Dr. Doug Rokke, PhD.
former Director, U.S. Army Depleted Uranium
project
June 11, 2008
During the summer of 1991, the United States military had collected
artillery, tanks, Bradley fighting vehicles, conventional and unconventional
munitions, trucks, etc. at Camp Doha in Kuwait. As result of carelessness this
weapons depot caught fire with consequent catastrophic explosion resulting in
death, injury, illness and extensive environmental contamination from depleted
uranium and conventional explosives. Recently the emirate of Kuwait
required the United States Department of Defense to remove the contamination.
Consequently, over 6,700 tons of contaminated soil sand and other residue was
collected and has been shipped back to the United States for burial by American
Ecology at Boise Idaho. When Bob Nichols, an investigative journalist, and
I contacted American Ecology we found out that they had absolutely no knowledge
of U.S. Army Regulation 700-48, U.S. Army PAM 700-48, U.S. Army Technical
Bulletin 9-1300-278, and all of the medical orders dealing with depleted uranium
contamination, environmental remediation procedures, safety, and medical care .
They had never heard of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency guidelines for
dealing with mixed – hazardous waste such as radioactive materials and
conventional explosives byproducts. (reference "Approaches for the Remediation
of Federal Facility Sites Contaminated with Explosives or Radioactive Wastes",
EPA/625/R-93/013, September 1993). The shipment across the ocean,
unloading at Longview, Washington State port, transport by rail, and
burial in Idaho endangers not only the residents of these areas but poses a
significant agricultural threat through introduction of pests, microbes,
etc. foreign to our nation.
Sadly the known adverse health and environmental hazards from uranium
weapons contamination are in our own backyard. The EPA has listed
the former Nuclear Metals- Starmet uranium weapons manufacturing site in Concord
Ma. On EPA’s Superfund National Priority List because it poses a significant
risk to public health and the environment. Consequently the community in which
our nation was born on April 18, 1775 is now the location of America’s own
closed dirty bomb factory that will endanger the health and safety of the
descendants of our original patriots- “the
Minutemen”.
The previous delivery of at least 100 GBU 28 bunker busters bombs
containing depleted uranium warheads by the United States and their use by
Israel against Lebanese targets has resulted in additional radioactive and
chemical toxic contamination with consequent adverse health and environmental
effects throughout the middle east. Israeli tank gunners are also using depleted
uranium tank rounds as photographs verify.
Today, U.S., British, and now Israeli military personnel are using illegal
uranium munitions- America's and England's own "dirty bombs" while U.S. Army,
U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Department of Defense, and British Ministry of
Defence officials deny that there are any adverse health and environmental
effects as a consequence of the manufacture, testing, and/or use of uranium
munitions to avoid liability for the willful and illegal dispersal of a
radioactive toxic material - depleted uranium.
The use of uranium weapons is absolutely unacceptable, and a crime against
humanity. Consequently the citizens of the world and all governments must force
cessation of uranium weapons use. I must demand that Israel now provide
medical care to all DU casualties in Lebanon and clean up all DU contamination.
U.S. and British officials have arrogantly refused to comply with their own
regulations, orders, and directives that require United States Department of
Defense officials to provide prompt and effective medical care to "all" exposed
individuals. Reference: Medical Management of Unusual Depleted Uranium
Casualties, DOD, Pentagon, 10/14/93, Medical Management of Army personnel
Exposed to Depleted Uranium (DU) Headquarters, U.S. Army Medical Command 29
April 2004, and section 2-5 of U.S. Army Regulation 700-48. Israeli
officials must not do so now.
They also refuse to clean up dispersed radioactive Contamination as
required by Army Regulation- AR 700-48: "Management of Equipment Contaminated
With Depleted Uranium or Radioactive Commodities" (Headquarters, Department Of
The Army, Washington, D.C., September 2002) and U.S. Army Technical Bulletin- TB
9-1300-278: "Guidelines For Safe Response To Handling, Storage, And
Transportation Accidents Involving Army Tank Munitions Or Armor Which Contain
Depleted Uranium" (Headquarters, Department Of The Army, Washington, D.C., JULY
1996). Specifically section 2-4 of United States Army Regulation-AR 700-48 dated
September 16, 2002 requires that:
(1) "Military personnel "identify,
segregate, isolate, secure, and label all RCE" (radiologically contaminated
equipment).
(2) "Procedures to minimize the spread of radioactivity will be
implemented as soon as possible."
(3) "Radioactive material and waste will
not be locally disposed of through burial, submersion, incineration, destruction
in place, or abandonment" and
(4) "All equipment, to include captured or
combat RCE, will be surveyed, packaged, retrograded, decontaminated and released
IAW Technical Bulletin 9-1300-278, DA PAM 700-48" (Note: Maximum exposure limits
are specified in Appendix F).
DOD leaders are not showing the DU training tapes to military
personnel. These three video tapes: (1) "Depleted Uranium Hazard
Awareness", (2) "Contaminated and Damaged Equipment Management", and (3)
"Operation of the AN/PDR 77 Radiac Set" are essential to understanding the
hazards from the use of uranium weapons and management of uranium weapons
contamination. DOD leaders must show these tapes to all military personnel
involved in the use of uranium weapons and the consequent management of
uranium contamination.
The previous and current use of uranium weapons, the release of radioactive
components in destroyed U.S. and foreign military equipment, and releases of
industrial, medical, research facility radioactive materials have resulted in
unacceptable exposures. Therefore, decontamination must be completed as required
by U.S. Army Regulation 700-48 and should include releases of all radioactive
materials resulting from military operations.
The extent of adverse health and environmental effects of uranium weapons
contamination is not limited to combat zones in the Balkans, Iraq, and
Afghanistan but includes facilities and sites where uranium weapons were
manufactured or tested including Vieques; Puerto Rico; Colonie, New York;
Concord, MA; Jefferson Proving Grounds, Indiana; and Schofield Barracks, Hawaii.
Therefore medical care must be provided by the United States Department of
Defense officials to all individuals affected by the manufacturing, testing,
and/or use of uranium munitions. Thorough environmental remediation also must be
completed without further delay.
I am amazed that fifteen years after was I asked to clean up the initial DU
mess from Gulf War 1 and over ten years since I finished the depleted uranium
project that United States Department of Defense officials and others still
attempt to justify uranium munitions use while ignoring mandatory requirements.
I am dismayed that Department of Defense and Department of Energy officials and
representatives continue personal attacks aimed to silence or discredit those of
us who are demanding that medical care be provided to all DU casualties and that
environmental remediation is completed in compliance with U.S. Army Regulation
700-48. But beyond the ignored mandatory actions the willful dispersal of tons
of solid radioactive and chemically toxic waste in the form of uranium munitions
is illegal (
http://www.traprockpeace.org/karen_parker_du_illegality.pdf)
and just does not even pass the common sense test and according to the U.S.
Department of Homeland Security, DHS, is a dirty bomb. DHS issued "dirty bomb"
response guidelines,
http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/aces/fr-cont.html,
on January 3, 2006 for incidents within the United States but ignore DOD use of
uranium weapons and existing DOD regulations. These guidelines specifically
state that: "Characteristics of RDD and IND Incidents: A radiological incident
is defined as an event or series of events, deliberate or accidental, leading to
the release, or potential release, into the environment of radioactive material
in sufficient quantity to warrant consideration of protective actions. Use of an
RDD or IND is an act of terror that produces a radiological incident." Thus the
use of uranium munitions is "an act or terror" as defined by DHS. Finally
continued compliance with the infamous March 1991 Los Alamos Memorandum that was
issued to ensure continued use of uranium munitions can not be justified.
In conclusion: the President of the United States- George W. Bush, the
Prime Minister of Great Britain-Gordon Brown, and the Prime Minister of Israel
Olmert must acknowledge and accept responsibility for willful use of illegal
uranium munitions- their own "dirty bombs"- resulting in adverse health and
environmental effects.
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