HI Superferry: Stryker Brigades and DU?

From: Pono
Date: Oct 28, 2007 4:34 PM
Subject: NO STRYKERS IN HAWAI'I
Body:
Three days till deadline for No Stryker Hawai'i comments... PublicComments@aec.apgea.army.mil
This just published in internet news please pass forward far and wide.
NO STRYKERS HAWAI'I
http://www.indymedia.org/en/2007/10/895223.shtml
NO STRYKERS HAWAI'I by Lindafaye Kroll RN BSN Friday Oct 26th, 2007 9:33 AM
O'ahu has nearly 800 military caused contaminated sites, seven of which are superfund sites. Many Hawai'i residents and visitors voice their concerns against the U.S. Army plans to bring a Stryker Brigade to Hawai'i. The U.S. Army is moving forward despite a recent discovery of spent radioactive spotting rounds used here from the 1960's. military_occupation_of__h...Please help us Protect Hawai'i. Pass this information forward. U.S. Army DEIS comment deadline is Oct. 30, 2007. Send comments to:
PublicComments@aec.apgea.army.mil and cc a copy to tenfingers10toes@protecthawaii.ws
No Stryker Brigade build-up in Hawai'i. Clean-up all live-fire artillery ranges. The following public comments sent to the U.S. Army are reprinted here with permission. No Stryker Brigade Combat team in Hawai'i. No DU anywhere in the world! The more we learn about the real activities of our military here on the Big Island the more credibility you are losing. Lee Bowden Hilo, Hawai'i I am concerned about Strykers located on Hawai'i as well as depleted uranium and other toxic weapons substances located in the ocean and on lands in and around Hawai'i. I would like to see military activities on Hawai'i, especially the Strykers, cease and desist. Please consider doing war games and training in Alaska where the public openly welcomes this sort of activity. Hawaii is not the place for this and Hawaiians are not as welcoming. John Lyle Volcano, Hawai'i I lived in Hawai'i for several years (on the Big Island) and it was truly a paradise. We owe it to the native people, the birds, animals and trees to keep it safe, clean and healthy for all. I am writing to express that I strongly oppose the idea of storing anything related to DU and/or Strykers being brought to any of the islands. It simply isn't worth the risk!!! Please listen to the people and remember, you cannot undo the serious damage to our Mother Earth and the planet once a mistake as grave as this is made (at least not in our lifetimes). L. Sierra Brookes New Hampshire, USA We do not want Stryker Brigade in Hawaii! No Depleted Uranium. In a recent Hawaii Star-Bulletin poll, 75% of residents oppose stationing the Strykers here. Hawaiians are known by travelers worldwide as the keepers of Aloha, and locals believe that spreading the Aloha is a better health, ecological and economic choice for the islands. Hawaiians want the U. S. Army to clean up its lethal pollution and stop using illegal weapons of mass destruction here and elsewhere. Do not ruin Hawaii's special status as a healing place for all people. Stop military expansion! Jill Wagner Hawai'i resident Please learn more. Help Us Save Hawai'i and sign the following petition at: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/2/help-save-hawaii
Then, please forward to everyone you know! READ WHY the Stryker Brigade must not stay in Hawaii! Ten Reasons to Oppose the Stryker Brigade in Hawaii http://www.dmzhawaii.org/stop_stryker_hawaii.pdf
Army Regulation AR 700-48 "Management of Equipment Contaminated With Depleted Uranium or Radioactive Commodities," Headquarters, Department of the Army, Washington, D.C., September 2002, Section 2-4 of United States Army Regulation 700-48 dated Sept. 16, 2002, specifies these requirements. http://www.traprockpeace.org/du_pam_700-48.pdf
Hawaiian Islands Are Radioactive http://www.indymedia.org/en/2007/10/893755.shtml
Depleted Uranium Contamination By Strykers In Hawaii http://www.indymedia.org/it/2007/09/893176.shtml
Death By Breath http://www.indymedia.org/en/2007/10/893823.shtml
Hawaiian Islands Contaminated With Ballistic Uranium http://www.rense.com/general78/hawa.htm
No Peace in Paradise by Kyle Kajihiro http://www.haleakalatimes.com/news/story2527.aspx
Army's Environmental Impact Statement for the Stryker Brigade Invasion of Hawaii: http://www.sbct-seis.org/
Go to Demilitarize Hawaii http://dmzhawaii.org
Go to Protect Hawaii website: http://www.protecthawaii.ws/

From: Pono
Date: Oct 26, 2007 5:18 PM
Subject: Depleted-Uranium-Outrage-is-Sweeping-Hawai'i
Body:
The inhabitants and the land of the Marshall Islands and the Bikini Islands were poisoned in the forties due to nuclear testing. Look at Kaho’olawe, still polluted despiteover $400 million in cleanup effortsThe Strykers and the legacy they would leave are not welcome on Hawai’i.”Krisztine Samu is an outraged Hawai’i resident and tells the Army so during public testimony at the U.S. Army Stryker Brigade Public Hearings in Waimea, on September 26, 2007. She is outraged by the military’s shameless and continued contamination of her home, Hawai’i Island…Please help us Protect Hawai’i. Write the Army before October 30, 2007.
Army at: PublicComments@aec.apgea.army.mil
No Stryker Brigade build-up in Hawai’i. Clean-up all live-fire artillery ranges. Cc comments to tenfingers10toes@protecthawaii.ws
This statement written by Krisztine Samu and is reprinted with permission and submitted by Lindafaye Kroll RN BSN as follows…PLEASE accept my statement of OPPOSITION to the presence of the Stryker Brigade on the island of Hawai’i. Being familiar with the U.S. military’s legacy in the Pacific Islands, there is no reason to expect anything different this time.The inhabitants and the land of the Marshall Islands and the Bikini Islands were poisoned in the forties due to nuclear testing. Look at Kaho’olawe, still polluted despite over $400 million in cleanup efforts.Look at the Vieques Puerto Rico where the bombing practice resulted in a bomb being dropped on a civilian by mistake; the Navy was eventually forced to leave due to public opposition.DEPLETED URANIUM contamination is comfirmed at Schofield Barracks, Oahu and at Pohakuloa Training Area, Hawai’i Island.The Army has admitted the presence of this toxin, and further training/detonations will simply stir more of this dust into the air, blow it downwind into Kona with serious health implications for residents and soldiers alike.Kona already has higher than normal rates of cancer, diabetes and birth defects. We cannot allow the Strykers to aggravate the situation any further. We need cleanup, not buildup.Private citizens on the island of Hawai’i are independently monitoring airborne radioactivity spikes and this will continue in an even greater capacity if the Strykers are stationed here.If the radioactive spikes continue the citizens will surely not stand for it. We can guarantee a grave media backlash and local activism to stop the destruction.The Strykers and the legacy they would leave are not welcome on Hawai’i.Krisztina SamuHawi, Hawai’iREAD WHY the Stryker Brigade must not stay in Hawaii!
Ten Reasons to Oppose the Stryker Brigade in Hawaii http://www.dmzhawaii.org/stop_stryker_hawaii.pdf
Army Regulation AR 700-48 “Management of Equipment Contaminated With Depleted Uranium or Radioactive Commodities,” Headquarters, Department of the Army, Washington, D.C., September 2002, Section 2-4 of United States Army Regulation 700-48 dated Sept. 16, 2002, specifies these requirements.
http://www.traprockpeace.org/du_pam_700-48.pdf
Hawaiian Islands Are Radioactive
http://www.indymedia.org/en/2007/10/893755.shtml
Depleted Uranium Contamination By Strykers In Hawaii
http://www.indymedia.org/it/2007/09/893176.shtml
Death By Breath
http://www.indymedia.org/en/2007/10/893823.shtml
Hawaiian Islands Contaminated With Ballistic Uranium
http://www.rense.com/general78/hawa.htm
Army’s Environmental Impact Statement for the Stryker Brigade Invasion of Hawaii:
http://www.sbct-seis.org/
Go to Demilitarize Hawaii website:
http://www.dmzhawaii.org/
Go to Protect Hawaii website:
http://www.protecthawaii.ws/

Monitoring depleted uranium Protecting the public against exposure By Kristine KubatWednesday, February 28, 2007 9:10 AM HSTLeimaile and Kamoa Quitevis - Kristine Kubat While weapons made with depleted uranium can penetrate any substance known to man, the issues surrounding the use of this radioactive, heavy metal are having a much harder time sinking in.Here in Hawai..i, Linda Faye Kroll is a retired nurse who has dedicated her life to educating the public about the dangers of military toxics. When Representative Josh Green introduced H.B. 1452 this legislative session, he created a forum for Kroll and others to voice their concerns."Don't believe anything I tell you," Kroll cautions, "look into it for yourself." Advice that seems to be gaining momentum at the local and state levels as U.S. Senator Inouye once again pushes for an increase in the military presence here and citizens are raising concerns about the increase of pollution that, inevitably, comes with the deal. "Make no mistake, everything having to do with preparing and making war is toxic," says Kroll.In fact, the U.S. Department of Defense is the single largest producer of pollution in the world.H.B. 1452 originally called for testing soil outside the military's live-fire ranges in the state of Hawai..i to determine if DU is present. The bill passed out of the Energy and Environmental Protection Committee and was heard for the second time last Saturday, this time by the Finance Committee chaired by Marcus Oshiro. Here it was amended to include air and water testing. The only opposition to the bill thus far has come from the Department of Health, which has taken the position that it can't afford the testing, estimated by DOH at $5 million per year. Rep. Green believes the federal government should share the cost because "any DU we're being exposed to must have come from the military."All decision makers at the hearing voted in favor of passage, there were 17 ayes. Now H.B. 1452 is headed for the senate.Depleted uranium (DU) is the by-product of the process that yields nuclear fuel. For decades, the U.S. government has been quietly converting stockpiles of it into weapons. The use of DU munitions in our own country is prohibited, a fact which does not keep the Pentagon from deploying them abroad, primarily in Iraq. They have also been used extensively in Serbia and Bosnia.The Pentagon claims that the low levels of radiation emitted from DU weaponry pose no health risks. Many scientists disagree with the way this conclusion is drawn. The military looks only at how the trillions of healthy cells that comprise the human body are affected by exposure to low dosages when handling the munitions. They ignore the fact that as DU munitions are exploded, they burst into flames and vaporize.Dr. Helen Caldicott is the co-founder of Physicians for Social Responsibility, an organization of 23,000 doctors committed to educating their colleagues about the dangers of nuclear power, nuclear weapons and nuclear war. She also founded an international umbrella group called International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War, which won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1985. Caldicott herself was personally nominated for the Nobel Prize by Nobel Laureate, Linus Pauling.According to Caldicott, up to 70% of the uranium released when DU munitions are exploded is converted into microscopic particles that can be inhaled or ingested immediately or when air, soil and water get contaminated. Once inside the human body, these particles kill or mutate the cells they come in contact with. Photographs of DU particles in living lung tissues show them as tiny sun-like, radiating objects. The half-life of this radioactive substance is 4.5 billion years.Over 375 tons of DU was released into the Iraq environment during the first Gulf War. Since that time, scientists, doctors and soldiers have been trying to understand how a war that lasted 100 hours and left 148 killed in action could have resulted in 10,324 veterans dead and another 221,502 disabled.DU is the prime suspect in any independent investigation of the situation. As research continues, the military is slowly shifting from its once adamant position that DU was not involved. Recent publications from the Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute (AFRRI) and the Army Environmental Policy Institute reflect the change.The AFRRI published its findings that DU transforms cells into tumorigenic phenotypes, is mutagenic, induces genetic instability and induces oncogenes, suggesting carcinogenicity. AFRRI's conclusion: "Strong evidence exists to support detailed study of DU carcinogenicity." In 1995, the AEPI admitted that DU may cause liver, lung and kidney damage.A recent Army report to Congress sheds light on DOD's predicament: If a link between the use of DU and the deaths and disabilities resulting from the Gulf War were established, the costs to the government would be astronomical. Here disabilities would also include the birth defects that are found in the returning soldiers' offspring.The name of the organization Kroll founded to educate the public about the risks of DU is called "Ten Fingers, Ten Toes" -- a reference to the alarming incidence of birth defects found in areas where DU weapons have been used in Iraq and Kosovo. AFRRI also found DU produced chromosome damage and caused delayed reproductive death.In 2002, the United Nations declared DU a weapon of mass destruction and its use a breach of international law. So far America has used over 2000 tons in the second Gulf War.Until August of 2005, when DU munitions were found at Schofield Barracks, people in Hawai..i who had concerns about the use of the radioactive substance were looking at this bigger picture. With the local discovery, the issue has hit home.The EIS that was prepared for the Stryker Brigade stated that DU was never used in Hawai..i. Evidence to the contrary turned up after Kyle Kajihiro, of the American Friends Service Committee, made repeated FOIA requests and dredged through endless stacks of documents. He discovered a single paragraph revealing that DU was present in the ground at Schofield, forcing the Army to admit that they misrepresented the facts to the community, including Senator Daniel Inouye.For a long time, the Navy has stored DU at Lualualei on O..ahu under its Naval Radioactive Materials permit. In 1994, two DU rounds were accidentally fired from Pearl Harbor; they landed above Aiea and have never been recovered.Leimaile and Kamoa Quitevis are literally on the front lines of the DU issue. The couple was hired by Garcia and Associates to monitor construction related to the expansion of Schofield to accomodate the Stryker Brigade. Their job was to ensure that sacred Hawaiian sites were not disturbed. Along with others who assisted the Quitevises in their fieldwork, the couple has been exposed to DU. Kamoa has photographic evidence that ordinances known to contain DU were open-air detonated. He testified before the house committee hearing H.B. 1452 that he has seen thousands of shards from Davy Crocketts, as the ordinances are called, scattered about Schofield.None of the cultural monitors were ever told about the dangers related to DU exposure. Whether or not the Army agrees that such dangers exist, their own guidelines require the use of protective gear for DU clean-up, including respirators. None of the personnel on base wore protective gear; none of the cultural monitors were informed about the presence of DU; none of them knew they should be taking precautions against exposure.Just recently, Leimaile's sister who was assisting on site and pregnant at the time, gave birth to a child with a serious birth defect. The baby was born with it's intestines outside its body."We can't say for sure that the baby's defect came from DU," says Leimaile, "but there's a chance. We need to start monitoring."