In a recent press release, a Hawaiian peace group, Malu Aina (“
The B-2 “Spirit” bombers are equipped with “low-observable stealth technology” deployed to
Boeing, the company that built the weapons delivery system for the stealth bombers, explains on its website that B-2s possess nuclear weapons firing capability and have been used in nonstop missions to
According to a recent Associated Press article, “B-2 Stealth Bombers Hit US Targets,”(1) the aircraft fly 18,000 feet above the mountains over the main
Although the Air Force has stated that the bombings involve dropping inert or “dummy” bombs that do not explode, increasing numbers of Hawaiians have begun a public crusade against the tropical island being used for target practice.
One concern held by
The danger of un-guided bombs landing other than where intended concerns weapons expert, Bob Nichols, Project Censored Award winner, of The San
In an interview with Malu Aina’s President, Jim Albertini, the peace group leader shared his concern that, beyond the threat of wayward bombs missing targets, another serious hazard concerning the grounds upon which the bombs are dropped exists. Albertini begins, “The issue is more than computer guided systems. The issue is that bombing and shelling at PTA has been going on for more than 50 years. For most people it appears to be a non-issue. It is out of sight and out of mind.”
For the people of
In August, just one month before B-2s began dropping bombs on radioactively contaminated soils at Pohakuloa, the Army released a report of an aerial survey confirming the presence of what they maintain is former use of Depleted Uranium on the military site.(2)
Radioactive contamination had previously been confirmed on
The admission of Depleted uranium (DU) in weapons training on the
To address citizen concerns, on November 16, the Army and State of Hawaii Health Department held a public information meeting on DU contamination of PTA. Lorrin Pang, M.D., State of Hawaii District Health Officer, spoke as a private citizen, comparing DU to a cigarette, explaining that “a cigarette by itself is harmless but when burned and inhaled it becomes dangerous, so with DU when it is weaponized, burned (oxidized), and inhaled it becomes dangerous.”(5)
Epidemiologist Sister Rosalie Bertell, Ph.D., founder of International Institute of Concern for Public Health, has spoken out extensively on the serious health affects of the radioactive munition. “Radiation, heavy metals (DU is a heavy metal), and other toxic chemicals,” Bertell has stated, “can destroy the functionality of the cellular respiratory system (the mitochondria, which is the powerhouse of the cell), disrupt the chemistry of enzymes and hormones, frustrate normal cellular detoxification and repair, and leave the person alive but chronically ill”.
Adverse health effects of DU contamination, according to Dr. Bertell, include cancers and tumor formation, chronic disease, neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s Disease and Alzheimer’s, muscular and skeletal problems, anemia, rashes, irritability, high blood pressure, thyroid problems, loss of cellular immunity, autoimmune system diseases, joint diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, diseases of the kidneys, circulatory system, and nervous system.(6) In addition, radiation from the use of Uranium weapons is also implicated in the dramatic rise of diabetes in the US.(7)
As Lance Holter reported for the The Haleakala Times, “The hearings were the result of
Echoing concern of Hawaiian citizens monitoring radiation there, Malu Aina spokesperson Albertini said, “It was only in August, 2007 that the Army confirmed that the 133,000-acre Pohakuloa base is contaminated with DU.” Albertini continued, “To date, they have done very limited research and testing to see the extent of the contamination or whether or not the Navy, Marines, Air Force may also have used radiation weapons in training there. “
The Army has admitted the use of one type of Uranium weapon used in
The term DU or Depleted Uranium refers to munitions made from natural Uranium that has some of the more fissile U-235 removed for use in bombs and nuclear power plants. The term “Depleted,” as used by the military to describe the
Trace amounts of plutonium, neptunium, americium and fission products are also added to Depleted Uranium during the enrichment process, rendering it even more hazardous to human health.(11) With a radioactive half-life of 4.5 billion years, DU is a serious threat to the environment and a costly prospect for future remediation on a number of contaminated military sites throughout
The chemically toxic and radioactive material, used in testing and training on federal properties in the United States since the 1940’s, Uranium weapons have been used overseas in combat since at least 1991 in the first Gulf War. When a weapon containing DU is fired, a fine aerosol of ceramic uranium oxide is formed. Most particles are less than 10 microns in size and are easily inhaled into the lungs.
The majority of DU is insoluble and can remain inside the body for decades. Once lodged inside the lungs, DU slowly spreads, primarily into the lymph nodes and bone. The excretion of these particles from the body is a very slow process.
The use of Uranium-238, the primary component of DU munitions, is particularly hazardous for use in combat and military training because fine particles can be spread by the wind and are readily re-suspended. Disturbances of contaminated soils can occur through movement of military vehicles as well as bombs dropped from the sky that hit the ground with tremendous impact. This can cause the transport of invisible Uranium oxide aerosols throughout the environment.
Metallic particles smaller than 5 microns in size are so light as to remain suspended in the atmosphere, contaminating the environment through the wind and precipitation for billions of years into the future. When fired, some of the Uranium becomes nano-sized particles a billionth of a meter in size. Smaller than microns, these Uranium particles act like a gas. The radioactive alpha nanoparticles can cross the lung-blood barrier and can impact cells up to six cells away.(13)
With regard to concern for health effects of the bombing of contaminated soils, Malu Aina spokesperson Albertini stated, “This, along with other training at PTA, is an outrage given the presence of Depleted Uranium (DU) confirmed at PTA. The full extent of the contamination is not yet known but the military is taking action that risks spreading the stuff around. It shows the complete disregard for the health and safety of
Malu Aina is asking the military to install monitors around range impact areas with live data available on-line for public viewing.(14) In addition, citizens are requesting that the military provide testing for Uranium exposure of military personnel and civilians who believe they may have been exposed to Depleted Uranium on any of the toxic sites across the
With a history of military presence going back to the 19th century, discoveries of toxic and radioactive contaminants on
Despite these concerns, 161 military installations in Hawaii have received ongoing and enthusiastic support and funding from US Congress for military testing and training operations in a wide number of chemical, radiological(18) and biological weapons on several islands in the Aloha state.(19)
Ten years before B-2s began dropping bombs on the Big Island of Hawaii, current Chairman of the US Senate Subcommittee on
Senator Inouye had defended the stealth bombing system well in advance of welcoming the bomb drops in his state, maintaining that, “there is a need for the B-2 bombings: It is a long-range-strike aircraft, capable of reaching anywhere in the world and releasing highly sophisticated, explosive weapons.” Furthermore, Sen. Inouye had remarked, “It is the only system that is capable of operating beyond the range of weapons of mass destruction.”(20)
Further information can be obtained by contacting DMZ Hawaii/Aloha Aina
info@ dmzhawaii.org or Malu Aina at ja@interpac.net.
Resources
(1) www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-7095987,00.html
(2) http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/
2007/Aug/21/ln/hawaii708210343.html/?print=on
(3) http://starbulletin.com/2007/09/23/news/story04.html
(4) www.25idl.army.mil/pressrelease/20071201.pdf
(5) www.haleakalatimes.com/story2737.aspx
(6) www.bandepleteduranium.org/en/a/82.html
(7) www.politicsfromtheheart.com/2007/
06/global-nuclear-cover-up-earnest_01.html
(8) www.haleakalatimes.com/story2737.aspx
(9) www.brookings.edu/projects/
archive/nucweapons/davyc.aspx
(10)www.umrc.net/du_and_ndu.aspx
(11)www.hpa.org.uk/radiation/faq/du/du2.htm
(13)www.uraniumconference.org/dok/
Bertell%2006.pdf
(14)http://maluaina888.blogspot.com/
(16)www.dmzhawaii.org/
overview_military_in_hawaii.pdf
(17)http://maluaina888.blogspot.com/
2007/12/press-release-on-b-2-bombing-of.html
(18)www.dmzhawaii.org/overview_military_in_hawaii.pdf
(19)http://starbulletin.com/2002/10/09/
news/story1.html
(20)www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/
report/1997/970414-cr.htm
Cathy Garger is a regular guest contributor to Axis of Logic. She is a freelance writer, public speaker, activist, and a certified personal coach who specializes in Uranium weapons. Living in the shadow of the national District of Crime, Cathy is constantly nauseated by the stench emanating from the nation's capital during the
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