended to case
the towers with cast iron, and, as in perfect accordance with the Egyptian
character of his design, to decorate them with a series of figure subjects,
illustrating the whole work of constructing the bridge, with the manufacture
of the materials—beginning with quarrying the iron ore, and making the
iron, and ending with a design representing the last piece of construction
necessary for the bridge itself. The subjects would have been arranged in
tiers (divided by simple lines) from top to bottom of the towers, and in the
exact proportion of those found upon Egyptian buildings. He made very
clever sketches for some of these proposed figure subjects, just to show
what he intended by them. I remember a group of men carrying one of the
links of the chainwork, which was excellent in character. He proposed that I
should design the figure subjects, and he asked me to go down with him to
Merthyr Tydvil, and make sketches of the iron processes. We accomplished
our journey, and all the requisite drawings for the intended designs were
made.’
The works were commenced with the Leigh abutment, which was
completed in 1840, great delay having been caused by the failure of the
contractors. This misfortune led to a large excess of expenditure over the
original estimates. In 1843 the whole of the funds raised (amounting to
45,000l.) were exhausted, and there still remained to be executed the
ornamental additions to the piers (the cost of which was estimated at about
4,000l.), half of the iron work, the suspension of the chains and rods, the
construction of the flooring, and the completion of the approaches, &c., the
estimate for the execution of which was 30,000l.
Unfortunately, all efforts to raise further subscriptions were
unsuccessful; and in July 1853, when the time limited for the completion of
the bridge had expired, the works were closed in, and the undertaking
abandoned.[35]
Several proposals for completing the bridge were made in Mr. Brunel’s
lifetime, and he took every opportunity of furthering this object, which he
had very much at heart. It was not, however, till about a year after his death
that the superstructure of the bridge was actually commenced.
A company was formed in 1860 by some of the principal members of the
Institution of Civil Engineers, ‘who had an interest in the work as
completing a monument to their late friend Brunel, and at the same time
removing a slur from the engineering talent of the country.’[36] Mr. John
Hawkshaw, F.R.S., and Mr. W. H. Barlow, F.R.S., were appointed the
engineers, and Mr. Brunel’s old friend Captain Christopher Claxton, R.N.,
the secretary. The works were carried on with vigour; and the bridge was
opened with much ceremony on December 8, 1864.
The chains were brought from the Hungerford Suspension Bridge, then
in process of demolition. A description of the Hungerford bridge will be
found in the note to this chapter.[37]
Although the Clifton bridge was not completed by Mr. Brunel, his
connection with it forms a very important passage in the history of his life.
Doubtless, if he had never heard of the proposed competition in 1829, or if
he had been one of the disappointed competitors, he would have found
some other opportunity of making a name in his profession; but, as a matter
of fact, the Clifton bridge competition did give him the opportunity he
desired, and all his subsequent success was traced by him to this victory,
which he fought hard for, and gained only by persevering struggles. He
never forgot the debt he owed to Bristol, and to the friends who helped him
there; and he would have greatly rejoiced to see the completion of his
earliest and favourite work.

PLATE II

HUNGERFORD SUSPENSION BRIDGE

H. Adiard Sc.
[Larger view]
[Largest view]

NOTE (p. 58).

The Hungerford Suspension Bridge.
The suspension bridge which spanned the Thames at Charing Cross, on
the site of the present railway bridge, was designed and constructed by Mr.
Brunel between the years 1841 and 1845. It consisted of a centre span of
676 feet, and two side spans of 343 feet each. Being intended for foot
passengers only, its width was 14 feet. The versed sine, or deflection of the
middle of the catenary, was 50 feet. The two river piers, which still exist up
to the level of the railway, and form piers of the present bridge, were of
brickwork, with large footings at the bottom, so as to distribute the pressure
over a considerable area. The whole structure was made hollow and as light
as possible. From the level of the footway the piers were carried up as
ornamental campanile towers, the weight of the chains being taken by four
solid pillars of brickwork, 7 feet 3 inches square, forming the angles. Mr.
Brunel introduced here many of the arrangements he had designed for the
Clifton bridge. In order that the pressure from the chains might be always
vertical on the piers, the saddles rested on rollers working in oil, on the
level surface of a large cast-iron bed-plate. By this arrangement it was
rendered possible for the chains of the land spans to leave the tower at a
greater inclination than those of the middle span, so that the chains were
made shorter, and as they were at a lower level where they met the
abutment, there was less change in their direction at that point, and
consequently less thrust on the brickwork. Freedom of horizontal motion
was also secured, so that, in the case of unequal loading of the spans, the
chains might accommodate themselves to the strains, and move horizontally
until equilibrium was restored. At each of the land abutments the chains
passed down over a fixed saddle, at an inclination, to anchorages placed at
the bottom of the abutment. The brickwork under the fixed saddle was so
disposed as to resist directly the thrust resulting from the change of
direction between the main chains and the anchor chains. To resist any
movement of the abutments, the piles on which they rested were driven
obliquely, with their heads inclined from the river. These piles were very
numerous, the abutments spreading out so as to cover a large area at the
foundations. Nearly all the spaces between the longitudinal, cross, and
outside walls were filled with concrete, in order that the abutments might be
as massive as possible. The details of the brickwork in the piers and
abutments showed Mr. Brunel’s skill in the economical employment of this
material. The chains were constructed so that the sectional area was
proportional to the strain; the total area at the centre was 296 square inches,
while near the piers it was 312 square inches. There were four chains, two
on each side of the bridge, placed one above the other, and consisting each
alternately of ten and eleven links. The links were 24 feet long and 7 inches
in depth, the thickness varying so as to give the requisite sectional area.
 The relative diameter of pin, and proper form of the ends of the link,
were subjects of much consideration, and many experiments were made in
order to determine these points. The fact that two specimens of iron,
apparently identical in every respect, sometimes exhibit considerable
difference in their breaking weights, shows that an average of a great
number of experiments is required in order to test satisfactorily any
proposed refinements of construction. Mr. Brunel, however, convinced
himself by experiment that he had practically arrived at such a form of link
and diameter of pin that the chain would have no tendency to break at one
point rather than another. The links were forged with shoulders near the
eyes, in order that by means of clamps the pin could be taken out and the
links disengaged, if necessary.
The efficient action of the rollers was demonstrated shortly after the
completion of the bridge. On the occasion of the opening of the Corn
Exchange by Prince Albert, one of the land spans was crowded with people,
while the centre span was nearly empty. In consequence of this the land
chains became depressed considerably below their normal position; and the
saddles on the top of the tower nearest to the loaded span moved
horizontally on the rollers to the extent of 3 inches; and, when the crowd
had dispersed, they returned to their original position.
Many years after the completion of the bridge a proposal was made to
widen it for carriage traffic; but this was not carried out, and eventually the
superstructure was removed, to make way for the bridge of the Charing
Cross Railway. As the Hungerford Suspension Bridge has ceased to exist,
an engraving has been given of it (Plate II. p. 59), in order that some record
of its appearance may remain.
 CHAPTER III.

EARLY HISTORY OF THE GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY.

A.D. 1833—1835. ÆTATIS 27—30.

SKETCH OF THE HISTORY OF RAILWAYS IN ENGLAND PRIOR

TO 1833—THE STOCKTON AND DARLINGTON—THE
LIVERPOOL AND MANCHESTER—THE LONDON AND
BIRMINGHAM—PROPOSED RAILWAY BETWEEN LONDON AND
BRISTOL—MR. BRUNEL APPOINTED ENGINEER, MARCH 7,
1833—SURVEY OF THE LINE—UNSUCCESSFUL APPLICATION
TO PARLIAMENT IN 1834—SUCCESSFUL APPLICATION IN 1835
—REMINISCENCES OF MR. BRUNEL, 1833-1835—EXTRACT
FROM MR. BRUNEL’S DIARY, WRITTEN AT THE CLOSE OF 1835.

BEFORE entering upon the history of the Great Western and the other
railways of which Mr. Brunel was the engineer, it may be useful to give a
brief sketch of the development of the railway system, previous to the
period when he first became engaged in works of this description.
The first railway in England designed for the conveyance of general
merchandise and passengers, was the Stockton and Darlington. An Act of
Parliament authorising the construction of this line was passed in 1821.
In 1823, a further Act was obtained, in which a clause was inserted, at
the request of Mr. George Stephenson, then the engineer of the company,
taking power to work the railway by locomotive engines, and to employ
them for the haulage of passengers. This railway, which consisted of a
single line with four sidings in the mile, was opened for traffic on
September 27, 1825. Its success led at once to the promotion of similar
works in other parts of the country.
Next in order must be noticed the celebrated railway between Liverpool
and Manchester. A project for constructing a line of railway between these
important towns was discussed as early as the year 1822; but a company for
carrying it out was not formed till two years later. In 1825, the directors
applied to Parliament for an Act; and after a long contest before a
committee of the House of Commons, the preamble approving of the
construction of the railway was carried by a majority of one. The Bill was,
however, withdrawn, as the first two clauses empowering the company to
make the line, and to acquire land for that purpose, were lost.[38] In the
following year the Act was obtained, and the works were commenced under
the direction of Mr. George Stephenson. The line was opened for traffic on
September 15, 1830.
In 1824, Mr. George Stephenson wrote a report on a proposed line
connecting Liverpool and Birmingham. Surveys were made, and plans
deposited; but the Bill was thrown out on standing orders. A similar fate
attended the introduction of a Bill in 1826. In 1830, a new line was
surveyed by Mr. Joseph Locke and Mr. Rastrick, under the direction of Mr.
George Stephenson. The Act was obtained in 1833, and the railway, which
was called the Grand Junction, and is now a part of the London and North-
Western system, was constructed by Mr. Locke.[39]
In 1830, surveys were commenced by Mr. Robert Stephenson for a line
between London and Birmingham, and a Bill was introduced into
Parliament in 1832. The Liverpool and Manchester Railway had now been
opened for some time, and the promoters of the Birmingham line had the
advantage of being able to give in evidence the results of the working of the
earlier undertaking. Those results, it is said, were such as to startle most of
those who heard them. It was shown that a speed had been attained double
that of the fastest stage-coach, that the cost of travelling had been
diminished by one half, and that out of 700,000 persons carried since the
opening of the railway, only one had met with a fatal accident. The amount
of travelling between Liverpool and Manchester had increased four-fold,
and the value of the shares of the railway had risen one hundred per cent.
Similar evidence was given as to the results of the working of the Stockton
and Darlington Railway, and the promoters endeavoured to prove that
advantages at least as great would arise from the construction of a railway
between Birmingham and London. They were successful in the House of
Commons; but, they failed to convince the Upper House that the benefits
which such a railway would confer on the country traversed by it were
sufficient to entitle its promoters to receive for it the sanction of the
legislature. The Bill was again introduced in the following session (1833);
and, strange to relate, it passed both Houses almost without opposition.[40]

Meanwhile, the principal merchants of Bristol, who had in 1825 made an

attempt to get up a railway company, were urged forward, both by the
inadequacy of their communications with the metropolis, and by the success
of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, to make another effort. In the
autumn of 1832 a committee was formed of members of the corporation,
and other public bodies of the city of Bristol, to carry out the project of a
railway to London.
The first step taken by the committee was the appointment of an
engineer to make the preliminary surveys, and to prepare an estimate of the
cost of the undertaking.
Among the candidates for the post was Mr. Brunel. He was well known
in Bristol as the engineer of the Clifton Suspension Bridge, and of the
works for the improvement of the Floating Harbour. He had made many
friends among the leading citizens, and they used their best exertions to
procure his election; but there were several other candidates in the field
who had great local interest, and the contest was a close one.
While the issue was yet undecided, an unexpected difficulty arose. Some
members of the committee resolved to select their engineer by means of a
competition among the candidates, as to which of them would provide the
lowest estimate. Upon this being announced, Mr. Brunel declared that he
must withdraw his name, as he could not consent to become a party to so
objectionable a proceeding. ‘You are holding out,’ he wrote to the
committee, ‘a premium to the man who will make you the most flattering
promises. It is quite obvious that the man who has either least reputation at
stake, or who has most to gain by temporary success, and least to lose by
the consequences of disappointment, must be the winner in such a race.’
Happily, this plan was abandoned; Mr. Brunel obtained a majority of votes,
and was appointed engineer on March 7, 1833.
He commenced the survey without delay; and in addition to his strictly
professional duties, he assisted in forming a committee in London, and took
a leading part in the consultations which were held upon various important
matters connected with the general interests of the undertaking.
 A hasty survey of the country between London and Bristol occupied him
till the middle of June; and as soon as it was completed, and the course of
the line settled on, preparations were made for placing the scheme before
the public.
The first public meeting was held on July 30, 1833. Mr. Brunel thus
refers to it in his diary:—‘Got through it very tolerably, which I consider
great things. I hate public meetings: it is playing with a tiger, and all you
can hope is, that you may not get scratched, or worse.’ The result, however,
seems to have been successful, and in a month’s time a company was
formally constituted, and the parliamentary survey commenced.
Mr. Brunel organised a staff of assistants, at that time rather a difficult
task, and set them to work on various parts of the line. His own duty of
superintendence severely taxed his great powers of work. He spent several
weeks travelling from place to place by night, and riding about the country
by day, directing his assistants, and endeavouring, very frequently without
success, to conciliate the landowners on whose property he proposed to
trespass.
His diary of this date shows that when he halted at an inn for the night,
but little time was spent in rest, and that often he sat up writing letters and
reports until it was almost time for his horse to come round to take him on
the day’s work. ‘Between ourselves,’ he wrote to Mr. Hammond, his
assistant, ‘it is harder work than I like. I am rarely much under twenty hours
a day at it.’
A great portion of this labour was for the time thrown away, for as
November 30 drew near, it became evident that subscriptions were not
coming in to the extent which would enable the directors to lodge a Bill for
the whole line in the session of 1834.
The directors therefore determined to apply to Parliament for powers to
make a railway from London to Reading, and from Bath to Bristol, ‘as a
means of facilitating the ultimate establishment of a railway between
London and Bristol;’ postponing till a future session their application for an
Act to enable them to complete the undertaking by making the line from
Reading to Bath.
The Bill was introduced into the House of Commons, and on March 10,
Lord Granville Somerset moved that it be read a second time. This motion
was seconded by the Earl of Kerry, and supported by several influential
members, amongst whom were Mr. Labouchere (the late Lord Taunton) and
Mr. Daniel O’Connell.
The second reading was carried by a majority of ninety in a House of
274 members.
The Bill was then referred to a committee which met on April 16, Lord
Granville Somerset being in the chair. Evidence was called to prove the
advantages of the railway to the agricultural and trading community of the
country through which it would pass, even if only the two proposed
divisions of the line were constructed.
The traffic in merchandise between Bristol and London was at this time
principally carried on by means of water carriage, consisting, first of the
river Avon navigation from Bristol to Bath, next of the Kennet and Avon
Canal from Bath to Reading, and lastly of the river Thames from Reading to
London. The evidence went to show that the distance between London and
Reading, which by railway would be thirty-six miles, amounted by the river
to nearly eighty; that the delays and impediments arising from drought,
flood, and frosts on the rivers, were such as sometimes to detain barges for
several weeks; and that so great were the consequent uncertainties and
inconveniences of this navigation, that goods which came as far as Reading
by the canal, were frequently sent thence to London by road, although at a
great increase of expense. Even under the most advantageous
circumstances, goods could not be conveyed from Reading to London in
less than three days, or in less than a day by the river Avon from Bath to
Bristol. It was therefore contended, that to form a railway which should
supersede, or at all events come in aid of, the worst portions of the
navigation between London and Bristol, would be an important public
benefit.[41] The various advantages of the measure were most fully
discussed in an investigation which lasted during fifty-seven days. Against
the Bill was arrayed every class of opponent that a private Bill could
possibly encounter. Those interested in the canals, rivers, and stage-
coaches, opposed it from the fear of competition; the inhabitants of Windsor
opposed it, because the railway did not run so near to the town as they
wished; the corporation of Maidenhead opposed it, because they thought
that all the traffic which paid toll on their bridge over the Thames would be
diverted to the railway; landowners and farmers near town opposed it,
because they feared it would bring produce to London from a distance, as
cheap as that supplied by themselves.
There was another very formidable class of opponents to the Bill,
consisting of landed proprietors and owners of houses in the immediate
neighbourhood of London.
Many engineers were called by these several opponents, to show that a
more advantageous line of railway might have been selected; but, upon
sifting the merits of the various new lines proposed, it became apparent that
the one chosen by Mr. Brunel was the best. Indeed, although some trifling
deviations of his line were suggested, the opposing engineers admitted that
in all essential features the railway had been most skilfully laid out. It was
generally agreed that the line through the valley of the Thames, and thence
in a direction north of the Marlborough Downs, was the only proper course
for a railway between Bristol and London, as the levels were much better,
and communication could be made with much greater ease with the
northern and South Wales districts, than if the route to the south of the
Marlborough Downs had been selected.
The plans proposed for entering London raised great opposition. In this
respect public feeling has greatly changed, for now no railway is thought
complete which has not a terminus in the heart of London; and it is
considered an advantage for houses to be within easy reach of a railway
station; but in 1834 such a neighbour was looked upon with horror and
dismay—a nuisance to be, if possible, absolutely prohibited.
When Mr. Brunel commenced the survey for the London terminus, he
had some idea of bringing the railway in on the south side of the Thames;
but this was abandoned, as it was found to involve very heavy works, and
the line proposed in the first Bill was made to terminate on the north side of
the river at Vauxhall Bridge. It was to have been carried on a viaduct 24 feet
high, with a parapet 6 feet 6 inches high, to prevent the passengers looking
into the windows of the neighbouring houses.
The owners of the land through which this part of the line would pass
were influential members of the Upper House, and therefore the directors
thought it useless to brave their opposition; accordingly, on the thirteenth
day of the hearing, they abandoned the last two miles of the viaduct, and
proposed to stop at the ‘Hoop and Toy,’ a public-house near the site of the
South Kensington Station of the Metropolitan Railway.
 But although the opposition of some of the landowners was conciliated
by this concession, that portion of the line through Brompton which had not
been abandoned was attacked with unabated energy. The residents in
Brompton opposed the Bill from the apprehension that the railway would
interfere with their quiet and seclusion; Brompton being at that time
considered, at any rate by one of the counsel for the opposition, ‘the most
famous of any place in the neighbourhood of London for the salubrity of its
air, and calculated for retired residences.’ They could not, indeed, be
blamed for indulging in these apprehensions, if they really believed in their
counsel’s statement that ‘streams of fire would proceed from the locomotive
engines.’
Others objected to the viaduct itself as being an undertaking of so
colossal a nature as hardly to be practicable; and the supposed increase of
traffic and consequent obstruction in Piccadilly and other leading
thoroughfares brought down upon the promoters the opposition of the
Commissioners of Metropolitan Roads.
All these objections were made the ground of much argument in
committee, and doubtless had great influence over the minds of those who
voted against the Bill.
The engineering evidence occupied, as might be expected, the greater
part of the forty-two days during which witnesses were examined before the
committee, and of these forty-two days no less than eleven were taken up
by the cross-examination of Mr. Brunel. So protracted a cross-examination
has probably never been heard in any court or committee-room. One of
those present thus describes it:—
‘The committee-room was crowded with landowners and others
interested in the success or defeat of the Bill, and eager to hear Brunel’s
evidence. His knowledge of the country surveyed by him was marvellously
great, and the explanations he gave of his plans, and the answers he
returned to questions suggested by Dr. Lardner, showed a profound
acquaintance with the principles of mechanics. He was rapid in thought,
clear in his language, and never said too much, or lost his presence of mind.
I do not remember ever having enjoyed so great an intellectual treat as that
of listening to Brunel’s examination, and I was told at the time that George
Stephenson and many others were much struck by the ability and
knowledge shown by him.’
 In his evidence, Mr. George Stephenson stated that he did not know any
existing line so good as that proposed by Mr. Brunel. ‘I can imagine (he
said) a better line, but I do not know of one so good.’[42]
At length, on the fifty-fourth day of the sittings of the committee, Mr.
Harrison, K.C., rose to reply on behalf of the promoters, and on the
conclusion of his address the Bill was passed.
In the House of Lords the second reading was moved by Lord
Wharncliffe. It was opposed, and on a division being taken, the motion was
lost by a majority of seventeen (30 content and 47 non-content). The Bill
was therefore thrown out.
The directors, undaunted by their defeat, lost no time in making
preparations for bringing a Bill before Parliament in the session of 1835,
with such improvements as the experience of the past campaign suggested
to them. Taking into consideration the various grounds on which opposition
had been raised to the plans they had proposed for entering London through
the Brompton district, they opened negotiations with the London and
Birmingham Railway Company, and arrangements were concluded by
which the traffic of the Great Western Railway was to be carried upon the
London and Birmingham line for the first four miles out of London, the
junction being made a little to the west of the Kensal Green Cemetery.
They had also during the autumn raised money enough to enable them to
apply to Parliament for powers to construct the whole of the line from
London to Bristol. They thus escaped all the sarcastic observations which
had been made upon the scheme of 1834, of which it had been said, that it
would be a head and a tail without a body, and neither ‘Great’ nor
‘Western,’ nor even a ‘railway’ at all, but ‘a gross deception, a trick, and a
fraud upon the public, in name, in title, and in substance!’
On March 9, the earliest day allowed by the standing orders, the Bill was
read a second time and committed. A division being taken on the motion for
committal, there appeared in favour of the motion 160, and against it none
but the tellers.
Shortly after its first meeting, the committee, of which Mr. Charles
Russell, then member for Reading, was chairman, came to the resolution
that, inasmuch as the evidence given in the previous year as to the public
advantages of a Bristol railway had been referred to them by order of the
House, they needed no further evidence on that subject. Counsel were
therefore directed to confine their case as much as possible to the merits of
the line proposed.
Evidence was called by the opponents chiefly with a view to show the
advantages of a proposed line from Basing to Bath, and the inexpediency of
granting an entirely new line of 115 miles in length to the Great Western
Railway Company, which involved the construction of a ‘monstrous and
extraordinary,’ ‘most dangerous and impracticable, tunnel’ at Box, and this,
when 44 miles of railway in a western direction—viz. as far as Basingstoke,
had already been sanctioned by the legislature in the Southampton Railway
Act, passed in the previous session. The promoters of the Bill contended
that the levels of the Basing and Bath line were not so good as those
proposed for their own, and that the Great Western Railway would approach
almost every town of importance situated on the proposed Basing and Bath
line, by means of short branches; whilst at the same time it presented the
great advantage of being capable of easy extension to Gloucester and
Wales, and to Oxford, an object wholly unattainable by the other line. In
reply to these assertions, the opponents maintained that although the levels
of the Basing and Bath Railway presented greater inclinations than those of
the Great Western, yet that they were so balanced as that the rises and falls
compensated one for another, so as to render the line practically level. The
enunciation of this theory called forth a remark by the chairman that
according to this principle the Highlands of Scotland would be as good as
any other place for the construction of a railway.
The preamble was voted proved, and the Bill passed the House of
Commons without further opposition, and on May 27 was read a first time
in the Lords. On June 10, the second reading was carried after a sharp
debate, the numbers being 46 contents, and 34 non-contents.
Lord Wharncliffe was chairman of the committee.[43] The proceedings
began by an opposition on the standing orders, which, after much
skirmishing, were voted to have been complied with. The promoters,
however, judged from the nature of the first day’s proceedings, that they
had to expect a contest of no inconsiderable duration; and the result proved
their anticipations to have been correct. For forty days the battle was fought
with a degree of earnestness and vigour on both sides, almost unequalled in
any similar proceedings.
 The committee soon came to the same decision as the House of
Commons, that, with regard to the advisability of a Bristol railway, they
were satisfied, and needed no further evidence. The case became then one
of mere comparison between the relative merits of the two lines proposed.
The case in support of the Bill occupied eighteen days, and was closed
with a speech by the Hon. John Talbot.
Mr. Serjeant Merewether, whom the opponents had chosen as their
leader in the House of Lords, was then heard on their behalf, and occupied
no less than four days in the delivery of his speech, in which certainly no
argument that ingenuity could devise was omitted to strengthen his case.
There was hardly any conceivable injury which, according to the learned
serjeant’s notions, the Great Western Railway would not inflict. It was said
that the Thames would be choked up for want of traffic, the drainage of the
country destroyed, and Windsor Castle left unsupplied with water. As for
Eton College it would be absolutely and entirely ruined: London would
pour forth the most abandoned of its inhabitants to come down by the
railway and pollute the minds of the scholars, whilst the boys themselves
would take advantage of the short interval of their play hours to run up to
town, mix in all the dissipation of London life, and return before their
absence could be discovered. Moreover, while the beauty of the country and
the retirement of private dwellings would be destroyed, the interests of the
public would be far more effectually served by the adoption of the Basing
and Bath line, and a line from the London and Birmingham Railway to
Gloucester. This was in fact the point at issue, and on this the result of the
contest depended. The promoters of the Bill had called, in support of their
line, in addition to Mr. Brunel, who being engineer to the company might
be considered an interested witness, Mr. Locke, Mr. Palmer, Mr. Price, Mr.
George Stephenson, and Mr. Vignoles. They expressed their unqualified
approbation of the line chosen by Mr. Brunel, and of the estimates he had
prepared.
The preamble was proved, and after an unsuccessful opposition the Bill
was read a third time, on August 27. The Royal Assent was given on the last
day of that month.[44]

During this contest Mr. Brunel made among his fellow-labourers many
deep and lasting friendships. One of the most intimate of these friends, Mr.
St. George Burke, Q.C., has, in compliance with a request made to him,
furnished the following reminiscences of his intercourse with Mr. Brunel
during the progress of the Bill through Parliament.
March 9, 1869.
‘My dear Isambard,—You wish me to supply you with reminiscences of my old
associations with your father, in order that, in your biography of him, you may present a
true picture of those features of his character which so endeared him to his most intimate
friends.
‘For many years it was my good fortune to enjoy his friendship, and many of the
pleasantest hours of my life were due to it.
‘For a period of nearly three years, viz. during the contest for the Great Western
Railway Bill, I think that seldom a day passed without our meeting, whether for purposes
of business or pleasure, both of which his buoyant spirits enabled him to combine in a
manner which I have seldom seen equalled.
‘It would be wearisome to detail the many incidents which occurred illustrative of the
singularly facile manner in which, in the midst of the heaviest and most responsible
labours, he could enter into the most boyish pranks and fun, without in the least distracting
his attention from the matter of business in which he was engaged; but all who knew him
as I did could bear testimony to this characteristic of his disposition.
‘I believe that a more joyous nature, combined with the highest intellectual faculties,
was never created, and I love to think of him in the character of the ever gay and kind-
hearted friend of my early years, rather than in the more serious professional aspect under
which your pages will, no doubt, rightly depict him.
‘In 1833 your father and I occupied chambers facing each other in Parliament Street,
and as my duties involved the superintendence, as Parliamentary agent, of the compliance
with all the Standing Orders of Parliament, and very frequent interviews and negotiations
with the landowners on the line, we were of necessity constantly thrown together. To
facilitate our intercourse, it occurred to your father to carry a string across Parliament
Street, from his chambers to mine, to be there connected with a bell, by which he could
either call me to the window to receive his telegraphic signals, or, more frequently, to wake
me up in the morning when we had occasion to go into the country together, which, it is
needless to observe, was of frequent occurrence; and great was the astonishment of the
neighbours at this device, the object of which they were unable to comprehend.
‘I believe that at that time he scarcely ever went to bed, though I never remember to
have seen him tired or out of spirits. He was a very constant smoker, and would take his
nap in an arm-chair, very frequently with a cigar in his mouth; and if we were to start out
of town at five or six o’clock in the morning, it was his frequent practice to rouse me out of
bed about three, by means of the bell, when I would invariably find him up and dressed,
and in great glee at the fun of having curtailed my slumbers by two or three hours more
than necessary.
 ‘No one would have supposed that during the night he had been poring over plans and
estimates, and engrossed in serious labours, which to most men would have proved
destructive of their energies during the following day; but I never saw him otherwise than
full of gaiety, and apparently as ready for work as though he had been sleeping through the
night.
‘In those days we had not the advantage of railways, and were obliged to adopt the
slower, though perhaps not less agreeable, mode of travelling with post-horses. Your father
had a britzska, so arranged as to carry his plans and engineering instruments, besides some
creature comforts, never forgetting the inevitable cigar-case among them; and we would
start by daybreak, or sometimes earlier, on our country excursions, which still live in my
remembrance as some of the pleasantest I have ever enjoyed; though I think I may safely
say that, pleasurable as they were, we never lost sight of the business in which we were
engaged, and for which our excursions were undertaken.
‘I have never known a man who, possessing courage which to many would appear
almost like rashness, was less disposed to trust to chance or to throw away any opportunity
of attaining his object than was your father. I doubt not that this quality will be fully
exemplified in the details which you will have received of his engineering experiments; but
I speak of him also in the character of a diplomatist, in which he was as wary and cautious
as any man I ever knew.
‘We canvassed many landowners together, and I had plenty of opportunities of judging
of his skill and caution in our discussions with them, though we had many a good laugh
afterwards at the arguments which had been addressed to us as to the inutility and impolicy
of the scheme in which we were engaged, and the utter ruin it would be sure to entail on its
promoters, as well as on the country affected by it.
‘I frequently accompanied him to the west of England, and into Gloucestershire and
South Wales, when public meetings were held in support of the measures in which he was
engaged, and I had occasion to observe the enormous popularity which he everywhere
enjoyed. The moment he rose to address a meeting he was received with loud cheers, and
he never failed to elicit applause at the end of his address, which was distinguished as
much by simplicity of language and modesty of pretension as by accurate knowledge of his
subject.
Yours very truly,
St. George Burke.
Isambard Brunel, Esq.’

The following is an extract from Mr. Brunel’s diary, written at the end of
the year 1835:—
53 Parliament Street, December 26.
What a blank in my journal [the last entry is dated January 1834], and during the most
eventful part of my life. When last I wrote in this book I was just emerging from obscurity.
I had been toiling most unprofitably at numerous things, unprofitably, at least, at the
moment. The railway was certainly being thought of, but still very uncertain. What a
change. The railway now is in progress. I am thus engineer to the finest work in England. A
handsome salary, on excellent terms with my directors, and all going smoothly. But what a
fight we have had, and how near defeat, and what a ruinous defeat it would have been. It is
like looking back upon a fearful pass; but we have succeeded.
And it is not this alone, but everything I have been engaged in has been successful.
Clifton bridge—my first child, my darling, is actually going on: recommenced work last
Monday—glorious!! [Here follows a list of the undertakings on which he was then
engaged.] I think this forms a pretty list of real sound professional work, unsought for on
my part, that is, given to me fairly by the respective parties—all, except the Wear Docks,
resulting from the Clifton bridge, which I fought hard for, and gained only by persevering
struggles.... And this at the age of twenty-nine. I really can hardly believe it, when I think
of it. I am just leaving 53 Parliament Street, where I may say I have made my fortune, or,
rather, the foundation of it, and I have taken 18 Duke Street.
 CHAPTER IV.

RAILWAY WORKS.

A.D. 1835—1859. ÆTATIS 30—54.

CONSTRUCTION OF THE GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY—THE

BOX TUNNEL—THE BATH AND BRISTOL STATIONS—THE
PADDINGTON STATION—THE GREAT WESTERN HOTEL—
BRANCHES AND EXTENSIONS OF THE GREAT WESTERN
RAILWAY—THE BRISTOL AND EXETER RAILWAY—RAILWAYS
IN DEVONSHIRE AND CORNWALL—RAILWAYS TO
BASINGSTOKE, TO WEYMOUTH, AND TO SALISBURY—IN
SOUTH WALES—IN IRELAND—IN ITALY—IN INDIA—
SUPERVISION OF WORKS—MR. BRUNEL’S ENGINEERING
STAFF—HIS REPUTATION AS A WITNESS—REMINISCENCES OF
MR. BRUNEL, 1835-1838.

IN the extract from Mr. Brunel’s diary given at the close of the last chapter
he refers to the successful issue of the contest for the Great Western
Railway Act as a very important event in his life.
As the result proved, he did not take too hopeful a view of his future
prospects; for from that time to his death he was fully employed as the
engineer of railways which, in number and importance, were not inferior to
those of any of his contemporaries. Of the main lines he constructed, one
extends uninterruptedly from London to the Land’s End, and another to the
extremity of South Wales, at Milford Haven, 285 miles from Paddington.

It would be impossible to describe in detail all the engineering works

which are to be found on Mr. Brunel’s railways, the aggregate length of
which is upwards of 1,200 miles; but in this chapter it is proposed to give a
brief sketch of the lines he constructed, omitting all that can be more
properly inserted in the three chapters which follow, relating to the broad
gauge, to the Atmospheric System, and to the bridges and viaducts.
 The Great Western Railway was opened to Maidenhead, a distance of
nearly twenty-three miles, in June 1838, and to Twyford, eight miles farther
on, in July 1839. A description of the Wharncliffe Viaduct at Hanwell will
be found at p. 172, and of the Maidenhead bridge at p. 173.
The line from Twyford to Reading was opened in March 1840, and from
Reading to Chippenham by May 1841. Meanwhile the portion from Bristol
to Bath had been opened in August 1840. The last division, namely, that
from Chippenham to Bath, containing the Box Tunnel, was opened on June
30, 1841; and the railway was completed throughout its whole length.

A considerable part of the history of the Great Western Railway is

connected with the adoption on it of the broad, or 7-foot gauge, and will be
dealt with in the next chapter, in which is also given some account of the
longitudinal system of permanent way.
The bridges are described in Chapter VII.; but some of the other works
may be noticed here.
In laying out the line, Mr. Brunel endeavoured to make it as straight and
as level as possible throughout, and to concentrate those changes of level,
which could not be avoided, into short inclines, to be worked, if necessary,
by auxiliary power.
Accordingly the line is thus divided:—

Miles Yards
Level, or with an inclination not exceeding 4 feet in the mile 67 88
Above 4 feet, and not exceeding 8 feet in the mile 47 110
Steep inclines 3 1210

The steep inclines are two in number, of a gradient of 1 in 100, or about

53 feet in a mile, and descend towards the Bristol end of the line.
The Wootton Basset incline, 85½ miles from London, is 1 mile 550
yards long.
The second incline is at Box, 99 miles from London, and is 2 miles 660
yards in length. An assistant engine is still occasionally used to work heavy
trains at this point.
 On this incline the line passes through the Box Tunnel. This tunnel is the
first out of London, and could only have been dispensed with by taking a
circuitous route several miles longer than that adopted by Mr. Brunel.
The tunnel is 1⅞ mile in length, and is ventilated by six shafts. They are
30 feet in diameter, and from 70 to 300 feet deep.
The Box Tunnel had been the subject of much criticism before the works
were commenced; and during its actual construction it did not escape the
unfavourable notice of those who were ignorant of the difficulties which
presented themselves, and the means which had been taken to overcome
them. Indeed, for some time after the opening of the line, there were
travellers who used to avoid the terrors of the tunnel by posting along the
turnpike road in that part of their journey.
Mr. Brunel never troubled himself about the ordinary gossip which is
always circulated concerning any remarkable work; but matters assumed a
different aspect when, a year after the completion of the tunnel, doubts were
expressed as to its safety by an eminent geologist, at a meeting of the
Institution of Civil Engineers. Mr. Brunel, who was on terms of friendly
intercourse with the speaker, addressed to him the following letter:—
June 21, 1842.
I assure you, my dear Sir, that when my attention had been drawn to the statements
reported to have been made by you on this subject, I refrained as far as possible from
expressing any opinion. I thought it my duty to read the notes taken, but I never said that I
thought your statements were correct. Indeed, I had hoped to have avoided the necessity of
making any observations upon these statements; but as a letter to Mr. Saunders on such a
subject is almost the same thing as if it were addressed to myself, and as it was shown to
me, it would not be candid towards you if I now refrained from saying, that the opinions
you are reported to have expressed with respect to the Box Tunnel are by no means
considered correct, either by myself or by those others who, from being intimately
acquainted with the rock as it was really found, and the works as they were really executed,
are capable of judging.
In the notes shown to me the observations alluding to this work in particular, as an
illustration of the views you were explaining, appear to have been curtailed, and the
allusions rendered somewhat less direct; but still the inference unavoidably to be drawn
from them is, that the back joints, as we call them, and other defects which exist originally,
or which show themselves after a time, in this rock, are not well known, and tolerably well
understood and guarded against, by practical engineers, and even by our workmen. In this
opinion I assure you you are mistaken. Ignorant as I may probably be myself of the science
of geology, I cannot have been engaged for several years in making very extensive
excavations, probably the largest hitherto made, in this particular rock, having also the
opportunity of examining very old and large quarries in the same rock and close to the line,
having among my assistants men not meanly acquainted with this particular branch of
geology, and surrounded by workmen of considerable experience, I cannot have gone
through such a study without acquiring a very intimate and practical knowledge of the
structure and peculiarities of the particular mass of rock which is now in question; and I
will say frankly what I feel upon this point, which is, that I ought now to possess a more
thorough and practical knowledge of this particular rock and its defects, and the best mode
of remedying them, than even you yourself, with your immeasurably greater scientific
knowledge of rocks generally.
The opinion you are said to have expressed of there being great danger of some serious
accident occurring in the tunnel is, I am firmly convinced, erroneous; at all events the
reason given convinces me that you have not become acquainted with the means which
have been taken by me to examine and to ascertain the security of every part of the rock, to
remove or to support with masonry any part not so ascertained to be secure, or with the
precautions taken to prevent any such accidents as those you have imagined. And
notwithstanding the heavy responsibility which rests upon me, from all which you
gentlemen of science are, happily for yourselves, so free, I feel that as regards the works of
the Box Tunnel everything necessary has been done to render them secure, and that the
doubts and fears you have so easily raised, but which it might be more difficult again to set
at rest, are entirely unfounded.
In conclusion, I must observe that no man can be more sensible than I am of the great
advantage it would be to me as a civil engineer to be better acquainted with geology, as
well as with many other branches of science, that I have endeavoured to inform myself on
the subject, and that I have not altogether thrown away the many opportunities afforded me
in my professional pursuits; but that if from a conviction that you possessed information
far more extensive than mine, if from doubts of the sufficiency of my abilities or the means
I was likely to bring to bear upon the subject, if from a fear of such consequences as you
now anticipate, you had kindly, on any one of the many occasions when I have had the
pleasure of meeting you, intimated that you had any suggestions to make to me, I should
have been anxious to have availed myself of your assistance. But after the lapse of years,
the first intimation I have of such doubts is the very public expression of a very strong
opinion, which, if weight be attached to it, must tend to alarm the public unnecessarily, and
to injure the value of the property of individuals who have embarked several millions in
that property.

Between Chippenham and Bristol the nature of the building stone

enabled Mr. Brunel, at moderate cost, to make the bridges, tunnel fronts,
and stations ornamental features in the picturesque scenery through which
the railway passes.
He took great pleasure in finishing minutely the various designs, and
making them correct in their proportions and details. One tunnel front, near
Bristol, may be singled out for especial mention. During its construction a
part of the ground behind slipped away, and it became unnecessary to
complete the top of one of the side walls. It was therefore left unfinished,
and was planted with ivy so as to present the appearance of a ruined
gateway.
The roofs of the Bath and Bristol stations are of large span, and are
handsome architectural structures. They are each in the form of a Tudor
arch; the Bristol roof is 72 feet span, and the Bath roof 50 feet span. The
framing is an example of a peculiar form of construction, somewhat
analogous to that adopted in the large shipbuilding sheds in the dockyards.
There are no cross tie-rods, but each principal of the roof is formed of two
frameworks, like cranes, meeting in the middle of the roof; the weight being
carried on columns near the edge of the platform, and the tail ends of the
frames held down by the side walls. As the two frames do not press against
each other at their meeting point at the ridge of the roof, there is no outward
thrust. The side walls being on a viaduct could not without difficulty have
been made to resist a horizontal thrust.
At the Bristol station Mr. Brunel introduced hydraulic machinery for
working lifts. By these the waggons were lowered to and raised up from the
goods shed, which was placed at the level of the ground, about 12 feet
below the railway.
Although the works already described were completed in 1841, the
permanent terminus at Paddington was not commenced till the year 1849. It
was completed in 1854. Previously to that time a temporary station had
been used, the booking offices being under the arches of the Bishop’s Road
bridge.
As the level of the railway was lower than that of the surrounding land,
no exterior architectural effect could be produced; but Mr. Brunel took this
opportunity to carry out his views as to the proper structural use of metal in
works of this description.
In the design of the ornamental details, he obtained the assistance of Mr.
(now Sir Matthew) Digby Wyatt.
The interior of the principal part of the station is 700 feet long and 238
feet wide, divided in its width by two rows of columns into three spans of
68, 102, and 68 feet, and is crossed at two points by transepts 50 feet wide,
which give space for large traversing frames. The roof is very light,
consisting of wrought-iron arched ribs, covered partly with corrugated iron
and partly with the Paxton glass roofing, which Mr. Brunel here adopted to
a considerable extent. The columns which carry the roof are very strongly
bolted down to large masses of concrete, to enable them to resist sideways
pressure.
This station may be considered to hold its own in comparison with the
gigantic structures which have since been built, as well as with older
stations. The appearance of size it presents is due far more to the
proportions of the design than to actual largeness of dimension. The spans
of the roof give a very convenient subdivision for a large terminal station,
dispensing with numerous supporting columns and at the same time
avoiding heavy and expensive trusses. The graceful forms of the
Paddington station, the absence of incongruous ornament and useless
buildings, may be appealed to as a striking instance of Mr. Brunel’s taste in
architecture and of his practice of combining beauty of design with
economy of construction.
The goods station was erected at about the same time as the passenger
station, and is remarkable for the completeness of its arrangements, and for
the great use made of hydraulic machinery. This is also applied in the
passenger station.[45]
In connection with the Paddington station mention may be made of the
Great Western Hotel, which was built at the extremity of the land belonging
to the railway company.
When, in 1854, no tenant could be found for it, a few of the shareholders
of the Great Western Railway, being unwilling that the building should
remain empty and be a loss to the proprietors, formed themselves into a
company to lease and work the hotel. Mr. Brunel became a Director, and
shortly afterwards (in December 1855) the chairman. He occupied this post
till his death, by which time the hotel had become very prosperous. He
found attendance at the meetings of the Directors and the supervision of the
management of the hotel a very agreeable relaxation from the more
important duties which took him to Paddington.

The branches and extensions of the Great Western Railway, as far as

their history affected the general interests of the company, are referred to in
the chapter on the broad gauge. Branches were opened to Oxford in 1844,
to Windsor in 1849, to Wycombe in 1854, to Uxbridge in 1856, to Henley
in 1857, and to Brentford in July 1859.

The Bristol and Exeter Railway is a continuation of the Great Western

Railway, and was opened to Exeter in 1844. The two portions of it, from
Bristol to Taunton, and from Taunton to Exeter, are in marked contrast to
each other. The former part of the line is almost level, and has very easy
curves. Between Taunton and Exeter it passes over the high ground on the
borders of Devonshire, with the Whiteball Tunnel at the summit, ⅝ mile in
length. On this part of the line there are long gradients of from 1 in 80 to 1
in 120. Mr. Brunel resigned the position of engineer in 1846, in
consequence of differences having arisen between the Bristol and Exeter
and the Great Western Companies, which, in Mr. Brunel’s opinion, made it
impossible for him to continue engineer to both railways.
The South Devon Railway, and the adoption on it of the Atmospheric
System, are described in Chapter VI. In connection with this line is the
important Torquay branch, and the railway in continuation of it to
Dartmouth. This was completed as far as Paignton during Mr. Brunel’s
lifetime.
The South Devon and Tavistock Railway branches off from the South
Devon Railway near Plymouth, and has several large viaducts.
On the Cornwall Railway from Plymouth to Truro, and the West
Cornwall Railway from Truro to Penzance, the most remarkable works are
the viaducts, and the Royal Albert Bridge.
In the case of the Cornwall Railway, it became necessary to reduce the
capital expenditure, even at the cost of increasing the charges for
maintenance. With this object the line was re-examined and modifications
introduced, principally by an increase in the extent of viaduct. These lines
pass through a very difficult country; involving the adoption of steep
gradients and sharp curves. Mr. Brunel, in a memorandum written in 1845,
after having explained his reasons for considering that the prejudicial
effects of gradients and curves were commonly overrated, gives the
following opinion in reference to the proposed Cornwall Railway:—
I must not be understood to argue against the advantage of straight lines or large and
easy curves, but I wish to show that where small curves are unavoidable, they can in
practice be so constructed as not to be very prejudicial; and I consider that the character of
the country in Cornwall is such that no railway can be constructed at any moderate expense
without either sacrificing all consideration for the interests of localities and the position of
the population to the mere choice of levels, or without steep gradients and sharp curves.

The principal lines branching off from the Great Western, and since
incorporated with it, are, on the south, the Berks and Hants, from Reading
to Basingstoke and Hungerford; and the Wilts and Somerset, to Weymouth
and Salisbury. On the north-west is the Cheltenham and Great Western
Union Railway, from Swindon to Cheltenham and Gloucester. This line
passes through the Cotswold Hills at Sapperton by a tunnel 1⅜ mile in
length. The Gloucester and Dean Forest Railway runs from Gloucester to
Grange Court, and thence to Ross and Hereford.
The South Wales Railway, which extends from Grange Court to Milford
Haven, contains a tunnel at Swansea ⅓ mile long, and some of Mr. Brunel’s
most important works, including the Chepstow bridge and several other
bridges of considerable size, and the viaducts at Landore and Newport.
There are also on this line four opening bridges across navigable channels.
The works at the termination of the line at Neyland, in Milford Haven, are
described in Chapter XIV. Mr. Brunel considered that Milford Haven, with
its excellent harbour, which can be entered at all times of tide by the largest
vessels, would probably become a great port for ocean steamers, and
especially for the ‘Great Eastern’ and ships of her class.
There are also in South Wales the following railways: the Taff Vale, the
Vale of Neath, the Llynvi Valley, and the South Wales Mineral. The Taff
Vale, a line from Cardiff to Merthyr, was opened on the narrow gauge in
1841.[46] On this railway is the lofty masonry viaduct at Quaker’s Yard.
On the Vale of Neath Railway, from Neath to Aberdare and Merthyr,
there is a tunnel, near Merthyr, 1¼ mile long, and 650 feet below the
summit of the hill.
Full advantage is taken on this railway of the facilities which the broad
gauge offers for heavy traffic. The line has long steep gradients, and the
locomotives used on it, of the class known as tank engines, are of great
power. One of these gradients is 4½ miles long, with an inclination of 1 in
50. Large quantities of coal are brought down by this railway to the
Swansea and Briton Ferry Docks. The coal of South Wales is of a friable
nature, and, in order to avoid the breakage consequent on the ordinary mode
of shipping coal, by tipping it down a shoot, Mr. Brunel introduced on a
large scale the use of trucks carrying four iron boxes, each box about 4 feet
8 inches cube, and containing two and a half tons of coal. At the docks
machinery is provided by which each box is lowered down into the hold of
the ship, and the under side being allowed to open, the coal is deposited at
once on the bottom of the vessel.
The Llynvi Valley Railway is a short line, leading from the South Wales
Railway at Bridgend into the coal and iron districts.
The South Wales Mineral Railway is another line of the same class. It
passes through a very heavy country, and has on it a self-acting incline of 1
in 9, ¾ mile long, worked by a rope, and a tunnel ⅝ mile long, and 470 feet
below the surface.
In connection with the South Wales district is the Bristol and South
Wales Union Railway, a line running from Bristol to the banks of the
Severn, across which the traffic is carried by a steamer to a short branch
from the South Wales Railway on the other side. This railway had been for
a long time contemplated, and Mr. Brunel devoted much time to a careful
investigation of the Severn in order to determine the most suitable point for
the crossing. He decided that the best place would be at what is known as
the New Passage. The arrangements had to be made in accordance with the
requirements of the Admiralty. Trains run to the end of timber piers
extending into deep water, and there are staircases and lifts leading to
pontoons, alongside which a steamer can come at all times of tide. The tide
at this part of the Severn rises 46 feet.
The three railways last mentioned were not completed during Mr.
Brunel’s lifetime.

The Bristol and Gloucester Railway, on which is the tunnel at Wickwar,

¾ mile long, was opened in 1844, and passed into the hands of the Midland
Company in 1846.

The northern extensions of the Great Western Railway are the Oxford
and Rugby, constructed as far as Fenny Compton; the Birmingham and
Oxford Junction; and the Oxford, Worcester, and Wolverhampton Railways.
Mr. Brunel ceased to be engineer of the last-mentioned company in
1851, and the works were completed by Mr. Fowler. The Oxford,
Worcester, and Wolverhampton line has since, under the title of the West
Midland, become a part of the Great Western Railway.

In Ireland Mr. Brunel was engineer of the line from Dublin to Wicklow,
round Bray Head, and of a line from Cork to Youghal.

He laid out two railways in Italy, the line from Florence to Pistoja, and
that across the Apennines from Genoa to Novi and Alessandria, in the
direction of Turin and Milan. He acted as engineer during the construction
of the former line; but the works of the latter were carried out by the
Sardinian Government.

One of the last of Mr. Brunel’s important railways was the Eastern
Bengal Railway, a line of about 100 miles in length, in a north-easterly
direction from Calcutta. He took a great interest in the work and devoted
much time to the special arrangements and designs, and to the best way of
crossing the Ganges and its branches in the future extension of the railway;
but no part of it was opened during his lifetime.

It was impossible for Mr. Brunel to look after all his works to the same
extent as he had done in the case of the Great Western Railway; and he was
compelled to spend a very considerable amount of time in attendance on
Committees of the Houses of Parliament on behalf of the railways to which
he was engineer. Mr. Brunel frequently regretted this, and considered it a
great evil that engineers were prevented by their duties during the session
from attending properly to the construction of their works. He endeavoured
as far as possible to superintend the execution of his different undertakings.
He availed himself of every opportunity of examining them, and was
acquainted throughout with all the designs which were prepared. He would
take advantage of two or three free days to go down to the distant works in
South Wales or in Cornwall, looking after details, such as the pickling tanks
for timber, and the masonry of the viaducts.
He was fortunate in the selection of the members of his staff, and in his
organisation of it. He had a rare power of utilising the capabilities of his
different assistants; and although he had to deal with a great variety of men,
he managed that they should work in harmony with him. From the complete
personal supervision Mr. Brunel sought to maintain over all his works, his
assistants had not perhaps so many opportunities of independent action as
they might otherwise have obtained, but they had, on the other hand, the
advantage of constant personal communication with their chief.
After the time when Mr. Brunel’s works became so numerous, and his
time so much occupied, that he could not exercise in person that general
supervision which he conceived to be necessary, he was ably assisted by
Mr. Robert Pearson Brereton, who, on the death of Mr. Hammond in 1847,
became the chief of his engineering staff.
Mr. Brunel rarely made any changes in the personnel of his office. Mr.
Brereton had become one of his assistants in 1836; and his secretary, the
late Mr. Joseph Bennett, came to him in the same year.

The Great Western Railway retained its early place in his affections, and
among his most valued friends were members of the Board of Directors,
Mr. Saunders the Secretary, and other officers of the company. When in the
last year of his life he was obliged to go to Egypt for his health, it was a
matter of deep anxiety to him lest his absence from England should cause
any alteration in his relations with the Company, and it was a source of
great pleasure to him that no such consequences followed.

Mr. Brunel’s position as confidential adviser of so large a number of

railway companies gave him frequent opportunities of acting as mediator
between contending parties; and his decisions were always received with
respect, for he was known to be scrupulously just.
Besides the more friendly task of reconciling opponents he had a large
practice as a referee under Acts of Parliament and orders of the superior
courts; and displayed in these matters great judicial abilities.
In all the causes and parliamentary contests affecting the various
companies of which he was engineer, Mr. Brunel was a very important
member of the preliminary consultations, and during the proceedings
counsel relied with confidence on his suggestions.

One of the most arduous parts of his duty, as engineer of the Great
Western Railway Company, was connected with the conduct of the great
cases of Ranger and MacIntosh. To the former of these reference is made in
the letter printed below, at p. 478. The MacIntosh case, which was
commenced shortly after the opening of the line, was not concluded before
Mr. Brunel’s death. He was compelled to devote a considerable portion of
his time to it, even after his return home in the evening, during the launch of
the ‘Great Eastern.’

Mr. Brunel had a very high reputation as a witness. Mr. St. George
Burke, Q.C., has communicated a memorandum on this subject.
‘As a witness he could always be relied on as a perfect master of the case he had to
support, and he had the rare quality of confining his answers to a simple reply to the
questions put to him, without appearing as an advocate. He was, however, extremely
particular as to the questions which should be put to him in his examination in chief, and
was therefore never satisfied to entrust the preparation of his proof to the solicitor, without
revising it himself.
‘In his cross-examinations he was generally a match for the most skilful counsel, and
by the adroitness of his answers would often do as much to advance his case as by his
examination in chief.
‘He was almost as much of a diplomatist as an engineer, and knew perfectly well how
to handle a case in the witness-box so as to leave no loophole for his opponents to take
advantage of. At the same time he was a perfectly honest witness, and while he avoided
saying more than was necessary for the advancement of the cause in which he was
engaged, he would have scorned to say or imply anything by his evidence inconsistent with
strict truth.
‘Although he had attained to great celebrity as a witness, the committee room being
crowded to hear him, he always declined to engage in the very lucrative work of a
professional witness. He made a rule never to appear except on behalf of undertakings of
which he was the engineer, or with which his own companies were interested. To help a
friend, he occasionally but very rarely broke through this resolve; but, whether he appeared
in support of his own plans or those of others, there were few, if any, professional men
whose evidence carried more weight than his did before Parliamentary Committees.’

The following memorandum from Mr. George T. Clark, of Dowlais,

formerly one of Mr. Brunel’s assistants, contains his recollections of Mr.
Brunel during the construction of the Great Western Railway:—
‘I made your father’s acquaintance, rather characteristically, in an unfinished tunnel of
the Coal-pit Heath Railway; and when the shaft in which we were suspended cracked and
seemed about to give way, I well remember the coolness with which he insisted upon
completing the observations he came to make. Shortly afterwards I became, at his request,
his assistant; and during the parliamentary struggle of 1835, and the subsequent
organisation of the staff, and commencement of the works of the Great Western, I saw him
for many hours daily, both in his office and in the field, travelled much with him, and
joined him in the very moderate recreation he allowed himself.
‘These two years, and the preceding year, 1834, were, I apprehend, the turning points
of his life. His vigour, both of body and mind, were in their perfection. His powers were
continually called forth by the obstacles he had to overcome; and the result of his
examinations in the committee rooms placed him, in the opinion of the members of the
legislature, and of his own profession, in the very first rank of that profession, both for
talents and knowledge.
‘I wish I could convey to you even a tolerable idea of your father as he was in those
years, during which I knew him intimately, and saw him often under circumstances of great
difficulty.
‘He was then a young man, but in the school of the Thames Tunnel he had acquired a
close acquaintance with all kinds of masons’ and carpenters’ work, the strength and cost of
materials, bridge building, and constructions under water, and with the working of the
steam engine as it then stood. It happened not unfrequently that it was desirable to accept
the tender of some contractor for railway work whose prices upon certain items were too
high, and then it became the engineer’s business to go into the details and convince the
contractor of his error. On such occasions Brunel would go step by step through the stages
of the work, and it was curious to see the surprise of the practical man as he found himself
corrected in his own special business by the engineer. Thus, I remember his proving to an
eminent brickmaker who had tendered for the Chippenham contract that the bricks could
be made much cheaper than he supposed. He knew accurately how much coal would burn
so many bricks, what it would cost, what number of bricks could be turned out, what would
be the cost of housing the men, what the cartage, and how many men it would require to
complete the work in the specified time. The contractor was astonished; asked if Mr.
Brunel had ever been in the brick trade, and finally took and made money by the contract at
the proposed figure.
‘In the case of the Maidenhead bridge, the contractor being alarmed at learning that the
arch was the flattest known in brick, Brunel pointed out to him that the weight which he
feared would crush the bricks, would be less than in a wall which he, the contractor, had
recently built, and he convinced him by geometry, made easy by diagrams, that the bridge
must stand. Knowledge of detail Brunel shared with the carpenter, builder, or contractor for
earthwork, and he was their superior in the accuracy and rapidity with which he combined
his knowledge, and arrived at correct conclusions as to the cost of the work and the time it
would take to execute it.
‘In talking to landowners and others whose opposition it was important to overcome, I
have often been struck by your father’s great powers of negotiation. The most absurd
objections—and there were many such—were listened to with good humour, and he spared
no pains in explaining the real facts, so that it sometimes happened that he converted
opponents into supporters of the railway. In the course he took there was much skilful
diplomacy, but there was no dishonesty, no humbug. He was very frank and perfectly
sincere. His object was to impart his own convictions, and in that he often succeeded.
I never met his equal for sustained power of work. After a hard day spent in preparing
and delivering evidence, and after a hasty dinner, he would attend consultations till a late
hour; and then, secure against interruption, sit down to his papers, and draw specifications,
write letters or reports, or make calculations all through the night. If at all pressed for time
he slept in his armchair for two or three hours, and at early dawn he was ready for the work
of the day. When he travelled he usually started about four or five in the morning, so as to
reach his ground by daylight. His travelling carriage, in which he often slept, was built
from his own design, and was a marvel of skill and comfort. This power of work was no
doubt aided by the abstemiousness of his habits and by his light and joyous temperament.
One luxury, tobacco, he indulged in to excess, and probably to his injury. At all times, even
in bed, a cigar was in his mouth; and wherever he was engaged, there, near at hand, was the
enormous leather cigar-case so well known to his friends, and out of which he was quite as
ready to supply their wants as his own.
His light and joyous disposition was very attractive. At no time was he stern, but when
travelling or off work he was like a boy set free. There was no fun for which he was not
ready. On the old Bath road, on a Wiltshire chalk hill-side, is cut a large horse, the pride of
the district, and only inferior in reputation to that of the famous Berkshire vale. The people
of the district, afraid to lose their coach traffic, were violently opposed to the Great
Western Railway Bill. Talking over this one evening, some one suggested turning the horse
into a locomotive. Brunel was much amused at the idea, and at once sketched off the horse
from memory, roughly calculated its area, and arranged a plan for converting it into an
engine. Ten picked men were to go down in two chaises, and by moonlight to peg and line
out the new figure, and then cut away the turf, and with it cover up as much of the horse as
might be left. From the tube was to issue a towering column of steam, and below was to be
inserted in bold characters the offensive letters G. W. R. It was, of course, not intended to
carry this joke into execution, but Brunel often alluded to it, and laughed over the sensation
it would have created.
‘He possessed a very fine temper, and was always ready to check differences between
those about him, and to put a pleasant construction upon any apparent neglect or offence.
His servants loved him, and he never forgot those who had stood by his father and himself
in the old Tunnel days of trouble and anxiety.
‘No doubt the exertions of those three years, though they laid the foundation, or rather
built the fabric, of his reputation, also undermined his constitution, and eventually
shortened his life. Everything for which he was responsible he insisted upon doing for
himself. I doubt whether he ever signed a professional report that was not entirely of his
own composition; and every structure upon the Great Western, from the smallest culvert up
to the Brent viaduct and Maidenhead bridge, was entirely, in all its details, from his own
designs.’
 In the press of work and the altered circumstances under which he
superintended the construction of his later railways, many changes
inevitably followed. The open britzska gave place to a close travelling
carriage, which in its turn became useless; and no time was left for fun or
practical jokes; but the same energy of mind and the same kindliness of
heart remained uninfluenced by increasing occupations or advancing years.
 CHAPTER V.

THE BROAD GAUGE.

ORIGIN OF THE ORDINARY GAUGE OF RAILWAYS—ADOPTION

BY MR. BRUNEL OF THE BROAD GAUGE ON THE GREAT
WESTERN RAILWAY—REASONS FOR ITS ADOPTION—THE
PERMANENT WAY—REPORTS OF MR. NICHOLAS WOOD AND
MR. JOHN HAWKSHAW, 1838—EXTRACT FROM REPORT OF
DIRECTORS OF GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY COMPANY
(DECEMBER 20, 1838)—EXTENSION OF THE BROAD GAUGE
SYSTEM—BREAK OF GAUGE—ROYAL COMMISSION ON THE
GAUGE OF RAILWAYS, 1845—LETTER OF MR. BRUNEL ON THE
BROAD GAUGE (AUGUST 6, 1845)—GAUGE ACT OF 1846—THE
MIXED GAUGE—REPORT OF RAILWAY COMMISSIONERS, 1847
—NORTHERN EXTENSIONS OF THE GREAT WESTERN
RAILWAY—ADVANTAGES OF THE BROAD GAUGE—PARTIAL
ABANDONMENT OF THE BROAD GAUGE.

THE railways designed by Mr. Brunel were, with a few exceptions,

distinguished from those in all other parts of England by a peculiarity in the
width between the two rails forming each line of way, or in what is called
the gauge. In most railways, the distance between the internal edges of the
rails is 4 feet 8½ inches, being what is termed the narrow gauge; on Mr.
Brunel’s railways, it was seven feet, or what is termed the broad gauge.

The gauge of the earlier railways, which were but a modification of the
old wooden tramway, was made that of the tram plates which they
superseded; and this had been originally fixed to suit the distance between
the wheels of the country carts in the north of England.
When Mr. George Stephenson introduced the locomotive engine, the
gauge of the lines in the Northumberland district had been already fixed. In
laying out the Stockton and Darlington line (1821-1825) he saw no reason
to depart from the gauge he had previously adopted; and, indeed, some of
the waggons to be used on this line were brought from the Northumberland
collieries. In this way the first important railway in England was made with
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