31 October 2001
Text: DOD Issues Information Paper on Depleted Uranium in Balkans
(Outside assessments found no link to health problems) (630)
On October 30, the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) issued an
information paper intended to provide a basic understanding of the use
of depleted uranium (DU) munitions in the Balkans.
A DOD news release said the paper summarizes medical and environmental
assessments made by the United Nations Environmental Program, the
World Health Organization, and the United Kingdom Royal Society. "On
the whole," according to the release, "these assessments have not
found any connections between depleted uranium exposure in the Balkans
and negative health effects."
The paper makes several comparisons between DU munitions used during
conflicts in the Balkans and those used during the Gulf War. It is
available online at:
http://deploymentlink.osd.mil/du_balkans/index.html
DOD said it would be updated if additional information becomes
available.
Following is the text of the news release:
(begin text)
NEWS RELEASE from the United States Department of Defense
No. 552-01
October 30, 2001
DOD STUDIES MEDICAL IMPACT OF DEPLETED URANIUM IN THE BALKANS
The Department of Defense released today an information paper,
"Depleted Uranium Environmental and Medical Surveillance in the
Balkans," which summarizes medical and environmental assessments
performed in the Balkans area by a number of countries. On the whole,
these assessments have not found any connections between depleted
uranium exposure in the Balkans and negative health effects. Most of
the work assessed was done independently, by organizations outside the
Defense Department. The information paper examines assessments
performed by the United Kingdom Royal Society, the World Health
Organization, the United Nations Environmental Programme and others.
Investigators supporting the special assistant for Gulf War illnesses,
medical readiness and military deployments compiled and analyzed those
reports and referenced them in the new information paper. Most of the
cited references are available in public libraries or on the Internet.
The special assistant's support staff is the same organization that
previously investigated depleted uranium use in the Gulf War. Both
tanks and aircraft employed depleted uranium ammunition in the Gulf
War. However, all the depleted uranium used in the Balkans was in the
form of 30-millimeter rounds fired from Air Force A-10 aircraft. About
10,000 rounds were fired in Bosnia and approximately 31,000 rounds
were fired in Kosovo. That adds up to nearly 13 tons of depleted
uranium, much less than the 320 tons of depleted uranium used during
the Gulf War.
Concerns about possible health effects of depleted uranium in Europe
were first raised by newspaper reports. Italian media reports
initially tried to link an apparent rise in the incidence of leukemia
in Balkan veterans to exposure to depleted uranium. After an extensive
scientific study, the Italian government concluded that the incidence
of leukemia was not as high in Balkan veterans as it was in the
general population. Many other countries started medical screening
programs for their Bosnia veterans. So far, none has reported elevated
uranium levels in their soldiers' urine, or any negative health
consequences they attribute to depleted uranium exposure.
Because depleted uranium is a heavy metal, it can be potentially
harmful under certain circumstances. For that reason, the NATO nations
have instituted training in the safety precautions to use in an area
where depleted uranium was used militarily. Much of this training is
based on the training programs created by the U.S. ARMY.
Information papers are reports of what the Defense Department knows
today about military procedures and equipment. This information paper
is intended to provide a basic understanding of depleted uranium use
in the Balkans. Although not an investigative report, the report will
be updated if additional information becomes available. This report is
posted on the DeploymentLINK Web site at
http://deploymentlink.osd.mil/du_balkans/index.html .
[Web version:
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Oct2001/b10302001_bt552-01.html]
(end text)
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