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 This disaster happened because the Chisso Corporation dumped mercury into Minamata Bay. People who ate fish from this bay were affected with mercury. The researchers from Kumamoto University discovered that mercury was the cause of the disease. In 1925, Chisso Corporation dumped mercury into Minamata Bay and damaged the fishing areas. The plan of the company was to pay the Minamata fishermen in return for destroying their fishing environment. According to Eugene Smith’s interview of the people of Minamata, Chisso Corporation had confidence in the truth that it was cheaper to pay the few people who were against the mercury dumping, than to carry out a safe way of disposing mercury.
 * How did it happen? Who or what caused the disaster? Why did it happen? **

Because the fishermen agreed for the Chisso Corporation to damage their fishing environment in return for money, the whole course of action was reasonable. Since the water of Minamata Bay was polluted, eating the fish caused mercury poisoning in people, birds and cats.

When Chisso Corporation was accused of being the company that was responsible for the occurrence of the Minamata Disaster, the company stopped dumping mercury into Minamata Bay. Hoping to not be accused of the Minamata Disease, the Chisso Corporation started to dump mercury into the Minamata River.

The Minamata River flows past Hachimon and into the Shiranui Sea. When the company started to dump mercury into the Minamata River, the people who lived in the town of Hachimon were affected with the Minamata Disease, a few months later.

Chisso Corporation doesn’t use chemicals which caused the Minamata Disease or dump mercury into the bay anymore. But victims still haven’t received full compensation yet. The company has carried out an environmentally safe way in their production. Chisso Corporation quit using mercury in 1968 because the method of producing mercury was out of date.

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