Radioactive Waste From Iraq Wars Dumped in U.S.

Doug Rokke, Ph.D.
Jul. 24, 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 explosions resulting in death, injury, illness and extensive environmental contamination from depleted uranium and conventional explosives.

Recently the emirate of Kuwait required the U.S. Department of Defense to remove the contamination. Consequently, over 6,700 tons of contaminated soil, sand and other residue was collected and 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 regulations and all of the medical orders dealing with depleted uranium contamination, environmental remediation procedures, safety and medical care.

They had never heard of Environmental Protection Agency guidelines for dealing with hazardous waste such as radioactive materials and conventional explosives byproducts.

The trans-shipment across the ocean, unloading at Longview, Washington State port, transport by rail, and burial in Idaho not only endanger the residents of these areas, but pose 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, Mass. on the 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 the Minutemen.

The previous delivery of at least 100 GBU 28 bunker buster 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.” The U.S. Army, Department of Energy, Department of Defense and British Ministry of Defense officials deny that there are any adverse health and environmental effects as a consequence of the manufacture, testing and/or use of uranium munitions. They do so to avoid liability for the willful and illegal dispersal of a radioactive toxic material— depleted uranium.

The use of uranium weapons is a crime against humanity. All governments must force cessation of uranium weapons use. Israel should 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 U.S. Department of Defense officials to provide prompt and effective medical care to all exposed individuals. They also refuse to clean up dispersed radioactive contamination as required by Army regulations.

Dr. Doug Rokke is the former director of the Army’s Depleted Uranium Project. It was his task to clean up the radioactive battlefields of the Gulf War.