Battlefield

BATTLEFIELD CONTAMINATION AND BEYOND: A Closer Look

Maurice G. Monroid & Hazel Hannah J. Yuga

“Warfare is inherently destructive of sustainable development. States shall therefore respect international law providing protection for the environment in times of armed conflict and cooperate in its further development, as necessary.” – 1992 Rio Declaration

SELECTED CONTAMINANTS OF THE BATTLEFIELD

White Phosphorus used by military in smoke generation, rodent poisoning in some places  Has two allotropes  alpha form - stable at ordinary temperatures  beta form - a cubic crystal structure which is stable below -780C 

White Phosphorus Effects  usually related with damaged bones and major internal organs  presence in the environment poses harm to any animal species who accidentally gets in contact with it

Agent Orange and Dioxins Agent Orange  named after the color of the barrel from which it was shipped from  by-product of this compound is dioxin

Agent Orange and Dioxins Dioxins  poses great harm to the environment, specifically to the carnivores, because of its capability to accumulate while being transferred in the higher levels of the food chain or bioaccumulation

Agent Orange and Dioxins Dioxins  are fat-soluble thus cannot escape the body easily  Has the ability to break and disperse and spread contamination

Lead  36th

of the most abundant natural element in the Earth crust  reacts freely with water, in the presence of air, to form lead hydroxide  Used to form a shielding for radioactive material used in wars due to its high density and nuclear properties

Lead Effects  One form of lead, lead tetraethyl Pb (C2H5)4, used in gasolines, gives great contribution to air pollution  Lead taken internally, can cause anemia, constipation, weakness, etc.  May contaminate drinking water

Mercury a

toxic metal released by highly explosive weapons and landmines after blasting  only metal which remains liquid at room temperature

Mercury Effects  excessive amounts in the soil or most dangerously in water leads to toxification of plants and some animal species  also hazardous to mackerel, tuna, salmon and swordfish

TNT and RDX Trinitrotoluene (TNT)  formerly the most useful military explosive prior to the arrival of Research Department Explosive (RDX)  can be safely melted and cast either alone or as slurry with other explosives

TNT and RDX Research Department Explosive (RDX)  used as detonators  often mixed with TNT to form Composition B in bombs

Nitrogen Oxide (Nitric Oxide)  Nitric

oxide + HC vapors = photochemical oxidants  photochemical oxidants are the main composition of photochemical smog  Nitric oxide + H2O vapors = nitric acid  nitric acid is a component of acid rain  can cause gradual depletion of the ozone layer

Nitrogen Oxide (Nitrous Oxide)  has

the capacity to trap heat 300 times than carbon dioxide of the same concentration  Both gases are released by war aircrafts during trainings and wars

Polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB)  widely

used during the Kosovo war and the industrial period of 1930’s to 1940’s  have high resistance to decomposition  are highly toxic to fishes and invertebrates and fatal to animals even in small concentrations

Perchlorate and chlorates  go

to the atmosphere and form into chlorinated species  decomposition releases chlorine atoms which eventually form into free radicals

BATTLEFIELD CONTAMINATION CASES AND THEIR ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS

Case 1: DOD’s 62,000 War Training Facility at Fort Richardson  The

Superfund National Priorities List, a US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) compilation of nation’s most polluted properties included Alaska’s River Flat  Due to high levels of contaminants including heavy metals, explosive compounds and white phosphorus

Case 1: DOD’s 62,000 War Training Facility at Fort Richardson  The

once rich coastal area is now filled with unexploded mortar and artillery shell-remains of the soldiers who trained in the Department of Defense Training Facility (DOD)  Despite the efforts of cleaning up the contaminants harmful substances still lingered

Case 1: DOD’s 62,000 War Training Facility at Fort Richardson 

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Anchorage, Alaska, where Fort Richardson and Elmendorf Air Force Base were built during World War II, has its economy based on their rich natural resources including petroleum, natural gas and fish Contamination of coastal areas can severely damage, not only their environment, but also the lives of the inhabitants

Case 2: Other DOD-related Training Facilities’ Problem  The

highly industrialized preparatory training of DOD already generates fuel spills, toxic waste, air pollutions, lead and other variety of solvents  up to $9.7 B cleaning cost  DOD is responsible for the 10% of the 1,240 sites of highly contaminated environments

Case 2: Other DOD-related Training Facilities’ Problem  1996

– DOD launched 50,000 military flights which contributed to the air and noise pollution and heavy air traffic in Washington, D. C.  discharged 75 tons of nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds which generated smog

Case 2: Other DOD-related Training Facilities’ Problem  The

resulting smog produced a light brownish staining of the atmosphere, reduced visibility, eye irritation, and respiratory infections  These nitrogen oxides and other pollutants are the main causes of acid rain which causes agronomic and forest species to significantly reduce its growth and production.

Case 3: Massachusetts Military Reservation and Sierra Army Depot  34

mi2 training facility in Cape Cod  found out to be discharging solvents, jet fuels, RDX and perchlorate into the area’s only aquifer which provides drinking water for up to 500,000 people at the height of the area’s tourism

Case 3: Massachusetts Military Reservation and Sierra Army Depot  Sierra

Army Depot, is renowned to be California’s leading air contaminator in 1999  released about 5.4 M pounds of toxic chemicals including aluminium, copper and zinc fumes based on the EPA Toxic Release Inventory

Case 3: Massachusetts Military Reservation and Sierra Army Depot  

Leaching of the metals can result to adverse aquatic effects polluted air, results to the interference of the plants’ and animals’ enzyme systems, change in their chemical constituent and physical structure and retardation of their growth due to metabolic changes leading to a decrease in their reproduction

Case 4: Post-war Annihilation of Landmines  Landmines,

as defined by Article 2 of the Convention in the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti- Personnel Mines and Destruction, are designed to be explosive in the presence, proximity or contact of a person that will result to the incapacitation, injury or death of the surrounding people

Case 4: Post-war Annihilation of Landmines  built

beneath or on land surfaces  can be washed off and transferred from their original location by heavy rains, flood and other meteorological phenomena  The transfer increases their capability to cause environmental destruction

Case 4: Post-war Annihilation of Landmines  Water

pollution can happen from leaching of heavy metals such as iron, manganese, chromium, zinc and others from the landmine itself  can kill a large number of animal and plant species in the terrestrial zone and leads to deforestation and forest fires which can influence climate change

Case 5: Kosovo War Bombing  was

triggered by the conflict between Kosovo and Serbia as well as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization  Kosovo industries and oil refineries were bombed by the United Stated  resulted to oil leakages prompted the release of SO2, NO2, CO and Pb into the atmosphere

Case 5: Kosovo War Bombing  Burning

of Vinyl Chloride Monomer (VCM) resulted in the formation of dioxin, HCl and more CO  caused the formation of a thick, grayish smoke of VCM that was assessed to be 10,600 times beyond what a human can tolerate

Case 6: Chechnya and Russia: A Devastating War  1994

– Russian troops vs Chechen guerrilla fighter and civilians  about 30% of Chechen territory was contaminated  40 % does not meet environmental standards for life

Case 6: Chechnya and Russia: A Devastating War 

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their agricultural area is highly polluted that it no longer meets the food supply needed for the community contamination was mainly due to the radioactive waste materials buried by the Russians in Chechnya Measured radiation in one of the affected areas reached up to 10 % more of the normal level

A SPECIAL REPORT ON DEPLETED URANIUM: Recent War’s Best Bud and Nature’s Foe

Depleted Uranium, DU a

toxic waste product of the process of enriching uranium ore used in nuclear weapons and reactors  a primary alpha particle emitter with a radioactive half-life of 4.5 billion years  Should be deposited in repositories

History and Effects of DU  1950’s

- US became interested in DU for their weapons due to its being extremely dense, cheap, pyrophoric and available in large amounts  1960’s-1970’s - researches and testings were done to demonstrate the effectivity of DU as kinetic energy penetrators

History and Effects of DU  Kinetic

energy penetrators do not explode; they fragment and burn through armor  DU was then eventually used in tank armors

History and Effects of DU  1991-

during the Persian Gulf War, American and British forces used armor-piercing ammunition made up of DU  By the end of the war in 1991, most of the soil and the equipments in the battlefields of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and southern Iraq were contaminated

History and Effects of DU  These

left the people exposed to DU with health problems most especially in their kidneys and cancer  the Pentagon and the U.S. industry officials did not sing it praises mainly because of the severe health and environmental consequences that it could create.

ENVIRONMENTAL AND HUMAN CONSEQUENCES OF DU  contamination

of the impact areas with fine radioactive and toxic dust  tests show that 70% of DU penetrator rod burns and oxidizes into extremely small particles during impact  These particles would disperse on air depending on the temperature, surface condition of fragments and wind speed

ENVIRONMENTAL AND HUMAN CONSEQUENCES OF DU  DU

oxide aerosol formed has a high percentage of respirable size particles (50 to 96%), and 52 to 83% of those respirable size particles are insoluble in lung fluids  Respirable size particles are less than 5 microns in diameter

ENVIRONMENTAL AND HUMAN CONSEQUENCES OF DU  Respirable

size particles are easily inhaled or ingested  Insoluble particles are not readily excreted from the body, and may remain in the lungs or other organs for years.

ENVIRONMENTAL AND HUMAN CONSEQUENCES OF DU  some

of the uranium dust remains suspended in the air hours after impact  Most of the DU dust comes to rest inside, on, or within 50 meters of the target but some can be carried by the wind for 40 kilometers or more and they could be resuspended in the air by the wind or movement of people or vehicles

ENVIRONMENTAL AND HUMAN CONSEQUENCES OF DU  Long-term

problem – soil contamination  DU is highly soluble in water and migrates easily with surface or ground water  The end result of air and water contamination is that DU is deposited in the soil

ENVIRONMENTAL AND HUMAN CONSEQUENCES OF DU  Once

in the soil, it stays there unless moved - the soil will not decontaminate itself  soil decontamination is expensive and may cause further environmental damage  because clean up would require removal of the top layer of soil

ENVIRONMENTAL AND HUMAN CONSEQUENCES OF DU  Skin

protects the interior of the body from alpha particles  Boots and other battle uniform stops beta rays  very low amount of gamma rays emitted by the material makes it less likely to cause radiation-linked diseases

ON FACING BATTLEFIELD CONTAMINATION

Remediation Technology for sites contaminated with DU  has

an associated hazard of large earth movements which may cause landslides later on  accompanied with toxicological hazard due to excavation of DU to the surface

Remediation Technology for sites contaminated with DU  ranges

from complete to secure disposal of all contaminated soil in a low-level waste repository  may not completely remove DU but it can reduce its concentration in the environment

Johnston Atoll Plutonium Cleanup  an

assembly of standard sand and gravel handling equipment with advanced instrumentation for monitoring radiation and  has software which controls the Segmented Gate System

TRUClean  produces

slurry of decontaminated soil that has been leached with a strong oxidizing agent in a concentrated acid or base solution  may release other heavy metals

B&W-Nuclear Environment Services Soil Washing a

soil-washing system for cleaning roughly 500,000 ft3 of contaminated soil from the Apollo Facility 35 miles northeast of Pittsburgh

Mobile Soil Washing System  developed

by The Westinghouse Scientific Ecology Group, Inc.  separates organics, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), heavy metals and radioactive contaminants from soil

Frantz Magnetic Barrier Technology  separates

and concentrates particles according to magnetic susceptibility  uses a magnetic energy gradient to deflect particles of selected susceptibility  Paramagnetism and diamagnetism is used

NRT Soil Washing/Chemical Extraction  Developed

by the Nuclear Remediation Technologies  a soil- washing/chemical-extraction technology to remove radioactive contamination

BATTLEFIELD CONTAMINATION: A General View

Effects of battles / wars  Wars

are rare but the impacts are long lasting  Accumulation of CO2 contributing to global warming  Toxic wastes  Oil,water and land pollutions