ID :
184768
Fri, 05/27/2011 - 05:29
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/184768
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S. Korea, U.S. to collect groundwater samples in Agent Orange probe
SEOUL, May 27 (Yonhap) -- South Korean and U.S. officials on Friday geared up to collect groundwater samples near a U.S. Army base in the South, widening their probe into the alleged burial of the toxic defoliant Agent Orange by American troops about three decades ago.
The investigation began after former U.S. soldiers told a U.S. television station early this month that they buried large amounts of the dangerous chemical in 1978 at a heliport inside Camp Carroll in Chilgok, 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul.
Experts from the South's Environment Ministry plan to begin taking groundwater samples at 10 locations outside the base from 2 p.m. in the presence of U.S. officials, ministry officials said.
"The groundwater samples will be analyzed by several environmental laboratories," a ministry official said. "It is expected to take more than two weeks for the analysis to produce results."
From next week, South Korea and the U.S. will jointly start monitoring sites at Camp Carroll, according to the official.
Lt. Gen. John D. Johnson, commander of the Eight U.S. Army and lead investigator into the allegations, said Thursday that ground-penetrating radar devices will be mobilized next week to identify what was buried at Camp Carroll.
"If we get evidence that there is a risk to health, we are going to fix it," Johnson told a local radio station.
Early this week, U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) said a 1992 study showed a "large amount" of pesticides, herbicides and solvents were buried at Camp Carroll in 1978, but were removed and taken to an unknown site during the following two years.
The USFK also said its review of records found "trace amounts" of dioxin in a 2004 test at the site, but the finding does not "directly" indicate that Agent Orange was buried there.
Agent Orange, a defoliant widely used in the Vietnam War, is suspected of causing serious health problems, including cancer and genetic damage in some people exposed to it and birth defects in their offspring. The defoliant was contaminated by dioxin, a highly toxic substance.
(END)
The investigation began after former U.S. soldiers told a U.S. television station early this month that they buried large amounts of the dangerous chemical in 1978 at a heliport inside Camp Carroll in Chilgok, 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul.
Experts from the South's Environment Ministry plan to begin taking groundwater samples at 10 locations outside the base from 2 p.m. in the presence of U.S. officials, ministry officials said.
"The groundwater samples will be analyzed by several environmental laboratories," a ministry official said. "It is expected to take more than two weeks for the analysis to produce results."
From next week, South Korea and the U.S. will jointly start monitoring sites at Camp Carroll, according to the official.
Lt. Gen. John D. Johnson, commander of the Eight U.S. Army and lead investigator into the allegations, said Thursday that ground-penetrating radar devices will be mobilized next week to identify what was buried at Camp Carroll.
"If we get evidence that there is a risk to health, we are going to fix it," Johnson told a local radio station.
Early this week, U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) said a 1992 study showed a "large amount" of pesticides, herbicides and solvents were buried at Camp Carroll in 1978, but were removed and taken to an unknown site during the following two years.
The USFK also said its review of records found "trace amounts" of dioxin in a 2004 test at the site, but the finding does not "directly" indicate that Agent Orange was buried there.
Agent Orange, a defoliant widely used in the Vietnam War, is suspected of causing serious health problems, including cancer and genetic damage in some people exposed to it and birth defects in their offspring. The defoliant was contaminated by dioxin, a highly toxic substance.
(END)
