Environmental Impact
If U.S. hard target guided weapons are using uranium warheads, then the reality is that very little can be done for those remaining in the country including allied troops. DU particles can settle on the ground and in the water. They are easily resuspended and particles were monitored in the air in Iraq 5 years after the initial bombing. DU enters the soil, surface water and eventually the ground water. The dust is deposited on the leaves of plants and grazed by animals which are then used for meat. Studies in Iraq have shown that there is a strong correlation between polluted soil and the proximity of polluted vegetation. Food such as onions, tomatoes, cucumbers, watermelon, garlic, meat and fish all had higher levels of radioisotopes[13]. Children are particularly vulnerable to radiological pollution because of their fast cell growth. Studies have also shown that, when ingested, soluble uranium absorption is greater in the young and enhanced by fasting [14]. This would indicate a greater uptake in children who are malnourished. The greatest danger is through the inhalation of insoluble particles. These will lodge in lung, move to the trachea-bronchial lymph nodes or be deposited in the bone. Urine samples of Gulf veterans taken nine years after the end of the war showed that small amounts of DU were still being excreted by the body[15].
If U.S. hard target guided weapons are using uranium warheads, then the reality is that very little can be done for those remaining in the country including allied troops. DU particles can settle on the ground and in the water. They are easily resuspended and particles were monitored in the air in Iraq 5 years after the initial bombing. DU enters the soil, surface water and eventually the ground water. The dust is deposited on the leaves of plants and grazed by animals which are then used for meat. Studies in Iraq have shown that there is a strong correlation between polluted soil and the proximity of polluted vegetation. Food such as onions, tomatoes, cucumbers, watermelon, garlic, meat and fish all had higher levels of radioisotopes[13]. Children are particularly vulnerable to radiological pollution because of their fast cell growth. Studies have also shown that, when ingested, soluble uranium absorption is greater in the young and enhanced by fasting [14]. This would indicate a greater uptake in children who are malnourished. The greatest danger is through the inhalation of insoluble particles. These will lodge in lung, move to the trachea-bronchial lymph nodes or be deposited in the bone. Urine samples of Gulf veterans taken nine years after the end of the war showed that small amounts of DU were still being excreted by the body[15].