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Is the Atsugi tragedy finally drawing to a close?
During the 18 years I have been writing this column, few stories have haunted me as much as that about the Japanese-owned incinerator that, for more than a decade, fumigated the U.S. Naval Air Facility at Atsugi in the Kanagawa Prefecture cities of Yamato and Ayase.
Between 1998 and 2007, I have written six columns* on the incinerator, first known as Jinkanpo, then as the Shinkanpo Incineration Complex (SIC) and then, before it closed in 2001, as Enviro-Tech.
Today I still have videotapes of the incinerator spewing out black, oily smoke that U.S. Navy scientists found to contain a toxic mix of chemicals including tetrachloride dioxins, cadmium, mercury, nickel, chromium, arsenic and lead.
Sadly, the story did not end when the incinerator shut down. U.S. military personnel and their families who lived on the base during those years continue to suffer health effects, and for years they have fought for recognition and medical help from their government.
Finally, last month, the U.S. Senate passed a bill approving comprehensive legislation to deal with potentially hazardous environmental exposures on military installations. The bill is called the Examination of Exposure to Environmental Hazards During Military Service and Health Care for Camp Lejeune and Atsugi Naval Air Facility Veterans and Their Families Act of 2010.
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