Meanwhile, back in Okinawa...

The news about noxious chemicals discarded carelessly by US military installations in Okinawa gets worse and worse. Uncle Sam's ears are about to get boxed good and proper, because now it isn't just the Okinawan housewives who are angry. Mothers of military dependents attending school on the US bases are seeing red, too--in the form of dioxin contaminating the land where there children go to school.

Here's what The Japan Times onlines reports. (for the full story, go to The Japan Times online)



Kadena moms demand truth

by Jon Mitchell

Special To The Japan Times



Jan 21, 2014
Six months ago, dangerous levels of dioxin were discovered near two U.S. Department of Defense schools on Okinawa Island — but only now are many service members based there learning the full extent of the contamination.

Parents whose children attend the potentially poisoned facilities at Kadena Air Base claim the Pentagon has failed to inform them of the risks or investigate whether the pollution extends onto the school ground. Many are accusing the military authorities of endangering their children’s health and now they have formed a group to demand answers.

The focus of parents’ fears are the playing fields of Bob Hope Primary School and Amelia Earhart Intermediate School, facilities operated by the Department of Defense for the children of U.S. service members.

Last June, construction workers unearthed more than 20 chemical barrels on civilian land bordering the schools.

Following tests the following month, the barrels were found to contain high concentrations of dioxin, a substance that can cause cancer, immune system damage and developmental problems in children. In nearby soil, dioxin levels measured 8.4 times the legal limit, while water peaked at 280 times the level considered safe. The land had once belonged to the adjacent air base but was returned to civilian use in 1987