Amid an ongoing examination by a joint South Korean-U.S. investigation team into allegations that Agent Orange was buried at the U.S. base of Camp Carroll in the Waegwan Township of North Gyeongsang’s Chilgok County, it emerged Monday that United States Forces Korea (USFK) previously verified the presence of a pit containing buried chemicals within the camp during a 2004 investigation. Analysts say the revelation is likely to cause controversy, as USFK did not previously notify the South Korean government of its findings.
According to a draft report obtained by the Hankyoreh on Monday for a preliminary study for treatment of environmental pollution in Camp Carroll, the U.S. military discovered indications of a burial site within the camp measuring 25 meters in length, 14 meters in width, and six meters in depth in 2004. Following a subsequent soil study, the U.S. military confirmed contamination with high concentrations of highly carcinogenic perchloroethylene (PCE). Also detected were pesticides, heavy metals, and components of dioxin, which is connected to Agent Orange.
Environmental groups are demanding that the U.S. military disclose all its information about environmental contamination and expand the scope of regions under investigation to include the whole of Camp Carroll.
Hong Hee-deok, a lawmaker on the National Assembly’s Environment and Labor Committee, said, “For all intents and purposes, the U.S. military deceived the South Korean government.”
“The U.S. military needs to disclose information in a transparent manner about the places where it has conducted environmental contamination studies,” Hong added.
Image compliments Rich Preston, Vietnam veteran
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