Salt Lake Tribune
TUESDAY July 01, 2003

Deseret bio tests done on 6,000

By Christopher Smith
The Salt Lake Tribune

WASHINGTON -- Nearly 6,000 members of the U.S. military -- more than twice original estimates -- were subjected to chemical and biological warfare tests overseen by Utah's Deseret Test Center in the 1960s and 1970s, a Department of Defense investigation concluded Monday.

The Pentagon also released new details of six biological warfare tests conducted at Dugway Proving Ground from 1972 through 1974.

The findings of the three-year probe into the previously classified tests come as Congress contemplates giving veterans who were participants in the secret program known as "Project 112" new medical, hospital and nursing home benefits for any illness, regardless of insufficient evidence to prove the illness was caused by exposure to the compounds used in the tests.

Since opening an investigation in 2000, the Defense Department has slowly released details of the tests, which were conducted from 1962 to 1973 involving a total of 5,842 soldiers. The names of the exposed service members have been turned over to the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Of the 134 tests planned by Deseret Test Center -- which was closed in 1973 -- 84 were canceled and 50 were conducted. While administered under the auspices of the facility in Utah's west desert, most of the experiments were performed on service members aboard military vessels in the Pacific Ocean. Nine tests were conducted at Dugway, with additional land tests done in Alaska, Hawaii, Maryland, Florida, Georgia, Panama, Canada and Britain.

In one 1974 Dugway experiment, a team of Marines tried to assemble a nuclear weapon during a simulated "toxic rain attack" that used the known carcinogen dimethylmethylphosphonate to simulate sarin nerve gas. In another 1973 test at Dugway, a Marine amphibious vehicle was sprayed with the same carcinogenic simulant to determine the amount of toxins soldiers might receive when exiting and decontaminating the vehicle.

In two other test series at Dugway from 1972 to 1974, Navy and Air Force aircraft dropped bombs loaded with a chemical irritant simulating VX nerve agent to see whether an experimental vehicle dubbed "BIGEYE" could evaluate hazards for U.S. forces after a "massive chemical attack with a ballistic weapon."

A 1973 Dugway test attempted to determine how long bacterial agents remained active in sunlight by using potentially infectious species, including the T-3 coliphage virus that infects E. coli bacteria. A similar 1972 Dugway test used bacterial simulants that can cause acute infections in individuals with compromised health and disperses the microorganisms in a closed environment to determine the length of their viability before decay.

Although all the Utah tests made public Monday did not use actual bio-warfare agents, some of the tests under the Shipboard Hazard and Defense (SHAD) program involved spraying vessels or aircraft with toxins such as Sarin and VX to determine the effect on U.S. service members on board.

Many veterans contend later illnesses were caused by exposure to the agents. They complain they didn't understood the long-term health ramifications of the tests.

"I am pleased that our investigators were able . . . to offer the veterans of these tests some much deserved peace of mind," said William Winkenwerder Jr., assistant secretary of defense for health affairs.

On Thursday, the House Veterans Affairs Committee passed a bill to award health care benefits for any veteran who participated in Project 112 tests, a measure that could move to the House floor for consideration.

Veterans who believe they were involved in the Deseret testing program and want a medical evaluation can contact the Veterans Affairs Helpline at 800-749-8387.