Vietnam: Agent Orange Hotspots Located

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BBC News - 30 December, 2001, 11:11 GMT 

Agent Orange hotspots located

By BBC Science's Helen Sewell 

Scientists investigating the effects of Agent Orange in Vietnam have
found that people living in a so-called hotspot have the highest
blood levels of its poisonous chemical dioxin ever recorded in the
country.

Agent Orange, which has the dioxin (TCDD - short for
2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo- p-dioxin) as one of its constituents, was
last used in 1973.

But today, some residents of Binh-Hoa, near Ho Chi Minh City, have
200 times the normal amount of dioxin in their bloodstreams.

Agent Orange was widely used by the US military during the Vietnam
War as a defoliant so that Vietnam's dense jungle could not provide
cover for Viet Cong forces.

'Startling' results

It was when US veterans started to become ill with a variety of
health problems that investigations suggested that Agent Orange could
be involved.

The most dangerous ingredient was the dioxin, a pollutant that stays
in the environment for decades.

There are still about 12 dioxin hotspots in Vietnam, in areas where
very heavy spraying took place.

Scientists from the United States have been working with the
Vietnamese Red Cross in these areas, testing residents to see whether
they are suffering any ill effects.

The lead scientist, Professor Arnold Schecter of the University of
Texas, says they are "very startled" by the results.

Export worry

In a paper to be published in the journal Occupational and
Environmental Medicine, he says that in Binh-Hoa, 95% of people
sampled had elevated levels of dioxin in their bloodstream, and some
had 200 times the average amount.

Dioxins, which include TCDD and other related compounds, can cause
cancers and problems with reproductive development, the nervous and
immune systems.

It is thought the high levels of dioxin found in Binh-Hoa residents
result from the chemical leaching into watercourses where it is
absorbed by fish and ducks, which form part of the Vietnamese diet.

The issue is very sensitive for Vietnam, which exports these foods
all over the world.
 
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