Officials: Dioxin found near Camp Carroll doesn't point to Agent Orange

Officials: Dioxin found near Camp Carroll doesn't point to Agent Orange

Trace amounts of dioxin have been found in streams near Camp Carroll, though both U.S. and South Korean officials say the amounts are too small to be hazardous to human health and do not indicate the presence of Agent Orange.

The South Korean officials said Thursday that they will continue testing water from the three sites where dioxin was found.

Image courtesy of Rich Preston, Vietnam veteran

Officials: Dioxin found near Camp Carroll doesn't point to Agent Orange

Officials: Dioxin found near Camp Carroll doesn't point to Agent Orange

Trace amounts of dioxin have been found in streams near Camp Carroll, though both U.S. and South Korean officials say the amounts are too small to be hazardous to human health and do not indicate the presence of Agent Orange.

The South Korean officials said Thursday that they will continue testing water from the three sites where dioxin was found.

Image courtesy of Rich Preston, Vietnam veteran

Agent Orange: S. Korean FM leaves open possibility of SOFA revision

S. Korean FM leaves open possibility of SOFA revision

South Korean Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan on Tuesday left open the possibility of revising a legal code governing U.S. troops in the country, amid mounting concerns about the possible burial of toxic materials at a U.S. base in South Korea.

"We first need to see the results of the investigation at Camp Carroll," Kim said, referring to the base where Agent Orange was allegedly buried. "If the current legal provisions are not enough, we will start negotiations with the U.S. to revise SOFA."

AO Legacy Logo

Agent Orange: S. Korean FM leaves open possibility of SOFA revision

S. Korean FM leaves open possibility of SOFA revision

South Korean Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan on Tuesday left open the possibility of revising a legal code governing U.S. troops in the country, amid mounting concerns about the possible burial of toxic materials at a U.S. base in South Korea.

"We first need to see the results of the investigation at Camp Carroll," Kim said, referring to the base where Agent Orange was allegedly buried. "If the current legal provisions are not enough, we will start negotiations with the U.S. to revise SOFA."

AO Legacy Logo

Abnormalities Detected In Underground Soil At US Military Base In South Korea

Abnormalities Detected In Underground Soil At US Military Base In South Korea

Signs of abnormalities have been detected in underground soil at a U.S. military base in South Korea, where drums of toxic chemicals were allegedly buried decades ago.

"There was nothing special found in a magnetic survey conducted to know if any metallic substances like drums of the toxic defoliant Agent Orange are buried under the helipad," South Korea's state news agency Yonhap quoted a Seoul official involved in the survey as saying on Tuesday.

AO Legacy Logo

Abnormalities Detected In Underground Soil At US Military Base In South Korea

Abnormalities Detected In Underground Soil At US Military Base In South Korea

Signs of abnormalities have been detected in underground soil at a U.S. military base in South Korea, where drums of toxic chemicals were allegedly buried decades ago.

"There was nothing special found in a magnetic survey conducted to know if any metallic substances like drums of the toxic defoliant Agent Orange are buried under the helipad," South Korea's state news agency Yonhap quoted a Seoul official involved in the survey as saying on Tuesday.

AO Legacy Logo

Veterans who served in Korea affected by new benefits policy

Veterans who served in Korea affected by new benefits policy

If military personnel were assigned to certain military units in Korea on the demilitarized zone between April 1, 1968, and Aug., 31, 1971, they are eligible to apply for compensation based on exposure to herbicides. Some 40 years after the fact, the Veterans Administration has acknowledged that even more veterans were exposed to Agent Orange while serving on Korea's DMZ.

Veterans and relatives of veterans who want more information about Agent Orange — including diseases and possible birth defects associated with exposure — can access www.publichealth.va.gov/exposure/agentorange.

For more information on filing a VA claim for Agent Orange exposure, access www.vba.va.gov/bln/21/AQ/

claimherbicide.ht. or if you don't mind waiting awhile you may call VA's Agent Orange Helpline at

1-800-749-8387.

Veterans who served in Korea affected by new benefits policy

Veterans who served in Korea affected by new benefits policy

If military personnel were assigned to certain military units in Korea on the demilitarized zone between April 1, 1968, and Aug., 31, 1971, they are eligible to apply for compensation based on exposure to herbicides. Some 40 years after the fact, the Veterans Administration has acknowledged that even more veterans were exposed to Agent Orange while serving on Korea's DMZ.

Veterans and relatives of veterans who want more information about Agent Orange — including diseases and possible birth defects associated with exposure — can access www.publichealth.va.gov/exposure/agentorange.

For more information on filing a VA claim for Agent Orange exposure, access www.vba.va.gov/bln/21/AQ/

claimherbicide.ht. or if you don't mind waiting awhile you may call VA's Agent Orange Helpline at

1-800-749-8387.

Agent Orange S. Korea to probe another claim of Agent Orange burial at ex-U.S. base

Agent Orange S. Korea to probe another claim of Agent Orange burial at ex-U.S. base

Agent Orange S. Korea to probe another claim of Agent Orange burial at ex-U.S. base

Agent Orange S. Korea to probe another claim of Agent Orange burial at ex-U.S. base

Anger Grows in South Korea over U.S. Dumping of Agent Orange

Anger Grows in South Korea over U.S. Dumping of Agent Orange

The legacy of Agent Orange has long been a divisive shadow hanging over the Vietnamese community, but in South Korea too Agent Orange has been a growing cause for concern.

On Monday, USFK confirmed that Agent Orange, widely used during the Vietnam War and later to clear foliage around the DMZ dividing the two Koreas, was buried at the camp but that it was later removed. Soil samples taken years later revealed trace amounts of dioxin, a key ingredient in Agent Orange, USFK officials said.

Agent Orange has been cited for numerous health problems, including cancer, asthma, and birth defects. U.S. veterans, including those who served in Korea, have long sought treatment for related illnesses from the Veterans Administration, which just recently increased to 16 the number of diagnoses recognized as being related to the herbicide.

Image Compliments Rich Preston, Vietnam veteran

Anger Grows in South Korea over U.S. Dumping of Agent Orange

Anger Grows in South Korea over U.S. Dumping of Agent Orange

The legacy of Agent Orange has long been a divisive shadow hanging over the Vietnamese community, but in South Korea too Agent Orange has been a growing cause for concern.

On Monday, USFK confirmed that Agent Orange, widely used during the Vietnam War and later to clear foliage around the DMZ dividing the two Koreas, was buried at the camp but that it was later removed. Soil samples taken years later revealed trace amounts of dioxin, a key ingredient in Agent Orange, USFK officials said.

Agent Orange has been cited for numerous health problems, including cancer, asthma, and birth defects. U.S. veterans, including those who served in Korea, have long sought treatment for related illnesses from the Veterans Administration, which just recently increased to 16 the number of diagnoses recognized as being related to the herbicide.

Image Compliments Rich Preston, Vietnam veteran

U.S. Kept Agent Orange at Another Camp in Korea

U.S. Kept Agent Orange at Another Camp in Korea

The lethal defoliant Agent Orange was kept also at Camp Market, a depot of the U.S. Forces Korea in Bupyeong, Incheon, during the late 1960s, according to U.S. veterans. On "koreanwar.org," a website for the Korean War Project for USFK veterans, veteran Randy Watson in 2007 said "barrels of what I believe now to be Agent Orange" were kept at Ascom Depot, currently Camp Market.

The Korean War Project, an organization that has its office in Dallas, Texas, has been raising the issue of Agent Orange, which the U.S. used in the Vietnam War, for about 10 years.

The Incheon Institute of Health and Environment took samples of soil and groundwater near the camp last Friday, and results are expected late this month.

Image Compliments of Rich Preston, Vietnam veteran

U.S. Kept Agent Orange at Another Camp in Korea

U.S. Kept Agent Orange at Another Camp in Korea

The lethal defoliant Agent Orange was kept also at Camp Market, a depot of the U.S. Forces Korea in Bupyeong, Incheon, during the late 1960s, according to U.S. veterans. On "koreanwar.org," a website for the Korean War Project for USFK veterans, veteran Randy Watson in 2007 said "barrels of what I believe now to be Agent Orange" were kept at Ascom Depot, currently Camp Market.

The Korean War Project, an organization that has its office in Dallas, Texas, has been raising the issue of Agent Orange, which the U.S. used in the Vietnam War, for about 10 years.

The Incheon Institute of Health and Environment took samples of soil and groundwater near the camp last Friday, and results are expected late this month.

Image Compliments of Rich Preston, Vietnam veteran

Agent Orange allegations putting strain on local community

Agent Orange allegations putting strain on local community

Reporters and protesters, leave us alone.

South Korea and the U.S. are investigating their claims, and the U.S. says it has no proof — other than the veterans’ claims — that Agent Orange was buried there.

Agent Orange allegations putting strain on local community

Agent Orange allegations putting strain on local community

Reporters and protesters, leave us alone.

South Korea and the U.S. are investigating their claims, and the U.S. says it has no proof — other than the veterans’ claims — that Agent Orange was buried there.

Agent Orange Korea: USFK officer battles with VA over Agent Orange exposure

USFK officer battles with VA over Agent Orange exposure

“The men in my unit and I sprayed around 300-500 drums of Agent Orange and monuron around our camps, on the banks of the Imjin River, on Freedom Bridge and on roads in the DMZ at that time,” said Steward. “We did this in order to secure visibility over areas of North Korea and to remove weeds from around the barracks.”

Neither he nor his subordinates, however, knew at the time how dangerous defoliant was. They washed themselves and drank water right next to where they had sprayed it.

As he fought with both his illnesses and VA, he felt the promise he had made to his subordinates 40 years ago gradually coming back. In April 1969, he had promised before 285 subordinates, “If you follow my orders, I will take full responsibility for you.” His men faithfully carried out their duties.

“I set out to find my men again five years ago, after I started wondering, if I was in this state despite not even having sprayed defoliant myself, how must the men who sprayed it with their own hands [on my orders] be?” he said. He posted a message on a former USFK personnel website and made contact with one person at a time.

He is still pursuing VA on behalf of his former subordinates, however, applying for defoliant-related damages and reassessments, gathering old documents and evidence, and meeting and appealing to government officials and lawmakers.

Agent Orange Korea: USFK officer battles with VA over Agent Orange exposure

USFK officer battles with VA over Agent Orange exposure

“The men in my unit and I sprayed around 300-500 drums of Agent Orange and monuron around our camps, on the banks of the Imjin River, on Freedom Bridge and on roads in the DMZ at that time,” said Steward. “We did this in order to secure visibility over areas of North Korea and to remove weeds from around the barracks.”

Neither he nor his subordinates, however, knew at the time how dangerous defoliant was. They washed themselves and drank water right next to where they had sprayed it.

As he fought with both his illnesses and VA, he felt the promise he had made to his subordinates 40 years ago gradually coming back. In April 1969, he had promised before 285 subordinates, “If you follow my orders, I will take full responsibility for you.” His men faithfully carried out their duties.

“I set out to find my men again five years ago, after I started wondering, if I was in this state despite not even having sprayed defoliant myself, how must the men who sprayed it with their own hands [on my orders] be?” he said. He posted a message on a former USFK personnel website and made contact with one person at a time.

He is still pursuing VA on behalf of his former subordinates, however, applying for defoliant-related damages and reassessments, gathering old documents and evidence, and meeting and appealing to government officials and lawmakers.

Tests begin into alleged U.S. chemical dumping in South Korea

Tests begin into alleged U.S. chemical dumping in South Korea

"Soil and underground water will be taken in the areas where toxic chemicals were allegedly buried," said the statement from the South Korean Defense Ministry. Once testing is finished, the government will decide on how to test more than 80 other sites -- all former bases.

A joint U.S.- South Korean investigation is being conducted at Camp Carroll to test the validity of allegations

Tests begin into alleged U.S. chemical dumping in South Korea

Tests begin into alleged U.S. chemical dumping in South Korea

"Soil and underground water will be taken in the areas where toxic chemicals were allegedly buried," said the statement from the South Korean Defense Ministry. Once testing is finished, the government will decide on how to test more than 80 other sites -- all former bases.

A joint U.S.- South Korean investigation is being conducted at Camp Carroll to test the validity of allegations