|
Depleted
uranium is created by concentrating an isotope from natural uranium and
enriching it. It is commonly used by the military as a heavy metal, which
is said to be superior for combat, and used to make nuclear weapons, munitions
like artillery shells and bullets, and tank armor.
“The criteria for calling this [depleted uranium] safe are really suspicious,” said Peter Aronson, who initially introduced the bill to Senator Wes Chesbro last September. “It kills inhumanely, it kills non-combatants and it kills indiscriminately,” he said. Aronson is a member of the Humboldt chapter of Veterans for Peace, an anti-war activist group, and heads the Weapons of Mass Destruction/Depleted Uranium Committee. A spokeswoman for Chesbro’s office said the bill, SB 1720, is being designed to reflect a Federal resolution. Connecticut and Louisiana recently passed similar legislation, and several other states are reviewing bills. Under the proposed bill, a report to a veteran affairs committee of soldiers’ possible exposure to depleted uranium will be required, along with an assessment of pre-deployment training in case of exposure to depleted uranium. Aronson said a registry will provide public access to this information, and federal testing for internal exposure to depleted uranium will provide troops with knowledge of what they were exposed to. An outreach program would help facilitate services for the troops. When munitions containing depleted uranium hit an object, radioactive dust is released into the air. There are three levels of exposure. Level one is when shrapnel enters the body. Level two is when a person is exposed to uranium by handling equipment made with uranium, and level three exposure is when dust is inhaled. “The real risk is breathing it,” Aronson said. The effects of depleted uranium are still being researched by the military. Aronson said these facts have not been fully disclosed to the public. The United States Government Recruiting office in Eureka was unable to comment on the use of depleted uranium. Depleted uranium has a half-life of 4.5 billion years, meaning the amount of time it takes for a radioactive substance to lose half of its radioactivity. The damage uranium causes is irreversible. Aronson said side effects linked to exposure to depleted uranium include immune deficiencies, cancer, birth defects, side effects in the lungs and motor skills. John Avalos of HSU’s Veterans Upward Bound went through training during the end of the first Gulf War and said he did not use depleted uranium. He said that soldiers undergo nuclear, chemical and biological (NBC) training; though he said he is unsure if this includes depleted uranium. The use of depleted uranium is a violation of international law, though a number of countries have used it. Avalos said the military would be incriminating itself if it admitted to the continued use of depleted uranium. Avalos said the military was unaware of the risk at the time of the Gulf War. “If using something they don’t know has health risks, then they find out later, how can we hold them accountable?” he said. Avalos said a lot of people came down with Gulf War Syndrome after returning from the war, although it may not be a result of depleted uranium. “It takes awhile to find a correlation,” Avalos said. He added that extensive testing and research through VA hospitals would make this connection more apparent. According to the Center for Disease Control Web site, ingesting large amounts of uranium may “cause severe health effects, such as cancer of the bone or liver” as well as kidney damage and lung cancer. “Once you get exposed, it can be in your body for years,” said Laura Simpson, a member of Veterans for Peace. The United States government first used depleted uranium in the 1990s in the Balkans and the Persian Gulf. Over 300 tons of depleted uranium were used in the first Gulf War. Gulf War troops were later found to have been at higher risk of exposure. Many of the soldiers returned to the battlefield without knowing what safety precautions to take. Troops who were victims of friendly fire may have gotten embedded fragments in the skin, and been exposed to depleted uranium while climbing on or cleaning up the military equipment. After the Gulf War, the military stated it would further address the safe use of depleted uranium. Simpson said the issue doesn’t only affect soldiers, as civilians and the children of soldiers can also be exposed to depleted uranium. Civilians living within the vicinity of depleted uranium have a higher rate of cancer and birth defects, she said. “We’re talking about an issue that has to do with humanity,” Simpson said. |