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Preliminary Assessment of Environmental Impacts Related to Spraying of Agent Orange Herbicide During the Viet Nam War

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PRELIMINARY ASSESSMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS RELATED TO SPRAYING OF AGENT ORANGE HERBICIDE DURING THE VIET NAM WAR VOLUME 1: REPORT Hatfield Consultants Ltd. National Committee For Investigation ofthe 201-1571 Bellevue Avenue Consequences ofthe Chemicals Used During the West Vancouver, BC Viet Nam War (10-80 Committee) Canada V7V 1A6 Ton That Timg Street Tel: 84.48.522.479 Tel: (604) 926.3261 Dong Da Fax: 84.48.523.514 Fax: (604) 926.5389 HaNoi Email: [email protected] VietNam Website: www.hatfieldgroup.com ~~~ HATFIELD CONSULTANTS LTD. 10-80 Committee October 1998 Suggested Citation for this Report: Hatfield Consultants and 10-80 Committee. 1998. Preliminary assessment ofenvironmental impacts related to spraying ofAgent Orange herbicide during the Viet Nam war. Volume 1: Report; Volume 2: Appendices. Hatfield Consultants Ltd., West Vancouver, BC, Canada; 10-80 Committee, Ha Noi, Viet Nam. Front Cover Photos • Top: C-123 applying herbicide over upland forest in Viet Nam. Photo courtesy ofDr. B.W. Pfeiffer, Missoula, Montana. • Lower Left: Forested area near Aluoi Valley, untouched by herbicide (Hatfield Consultants Ltd. photo, January 1995). • Lower Right: Once-forested area near Aluoi Valley that received herbicide during the Viet Nam War (Hatfield Consultants Ltd. photo, January 1995). Back Cover • Radarsat image ofAluoi Valley with herbicide spray lines superimposed (cf Plate 5.1). I f ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF WAR-RELATED HERBICIDES IN VIET NAM 3/10 Ecological Effects 3/11 1 Preliminary Concerns and Opinions 3/11 Vietnamese Response to Ecological Effects 3/12 Dioxin Contamination 3/13 1 Water 3/14 Soils ,and Sediments 3/14 Terrestrial Flora excluding Forests 3/14 1 Aquatic Ecosystems and Fisheries 3/14 Wildlife, Livestock and Human Food 3/16 1 4 ALUOI VALLEY DIOXIN ASSESSMENT 4/1 INTRODUCTION 4/1 i FIELD METHODOLOGY AND SAMPLE COLLECTION 4/2 Background 4/2 Quality Assurance and Quality Control(QAlQC) 4/3 t Sampling Methodologies 4/4 Soils 4/4 Fish Pond, Bomb Crater Pond and River Sediments 4/4 t Fish Tissues 4/4 Vegetation 4/5 Livestock and Fowl 4/5 t Human Blood 4/6 ANALYTICAL METHODS 4/6 General 4/6 I Polychlorinated Dioxins and Furans in Soil and Tissue Samples .4/7 Polychlorinated Dioxins and Furans in Whole Human Blood 4/7 PCBs and Chlorinated Pesticides in Soil and Tissue Samples 4/8 I' Phenoxy Acid Herbicides in Soil and Sediment.. 4/8 RESULTS 4/8 Dioxins - 1996 Expedition 4/9 Dioxins - 1997 Expedition 4/10 Pesticides/Herbicides/PCBs 4/11 DISCUSSION 4/12 General 4/12 Dioxins 4/13 Soils 4/13 River Sediments 4/15 Fishpond Sediments 4/16 Fish Tissues 4/16 Manioc/Pig/Duck Tissues 4/18 Human Blood 4/19 Pesticides/Herbicides/PCBs 4/23 Soils 4/23 Biological Tissues 4/23 11 Human Health 4/24 i 5 RADARSAT REMOTE SENSiNG 5/1 INTRODUCTION 5/1 i' STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS 5/2 RESULTS 5/4 I- DiSCUSSiON 5/8 CONCLUSiONS 5/9 f, 6 CONCLUSiONS 6/1 L 7 RECOMMENDATIONS 7/1 r 8 REFERENCES 8/1 L L [ L L I L L_ L L { L 111 r'l LIST OF TABLES Table 1.1 Summary of project funding/in-kind agencies, programs, program objectives and program reports. Table 4.1 Sample media collected from Viet Nam, January 1996 and exported to Canada. Samples analyzed for dioxins/furans, select pesticides, herbicides and PCBs. Table 4.2 Sample media collected from Viet Nam, November 1997. Table 4.3 Concentrations of dioxin and furan congeners in soil, fishpond sediment and animal tissues (pg/g dry weight [soils], pg/g wet weight [biological tissues]), central Viet Nam, January 1996. Table 4.4 Concentrations of dioxin and furan congeners in soil, fishpond sediment, animal tissues and whole human blood, (pg/g dry weight [soils], pg/g wet weight [biological tissues]), central and southern Viet Nam, November 1997. Table 4.5 Pesticide residues (ng/g dry weight [soils]; wet weight [biological tissues]) in samples collected from Viet Nam, January 1996 and November 1997 (in italics). Values in parentheses represent levels on a lipid basis. Table 4.6 Herbicide residues (ng/g dry weight) in samples collected from Viet Nam, January 1996. Table 4.7 PCB residues (ng/g dry weight [soils]; wet weight [biological tissues]) in samples collected from central Viet Nam, January 1996 and November 1997 (in italics). Lf iv r\ LIST OF FIGURES I Figure 1.1 Aerial herbicide spray missions in southern Viet Nam, 1965 to 1971 (Source: US f Dept. ofthe Army). Figure 3.1 2,3,7,8-T4CDD (ppt, lipid basis) in human blood from different countries; data f from Schecter et ai. (l992b). Figure 3.2 2,3,7,8-T4CDD (ppt, lipid basis) in pooled human breast milk from different f localities ofViet Nam in 1985 to 1990 (Source: Schecter 1994b). r Figure 4.1 Herbicide spray missions, Aluoi Valley, Viet Nam (1965-1970). Figure 4.2 Aluoi Valley, Viet Nam, herbicide distribution/frequency of spray mISSIOns t (1965-1970). Figure 4.3 Sampling locations, Viet Nam, 1996 (Hatfield Consultants Ltd. and 10-80 L Committee). Figure 4.4 Aluoi Valley, Viet Nam, sampling locations, 1996 (Hatfield Consultants Ltd. and I 10-80 Committee). L Figure 4.5 Sampling locations, Viet Nam, 1997 (Hatfield Consultants Ltd. and 10-80 r Committee). Figure 4.6 Aluoi Valley, Viet Nam, sampling locations, 1997 (Hatfield Consultants Ltd. and [ 10-80 Committee). Figure 4.7 Concentrations of 2,3,7,8-T4CDD and Total-TEQ in surficial soils and aquatic L sediments collected from various locations in central Viet Nam, January 1996. Figure 4.8 Concentrations of 2,3,7,8-T4CDD and Total-TEQ in biological tissues collected from Aluoi Valley (exposed sites) and Con Cuong (reference sites), Viet Nam, L January 1996. Figure 4.9 Concentrations of 2,3,7,8-T4CDD and Total-TEQ in fishpond sediments (pg/g L dry weight) and biological tissues (pg/g wet weight), A So, Aluoi Valley, central Viet Nam, November 1997. Figure 4.10 Concentrations of 2,3,7,8-T4CDD and Total-TEQ in surficial soils, A So, Aluoi Valley, central Viet Nam, November 1997. Figure 4.11 Concentrations of2,3,7,8-T4CDD and Total-TEQ in aquatic sediments and soil, Ma Da forest region, southern Viet Nam, November 1997. v ( { Plate 4.4 Collection of scrap metal from the war period is a dangerous yet common practice 1 in Aluoi Valley. Plate 4.5 Small children from Aluoi Valley. i Plate 4.6 Local Aluoi resident with woven basket commonly used for carrying wood and other items. r Plate 4.7 Sampling river sediments at Con Cuong, our reference sampling area. { Plate 4.8 Village ofCon Cuong. Plate 4.9 Peoples' Committee Meeting, Gio An, 1997. r Plate 4.10 Recording sampling data in the field. r Plate 4.11 Soil sampling in farmer's field, Aluoi (note barren hills in background). Plate 4.12 Soil core sample, collected to a maximum depth of30 cm. c Plate 4.13 Fishpond sediment sample collected in Aluoi Valley. Plate 4.14 Depositional sediment sampling area, A Sap River, Aluoi Valley. f Plate 4.15 Grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella), an important cultured fish in Aluoi. { Plate 4.16 Collection ofgrass carp from local fishponds. Plate 4.17 Fish dissection, including removal ofskin and muscle tissue. !. Plate 4.18 Collection ofmanioc in Con Cuong. r Plate 4.19 Sampling pig liver tissue, Aluoi Valley. Plate 4.20 Dissection and sampling ofduck tissues. r Plate 4.21 Dissection and sampling ofchicken muscle. Plate 4.22 Collection ofblood samples from volunteer patient. Plate 4.23 Blood samples collected in Aluoi Valley. Plate 4.24 Observed in Aluoi Valley - Polydactylism. Plate 4.25 Observed in Aluoi Valley - Mental retardation and physical deformities. Plate 5.1 Overview, Aluoi Valley, Central Viet Nam. ( I Plate 5.2 Aluoi Valley, Central Viet Nam. I Plate 5.3 Detail, Northern Aluoi Valley. Plate 5.4 Quang Tri Province and Former DMZ, Central Viet Nam. t Plate 5.5 Dong Hai/Con Thien, Central Viet Nam. J Plate 5.6 Overview, Ma Da Upland Forest, Southern Viet Nam. Plate 5.7 Ma Da Upland Forest, Southern Viet Nam. 1 Plate 5.8 Overview, Ca Mau Peninsula, Southern Viet Nam. r Plate 5.9 Ca Mau Peninsula, Southern Viet Nam (1973). r L f f. L L rL [ t r { ! IX LIST OF APPENDICES VOLUME 2 Appendix Al Description ofthe Aluoi Valley Ecosystem Appendix A2.1 • Spread Sheet Summaries and Congener Profile Graphics of Viet Nam Dioxin Data, 1996 and 1997, Incorporating Analytical Data Appearing in Appendices A2.2, A2.3 and A2A • Statistics on Human Participants in the Collection ofBlood for Dioxin Analyses, A So (Aluoi Valley), Viet Nam, 1997 A2.2 Axys Analytical Report to Hatfield Consultants Ltd. 1997 Analytical Data on 1996 Viet Nam Samples A2.3 • Axys Analytical Report to Hatfield Consultants Ltd. 1998 Analytical Data on 1997 Viet Nam Samples • Addendum Analytical Data on 1997 PCB/Pesticide Analyses - Reports and Batch Summary Sheets (See Appendix A2.2 for Analytical Protocols) A2A Environmental Technology Centre (ETC) (Environment Canada) Report to Hatfield Consultants Ltd. February 1998 Analytical Data on 1997 Viet Nam Samples A2.5 Tabulation ofDioxin Analyses Summarized from Specific Reference Materials (Provided Courtesy ofAxys Analytical Services, Sydney, British Columbia, Canada) ( Appendix A3 Dioxins and Furans in the Environment: Sources, Levels, Fate and L Toxicity x r \ { PREFACE ( We first visited Viet Nam in October of 1993. By that time, international financing institutions { such as the World Bank and Asian Development Bank, donor agencies and private sector investors were making significant commitments in the country.
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