The Agent Orange was a chemical developed mainly by Monsanto and Dow Chemical. It is a mixture of two common herbicides (2,4-D and 2,4,5-T ) that were used separately in the United States since the late 1940s. The name was given because of the color of the orange-striped barrels in which it was shipped. The Dioxin is the deadly toxin in Agent Orange and the responsible for countless health damages. During the Vietnam War (1955-1975) the United States military forces used the Agent Orange to eliminate forest cover and crops in order to deprive of food and hiding places to the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong troops (Vietnamese communists also known as the National Liberation Front). From 1961 to 1972 the US military forces sprayed more than 19 million gallons of herbicides over 4.5 million acres of land in South Vietnam. This operations was called the Operation Ranch Hand. From this operation, the term ecocide (Zierler, 2011) was born to denounce the environmental destructions and potential damage. The first test spraying occurred August 10, 1961. The chemicals were sprayed from aircraft contaminating soil, water, air. Areas of Laos and Cambodia near the Vietnam border were also impacted.. Dioxin later revealed to cause serious health issues among returning U.S. servicemen and their families as well as at a larger scale among the Vietnamese population. Surviving Vietnam veterans in the United States, after many years of organized action, have finally achieved compensation from U.S government. No compensations have been given to vietnamese people. In 2004 the Vietnam Association for Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin (VAVA) filed a lawsuit in the New York court against the companies for liability and claimed the violation of international protocols and conventions. But, in 2005 the judge dismissed the lawsuit ruling there was no legal basis for the plaintiff´s claims. He concluded that the agent orange was not considered a poison under international law. In Vietnam, nearly 4.8 million people have been exposed, causing 400,000 deaths; the associated illnesses include cancers, birth defects, skin disorders, auto-immune diseases, liver disorders, psychosocial effects, neurological defects and gastrointestinal diseases. Research suggests that another six to twelve generations will have to pass before dioxin stops affecting the genetic code. Nowadays, the dioxin has remain in Vietnam’s ecosystem, in the soil and in the food chain. According with the Aspen Institute "The half-life of dioxin depends on its location. In human bodies the half-life is 11–20 years. In the environment, the half-life varies depending on the type of soil and the depth of penetration. On leaf and soil surfaces it will last 1–3 years, depending on conditions. However, dioxin buried or leached under the surface or deep in the sediment of rivers and other bodies of water can have a half-life of more than 100 years". Waiting for compensation and justice, organizations such as catholic religious group and VAVA constantly organizing charity events and gives help and rehabilitation to affected people. Agent Orange was banned in 1971. Remaining stocks were taken from Vietnam and the U.S. to Johnston Atoll (U.S. controlled island) where they were destroyed in 1978. On 9 August 2012, the United States and Vietnam began a cooperative cleaning up of the toxic chemical. Efforts of the US governments in accepting its responsibility have remained slow and minimal. |
Name of conflict: | Exposure to Agent Orange, a case of “ecocide”, Vietnam |
Country: | Vietnam |
State or province: | |
Location of conflict: | Tây Nam Bộ ( South-western region) |
Accuracy of location | LOW (Country level) |
Type of conflict. 1st level: | Biomass and Land Conflicts (Forests, Agriculture, Fisheries and Livestock Management) |
Type of conflict. 2nd level: | Chemical industries Other Military installations Deforestation Agro-toxics |
Specific commodities: | Land Chemical products |
Project details | -Agent Orange was a herbicide that U.S. Forces sprayed over the rural landscape in Vietnam from 1961 to 1971 to defoliate trees and shrubs and kill food crops that were providing cover and food to opposition forces. -The Dioxin is the deadly toxin in Agent Orange. It was a 50/50 mixture of two herbicides: 2,4-D and 2,4,5-T. -Dioxin chemical name is 2,3,7,8-tetrachloro-dibenzo-para-dioxin, or TCDD. -About 80 million litres of toxic chemicals were sprayed over the south of Vietnam. - According with the Vietnam Red Cross the chemical has affected 3 million of Vietnamese, including at least 150,000 children. -Up to now, babies in Vietnam are still being born with birth defects. - U.S. veterans were also exposed to the herbicide.
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Project area: | 2,000,000 |
Type of population | Rural |
Affected Population: | around 5,000,000 people have being exposed to the agent orange |
Start of the conflict: | 10/08/1961 |
Company names or state enterprises: | Dow Chemical Company (Dow) from United States of America Monsanto Corporation (Monsanto Co) from United States of America Diamond Shamrock from United States of America Uniroyal Chemical Company from United States of America Thompson Chemicals & Solvents from United States of America Hercules Inc from United States of America |
Relevant government actors: | Government of United States, US Army, Government of Vietnam. |
Environmental justice organizations (and other supporters) and their websites, if available: | Supporters: Red Cross International, Vietnam Association for Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin (VAVA); Medical and Scientific Aid for Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia (MSAVLC). Catholic Religious group, |
Intensity | HIGH (widespread, mass mobilization, violence, arrests, etc...) |
Reaction stage | In REACTION to the implementation (during construction or operation) |
Groups mobilizing: | Farmers International ejos Local ejos Neighbours/citizens/communities Local scientists/professionals Religious groups |
Forms of mobilization: | Development of a network/collective action Involvement of national and international NGOs Lawsuits, court cases, judicial activism Media based activism/alternative media Official complaint letters and petitions Public campaigns Shareholder/financial activism. Creation of NGO (VAVA) *Finantial activism : the creation of the Vietnam Agent Orange Victims Fund created by the RedCRoss |
Environmental Impacts | Visible: Air pollution, Biodiversity loss (wildlife, agro-diversity), Food insecurity (crop damage), Global warming, Loss of landscape/aesthetic degradation, Soil contamination, Deforestation and loss of vegetation cover, Surface water pollution / Decreasing water (physico-chemical, biological) quality, Other Environmental impacts Potential: Genetic contamination |
Other Environmental impacts | Erosion caused by loss of tree cover and loss of seedling forest stock meant that reforestation was difficult (or impossible) in many areas. *Impact in the whole foodchain through animals and fish which feed in the contaminated areas. |
Health Impacts | Visible: Exposure to unknown or uncertain complex risks (radiation, etc…), Mental problems including stress, depression and suicide, Occupational disease and accidents, Deaths, Other Health impacts Potential: Malnutrition, Health problems related to alcoholism, prostitution |
Other Health impacts | Chemicals could be associated with serious health issues such as muscular dysfunction, inflammation, birth defects, nervous system disorders and even the development of various cancers. |
Socio-economical Impacts | Visible: Violations of human rights, Land dispossession, Loss of landscape/sense of place, Specific impacts on women, Displacement, Other socio-economic impacts, Loss of livelihood Potential: Increase in violence and crime, Loss of traditional knowledge/practices/cultures |
Other socio-economic impacts | Specific impacts on children. Rural-to-urban migration rates dramatically increased in South Vietnam |
Project Status | Stopped |
Conflict outcome / response: | Environmental improvements, rehabilitation/restoration of area Institutional changes Court decision (failure for environmental justice) Migration/displacement |
Proposal and development of alternatives: | Alternatives: To assist those who have been affected Vietnamese have created "peace villages", to give victims medical and psychological help. Demands: -That the chemical “hot spots” must be cleaned up in Vietnam. -Economic compensations for victims in Vietnam. -To repair ecological damage |
Do you consider this an environmental justice success? Was environmental justice served?: | No |
Briefly explain: | The use of Agent Orange ended in the 1970s, it is no longer in use. However, the dioxin (the main component) continues to have harmful impact (both humans and ecosystems) today and no compensation of the US government to Vietnamese victims has taken place. |
Juridical relevant texts related to the conflict (laws, legislations, EIAs, etc) |
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References to published books, academic articles, movies or published documentaries |
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Related media links to videos, campaigns, social network |
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Other comments: | -The use of the agent orange by the US Army in Vietnam was inspired in "The Malayan Emergency" when the British used herbicides and defoliants as an anti-guerrilla operation against the Malayan National Liberation Army (Malasia) between 1948-1960. -Agent Orange has also being used or proved in Australia, Brazil, Cambodia, Laos, Canada, Guam, South Korea, New Zeland, Japan, Thailand, United States, Phillipines and the US. controlled island Johnston Atoll. |
Contributor: | Grettel Navas, ENVJustice Project |
Last update | 18/08/2019 |
Conflict ID: | 2541 |
Images |
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Suffering from a distorted reality, Nguyen Tran Ho, 11, gazes out from his bed
Source: Brian Dricscoll
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Helicopter spraying agent orange in Vietnam
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Agent_Orange#/media/File:USHuey- helicoptersprayingAgentOrangeinVietnam.jpg
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Before and after Agent Orange
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