History - The Vietnam War:Agent Orange

Operation Ranch Hand

For nearly a decade (1961-1971), the United States military sprayed many different herbicides above Vietnam. Over 4 million acres of forest and food crops were sprayed, as an effort to increase visibility for the United States military, and decrease the food supply of the enemy troops. The water supply, roadways, and crops of the civilian population was also contaminated. A half of a century later, the use of herbicides (Agent Orange particularly) is still having devastating effects. The environmental damage is still evident, Dioxin (an ingredient in Agent Orange) is still found in unsafe levels in the soil, and water. Fifty years later, children born to people who came into contact with Agent Orange (Vietnamese and United States Citizens) are being born with serious birth defects. Three generations have now been damaged by the irresponsible and controversial decision to use Agent Orange.

“When we initiated the herbicide program in the 1960s, we were aware of the potential for damage due to dioxin contamination in the herbicide. However, because the material was to be used on the enemy, none of us were overly concerned. We never considered a scenario in which our own personnel would become contaminated with the herbicide.” -Dr. James Clary (Air Force Researcher who consulted on Operation Ranch Head)

I am going to confidently assume that this was unfortunately the school of thought of all of the key players who organized and were the overseers of this Operation. Also I will state with absolute certainty, that they were not only incorrect, but showed an obvious disregard for human life and the environment.

AGENT ORANGE

As mentioned previously, many different herbicides were sprayed as part of Operation Ranch Hand, the most dangerous of which was Agent Orange. All herbicides used during the Vietnam war contained Dioxin, which is a byproduct that is created when manufacturing herbicides. The most dangerous Dioxin is TCDD, which is the type that was present in Agent Orange. Nearly 20 million gallons of herbicides, including nearly 13 million gallons of Agent Orange, was sprayed over Vietnam during the war. No one was given any sort of safety gear or precautions for handling the powerful herbicide. One article I read, claimed that soldiers used the empty barrels from Agent Orange as makeshift showers. Soldiers who were on ground engaging in combat were actually sprayed with Agent Orange as it was being applied, these soldiers were told to cover their noses and mouths with a cloth soaked in water, so they were not breathing the chemical in. At the end of the day the planes used to apply the Agent Orange were hosed down, with the water seeping into the ground. No one wore masks, or gloves and the herbicides were actually stored right on the same military installation that the soldiers lived on.

The Damage Continues

I could not find exact numbers on the amount of victims, since it has spanned over generations. However, my research indicated that it is millions of victims. The various conditions, diseases and birth defects that are associated with Agent Orange is a list that is far to lengthy to type out here (in the hundreds of thousands). Cancer (Dioxin is internationally recognized as a carcinogen), skin conditions, miscarriages, blindness, psychological issues, missing and deformed limbs, mental retardation, heart conditions, and respiratory problems is a very incomplete list, many of the sources I provided with give you a more accurate picture of the devastation that has/is occurring due to Agent Orange.

Some popular chemical companies (Monsanto and Dow Chemical), that manufactured the herbicides, and a few other smaller chemical companies (unknown) were ordered to pay $240 million dollars to Agent Orange victims or their next of kin in a 1988 ruling by the Supreme Court, which stemmed from a class action lawsuit that was filed in 1979 by some 2.4 million veterans. The chemical companies have never compensated Vietnamese victims. Starting in 2012 the United States, and Vietnamese Government started working together in an effort to clean the environment in Vietnam, the United States provided 41 million dollars to fund the effort. They have never compensated the Vietnamese victims either.