A UH-1D helicopter from the 336th Aviation Company sprays a defoliation agent on a dense jungle area in the Mekong Delta. 07/26/1969/National Archives photograph.

Agent Orange is the code name for a powerful herbicide and defoliant used by the U.S. military in its Herbicidal Warfare program during the Vietnam War. A herbicide is used to kill unwanted Plants Selective herbicides kill specific targets while leaving the desired Crop relatively unharmed A defoliant is any chemical sprayed or dusted on plants to cause its leaves to fall off The United States Armed Forces are the overall unified military forces of the United States Herbicidal warfare is a form of warfare in which the objective is to destroy the plant-based ecosystem of an area for the purpose of disrupting agricultural food production or destroying The Vietnam War, also known as the Second Indochina War, or the Vietnam Conflict, occurred in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia During the Vietnam War, an estimated 20 million gallons of Agent Orange were deployed in South Vietnam. ^[1]

Agent Orange's usage from 1961 to 1971 was by far the most used of the so-called "Rainbow Herbicides" utilized during the program. The Rainbow Herbicides are a group of chemicals used by the United States military in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War. Degradation of Agent Orange (as well as Agents Purple, Pink, and Green) released dioxins, which have caused health problems for those exposed during the Vietnam War. Agent Purple is the code name for a powerful Herbicide and Defoliant used by the U Agent Pink is the code name for a powerful Herbicide and Defoliant used by the U Agent Green is the code name for a powerful Herbicide and Defoliant used by the U Polychlorinated dibenzodioxins ( PCDD s or simply dioxins, are a group of Halogenated Organic compounds which are significant because they act Agents Blue and White were part of the same program but did not contain dioxins. Agent Blue is one of the " Rainbow herbicides " that is known for its use by the United States during the Vietnam War. Agent White is the code name for a powerful Herbicide and Defoliant used by the U

Studies of populations highly exposed to dioxin, though not necessarily Agent Orange, indicate increased risk of various types of cancer and genetic defects; the effect of long-term low-level exposure has not been established.

Since the 1980s, several lawsuits have been filed against the companies which produced Agent Orange, among them; Dow Chemical, Monsanto, and Diamond Shamrock (which produced 5%^[2]). The Dow Chemical Company () is an American Multinational corporation headquartered in Midland Michigan. The Monsanto Company ( is a multinational Agricultural biotechnology Corporation. Valero Energy Corporation ( is a Fortune 500 company based in San Antonio, Texas, with 21836 employees and annual revenue of more than US$90 billion U. S. veterans obtained a $180 million settlement in 1984, with most affected veterans receiving a one-time lump sum payment of $1,200.

American veterans of the Vietnam War were seeking recognition of Agent Orange syndrome, compensation and treatment for diseases that they and their children suffered from; many exposed to Agent Orange have not been able to receive promised medical care through the Veterans Administration medical system, and only with rare exception have their affected children received healthcare assistance from the government. The United States Department of Veterans Affairs ( VA) is a government-run military Veteran benefit system with Cabinet -level status

Vietnam veterans and their families who brought the original Agent Orange lawsuit stated 25 years ago that the government "is just waiting for us all to die". They alleged that most of those still alive would succumb to the effects of toxic exposure before the age of 65.

In Australia, Canada and New Zealand, veterans obtained compensation in settlements that same year. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island In 1999, South Korean veterans filed a lawsuit in the Korean courts. South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea and often referred to as Korea ( Korean: 대한민국 tɛː In January 2006, the Korean Appeal Court ordered Monsanto and Dow to pay US$62 million in compensation. The United States dollar ( sign: $; code: USD) is the unit of Currency of the United States; it has also been However, no Vietnamese have received compensation, and on March 10, 2006, Judge Jack B. Weinstein of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York dismissed the lawsuit filed by the Vietnamese victims of Agent Orange against the chemical companies which produced the defoliants and herbicides. Events 241 BC - First Punic War: Battle of the Aegates Islands - The Romans sink the Carthaginian fleet bringing Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Jack B Weinstein (born 1921 Kansas) is a United States federal judge in the Eastern District of New York. The United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York is the federal district court whose jurisdiction comprises the entirety of Long Island

Description

Agent Orange, given its name from the colour of the 55 U. S. gallon orange-striped barrels it was shipped in, is a (roughly) 1:1 mixture of two phenoxy herbicides in ester form, 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) and 2,4,5-trichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4,5-T). A phenoxy herbicide is any member of a family of chemicals related to the growth hormone Indoleacetic acid (IAA Esters are a class of Chemical compounds and Functional groups Esters consist of an inorganic or organic Acid in which at least 24-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (24-D is a common systemic Herbicide used in the control of broadleaf weeds 245-Trichlorophenoxyacetic acid (245-T a synthetic Auxin, is a chlorophenoxy acetic acid herbicide used to defoliate broad-leafed plants These herbicides were developed during the 1940s by independent teams in England and the United States for use in controlling broad-leaf plants. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Phenoxyl agents work by mimicking a plant growth hormone, indoleacetic acid (IAA). Growth hormone ( GH) is a Peptide hormone that stimulates growth and cell reproduction in humans and other animals Indole-3-acetic acid, also known as IAA is a member of the group of Phytohormones called Auxins IAA is generally considered to be the most important native auxin When sprayed on broad-leaf plants they induce rapid, uncontrolled growth, eventually defoliating them. When sprayed on crops such as wheat or corn, it selectively kills only the broad-leaf plants in the field, namely weeds, leaving the crop relatively unaffected. Wheat ( Triticum spp is a worldwide cultivated grass from the Levant area of the Middle East. Maize (ˈmeɪz ( Zea mays L. ssp mays) known as corn in some countries is a cereal grain domesticated in Mesoamerica First introduced in 1946, these herbicides were in widespread use in agriculture by the middle of the 1950s and were first introduced in the agricultural farms of Aguadilla, Puerto Rico. Agriculture refers to the production of goods through the growing of plants and fungi and the raising of domesticated Animals The study of agriculture Aguadilla /ˌaγwa'dija/ or /ˌaγwa'diʝa/ or /ˌaγwa'didʒa/ founded in 1775 by Luis de Córdova is a city located in the northwestern tip of Puerto Rico bordered Puerto Rico (ˌpwertoˈriko officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ("Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico" {{lang-en|"Associated Free State of Puerto Rico"}}

At the time Agent Orange was sold to the U. S. government for use in Vietnam, internal memos of its manufacturers reveal it was known that a dioxin, 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzodioxin (TCDD), is produced as a byproduct of the manufacture of 2,4,5-T, and was thus present in any of the herbicides that contained it. Polychlorinated dibenzodioxins ( PCDD s or simply dioxins, are a group of Halogenated Organic compounds which are significant because they act The National Toxicology Program has classified TCDD to be a human carcinogen, frequently associated with soft-tissue sarcoma, Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, Hodgkin's disease and chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). The term carcinogen refers to any substance Radionuclide or radiation that is an agent directly involved in the promotion of Cancer or in the fatation of its propagation A soft tissue sarcoma is a rare form of Cancer that develops in mesenchymal tissue the Muscle, Connective tissues and Bones of the body The non-Hodgkin lymphomas are a diverse group of hematologic cancers which encompass any Lymphoma other than Hodgkin lymphoma. Hodgkin's lymphoma, also known as Hodgkin's disease is a type of Lymphoma first described by Thomas Hodgkin in 1832 Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (also known as "chronic lymphoid leukemia" or "CLL" is a type of Leukemia, or cancer of the white blood cells ( Lymphocytes In a study by the Institute of Medicine, a link has been found between dioxin exposure and diabetes. The Institute of Medicine (IOM is one of the United States National Academies, and is a not-for-profit non-governmental American organization chartered in 1970 as a part of the United Diabetes mellitus (ˌdaɪəˈbiːtiːz or /ˌdaɪəˈbiːtəs/ /məˈlaɪtəs/ or /ˈmɛlətəs/ often referred to simply as diabetes ( Ancient Greek: grc ^[3] Diseases with limited evidence of an association with Agent Orange are respiratory cancers, prostate cancer, multiple myeloma, primary amyloidosis. Multiple myeloma (also known as MM, myeloma, plasma cell myeloma, or as Kahler's disease after Otto Kahler) is a type of In Medicine, amyloidosis refers to a variety of conditions in which Amyloid Proteins are abnormally deposited in organs and/or tissues ^[4], Porphyria cutanea tarda (a type of skin disease), acute and subacute transient peripheral neuropathy, spina bifida, Type 2 diabetes, and acute myelogenous leukemia found only in the second or third generation. Porphyria cutanea tarda (PCT is the most common subtype of Porphyria. Peripheral neuropathy is the term for damage to Nerves of the Peripheral nervous system, which may be caused either by diseases of the Nerve or from the Spina bifida ( Latin: "split spine" is a developmental Birth defect involving the Neural tube: incomplete closure of the Embryonic neural Diabetes mellitus type 2 or Type 2 Diabetes (formerly called non - Insulin -dependent Diabetes mellitus (NIDDM or adult-onset diabetes is a metabolic Acute myeloid leukemia ( AML) also known as acute myelogenous leukemia, is a Cancer of the Myeloid line of White blood cells characterized 2,4,5-T has since been banned for use in the U. S. and many other countries.

The herbicide 2,4-D does not contain dioxin, it remains one of the most-used herbicides in the world today.

The LD50, according to US EPA 2,4-D Reregistration Eligibility Decision, 2006,is 639 mg/kg. Single oral doses of 5 and 30 mg/kg body weight did not cause any acute toxic effects in human volunteers.

The amine salt formulations can cause irreversible eye damage; ester formulations are considered non-irritating to the eyes.

On August 8, 2007, the United States Environmental Protection Agency issued a ruling which stated existing data do not support a conclusion that links human cancer to 2,4-D exposure. Events 1220 - Sweden is defeated by Estonian tribes in the Battle of Lihula. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century.

Vietnam Case

During the Vietnam war, between 1962 and 1971, the United States military sprayed 77 million litres of chemical defoliants in South Vietnam as part of a defoliant program to deny cover for their Vietnamese opponents. ^[5]

According to Vietnam Ministry of Foreign Affairs, there are still 4. 8 million Vietnamese people thought to be victims of agent orange. They live mainly in mountainous area along Truong Son (Long Mountains) and border between Vietnam and Cambodia. These people together with their affected descendants are living in sub-standard conditions and with many genetic diseases. ^[6]

Much of the information on the effects of Agent Orange in Vietnam until the 21st century, were mainly in Vietnamese and compiled under Vietnamese scientists' investigations; thus largely unavailable to the worldwide English reader. However, general public perception in Vietnam is that the effects are severe and clearly visible in children of veterans and people in affected areas. A gallery of pictures of the victims can be found by searching on photo sharing websites, for example with keywords "agent orange victim" on Flickr. com Agent Orange Victim on Flickr.com

Use outside of Vietnam

In September 2000, the Veteran Administration (VA) recognized that Agent Orange was used in Korea in the late 1960s. [1] Republic of Korea troops are reported to have done the spraying, which occurred along the demilitarized zone with North Korea. South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea and often referred to as Korea ( Korean: 대한민국 tɛː North Korea is the commonly used short form name for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (or DPRK) a State located in East Asia, The VA has also acknowledged that Agent Orange was used domestically by U. S. forces [2].

San Carlos Apache Reservation, Arizona, United States

The U. S. Forest Service sprayed large areas of San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation river basins in the mid 1960s up to 1969 and possibly later. The San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation, in southeastern Arizona, United States, was established in 1871, and is home to a conglomeration of Shortly after the year 2001 several 55 gallon drum containers of chemicals were removed from the San Carlos reservation discovered in a BIA storage facility. The community has a high rate of cancers.

Canadian Forces Base Gagetown, New Brunswick, Canada

The U. S. military, with the permission of the Canadian government, secretly tested many unregistered U. S. military herbicides, including Agent Orange, in the forests near the Canadian Forces Base Gagetown in New Brunswick in 1966 and 1967. This article is about the military base known as CFB Gagetown headquartered in the town of Oromocto with an extensive training area in southwestern New Brunswick On September 12, 2007, Greg Thompson, Minister of Veterans Affairs, announced that the government of Canada is offering a one-time ex gratia payment of $20,000 as the compensation package for Agent Orange exposure at CFB Gagetown. Events 1213 - Albigensian Crusade: Simon de Montfort 5th Earl of Leicester, defeats Peter II of Aragon at the Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Gregory Francis Thompson, PC, MP (born March 28, 1947 in St Stephen New Brunswick) is a Canadian politician The Minister of Veterans Affairs (Ministre des Anciens Combattants is the Minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet whose position was created in 1944 The Canadian Government, formally Her Majesty's Government in Canada, is the Federal government of Canada. Ex gratia (sometimes ex-gratia) is Latin (lit by favour and is most often used in a Legal context ^[7]

Globe, Arizona

Billee Shoecraft died in 1977 of cancer. She began suffering from cancer after a helicopter sprayed her with the defoliant Kuron. Before her death, Shoecraft wrote a book about her experience in which she said that after she was sprayed her eyes were nearly swollen shut, her arms and legs were swollen twice normal size and her hair was coming out in patches. Kuron, a herbicide related to Agent Orange, was sprayed by the U. S. Forest Service to thin foliage and increase water runoff in the Pinal Mountains of the Tonto National Forest near Globe, Arizona, in 1968 and 1969. Globe ( Western Apache: Bésh Baa Gowąh) is a city in Gila County, Arizona, United States. Dow Chemical Company and the U. S. Forest Service paid an undisclosed sum to five families. Shoecraft wrote a book entitled, Sue the Bastards!, about her incident in 1971.

Innisfail, Australia

It is speculated ^{[8] [9]} that the Australian military tested Agent Orange on Innisfail, a small town in northern Queensland, between 1964 and 1966^[10] . Files from the Australian War Memorial archives showed the chemicals 2,4-D, Diquat, Tordon and dimethyl sulphoxide (DMSO) were sprayed on the rainforest in the Gregory Falls area in June 1966, as part of a wider chemical weapons test program dubbed 'Operation Desert'. However, documents detailing Operation Desert have been lost.

These claims have since been proved false by a Defence Science and Technology Organisation (DSTO) investigation. They found that there was a small-scale defoliation trial conducted in the Gregory Falls area near Innisfail in 1966 but it didn't involve Agent Orange. Claims the cancer rate was 10 times as high in Innisfail were also proved to be untrue by QLD health who have stated it was called by media miscalculations.

Effects of the program

New Jersey Agent Orange Commission

In 1980, New Jersey created the New Jersey Agent Orange Commission, the first state commission created to study its effects. New Jersey ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. The commission's research project in association with Rutgers University was called "The Pointman Project". Rutgers The State University of New Jersey (also known as Rutgers University) is the largest institution for higher education in the state of New Jersey It was disbanded by Governor Christine Todd Whitman in 1996. Christine Todd "Christie" Whitman (born September 26, 1946) is an American Republican Politician and Author who ^[11]

During Pointman I, commission researchers devised ways to determine small dioxin levels in blood. Prior to this, such levels could only be found in the adipose (fat) tissue. "Adipose" redirects here For the Doctor Who monster see " Partners in Crime " The project compared dioxin levels in a small group of Vietnam veterans who had been exposed to Agent Orange with a group of matched veterans who had not served in Vietnam. The results of this project were published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 1988. ^[12]

The second phase of the project continued to examine and compare dioxin levels in various groups of Vietnam veterans including Army, Marines and brown water riverboat Navy personnel. The United States Army is a military organization whose primary mission is to "provide necessary forces and capabilities. Brown-water navy is a term that originated in the United States Navy, referring to the small Gunboats and Patrol boats used in rivers

Lawsuits

In 1984, Agent Orange manufacturers paid Australian, Canadian and New Zealand veterans in an out-of-court settlement. ^[13]

U. S. Vietnamese victims class action lawsuit

On January 31, 2004, a victim's rights group, the Vietnam Association for Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin (VAVA), filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York in Brooklyn, against several U. Events 1504 - France cedes Naples to Aragon. 1606 - Gunpowder Plot: Guy Fawkes "MMIV" redirects here For the Modest Mouse album see " Baron von Bullshit Rides Again " A victims' rights group is a type of Interest group which advocates or lobbies for legal social or political change on behalf of victims of serious Crime The United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York is the federal district court whose jurisdiction comprises the entirety of Long Island Brooklyn (named after the Dutch town Breukelen) is one of the five boroughs of New York City. S. companies for liability in causing personal injury, by developing and producing the chemical. Dow Chemical and Monsanto were the two largest producers of Agent Orange for the U. S. military and were named in the suit along with the dozens of other companies (Diamond Shamrock, Uniroyal, Thompson Chemicals, Hercules, etc. ). A number of lawsuits by American GIs were settled out of court - without admission of liability by the chemical companies - in the years since the Vietnam War. For other uses of GI see GI GI or GI is a term describing members of the U In 1984, some chemical companies that manufactured Agent Orange paid $180 million into a fund for United States veterans following a lawsuit.

On March 10, 2005, Judge Jack B. Events 241 BC - First Punic War: Battle of the Aegates Islands - The Romans sink the Carthaginian fleet bringing Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Weinstein - who had defended the U. S. veterans victims of Agent Orange - dismissed the suit, ruling that there was no legal basis for the plaintiffs' claims. A plaintiff ( Π in Legal shorthand) also known as a claimant or complainant, is the party who initiates a Lawsuit The judge concluded that Agent Orange was not considered a poison under international law at the time of its use by the U. International law is the term commonly used for referring to the system of implicit and explicit agreements that bind together nation-states in adherence to recognized values and standards S. ; that the U. S. was not prohibited from using it as a herbicide; and that the companies which produced the substance were not liable for the method of its use by the government. The U. S. government is not a party in the lawsuit, claiming sovereign immunity. Sovereign immunity, or crown immunity, is a type of immunity that in Common law Jurisdictions traces its origins from early English law

In order to assist those who have been impacted by Agent Orange/Dioxin, the Vietnamese have established "Peace villages", which each host between 50 to 100 victims, giving them medical and psychological help. As of 2006, there were 11 such villages, thus granting some social protection to fewer than a thousand victims. U. S. veterans of the war in Vietnam and individuals who are aware and sympathetic to the impacts of Agent Orange have also supported these programs in Vietnam. An international group of Veterans from the U. S. and its allies during the Vietnam war working together with their former enemy - veterans from the Vietnam Veterans Association - established the Vietnam Friendship Village[3] located outside of Hanoi. The center provides medical care, rehabilitation and vocational training for children and veterans from Vietnam who have been impacted by Agent Orange.

The U. S. Department of Veterans Affairs has listed prostate cancer, respiratory cancers, multiple myeloma, type II diabetes, Hodgkin’s disease, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, soft tissue sarcoma, chloracne, porphyria cutanea tarda, peripheral neuropathy, and spina bifida in children of veterans exposed to Agent Orange as side effects of the herbicide.

South Korean lawsuit

In 1999, about 20,000 South Koreans filed two separated lawsuits against U. S. companies, seeking more than $5 billion in damages. After losing a decision in 2002, they filed an appeal.

In January 2006, the South Korean Appeals Court ordered Dow Chemical and Monsanto to pay $62 million in compensation to about 6,800 people. The ruling acknowledged that "the defendants failed to ensure safety as the defoliants manufactured by the defendants had higher levels of dioxins than standard", and, quoting the U. A defendant or defender ( Δ in Legal shorthand) is any party who is required to answer the Complaint of a Plaintiff S. National Academy of Science report, declared that there was a "causal relationship" between Agent Orange and 11 diseases, including cancers of the lung, larynx and prostate. However, the judges failed to acknowledge "the relationship between the chemical and peripheral neuropathy, the disease most widespread among Agent Orange victims" according to the Mercury News. The San Jose Mercury News is the major daily Newspaper in San Jose California and Silicon Valley.

Canada lawsuit

In July 12, 2005, Merchant Law Group LLP on behalf of over 1,100 Canada veterans and civilians who were living in and around the CFB Gagetown filled a lawsuit to pursue class action litigation concerning Agent Orange and Agent Purple to the Court of Queen's Bench of Manitoba. Events 1191 - Saladin 's garrison surrenders ending the two-year Siege of Acre. Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. In Law, a class action or a representative action is a form of Lawsuit where a large group of people collectively bring a claim to court Until September 30, 2007, the case is still going. Events 1399 - Henry IV is proclaimed King of England. 1744 - France and Spain defeat the Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ^[14]

See also

• Teratogen
• Dow Chemical
• Depleted uranium
• Thalidomide
• Herbicide

Notes

Further reading

• Weisman, Joan Murray. The Effects of Exposure to Agent Orange on the Intellectual Functioning, Academic Achievement, Visual Motor Skill, and Activity Level of the Offspring of Vietnam War Veterans. Doctoral thesis. Hofstra University. 1986.
• Klein, Robert. Wounded Men, Broken Promises. New York: Macmillan Publishing, 1981.
• Uhl, Michael, and Tod Ensign. GI Guinea Pigs. 1st Ed. New York: Playboy Press, 1981.
• Linedecker, Clifford, Michael Ryan, and Maureen Ryan. Kerry: Agent Orange and an American Family. New York: St. Martins Press, 1982.
• Wilcox, Fred A. Waiting for an Army to Die. 1st ed. New York: Random House, 1983.

External links

• Vietnamese Victims of Agent Orange Trust
• Poisoned Lives
• San Carlos Apache Reservation adjacent to Globe, Arizona and Kellner Canyon Agent Orange spraying locations. San Carlos Apache were subjected to the same Defoliant programs.
• (http://www.jamesgraham-agentorange.com
• Walks from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi to collect donations for Agent Orange victim children.
• Letters from Agent Orange victims in Vietnam and additional information to provide assistance.
• Operation Ranch Hand: Herbicides In Southeast Asia History of Operation Ranch Hand
• NIEHS dioxin fact sheet
• Blood Debt Members of Vietnam Veterans Against the War and Vietnamese victims come together to assess the legacy of Agent Orange (warning: graphic images - viewer discretion advised). From the Chicago FreeSpeechZone
• Agent Orange legal case dismissed - report of the US Federal court ruling on the VAVA suit.
• www.vietnam-dioxin.org, an information website on the consequences of Agent Orange and dioxin in Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos.
• http://www.ffrd.org/agentorange.htm Information about the long term health and environmental effects of Agent Orange in Southeast Asia and the US. Court documents from the Vietnamese AO lawsuit are also found on this site.
• Assessment of the health risk of dioxins 1998 by the WHO and the IPCS (pdf). The International Programme on Chemical Safety ( IPCS) is a collaboration between three United Nations bodies&mdashthe World Health Organization, the
• Children and the Vietnam War 30-40 years after the use of Agent Orange, article with pictures (warning: uncensored, may be found shocking)
• Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting Vietnam: War's Lasting Legacy. Video reports from the field on the lingering effects of Agent Orange.
• Agent Orange -a personal requiem-documentary film