Depleted Uranium Toxicity in  Afghanistan

                                               by Richard S. Ehrlich

                      ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — American warplanes are attacking
                      Afghanistan with depleted uranium weapons which could poison
                      combatants and civilians, especially children, according to U.S.
                      officials.

                      The possibility of radioactive dust storms sweeping across Afghanistan
                      and polluting rivers has meanwhile sparked fears in Pakistan.

                      "The radioactive dust released by the impact of these weapons can
                      easily get into the food chain and the water supply through the Kabul
                      River in Afghanistan and thus into Pakistan's Indus [River]," reported
                      Dawn newspaper.

                      "There are simply no contingency measures to brace people against
                      such a disastrous humanitarian fallout," Dawn added.

                      The narrow Kabul River cuts through the center of the heavily
                      bombed, mile-high Afghan capital and provides drinking water for the
                      people who dwell there.

                      After meandering east along the highway past Jalalabad and other
                      U.S. bomb targets, the Kabul River crosses into Pakistan and feeds
                      the Indus River, the country's biggest waterway. The Indus provides
                      much of the liquid nourishment to Pakistan's farms and people along its
                      route south to the Arabian Sea.

                      Pakistani Dr. Ali Rind warned Dawn's readers: "All flying bombs —
                      Tomahawk, JDAM etc. — are made of depleted uranium metal."

                      Many experts insist the dangers of depleted uranium are often
                      exaggerated.

                      Dr. Michael H. Repacholi of the World Health Organization, however,
                      said in a January report: "DU [deleted uranium] is released from fired
                      weapons in the form of small particles that may be inhaled, ingested or
                      remain in the environment."

                      Dr. Repacholi said, "For smaller particles, a larger fraction will deposit
                      in the lungs, where they may remain for months or years, unless they
                      dissolve. Very small amounts may be retained in the lymphatic system
                      for longer."

                      He added, "Breathing ultra-fine particles could lead to a theoretical
                      risk of cancer.

                      "In arid regions, most DU remains on the surface as dust. It is
                      dispersed in [non-arid] soil more easily, particularly in the areas of
                      higher rainfall."

                      Dr. Repacholi stressed, "Children rather than adults may be
                      considered to be more at risk of DU exposure when returning to
                      normal activities within a war zone through contaminated food and
                      water, since typical hand-to-mouth activity of inquisitive play could
                      lead to high DU ingestion from contaminated soil."

                     Depleted uranium is "used in several types of munitions, but primarily
                      in two types: it's used in 120-millimeter tank rounds and it's used in
                      30-millimeter rounds fired by the A-10," Defense Department
                      spokesperson Kenneth H. Bacon told a newsconference in January.

                      The dreaded A-10 "Wart Hog" is a so-called a "tank killing" aircraft.

                      Every 30-millimeter round it fires has a 0.3-kilogram, depleted uranium
                      "penetrator" to bust through armor, according to military reports.

                      Depleted uranium is "primarily for anti-armor, and those are its main
                      uses," Mr. Bacon said.

                      "We obviously put out instructions about avoiding depleted uranium
                      dust," he added.

                      "Troops are instructed to wear masks if they're around what they
                      consider to be atomized or particle-ized depleted uranium — that is if
                      rounds have struck tanks, there could be depleted uranium dust
                      around.

                      "So if they were working around an [enemy] tank that had been
                      disabled by a depleted uranium round, they would be instructed to
                      wear some sort of mask to prevent breathing in particles," Mr. Bacon
                      said.

                      "All our studies show that in cases where there is dust, it [depleted
                      uranium] is washed away and nullified by the first heavy rain.

                      "But there aren't a lot of heavy rains in the desert, so obviously, when
                      we were advising our soldiers how to deal with depleted uranium
                      damage, or damaged vehicles in the desert, we were careful to point
                      out that they should wear masks."

                      Depleted uranium is described as uranium that is 40 percent less
                      radioactive than natural uranium, though it retains identical chemical
                      properties.

                      Natural uranium is found in everyday air, water and soil and, as a
                      result, is also in each person's body.

                      Depleted uranium, however, has a half-life of 4.5 billion years.

                      In 1998, the Pentagon noted: "Depleted uranium is the most effective
                      material for [military] uses because of its high density and the metallic
                      properties that allow it to 'self-sharpen' as it penetrates armor.

                      "Armor containing depleted uranium is very effective at blunting
                      anti-tank weapons," the Pentagon added.

                      "The major health concerns about DU relate to its chemical properties
                      as a heavy metal rather than to its radioactivity, which is very low."

                      Shrapnel from a depleted uranium weapon's explosion can pepper a
                      victim's body much like a shotgun blast.

                      If the shrapnel remains embedded in a person, then the radiation "isn't
                      eliminated," an expert said at a Defense Department briefing.

                      "By accumulation, is the [radioactive] dose increasing with time? Yes,
                      it is," the expert added.

                      Dr. Ross Anthony, from the Rand Corporation, told the Defense
                      Department briefing, "The kidney is the part that is the most
                      susceptible."

                      In experiments with animals, however, "there seem to be no real highly
                      negative effects until you get a very, very high dose," Dr. Anthony
                      said.

                      In 1999, Steve Fetter and Frank von Hippel wrote in the Bulletin of the
                      Atomic Scientists: "Radiation doses for soldiers with embedded
                      fragments of depleted uranium may be troublesome.

                      "Apart from radiation, however, the risks related to the heavy-metal
                      toxicity of uranium inhaled and ingested by soldiers in direct and
                      unprotected contact with vehicles struck with DU munitions could be
                      significant.

                      "Primarily at risk are those who were in vehicles when they were
                      struck, or their rescuers, as well as those who worked for extended
                      periods in cleanup efforts inside the vehicles without adequate
                      respiratory protection," they added.

                      "Very prolonged exposure to high concentrations of depleted uranium
                      is required to give radiation doses significantly above [normal]
                      background" levels.

                      "Pieces and particles of depleted uranium lying about would be
                      sources of most of the external radiation dose, which would come
                      primarily from penetrating gamma rays.

                      "Inhalation of DU-contaminated dust — either directly or after
                      resuspension [in the air] — would be the source of most of the internal
                      dose, which would be primarily from very short-range alpha particles."

                      Referring to desert dust storms, the bulletin said, "The ground the
                      DU-contaminated plumes passed over would be coated with a thin
                      layer of DU dust, some of which would be later kicked up by wind and
                      human activity.

                      "The munitions could deposit a layer of [depleted uranium] dust on
                      crops that could be eaten directly by humans or by animals later
                      consumed by humans.

                      "However, rough estimates suggest that the cancer risk from
                      consumption of contaminated produce would be less than from
                      inhalation."

                      As a result of the U.S.-Gulf War, "the number of Iraqi soldiers with
                      embedded DU fragments could be in the thousands," the bulletin said.

                      "Natural curiosity may also lead children and other passersby to
                      investigate the interiors of destroyed tanks and other vehicles...which
                      would subject them to danger from DU dust," it warned.

                      "Such vehicles should be made inaccessible, perhaps by being buried
                      and then pumped full of concrete."

                      Critics have expressed concern over depleted uranium contamination
                      on battlefields which do not receive environmental clean-ups.

                      Some critics claimed birth defects among babies born in Iraq after the
                      Gulf War — including headless victims and others with deformed
                      limbs — may be linked to the U.S. use of depleted uranium.
 

                      Richard S. Ehrlich lives in Bangkok, Thailand. His web page is located
                      at http://members.tripod.com/ehrlich, and he may be reached by email
                      at [email protected].
 

                        from The Laissez Faire City Times, Vol 5, No 44, October 29,  2001

Prima i Talebani dopo l'uranio? Dalla padella nella brace?

Non si ha ancora una certezza ma se questo fosse vero sarebbe gravissimo, il bilancio dei casi di cancro ai bambini le malformazioni e tutto quello che già si conosce altro dolore sul dolore, un problema sanitario enorme, basti pensare che  il fiume per quelle popolazioni  civili è una risorsa a tutti i livelli. Se tutto ciò fosse vero oggi saranno costretti a  bere l'acqua radioattiva e ad respirare gli ossidi dispersi nell'aria.