Decade of Benefits Denial for Vets after Toxic Exposure? Camp Lejeune, NC: PFAS, Forever Chemicals

- An entire decade of benefits denial for vets after toxic chemical exposure? Alternet, Jan. 4, 2023. - Ed.

Camp Lejeune, a military base in Jacksonville, NC, was established in 1942 to train future Marines for World War II. While it is known as the home of “Expeditionary Forces in Readiness,” the facility also has a long history of contamination with toxic chemicals such as perchloroethylene, vinyl chloride, trichloroethylene, & benzene. In 1982, volatile organic compounds—gasses released by these solvents—were found at Camp Lejeune. Furthermore, since 1966, military firefighters & trainees have been using the fire suppressant known as Aqueous Film Forming Foam (AFFF) to extinguish jet fuel & petroleum fires, which only worsened pollution.

This firefighting foam contains PFAS, a group of over 5,000 dangerous substances often dubbed “forever chemicals,” in a concentration of up to 98% With each use, AFFF contaminates the environment with these chemicals. Some take over a thousand years to break down, hence their nickname. The highest PFAS level at Camp Lejeune was 170,000 parts per trillion, which exceeds the safe exposure limit by 2,450 times. Currently, there are at least 14 sites of Camp Lejeune where these chemicals lurk, despite the relentless cleanup endeavors of the EPA and the Navy.

Because PFAS are extremely difficult to remove from the environment, the military base is expected to be completely safe within a few decades. In 1985, the greatest trichloroethylene level was 280 times over the safe exposure limit, whereas the highest perchloroethylene level eclipsed the safe exposure limit by 43 times. The dry-cleaning firm ABC One-Hour Cleaners was responsible for perchloroethylene contamination. The other industrial solvents ended up polluting Camp Lejeune as a result of the military recklessly using these chemicals to clean weapons & equipment.

Exposure to toxic chemicals may cause debilitating health problems- liver cancer, renal toxicity, prostate cancer, leukemia, female infertility, pancreatic cancer, & scleroderma. Between 1953 -1987, roughly 1Mill people lived at Camp Lejeune, & all had a high risk of developing severe disease.

Until recently, veterans affected by toxic exposure could only receive benefits from the U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs (VA). Today, due to the Camp Lejeune Justice Act, they can also obtain financial compensation from the U.S. government. - VA Keeps Rejection Rate High for Camp Lejeune Vets: The VA had been aware of the horrific diseases veterans might contract at Camp Lejeune since the beginning. It was only in 2012 that Congress passed the Honoring America’s Veterans & Caring for Camp Lejeune Families Act. This comprehensive, bipartisan legislative package was meant to grant veterans & family members who lived at the military base access to better health care, education, housing, & memorial services, as well as disability, social security, & indemnity compensation...
https://www.alternet.org/entire-decade-benefits-denial-veterans/

This article was produced by Earth | Food | Life, a project of the Independent Media Institute.