ED BALL·SATURDAY, AUGUST 4, 2018
38 U.S. Code § 1116 - Presumptions of service connection for diseases associated with exposure to certain herbicide agents; presumption of exposure for veterans who served in the Republic of Vietnam
(c)
(1)
(f) For purposes of establishing service connection for a disability or death resulting from exposure to a herbicide agent, including a presumption of service-connection under this section, a veteran who, during active military, naval, or air service, served in the Republic of Vietnam during the period beginning on January 9, 1962, and ending on May 7, 1975, shall be presumed to have been exposed during such service to an herbicide agent containing dioxin or 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid, and may be presumed to have been exposed during such service to any other chemical compound in an herbicide agent, unless there is affirmative evidence to establish that the veteran was not exposed to any such agent during that service.
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (DOVA) contends for Blue Water Navy this includes “boots on soil” or their ship having traversed an inner water-way. Which is undeniably an integral part of the Republic of Vietnam. But what about maritime law? When a sovereign nation includes estuary waters that form a baseline at sea, (doesn’t stop at a line drawn between land masses along the coast of RVN) and an additional 12nm out to sea from that point, as noted in Limits in the Seas No. 99 Straight Baselines: Vietnam December 12, 1983; is that not having served in the Republic of Vietnam? The very coordinates agreed to by the U.S. State Department and included in HR 299 Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act of 2017.
One additional key element the DOVA does not publicize for our veterans to be eligible for presumptive exposure to Agent Orange is ships receiving water from Vietnam as noted by the Institute of Medicine’s findings in Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans and Agent Orange Exposure (2011) “If a ship docked and took on potable water from Vietnam, crewmembers would have been eligible for a presumption of herbicide exposure only for the time the ship was docked (VA, 2008). Thus, exposure of this population to Agent Orange–associated TCDD via ingestion of freshwater was not considered to be plausible.” Which does not take into consideration water replenishment by naval water barges YW-101, YW-115 (see USS Floyd B Parks DD-884 0905 entry in Deck Logs 14Jan70), YW-128 in NSA Danang, nor YW-126 in Vung Tau that also replenished vessels used to ferry potable water to NSA Saigon. Additionally, ships capability to transfer potable (fresh) water at sea was not considered by the esteemed panel, as noted in NAVMED P-5010-6 in 6.3 Shipboard Potable Water subparagraph d. Potable Water Sources for Naval Ships.
Thus, one needs to become familiar with the elaborate capabilities of the U.S. Navy to truly appreciate their various missions and extensive contributions to the Vietnam War effort, as depicted in the Agent Orange Act of 1991 which “requires the Secretary to take into account reports received from the National Academy of Sciences, as well as other sound medical and scientific information.”
So what did the National Academy of Sciences advise the DOVA? Simply “After examining a wealth of information on possible routes of exposure, the committee concluded that it would not be possible to determine Agent Orange–associated TCDD concentrations in the Vietnamese environment. This lack of information makes it impossible to quantify exposures for Blue Water and Brown Water Navy sailors and, so far, for ground troops as well.” Seemingly, this left the DOVA to be selective in who is worthy of presumptive exposure based on “boots on soil” and operating in the inner waterways, based on “plausibility” of pathways of contamination, i.e., inhalation, dermal contact, and ingestion, and the likelihood of those with the greatest exposure opportunities.
This dangerous approach to policy is what has led to our Blue Water Navy veterans and their request for equal justice in recognizing their roles and capabilities under, many times, arduous conditions during the Vietnam era. Fighting the elements of environmental exposures, traumatic acoustic events, sleep deprivation, torrential rains and rough seas. Yet, their battles with presumptive exposure medical conditions remain merely ignored by DOVA, their Veterans Health Administration and Veterans Benefits Administration. These men are Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans (not Vietnam era veterans as they are commonly referred to by DOVA) who do not meet their “speculative” plausibility approach to policy, which as we now know has no medical or scientific value in determining exposure to the elements of herbicide agents.
With that, I would like to share, albeit a small sample, of the scientific evidence to determine, “How” Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans were exposed.
I. Ships Receiving Water in Vietnam
a. View spraying missions in Vietnam by date and location with particular focus on coastal regions, Missions, Dates, and gallons sprayed
b. COMNAVFORV Monthly Summary July 1966, Appendix III, NSA Danang advises “Implementation of the supplemental offload plan in which cargo of draft ships was offloaded at Subic Bay, Philippines and transshipped to DaNang and Chu Lai via LST. Indicating shallow draft ships required to navigate NSA Danang harbor. Page III-3 subparagraph e. “A 24-inch and 30-inch dredge arrived and dredging on the channels for the small boat repair facility and deep water piers is underway.
c. COMNAVFORV Monthly Summary August 1966, Appendix III, page III-2 notes: Included in these were the construction of an Acey-Duecey Club at Camp Tien Sha and the running of two 4-inch water lines from Monkey Mountain to Camp Tien Sha. Utilities has provided potable water.
d. COMNAVFORV Monthly Summary February 1967 page 41 The port of Danang was visited 61 times by SEVENTH Fleet units during February. 791,749 gallons of potable water provided.
e. COMNAVFORV Monthly Summary March 1967 Page 49 The port of Danang was visted 85 times by U.S. SEVENTH Fleet ships and 1,063,478 gallons of potable water provided. Page 48 Other projects completed included the installation of a 4-inch water-line to the Vietnamese naval base, and the installation of a new 8-inch water-line from a dam on Monkey Mountain to Camp Tien Sha. (Mr. John Fitzgerald, crewmember of YW-101, further advises the 8-inch water-line was route to a buoy in Tien Sha Cove for water barges to replenish from.)
f. COMNAVFORV Monthly Summary April 1967 Page 40 The port of Danang was visited 100 times by U.S. SEVENTH Fleet ships and provided 962,131 gallons of potable water.
g. COMNAVFORV Monthly Summary May 1967 Page 48 The port of Danang was visited 122 times by U.S. SEVENTH Fleet ships and provided 1,000,000 gallons of potable water.
h. COMNAVFORV Monthly Summary June 1967 Page 46 The port of Danang was visited 100 times by U.S. SEVENTH Fleet ships and provided almost 2,000,000 gallons of potable water.
i. COMNAVFORV Monthly Summary July 1967 Page 46 The port of Danang was visited 134 times by U.S. SEVENTH Fleet ships and provided over three million gallons of potable water.
j. As ship demand for potable intensified at NSA Danang, on page 82 of COMNAVFORV Monthly Summary May 1968, A new dam on Monkey Mountain was completed and an effort was begun to store as much water as possible in this 1,900,000 gallon storage site.
k. John Fitzgerald, crew member of YW-101 1968-1969 notarized statement showing the source of water for the water barge was an open water reservoir at Monkey Mountain, located south of DaNang. Affiant recalls providing potable water to tugs, fuel barges, and ships at anchor. dtd 09 May 2016
l. Per Institute of Medicine; (NAVMED P-5010-6) (Department of the Navy, 1990). Section 2.4.2, “Polluted Water” of the Naval Ships’ Technical Manual, states that unless determined otherwise, water in harbors, rivers, inlets, bays, landlocked waters, and the open sea within 12 miles of the entrance to these waterways, shall be considered to be polluted.... The desalting of polluted harbor water or seawater for human consumption shall be avoided except in emergencies. The committee was unable to determine whether this regulation was in effect during the Vietnam War but was told by several retired naval officers that it was the practice at that time, although exceptions did occur. The committee received information from several Blue Water Navy veterans that firing lines for US ships could be as close to the Vietnamese coastline as 1–2 nautical miles. Although ships did not stay on the firing line for long periods, it is possible that they sometimes took up water for distillation while relatively close to the coastline."
m. USS Sanctuary AH-17 ran their water distillation plant from anchorage in Danang Harbor, while making preparations for getting underway, which includes bringing their anchor and anchor chain onboard, stirring up the contaminated sediment (see: II. c. Nha Trang Bay) for suction into their water distillation system. AH-17 1967 cruise book.
n. Institute of Medicine advises VA Secretary “a concentration of 40 ng TCDD/L in 1 L feed water would result in all 40 ng TCDD being distilled into the 0.1 L of product water, assuming 10% of the feed water is distilled. This demonstrates an enrichment of TCDD from the feed water into the product water with a product water concentration of 40 ng/0.1 L or 400 ng/L.”
o. Navy “All Hands July 1967 edition” writes: She (USS Sacramento AOE-1) provides fresh water to ships unable to manufacture or store large quantities of the precious product. In supplying fresh water by the thousands of gallons.”
II. Contamination Reports
a. Hatfield Group Inc. Agent Orange Reports and Presentations.
b. USAID Remediation Efforts Vietnam; cleanup of U.S. Military Installations utilized by Operation Ranch Hand personnel and aircraft.
c. Present-Day State of Coral Reefs of Nha Trang Bay (South Vietnam)
d. The Third Australian Vietnam Veterans Mortality Study 2005
e. NAVEDTRA 10525-D Revised 1974 Machinist Mates 1 & C page 103 Water Distillation Plants provides details for testing for air leaks and salt water leaks to preclude contamination of feed water and potable water.
f. Plume off the Mekong Delta Region Declaration of Mr. Robinson Hordoir, Ph.D. employed as a researcher by the Swedish Meterological and Hydrological Institute (“SMHI”). With Ph.D. in Physical Oceanography.
g. EPA Federal Registry: Dioxin and Dioxin-like Compounds; Toxic Equivalency Information; Community Right-To-Know Toxic Chemical Release Reporting (Not certain these levels were available during the Vietnam era, as no dioxin contamination records were maintained.)
h. Dioxin reservoirs in Southern Viet Nam – A legacy of Agent Orange a 1996 and 1999 sample collections from A So village. By Dr. L. Wayne Dwernychuck formerly of Hatfield Group Inc.
i. The extent and patterns of usage of Agent Orange and other herbicides in Vietnam; Laos and Cambodia by Jeanne M Stellman
j. NASA photo of Mekong Delta Plume. As noted in Dr. Hordoir’s findings, the plume could extend for more than 100km or 53.99nm to sea.
III. Ships Missions and deck logs
a. Operation Market Time – Coastal Patrol ships assigned encompass the sea area off RVN between the 17th parallel, dividing the boundary of DRV and RVN, along the coastline to the Gulf of Thailand, where the Brevie Line extends to seaward from the border of Cambodia and RVN.
b. Naval Gunfire Support – Missions were performed in less than 10nm of the shoreline, dependent on location of target inland, due to range limitations on shipboard gunmounts:
i. 5”/38 gunmounts - 45° 17,392 yards or 8.58nm
ii. 5”/54 gunmounts - 45º 25,909 yards or 12.79nm
iii. 16”/50 gunmounts - 45º 42,345 yards or 20.90nm
iv. USS New Jersey BB-62 28Nov68 While shooting guns off the DMZ
0800 posit 16 40.6N 107 35.5E 4.41nm offshore or 10.51nm inside baseline
1200 Posit 33.8N 107 44.2E 2.86nm offshore or 9.05nm inside baseline
2000 posit 16 25.7N 108 00.2E 3.85nm inside baseline
c. Replenishment Ships – Operated in Dixie and Yankee Stations, then replenished NGFS ships and Coastal Patrol ships along the coast of South Vietnam. Some provided logistical support to shore facilities in South Vietnam.
d. Deck Log samples IAW HR299 baseline coordinates:
i. USS Ranger CVA-61 27Apr66 00-04 Steaming in company with USS Stickell DD-888 and USS Sproston DD-577 0800 11 34.1N 109 05.0E 1.25nm off the Salt fields in Ninh Thuan! Or 13.28nm inside baseline. 0915 Colonel Scudder, United States Army, and various News media representatives arrived on board. 0946 USS Sproston DD-577 detached to rendezvous with USS Chipola AO-63 for unrep.
ii. USS St Louis LKA-116 21Aug70 1950 Anchored in anchorage 10, Danang Harbor. 2049 Ship underway for pier 1 North, Deep Water Piers Danang. 2124 Ships present include USS Fresno LST-1182 and USS Sanctuary AH-17.
iii. USS Castor AKS-1 01May66 0800 11 03N 108 55E 18.71nm inside baseline 1042 USS Implicit MSO-455 alongside stbd 1200 10 38N 108 15E 54.65nm inside baseline 1358 USS Ernest B Small DDR-838 alongside to stbd 1531 USS Forster DER-334 alongside to stbd 1721 Entering Vung Tau Harbor 1722 USNS General Nelson M Walker T-AP-125 and USS Small DDR-838 Standing out. 1751 Anchored in Vung Tau ships present USS Tortuga LSD-26, USS St Clair County LST-1096, USS Terrell County LST-1157 and USS Washoe County LST-1165. SOPA is AKS-1. 1941 Underway from Vung Tau.
2000 10 18N 107 04E 80.06nm inside baseline
iv. USS Mount Katmai AE-16 25Jul65 0800 09 56.1N 107 13.2E 56.12nm inside baseline 0915 USS Falgout DER-324 alongside stbd 1200 09 59.2N 107 36.2E 44.96nm inside baseline 2000 10 43.7N 109 10E 1.49nm inside baseline
v. USS Mount Baker AE-4 18Apr66 0352 USS Ranger CVA-61 alongside to port. 0800 09 14N 107 06.5E 18.94nm inside baseline 0827 USS Ranger CVA-61 clear to port. 0848 USS Stickell DD-888 alongside to stbd 1200 09 02N 107 28.2E 2.77nm seaward of baseline
vi. USS Tanner AGS-15 12Jan67 00-04 Anchored in mouth of the River De Saigon, ships present Include USS Tutuila ARG-4 0800 10 06N 107 15E 65.34nm inside baseline 0825 commenced verticle replenishment from USS Sacramento AOE-1 0900 onstation alongside port side of AOE-1 0915 Received fuel hose and fresh water hose. 0935 Commenced receiving fuel and feed water. 1050 Completed Receiving feedwater. 1200 10 12.7N 107 34.7E 63.74nm inside baseline 1531 Anchored in Vung Ganh Rai 1650 ships present include USS Tutulia ARG-4
vii. USS Haleakala AE-25 08Apr66 0503 USS Robison DDG-12 commenced approach to stbd. 0800 10 05.1N 107 37.5E 51.66nm inside baseline 0902 USS Rupertus DD-851 commence approach to stbd. 1200 10 15.5N 107 22.3E 69.82nm inside baseline 1238 USS Richard S Edwards DD-950 commenced approach to stbd. 1900 USS Conflict MSO-426 commenced approach to stbd. 2000 09 01.6N 106 26.9E 33.42nm inside baseline
viii. Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Ship Master List – provides dates of awards for service in Vietnam; dates of gunfire support missions, dates assigned to coastal patrols, and cross referenced with VA Ships List for presumptive exposure to Agent Orange, but most importantly links Deck Logs within established coordinates IAW HR299.
III. Carrier Onboard Delivery (COD) Flights
a. In 1969, squadron C-1A's and crews operated from Danang, Republic of Vietnam in support of CTF-77. In 1971 VR-30 joined the Jet Age with two North American CT-39 Saberliners for high-speed executive airlift. In May 1973 the squadron received the first of four C-9B Skytrain II's to further improve its logistics support capability.
b. While C-1A COD support from Da Nang proved reliable, a ship the size of Enterprise (CVAN-65) required three to four daily trips. In addition, 300,000 lbs of mail was carried by HC-1 Det 4 during this WestPac, requiring 920 transfers, as well as 3,210 passengers.
c. Information on C-2A - BuNo 15293: at 0844 on 12 December 1971, a COD flight, Grumman C-2A Greyhound (BuNo 152793), Lieutenant Vetal C. LaMountain, Jr., pilot, and Lieutenant (jg) Gale V. Woolsey, Jr., co-pilot, VRC-50 Det Cubi Point, took off from Cubi Point, bound for Enterprise, routed via Tan Son Nhut, for a “logistic support mission.”
d. VR-30 Command History for 1969. October 11 to December 24, 1969, C-1A aircraft and pilots were sent to Danang, Republic of Viet Nam, to supplement the "COD aircraft shortage due to the grounding of the C-2A aircraft.
e. ARFCOSTA Subic Bay moved to permanent quarters in Building 8160, adjacent to the Cubi Point Air Terminal. The site also placed the station closer to the flight line and to ships/customers in the bay. This facilitated both use of carrier onboard-delivery (COD) flights to service ships at sea and designation of a COD’s pilot or co-pilot as the mission courier. Cam Ranh Bay CR Republic of Vietnam Established 1 Dec 67; disestablished FY 72; Danang DG Danang, Republic of Vietnam Established as sub-station to Saigon 5 Sep 66; Vietnam disestablished FY 73.
38 U.S. Code § 1116 - Presumptions of service connection for diseases associated with exposure to certain herbicide agents; presumption of exposure for veterans who served in the Republic of Vietnam
(c)
(1)
(f) For purposes of establishing service connection for a disability or death resulting from exposure to a herbicide agent, including a presumption of service-connection under this section, a veteran who, during active military, naval, or air service, served in the Republic of Vietnam during the period beginning on January 9, 1962, and ending on May 7, 1975, shall be presumed to have been exposed during such service to an herbicide agent containing dioxin or 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid, and may be presumed to have been exposed during such service to any other chemical compound in an herbicide agent, unless there is affirmative evidence to establish that the veteran was not exposed to any such agent during that service.
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (DOVA) contends for Blue Water Navy this includes “boots on soil” or their ship having traversed an inner water-way. Which is undeniably an integral part of the Republic of Vietnam. But what about maritime law? When a sovereign nation includes estuary waters that form a baseline at sea, (doesn’t stop at a line drawn between land masses along the coast of RVN) and an additional 12nm out to sea from that point, as noted in Limits in the Seas No. 99 Straight Baselines: Vietnam December 12, 1983; is that not having served in the Republic of Vietnam? The very coordinates agreed to by the U.S. State Department and included in HR 299 Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act of 2017.
One additional key element the DOVA does not publicize for our veterans to be eligible for presumptive exposure to Agent Orange is ships receiving water from Vietnam as noted by the Institute of Medicine’s findings in Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans and Agent Orange Exposure (2011) “If a ship docked and took on potable water from Vietnam, crewmembers would have been eligible for a presumption of herbicide exposure only for the time the ship was docked (VA, 2008). Thus, exposure of this population to Agent Orange–associated TCDD via ingestion of freshwater was not considered to be plausible.” Which does not take into consideration water replenishment by naval water barges YW-101, YW-115 (see USS Floyd B Parks DD-884 0905 entry in Deck Logs 14Jan70), YW-128 in NSA Danang, nor YW-126 in Vung Tau that also replenished vessels used to ferry potable water to NSA Saigon. Additionally, ships capability to transfer potable (fresh) water at sea was not considered by the esteemed panel, as noted in NAVMED P-5010-6 in 6.3 Shipboard Potable Water subparagraph d. Potable Water Sources for Naval Ships.
Thus, one needs to become familiar with the elaborate capabilities of the U.S. Navy to truly appreciate their various missions and extensive contributions to the Vietnam War effort, as depicted in the Agent Orange Act of 1991 which “requires the Secretary to take into account reports received from the National Academy of Sciences, as well as other sound medical and scientific information.”
So what did the National Academy of Sciences advise the DOVA? Simply “After examining a wealth of information on possible routes of exposure, the committee concluded that it would not be possible to determine Agent Orange–associated TCDD concentrations in the Vietnamese environment. This lack of information makes it impossible to quantify exposures for Blue Water and Brown Water Navy sailors and, so far, for ground troops as well.” Seemingly, this left the DOVA to be selective in who is worthy of presumptive exposure based on “boots on soil” and operating in the inner waterways, based on “plausibility” of pathways of contamination, i.e., inhalation, dermal contact, and ingestion, and the likelihood of those with the greatest exposure opportunities.
This dangerous approach to policy is what has led to our Blue Water Navy veterans and their request for equal justice in recognizing their roles and capabilities under, many times, arduous conditions during the Vietnam era. Fighting the elements of environmental exposures, traumatic acoustic events, sleep deprivation, torrential rains and rough seas. Yet, their battles with presumptive exposure medical conditions remain merely ignored by DOVA, their Veterans Health Administration and Veterans Benefits Administration. These men are Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans (not Vietnam era veterans as they are commonly referred to by DOVA) who do not meet their “speculative” plausibility approach to policy, which as we now know has no medical or scientific value in determining exposure to the elements of herbicide agents.
With that, I would like to share, albeit a small sample, of the scientific evidence to determine, “How” Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans were exposed.
I. Ships Receiving Water in Vietnam
a. View spraying missions in Vietnam by date and location with particular focus on coastal regions, Missions, Dates, and gallons sprayed
b. COMNAVFORV Monthly Summary July 1966, Appendix III, NSA Danang advises “Implementation of the supplemental offload plan in which cargo of draft ships was offloaded at Subic Bay, Philippines and transshipped to DaNang and Chu Lai via LST. Indicating shallow draft ships required to navigate NSA Danang harbor. Page III-3 subparagraph e. “A 24-inch and 30-inch dredge arrived and dredging on the channels for the small boat repair facility and deep water piers is underway.
c. COMNAVFORV Monthly Summary August 1966, Appendix III, page III-2 notes: Included in these were the construction of an Acey-Duecey Club at Camp Tien Sha and the running of two 4-inch water lines from Monkey Mountain to Camp Tien Sha. Utilities has provided potable water.
d. COMNAVFORV Monthly Summary February 1967 page 41 The port of Danang was visited 61 times by SEVENTH Fleet units during February. 791,749 gallons of potable water provided.
e. COMNAVFORV Monthly Summary March 1967 Page 49 The port of Danang was visted 85 times by U.S. SEVENTH Fleet ships and 1,063,478 gallons of potable water provided. Page 48 Other projects completed included the installation of a 4-inch water-line to the Vietnamese naval base, and the installation of a new 8-inch water-line from a dam on Monkey Mountain to Camp Tien Sha. (Mr. John Fitzgerald, crewmember of YW-101, further advises the 8-inch water-line was route to a buoy in Tien Sha Cove for water barges to replenish from.)
f. COMNAVFORV Monthly Summary April 1967 Page 40 The port of Danang was visited 100 times by U.S. SEVENTH Fleet ships and provided 962,131 gallons of potable water.
g. COMNAVFORV Monthly Summary May 1967 Page 48 The port of Danang was visited 122 times by U.S. SEVENTH Fleet ships and provided 1,000,000 gallons of potable water.
h. COMNAVFORV Monthly Summary June 1967 Page 46 The port of Danang was visited 100 times by U.S. SEVENTH Fleet ships and provided almost 2,000,000 gallons of potable water.
i. COMNAVFORV Monthly Summary July 1967 Page 46 The port of Danang was visited 134 times by U.S. SEVENTH Fleet ships and provided over three million gallons of potable water.
j. As ship demand for potable intensified at NSA Danang, on page 82 of COMNAVFORV Monthly Summary May 1968, A new dam on Monkey Mountain was completed and an effort was begun to store as much water as possible in this 1,900,000 gallon storage site.
k. John Fitzgerald, crew member of YW-101 1968-1969 notarized statement showing the source of water for the water barge was an open water reservoir at Monkey Mountain, located south of DaNang. Affiant recalls providing potable water to tugs, fuel barges, and ships at anchor. dtd 09 May 2016
l. Per Institute of Medicine; (NAVMED P-5010-6) (Department of the Navy, 1990). Section 2.4.2, “Polluted Water” of the Naval Ships’ Technical Manual, states that unless determined otherwise, water in harbors, rivers, inlets, bays, landlocked waters, and the open sea within 12 miles of the entrance to these waterways, shall be considered to be polluted.... The desalting of polluted harbor water or seawater for human consumption shall be avoided except in emergencies. The committee was unable to determine whether this regulation was in effect during the Vietnam War but was told by several retired naval officers that it was the practice at that time, although exceptions did occur. The committee received information from several Blue Water Navy veterans that firing lines for US ships could be as close to the Vietnamese coastline as 1–2 nautical miles. Although ships did not stay on the firing line for long periods, it is possible that they sometimes took up water for distillation while relatively close to the coastline."
m. USS Sanctuary AH-17 ran their water distillation plant from anchorage in Danang Harbor, while making preparations for getting underway, which includes bringing their anchor and anchor chain onboard, stirring up the contaminated sediment (see: II. c. Nha Trang Bay) for suction into their water distillation system. AH-17 1967 cruise book.
n. Institute of Medicine advises VA Secretary “a concentration of 40 ng TCDD/L in 1 L feed water would result in all 40 ng TCDD being distilled into the 0.1 L of product water, assuming 10% of the feed water is distilled. This demonstrates an enrichment of TCDD from the feed water into the product water with a product water concentration of 40 ng/0.1 L or 400 ng/L.”
o. Navy “All Hands July 1967 edition” writes: She (USS Sacramento AOE-1) provides fresh water to ships unable to manufacture or store large quantities of the precious product. In supplying fresh water by the thousands of gallons.”
II. Contamination Reports
a. Hatfield Group Inc. Agent Orange Reports and Presentations.
b. USAID Remediation Efforts Vietnam; cleanup of U.S. Military Installations utilized by Operation Ranch Hand personnel and aircraft.
c. Present-Day State of Coral Reefs of Nha Trang Bay (South Vietnam)
d. The Third Australian Vietnam Veterans Mortality Study 2005
e. NAVEDTRA 10525-D Revised 1974 Machinist Mates 1 & C page 103 Water Distillation Plants provides details for testing for air leaks and salt water leaks to preclude contamination of feed water and potable water.
f. Plume off the Mekong Delta Region Declaration of Mr. Robinson Hordoir, Ph.D. employed as a researcher by the Swedish Meterological and Hydrological Institute (“SMHI”). With Ph.D. in Physical Oceanography.
g. EPA Federal Registry: Dioxin and Dioxin-like Compounds; Toxic Equivalency Information; Community Right-To-Know Toxic Chemical Release Reporting (Not certain these levels were available during the Vietnam era, as no dioxin contamination records were maintained.)
h. Dioxin reservoirs in Southern Viet Nam – A legacy of Agent Orange a 1996 and 1999 sample collections from A So village. By Dr. L. Wayne Dwernychuck formerly of Hatfield Group Inc.
i. The extent and patterns of usage of Agent Orange and other herbicides in Vietnam; Laos and Cambodia by Jeanne M Stellman
j. NASA photo of Mekong Delta Plume. As noted in Dr. Hordoir’s findings, the plume could extend for more than 100km or 53.99nm to sea.
III. Ships Missions and deck logs
a. Operation Market Time – Coastal Patrol ships assigned encompass the sea area off RVN between the 17th parallel, dividing the boundary of DRV and RVN, along the coastline to the Gulf of Thailand, where the Brevie Line extends to seaward from the border of Cambodia and RVN.
b. Naval Gunfire Support – Missions were performed in less than 10nm of the shoreline, dependent on location of target inland, due to range limitations on shipboard gunmounts:
i. 5”/38 gunmounts - 45° 17,392 yards or 8.58nm
ii. 5”/54 gunmounts - 45º 25,909 yards or 12.79nm
iii. 16”/50 gunmounts - 45º 42,345 yards or 20.90nm
iv. USS New Jersey BB-62 28Nov68 While shooting guns off the DMZ
0800 posit 16 40.6N 107 35.5E 4.41nm offshore or 10.51nm inside baseline
1200 Posit 33.8N 107 44.2E 2.86nm offshore or 9.05nm inside baseline
2000 posit 16 25.7N 108 00.2E 3.85nm inside baseline
c. Replenishment Ships – Operated in Dixie and Yankee Stations, then replenished NGFS ships and Coastal Patrol ships along the coast of South Vietnam. Some provided logistical support to shore facilities in South Vietnam.
d. Deck Log samples IAW HR299 baseline coordinates:
i. USS Ranger CVA-61 27Apr66 00-04 Steaming in company with USS Stickell DD-888 and USS Sproston DD-577 0800 11 34.1N 109 05.0E 1.25nm off the Salt fields in Ninh Thuan! Or 13.28nm inside baseline. 0915 Colonel Scudder, United States Army, and various News media representatives arrived on board. 0946 USS Sproston DD-577 detached to rendezvous with USS Chipola AO-63 for unrep.
ii. USS St Louis LKA-116 21Aug70 1950 Anchored in anchorage 10, Danang Harbor. 2049 Ship underway for pier 1 North, Deep Water Piers Danang. 2124 Ships present include USS Fresno LST-1182 and USS Sanctuary AH-17.
iii. USS Castor AKS-1 01May66 0800 11 03N 108 55E 18.71nm inside baseline 1042 USS Implicit MSO-455 alongside stbd 1200 10 38N 108 15E 54.65nm inside baseline 1358 USS Ernest B Small DDR-838 alongside to stbd 1531 USS Forster DER-334 alongside to stbd 1721 Entering Vung Tau Harbor 1722 USNS General Nelson M Walker T-AP-125 and USS Small DDR-838 Standing out. 1751 Anchored in Vung Tau ships present USS Tortuga LSD-26, USS St Clair County LST-1096, USS Terrell County LST-1157 and USS Washoe County LST-1165. SOPA is AKS-1. 1941 Underway from Vung Tau.
2000 10 18N 107 04E 80.06nm inside baseline
iv. USS Mount Katmai AE-16 25Jul65 0800 09 56.1N 107 13.2E 56.12nm inside baseline 0915 USS Falgout DER-324 alongside stbd 1200 09 59.2N 107 36.2E 44.96nm inside baseline 2000 10 43.7N 109 10E 1.49nm inside baseline
v. USS Mount Baker AE-4 18Apr66 0352 USS Ranger CVA-61 alongside to port. 0800 09 14N 107 06.5E 18.94nm inside baseline 0827 USS Ranger CVA-61 clear to port. 0848 USS Stickell DD-888 alongside to stbd 1200 09 02N 107 28.2E 2.77nm seaward of baseline
vi. USS Tanner AGS-15 12Jan67 00-04 Anchored in mouth of the River De Saigon, ships present Include USS Tutuila ARG-4 0800 10 06N 107 15E 65.34nm inside baseline 0825 commenced verticle replenishment from USS Sacramento AOE-1 0900 onstation alongside port side of AOE-1 0915 Received fuel hose and fresh water hose. 0935 Commenced receiving fuel and feed water. 1050 Completed Receiving feedwater. 1200 10 12.7N 107 34.7E 63.74nm inside baseline 1531 Anchored in Vung Ganh Rai 1650 ships present include USS Tutulia ARG-4
vii. USS Haleakala AE-25 08Apr66 0503 USS Robison DDG-12 commenced approach to stbd. 0800 10 05.1N 107 37.5E 51.66nm inside baseline 0902 USS Rupertus DD-851 commence approach to stbd. 1200 10 15.5N 107 22.3E 69.82nm inside baseline 1238 USS Richard S Edwards DD-950 commenced approach to stbd. 1900 USS Conflict MSO-426 commenced approach to stbd. 2000 09 01.6N 106 26.9E 33.42nm inside baseline
viii. Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Ship Master List – provides dates of awards for service in Vietnam; dates of gunfire support missions, dates assigned to coastal patrols, and cross referenced with VA Ships List for presumptive exposure to Agent Orange, but most importantly links Deck Logs within established coordinates IAW HR299.
III. Carrier Onboard Delivery (COD) Flights
a. In 1969, squadron C-1A's and crews operated from Danang, Republic of Vietnam in support of CTF-77. In 1971 VR-30 joined the Jet Age with two North American CT-39 Saberliners for high-speed executive airlift. In May 1973 the squadron received the first of four C-9B Skytrain II's to further improve its logistics support capability.
b. While C-1A COD support from Da Nang proved reliable, a ship the size of Enterprise (CVAN-65) required three to four daily trips. In addition, 300,000 lbs of mail was carried by HC-1 Det 4 during this WestPac, requiring 920 transfers, as well as 3,210 passengers.
c. Information on C-2A - BuNo 15293: at 0844 on 12 December 1971, a COD flight, Grumman C-2A Greyhound (BuNo 152793), Lieutenant Vetal C. LaMountain, Jr., pilot, and Lieutenant (jg) Gale V. Woolsey, Jr., co-pilot, VRC-50 Det Cubi Point, took off from Cubi Point, bound for Enterprise, routed via Tan Son Nhut, for a “logistic support mission.”
d. VR-30 Command History for 1969. October 11 to December 24, 1969, C-1A aircraft and pilots were sent to Danang, Republic of Viet Nam, to supplement the "COD aircraft shortage due to the grounding of the C-2A aircraft.
e. ARFCOSTA Subic Bay moved to permanent quarters in Building 8160, adjacent to the Cubi Point Air Terminal. The site also placed the station closer to the flight line and to ships/customers in the bay. This facilitated both use of carrier onboard-delivery (COD) flights to service ships at sea and designation of a COD’s pilot or co-pilot as the mission courier. Cam Ranh Bay CR Republic of Vietnam Established 1 Dec 67; disestablished FY 72; Danang DG Danang, Republic of Vietnam Established as sub-station to Saigon 5 Sep 66; Vietnam disestablished FY 73.