[CPEO-MEF] GLOBAL, DISPOSAL: Incinerators and Burn Pits in Afghanistan

[Lenny Siegel <LSiegel@cpeo.org>]

Final Assessment: What We Have Learned From Our Inspections of  
Incinerators and Use of Burn Pits in Afghanistan

Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction
February 10 , 2015

This report presents SIGAR's final assessment of the Department of  
Defense's (DOD) use of incinerators and open-air burn pits to dispose  
of solid waste in Afghanistan. The facts and concluding observations  
contained in this report are based on inspections conducted by SIGAR  
between October 2012 and June 2014 at Camp Leatherneck, Forward  
Operating Base Salerno, Forward Operating Base Sharana, and Shindand  
Airbase. By addressing at a systemic level the common problems  
identified in this report, DOD could improve management of solid  
waste disposal in future contingency operations.

This report highlights the ways in which incinerator operations in  
Afghanistan were not conducted in a manner that resulted in the most  
efficient use of U.S. taxpayer funds. Unfortunately, in many  
instances DOD officials did not take sufficient steps to ensure the  
proper management of contracts for the construction of the  
incinerators to address the problems identified during our  
inspections of particular incinerator facilities. Given the fact that  
DOD has been aware for many years of the significant health risks  
associated with open-air burn pits, it is indefensible that U.S.  
military personnel, who are already at risk of serious injury and  
death when fighting the enemy, were put at further risk from the  
potentially harmful emissions from the use of open-air burn pits.

...

For the entire, 2.1 MB, 30-page report, see
http://www.sigar.mil/pdf/alerts/SIGAR-15-33-AL.pdf

--

Lenny Siegel
Executive Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight
a project of the Pacific Studies Center
278-A Hope St., Mountain View, CA 94041
Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545
Fax: 650/961-8918
<lsiegel@cpeo.org>
http://www.cpeo.org

_______________________________________________
Military mailing list
Military@lists.cpeo.org
http://lists.cpeo.org/listinfo.cgi/military-cpeo.org