Reasons what led to the Bhopal Gas Disaster
The 1985 reports give a picture of what led to the disaster and how it developed- * Factors leading to the gas leak include: * The use of hazardous chemicals (MIC) instead of less dangerous ones * Storing these chemicals in large tanks instead of over 200 steel drums. * Possible corroding material in pipelines * Poor maintenance after the plant ceased production in the early 1980s * Failure of several safety systems (due to poor maintenance and regulations). * Safety systems being switched off to save money—including the MIC tank refrigeration system which alone would have prevented the disaster.
The problem was made worse by the plant's location near a densely populated area, non-existent catastrophe plans and shortcomings in health care and socio-economic rehabilitation. Analysis shows that the parties responsible for the magnitude of the disaster are the two owners, Union Carbide Corporation and the Government of India, and to some extent, the Government of Madhya Pradesh.
The disaster could have been avoided if the following actions would have been taken:
1. It emerged in 1998, during civil action suits in India, that, unlike Union Carbide plants in the US, its Indian subsidiary plants were not prepared for problems. No action plans had been