- Pollutants like suflur dioxide and nitrogen oxides, which are products of base smelting, can cause respiratory diseases in humans such as asthma and chronic bronchitis. ("Pollution Issues.")
- Other pollutants that are caused by base metal smelting such as arsenic, cadmium and mercury can cause serious damage to the human body ("What Effect Does Acid Rain Have on Plant Life." )
- Long term exposure to mercury vapours/pollutants can cause server damage to the nervous system, this can be caused by levels only slightly above the legal limit ("MercOut International" )
- :ong exposure to high amount of mercury can lead to diseases such as multiple sclerosis, A.L.S (lou Gehrigs Disease) and Parkinson's disease ("MercOut International")
- Cadmium another element that can escape from smelters during base smelting is high in toxicity it mainly affects the kidneys, cardiovascular system and is also related to certain types of cancer ("Cadmium - The Pseudo-Strength Element")
- Cadmium can also lead to metal illnesses that produce violent thoughts and actions ("Cadmium - The Pseudo-Strength Element")
- Arsenic is related to many sorts of cancers, when ingested it can lead to cancer of the skin, lungs, bladder and kidneys.
- People who are put in the immediate vicinity of smelting compounds can be exposed to these toxic chemicals
for example
- In La Oroya, peru there are over 30'000 people who are put into unsafe working conditions. ("Peruvian Court Orders")
- A smelter nearby to the town has been in operation in 1922 because of these factory more than 90% of the children in the town have shown large traces of lead in there blood, these large amounts can be poisonous and cause many serious illnesses ("Peruvian Court Orders")
- No only can smelting factories have large impacts of the environment, but they also have a large impacts are human health ("Peruvian Court Orders")