The Air Force Lied

This article might explain why the Air Force went from a fighter base (George AFB) with 360 days of flying weather to Idaho with 100 good days of good weather (Mountain Home AFB). Fighter pilots need lots of training and lots good weather. I understand doing winter training to be prepared, but not moving a whole base from one of the top areas with great weather and low population.


Ex-officers: Air Force lied about [George Air Force Base, CA] range
The Dally News/Idahoan
Monday, May 7, 1990

Ex-officers - Air Force lied about rangeTWIN FAILS – Three retired Air Force officers say the U.S. Air Farce intentionally provided false information that led to a recommendation to close George Air Force Base in California and a proposed expansion of the Saylor Creek Bombing Range in Idaho.

“There’s something going on here other than a fair and equitable evaluation of what should and shouldn’t happen to the taxpayers’ money,” former fighter pilot Col. Maurice Long said.

Long. Lt Col Vernon R Lee and Capt. William McDaniel all retired fighter pilots.  Contend Air Force officials intentionally misled the Defense Secretary’s Commission on Base Realignment and Closure during 1988 hearings.

The commission in December 1988 recommended closing George and moving 94 F-4 fighter jets to Mountain Home Air Force Base.

The Air Force since has said the move requires a large expansion of the base and the nearby Saylor Creek range.

When the three first learned that George was to be closed, they were certain it was a mistake, McDaniel said.

But as they investigated the commission’s decision they slowly discovered it was intentional, Mc-Daniel said, “We slowly came to the conclusion that it was a carefully orchestrated plan by a few folks in DOD and the Air Force,” he said.

Air Force headquarters at the Pentagon did not respond to allegations by the three officers.

 Why?

1978

The Air Force asked the National Research Council’s Committee on Toxicology, in the Board on Toxicology and Environmental Health Hazards, Commission on Life Sciences, to review the toxicity data on chlordane and to suggest an airborne concentration that could be used as a guideline in deciding whether the housing should be vacated.

1979

The Committee on Toxicology (NRC, 1979) concluded that it could not determine a level of exposure to chlordane below which there would be no biologic effect under conditions of prolonged exposure of families in military housing.

24 June 1980

In order to comply with Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) the DOD issued the Defense Environmental Quality Program Policy Memorandum 80-6

2 December 1980

The Air Force implemented the Defense Environmental Quality Program to control the migration of hazardous material contaminants from its installations

July 1981

George AFB medical personnel told the newcomers that it was a good idea to not get pregnant while assigned to George AFB because of the “high infant mortality rate. She said this included the dependent wives and the active duty females.

1982

“Given the available data and the fact that under conditions of prolonged exposure of families in military housing there may be persons, such as [developing fetuses and] young children, who in general are more susceptible to environmental insults, the Committee concluded that it could not determine a level of exposure to any of the termiticides below which there would be no biologic effects.
Page 46 – National Research Council. An Assessment of the Health Risks of Seven Pesticides Used for Termite Control. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press, 1982. – (PDF, 3.83 MB)

30 September 1982

A pesticide used to kill termites [chlordane] has leaked into the ventilation systems of more than 1,500 houses at United States Air Force bases across the country, according to studies made public recently by the Air Force. The pesticide, chlordane, was found to have entered heating and air-conditioning ducts in dwellings built on concrete slabs, allowing it to circulate in the air freely.”
Chlordane Problem in Houses on Slabs , The New York Times – September 30, 1982

1988

Col. Maurice Long, Lt Col Vernon R Lee, and Capt. William McDaniel contend: “Air Force officials intentionally misled the Defense Secretary’s Commission on Base Realignment and Closure during 1988 hearings.
Ex-officers: Air Force lied about range – The Dally News/Idahoan

29 December 1988

The Secretary of Defense announced that George Air Force Base was selected for closure

14 July 1989

George Air Force Base – proposed placement on the National Priorities List (NPL)

21 February 1990

George Air Force Base was listed as a Superfund site

September 27, 1991

Air Force employee, Grace T. Rowe, asked permission from the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) to destroy the epidemiological, environmental, and health surveys for the former George Air Force Base.

These epidemiological, environmental, and health surveys were required because George AFB was listed as a Superfund site and should have been made public. See: Completed Exposure Pathways Assessment

December 1992

George Air Force Base was decommissioned

November 2002

The Air Force knew that the soil under and around the George AFB Family Housing was contaminated with hazardous levels of organochlorine pesticides
aldrin at 16, 700 μg/kg – 576 x PRG – Sample Depth (ft. bgs): 0.3-0.8
dieldrin at 15,000 μg/kg – 500 x PRG – Sample Depth (ft. bgs): 0.3-0.8
chlordane at 24,100 μg/kg – 15 x PRG – Sample Depth (ft. bgs): 0.5-1
PRG: residential preliminary remediation goal = safe level for an adult
μg/kg: concentrations of chemicals in soil measured in units of the mass of chemical (micrograms, μg) per mass of soil (kilogram, kg)
ft. bgs: feet below ground surface

2005

The Air Force notified the City of Victorville that hazardous levels of Organochloride Pesticides were detected at the former George Air Force Base Family Housing.
“Within the housing area of Former George Air Force Base the pesticides Aldrin and Dieldrin were used to control termites. In 2002 the soil in this area was tested for Organochloride Pesticides and in several locations elevated levels of Aldrin and Dieldrin were detected. In 2005 the Air Force advised the City that these levels of pesticides may present a danger to human health if soils are inhaled, ingested, or contacted by skin.

16 May 2015

The Air Force has not notified the Veterans Administration or former tenants of there possible exposure to extremity high levels of  organochloride pesticides.

For more information about Organochlorine Pesticide Contamination at Military Family Housing

Organochlorine Pesticide Toxicity

The high number of reported miscarriages, stillbirths, infant mortalities, preterm births, low birth weights, childhood cancers, and infertility in women and girls who lived in the DOD’s Base Family Housing may be partly due to organochlorine pesticides.

Unfortunately, the average length of time that we were stationed at a base was 4 to 6 years. Because of this, we lived with our families at one contaminated base after another, and the levels of toxins kept building in our systems, often with fatal results, especially for our children. 148 – Department of Defense Superfund Sites

Consequence of the DOD Decision

Hundreds, possibly thousands, of people, including children, are sick, dying, or dead after exposure to the extremely toxic contamination at George AFB. By concealing the nature and extent of the contamination and its Completed Exposure Pathways, the DOD has defrauded our nation’s military personnel, their families, and veterans, of their pension and medical care.

  • Doctors cannot treat the toxic exposures of base personnel and family members.
  • Military personnel are being defrauded of their Medical Discharge, Military Pension, and medical care (TRICARE).
  • Military personnel’s family members are being defrauded of their medical care (TRICARE).
  • Veterans are being defrauded of their Social Security Disability, VA Service Connected Pension, and VA medical care.
  • Veterans’ family members are being defrauded of their VA medical care (CHAMPVA).
  • Parents were never given the choice of whether or not to have children because these parents were not provided information about their toxic exposure and the possible effect that it may have on their pregnancy and unborn children.
  • The two schools on George AFB were reopened without being tested for organochloride pesticide contamination.
    See: George AFB Schools

I am not a doctor, Veterans Service Officer (VSO), or attorney; therefore, I cannot provide medical or legal advice.

If you, a friend, or a loved one have been injured or have passed away due to exposure to contamination at a DOD Superfund Site, please follow the steps outlined on the "Get Help" page.

The views and opinions expressed on this website belong solely to the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any agency of the U.S. government.

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