Over the course of millennia, the intensity of the production of toxic materials – specifically of metals – has had a direct impact on human health, researchers at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem have found in cooperation with some Italian scholars.
The group analyzed the remains of 132 individuals buried in a cemetery in Rome that was in consecutive use for some 12,000 years.
The results were published on Monday in the academic journal Environmental Science and Technology, revealing that as the lead production began and grew, a higher level of toxic exposure was detected in the bones.
“The increase in lead production rates was revealed in environmental archives such as terrestrial ice, and sediments from lakes and peat-bogs,” the team led by Prof. Yigal Erel wrote.
As cupellation – a procedure to produce metals – was discovered 5,000 years ago, the remains start to present traces of pollution. The level then stays stable through the Bronze Age, and slightly increases during the Iron Age, until a sharp rise was registered 2,500 years ago when the production of coins became more intense, reaching its height during the Roman period.
After a few centuries of decline, lead production increased again after 1,000 CE, propelled by silver mining in Germany.
The most recent remains analyzed date to the 17th century, before the Industrial Revolution.
“This documentation of lead pollution throughout human history indicates that, remarkably, much of the estimated dynamics in lead production is replicated in human exposure,” Erel said. “Thus, lead pollution in humans has closely followed their rates of lead production.
“Simply put: the more lead we produce, the more people are likely to be absorbing it into their bodies. This has a highly toxic effect.”
Humans are exposed to lead pollution through various sources including their diet and the air they breathe. Exposure can have a long-lasting effect on children’s development.
“The close relationship between lead production rates and lead concentrations in humans in the past suggests that without proper regulation, we will continue to experience the damaging health impacts of toxic metals contamination,” Erel warned.
According to the article, there will be a significant increase in the coming years in demand for certain metals to build batteries but also solar panels, wind turbines and other products. For example, it said, “a 300% increase in the demand for lead, nickel, silver, and indium in solar photovoltaics, and 1,200% increase in the demand for lead, cobalt, and nickel for energy storage technologies are expected in order to achieve 2°C rather than 6°C increase in global World temperature by 2050.”
For this reason, it will be crucial to focus on regulation and technologies to decrease the impact of such productions on the environment.
“Any expanded use of metals should go hand in hand with industrial hygiene, ideally safe metal recycling and increased environmental and toxicological consideration in the selection of metals for industrial use,” Erel said.