Munitions Issues

[Steven <themissinglink@eznetinc.com>]

"D'Alema faces a parliamentary motion tomorrow asking him to seek a truce.
Italy, across the Adriatic from Yugoslavia and NATO's prime staging
ground, faces slower economic growth because of the bombing campaign,
which has led to the shutdown of some airports and raised concerns tourism
will drop. NATO warplanes also are dumping unused bombs off Italian
beaches."

http://www.bloomberg.com/bbn/topworld.html?s=3123d88bd0e8222a6a7c48ff68e41dfd

I find this last comment interesting in the context of future DOD
participation in Range Cleanups.  How committed can the DOD be to cleaning
up munition waste when they apparently don't feel munition dumping is a
problem in the first place?

I read many times in the Fort Sheridan cleanup documents, and even a few
times here on CPEO, how the Army wants us environmentalist to stop the
blame game since the current toxic situation is a result of a previous
generation who knew not what they did to the environment.

This NEW hazardous waste dumping speaks to an organizational culture not
suited to be the lead agency in environmental cleanups of their own
making. Current Army practices need to be greened before we can worry
about cleanups of past practices.  What is the point of spending billion
of dollars to cleanup from the 1960's when we are adding to the toxic stew
today?  Our first effort ought to be to stop adding to the pollution.  
THEN it would make sense to cleanup the past.

Steven Pollack