The US Military has a history of using chemicals that caused many medical issues or deploying service members to toxic locations. One of the biggest and iconic situation was Agent Orange, then there was Lejeune Water Contamination, Gulf War Syndrome, and now contaminated military base water due to firefighting foam.
Agent Orange was just one of a rainbow of color-coded herbicides that was used in Vietnam from 1961 to 1971. Vietnam was a difficult landscape for war, so Agent Orange was used to eliminate the dense jungles and farms that provided food to the enemy. The name Agent Orange is used for the whole situation because it was used for 60% of all the herbicides that was used. “In 1979, a lawsuit was filed on behalf of 2.4 million veterans whom was exposed to Agent Orange during their service in Vietnam. Five years later, in an out-of-court-settlement, seven large chemical companies that manufactured the herbicide agreed to pay $180 million in compensation to the veterans or their next of kin.” For more information, please check this out Agent Orange – HISTORY Agent Orange Exposure | Veterans Affairs (va.gov)
Camp Lejeune and Fort McClellan were the centers of water contamination for the military. In 1982, the Marine Corps discovered specific volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the drinking water provided by two of the eight water treatment plants on base. Camp Lejeune was established 1941 with 246 square miles that includes Marine Corps Air Station New River. The death of Janey Ensminger, the daughter of Marine, led to the creation of H.R.1742, known as the Janey Ensminger Act, an act of the 112th United States Congress which established a presumption of service connection for illnesses associated with contaminants in the water supply at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune between the years 1957 and 1987 and which provided healthcare to family members of veterans who lived at Camp Lejeune while the water was contaminated. Ensminger was one among thousands of victims of the Camp Lejeune water contamination scandal, which is believed to be one of the largest water contamination incidents in United States history.
H.R. 1742 was introduced into Congress by U.S. Representative Brad Miller on May 5, 2011. It was the result of Jerry Ensminger’s conviction that Janey’s leukemia was caused by toxic chemicals in the drinking water at Camp Lejeune, which Jerry did not know about until 1997, when a federal government report concluded that for nearly three decades the tap water at Camp Lejeune had been contaminated by toxic chemicals associated with childhood and adult cancers, especially leukemia. President Barack Obama signed the bill into law in 2012, saying at the White House ceremony that the country has a “moral and sacred duty” to care for those sickened by the contaminated drinking water.Camp Lejeune Water Contamination Health Issues | Veterans Affairs (va.gov)
Fort McClellan was the Army base were many different toxins were stored since it was opened in 1917. This base was used as a basic training site (for the Women Army Corps), including a jobs training for the Chemical Corps, Military Police, Vietnam training and Border Patrol Training. From 1929 to 1971, an off-post Monsanto chemical plant operated south of Fort McClellan in Anniston. PCBs from the plant entered into the environment, and the surrounding community was exposed. Potential Exposure at Fort McClellan – Public Health (va.gov) The Long Shadow of Fort McClellan | The American Legion
When the US entered the Gulf War, the last thing in anyone’s mind was the unexplained illnesses that would be produced in the bodies of everyone that fought in the war. Please see the links for more information: Gulf War Veterans’ Medically Unexplained Illnesses – Public Health (va.gov) Gulf War Illness 25 Years After Desert Storm | Health Affairs
Recently declassified Defense Department documents show the Pentagon knew troops were exposed to multiple toxins and hazards that have led to hundreds of cancer cases and dozens of dead veterans after deploying to Uzbekistan in the early days of the War on Terror. The Department of Veterans Affairs is denying most of them care and disability. Karshi-Khanabad Air Base, known as K2, is a former Soviet air base in southeastern Uzbekistan that shares a border with northern Afghanistan. After the 9/11 attacks, the U.S. established Camp Stronghold Freedom at K2, which was used to support combat missions from 2001 to 2005. Veterans described a toxic environment at the post, where pond water glowed green, black sludge oozed from the ground and the government posted massive white and yellow signs warning troops to keep out of certain areas due to chemical agents. There were environmental studies by the DOD completed in 2001 and a number of times during the stay on base thru 2005. But the VA has continued to deny service connection to the exposure on K2. For more information, please follow the link: DoD Knew K2 Troops Were Exposed to Cancer-Causing Toxins; VA Continues to Deny Care | Military.com