Thursday
Jun112009
Veterans Attribute Health Issues To Burning Waste
Thursday, June 11, 2009 at 4:33PM
By: Courtney Costello- Talk Radio News Service
The House has proposed new legislation that would close improperly facilitated burn pits used by U.S. military personnel in Iraq and Afghanistan. The legislation would also mandate health screenings for veterans who were exposed to toxins released from the pits, which are large ditches used to dispose of garbage and waste.
The Military Personnel War Zone Toxic Exposure Prevention Act would require the Secretary of Defense to establish a medical surveillance system that would pinpoint troops that have been exposed to hazardous chemicals burned in the pits. The act would also prohibit the military from discarding waste that omits dangerous levels of toxins.
“We believe it is premature to dismiss concern raised about burn pits after only a few years. Our country’s difficult experiences with agent orange and Gulf War illness taught us we must be vigilant in monitoring and treating our veterans long after they have returned from the battlefield,” said Rep. Tim Bishop (D-N.Y.).
Despite the fact that the military has purchased incinerators, the burn pits have become an indefinite solution to get rid of waste.
“[The burn pits are producing] 250 tons of waste everyday. Some of our troops are working directly inside of these pits with no protection,” said Kerry Baker, the Assistant National Legislative Director of the Disabled American Veterans.
Medical concerns that have been raised include chronic bronchitis, asthma, sleep apnea, allergy-like symptoms, lung problems and lymphoma.
“Where all of the trash from the base and from the base hospital was burned just over the wall...we lived under a cloud of smoke from that continuous fire, and everyone was affected on some level,” said Tom Tarantino, an Iraq War veteran and a policy associate for the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America.
According to Rep. Bishop, the Department of Defense currently maintains that there are no long term health issues related to troops being exposed to burn pits.
The House has proposed new legislation that would close improperly facilitated burn pits used by U.S. military personnel in Iraq and Afghanistan. The legislation would also mandate health screenings for veterans who were exposed to toxins released from the pits, which are large ditches used to dispose of garbage and waste.
The Military Personnel War Zone Toxic Exposure Prevention Act would require the Secretary of Defense to establish a medical surveillance system that would pinpoint troops that have been exposed to hazardous chemicals burned in the pits. The act would also prohibit the military from discarding waste that omits dangerous levels of toxins.
“We believe it is premature to dismiss concern raised about burn pits after only a few years. Our country’s difficult experiences with agent orange and Gulf War illness taught us we must be vigilant in monitoring and treating our veterans long after they have returned from the battlefield,” said Rep. Tim Bishop (D-N.Y.).
Despite the fact that the military has purchased incinerators, the burn pits have become an indefinite solution to get rid of waste.
“[The burn pits are producing] 250 tons of waste everyday. Some of our troops are working directly inside of these pits with no protection,” said Kerry Baker, the Assistant National Legislative Director of the Disabled American Veterans.
Medical concerns that have been raised include chronic bronchitis, asthma, sleep apnea, allergy-like symptoms, lung problems and lymphoma.
“Where all of the trash from the base and from the base hospital was burned just over the wall...we lived under a cloud of smoke from that continuous fire, and everyone was affected on some level,” said Tom Tarantino, an Iraq War veteran and a policy associate for the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America.
According to Rep. Bishop, the Department of Defense currently maintains that there are no long term health issues related to troops being exposed to burn pits.
Sen. Dorgan: KBR Still Using Burn Pits
According to Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.), who chairs the Senate Democratic Policy Committee, military contractor Kellogg, Brown, and Root [KBR] is continuing to dispose of waste in Iraq using burn pits that reportedly give off toxic fumes.
“The Army and the contractor in charge of this waste disposal Kellogg, Brown, and Root, made frequent and unnecessary use of these burn pits and exposed thousands of U.S. troops to toxic smoke...burn pits are still used at the Balad Airbase in Iraq, which is the largest U.S. base in that country.”
Dorgan went on to list toxins that could be contained within a smoke plume from a burn pit, included carcinogens, respiratory threats, cardiovascular toxins, nervous system toxins and other toxins.
Burn pits have been used since 2003 in Iraq and Afghanistan to dispose of waste and other harmful materials.
Retired Lt. Col. Darrin L. Curtis, Ph.D., P.E. said one of the first things he noticed when he arrived to Balad Air Base was the smoke from a burn pit. “The smell was noxious and looked like a very thick fog hanging low to the ground,” he said.
Curtis said that while he was at Balad Air Base, he conducted sampling of the smoke plumes and “the sample results were used for the U.S. Army’s Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine (CHPPM) health risk assessment published in May 2008 in which CHPPM stated that ‘adverse health risks are unlikely.’"
“Since then, the Department of Defense (DoD) has relied on this report to conclude that ‘long-term health effects are not expected to occur from breathing the smoke’ at Balad Air Base,” he added.
Rick Lamberth, a former KBR employee, returned home from Iraq in July of this year, and said, “since returning home in July, I have suffered from a number of respiratory problems related to the exposure. Now the military will not pay for my medical care. They claim that these conditions are existed prior to service (EPTS).”
Lamberth said he worked with direct contact for the Logistics Civil Augmentation Program (LOGCAP) and with KBR. He said, “under the LOGCAP contract, waste disposal by private contractors must comply with Army regulations, federal EPA and the Defense Logistics Agency’s regulations for waste and hazmat removal and disposal."
Lamberth went on to say that “the LOGCAP Statement of Work explicitly conforms to Army Technical Bulletin 593, which allows for the use of burn pits “only in emergency situations until approved incinerators can be obtained.’”