Munitions Dumping at Sea

by CR McClain

Munitions Dumping at Sea

Mon Jun 18, 2007 20:02

Hundreds of dolphins washed ashore in Virginia and New Jersey shorelines in 1987 with burns similar to mustard gas exposure. One marine-mammal specialist suspects Army-dumped chemical weapons killed them. (Photo courtesy of the Marine Mammal Stranding Center in New Jersey)

SOURCE:

It is no secret that the U.S. military has used the ocean as trashcan for munitions in the past. Peter discussed at the Old DSN how federal lawmakers were pressing the US Army to reveal everything it knows about a massive international program to dump chemical weapons off homeland and foreign shores. "The Army now admits that it secretly dumped 64 million pounds of nerve and mustard agents into the sea, along with 400,000 chemical-filled bombs, land mines and rockets and more than 500 tons of radioactive waste - either tossed overboard or packed into the holds of scuttled vessels." Brian pointed me to the Daily Press's in depth coverage of this whole issue. Registration is free and only takes a minute or two and is extremely worthwhile. Included at the site are maps of disposal sites (downloadable as pdfs), stories, descriptions of items dumped including nerve and musturd gas, and rather depressing pictures some are below the fold (all from Daily Press).

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Having done my graduate work in Hampton Roads, I know that the Daily Press has its moments, but this is fantastic work. Thanks for the post.

Scalloping off Virginia and Maryland, you get all sorts of strange military hardware in your gear -- for example, I have a full Navy flight harness from one of those trips hanging in my office. (As the pilot was missing, presumably he got back...) It's mostly the Europeans that are fishing in deeper waters these days, in part because there's not that much fisheries production left over there. Hence, it's likely that the EC will have to address this issue first, especially given our "anti-proactive" U.S. Department of Defense these days.

Posted by: FishGuyDave
http://scienceblogs.com/deepseanews/2007/06/munitions_dumping_at_sea.php

In 1999, a resident of Vieques asked (that is, petitioned) the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) to determine whether the Navy's operations on Vieques expose residents to unhealthy levels of environmental contaminants. For the last 2 years, ATSDR has studied this issue extensively. The results of those studies appear in a series of reports known as public health assessments (PHAs). This PHA evaluates the soils of Vieques and addresses the public health implications of exposure to them. ATSDR's findings and the reasons supporting them are documented throughout this report, but the main conclusions are identified below
http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/HAC/PHA/isladevieques/idv_p1.html

6/18/07 The Charles Goyette Show, 1100 AM KFNS Phx Az
AUDIO: RANT..WOW!
http://www.apfn.net/pogo8/A006I070618-1207F.MP3

6/18/07 Radio Your Way..... — Radio Your Way, Mon Jun 18 17:05
Munitions Dumping at Sea — by CR McClain, Mon Jun 18 20:02