The Federal Government Has Some Information on the Procurement, Use, and Destruction of Agent Orange, and Available Documentation Indicates at Least One Vessel Carrying Agent Orange Transited through Guam to Vietnam, but Information Is Not Complete

The federal government maintains information on Agent Orange, and  available records indicate that DOD procured approximately 13.9 million  gallons of the tactical herbicide, which was either used in U.S. military  operations in Southeast Asia, used for testing, or destroyed. Available Records Indicate That Vessels Transporting Agent Orange Stopped at Various Ports en Route to Southeast Asia, but Shipment Information Is Not Complete

Our review of documentation for the shipment of almost 12.1 million  gallons of the approximately 13.9 million gallons (approximately 87  percent) of Agent Orange procured by DOD found, based on available  shipment documentation, that vessels transporting Agent Orange made  stops at various ports on the way to Southeast Asia. We were able to locate and obtain logbooks for 152 of the 158  shipments (approximately 96 percent) we identified. However, while the logbooks we reviewed identify when vessels left the  various ports as they traveled to and from Vietnam, logbooks do not  provide information on whether and how much cargo was loaded and  unloaded at those ports of call, nor do they indicate whether tactical  herbicides were offloaded at any ports before the vessels reached  Vietnam. DOD’s List of Herbicide Testing and Storage Locations Is Incomplete, and Veterans Have Expressed Confusion about How to Obtain Information on Potential Exposure

DOD’s official compilation of herbicide testing and storage locations  outside of Vietnam, which is posted on the VA’s website, is inaccurate  and incomplete, and DOD does not have a process for managing the list. Without assigned responsibility for ensuring an accurate and complete list  of locations where Agent Orange or its components were tested and  stored; a process for updating the list as needed; and clearly defined and  transparent criteria for what to include on this list, DOD will not have  reasonable assurance that it has identified the most complete information  possible for VA to use when informing veterans and the public of the full  extent of locations where Agent Orange exposure could potentially have  occurred. U.S. EPA and DOD officials stated that  veterans are contacting multiple agencies to get information on herbicide  exposure. However, DOD and VA officials stated that they have not developed a  formal process for coordinating on how best to communicate information  to veterans and the public regarding the presence of Agent Orange at  locations outside of Vietnam. Challenges Exist with Testing for Agent Orange Today Due to Degradation and Multiple Sources of Potential Contamination

Testing to determine whether Agent Orange was present in a particular  location is challenging because, for example, derivatives of Agent  Orange—including the two components of Agent Orange (n-butyl 2,4-D  and n-butyl 2,4,5-T) and the contaminant from the 2,4,5-T manufacturing  process (2,3,7,8-TCDD)—degrade over time, and because derivatives of  2,4-D and 2,4,5-T can come from multiple sources. Scientific research indicates that the  half-lives of the acid forms of the chemical components 2,4-D and 2,4,5-T  in soil can range from several days to many months, depending on  conditions. Although DOD  officials recognized these challenges and acknowledged the low  probability of conclusively identifying the components of Agent Orange,  they decided to move forward with testing to address veterans’ and the  public’s concerns. DOD officials told us they do not anticipate completing the  updates for the sampling and analysis plan, field sampling, analysis, and  reporting until early 2019. Conclusions

DOD suspended the use of Agent Orange in Vietnam in 1970 and  incinerated remaining stockpiles at sea in 1977, but concerns about the  effects of exposure in U.S. locations have persisted. Further, while DOD and VA  both communicate with veterans in response to their Agent Orange  inquiries, the two agencies do not have a formal process for coordinating  on how best to communicate this information. VA also non-concurred with one recommendation. Appendix I: Objectives, Scope, and Methodology

House Report 115–200 accompanying a bill for the National Defense  Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018 included a provision that we review  the government’s handling of Agent Orange on Guam. In response to  both this provision and a separate request letter, this report examines (1)  the extent to which the federal government has information about the  procurement, distribution, use, and disposition of Agent Orange or its  components at locations in the United States and its territories, including  Guam; (2) the extent to which the Department of Defense (DOD) and the  Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) have complete and accurate  information about where Agent Orange and its components were tested  and stored and communicated this information to veterans and the public;  and (3) challenges associated with testing for Agent Orange. We also met with officials representing a veterans  service organization. In Guam, we also  worked with the Guam Environmental Protection Agency to coordinate a  discussion session.
Why GAO Did This Study

The tactical herbicide Agent Orange was first produced in 1964, and some 12 million gallons were shipped from U.S. ports to Southeast Asia from 1965 to 1970. DOD suspended its use in 1970 and incinerated remaining stockpiles at sea in 1977. Congress has expressed long-standing interest in the effects of Agent Orange exposure.
The House report accompanying a bill for the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018 included a provision that GAO review the government's handling of Agent Orange on Guam. This report examines (1) information the federal government has about the procurement, distribution, use, and disposition of Agent Orange; (2) DOD and VA efforts to make information about where Agent Orange and its components were tested and stored available; and (3) challenges associated with Agent Orange testing. GAO reviewed agency policies, documents, and available archival records that GAO identified; interviewed DOD, VA, and other agency officials; and met with a non-generalizable sample of 38 veterans and a veterans service organization.

What GAO Found

Available shipment documentation indicates that nearly all of the Agent Orange procured was either used in U.S. military operations in Southeast Asia, used for testing, damaged, or destroyed. However, some records are incomplete, such as shipment documentation and logbooks that identify ports where vessels stopped on the way to Southeast Asia. GAO obtained and reviewed shipment documentation for over 12.1 million of the 13.9 million gallons of Agent Orange procured by the Department of Defense (DOD). GAO reviewed logbooks for 96 percent (152 of 158) of those shipments and identified that vessels stopped at various ports on the way to Southeast Asia, including at least one vessel carrying Agent Orange that stopped at Guam. While the logbooks GAO reviewed identify when vessels left various ports as they traveled to and from Vietnam, they do not show whether and how much cargo was loaded or unloaded at those ports.
DOD's official list of herbicide testing and storage locations outside of Vietnam that is posted on the Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) website is inaccurate and incomplete. For example, the list lacks clarity in descriptive information and omits both testing and storage locations and additional time periods covered by testing events. Also, the list has not been updated in over a decade, though DOD and VA have obtained reports on its shortcomings since 2006. Both DOD and VA communicate with veterans in response to inquiries about Agent Orange, but some veterans GAO met with expressed confusion regarding how to obtain information on potential exposure. DOD officials acknowledged this confusion and stated that veterans are contacting multiple agencies to obtain such information. However, DOD and VA have not established a formal process for coordinating on how best to communicate information to veterans and the public regarding the presence of Agent Orange outside of Vietnam. Without a reliable list with complete and accurate information and a formal process for DOD and VA to coordinate on communicating this information, veterans and the public do not have quality information about the full extent of locations where Agent Orange was present and where exposure could potentially have occurred.
Challenges exist with testing for Agent Orange today due to degradation of the herbicide's two chemical components and a potential for sources of contamination other than the herbicide. According to scientific research, the half-life (average time for components to decrease by half of the original amount) of Agent Orange's two chemical components—n-butyl 2,4-D and n-butyl 2,4,5-T— in soil can range from several days to many months, depending on conditions. The suggested half-life of the dioxin 2,3,7,8-TCDD—a by-product of the 2,4,5-T manufacturing process—is much longer, but there are multiple sources of dioxins, including the burning of wood and waste. DOD and the U.S. and Guam Environmental Protection Agencies are testing for the acid form of the components of Agent Orange at Andersen Air Force Base on Guam. While acknowledging the low probability of conclusively identifying the components of Agent Orange on Guam, DOD has made a decision to move forward with testing to address veterans' and the public's concerns, and it expects to complete the updates for the sampling and analysis plan, field sampling, analysis, and reporting in early 2019.

What GAO Recommends

GAO is making six recommendations, including that DOD develop a process for updating its list of Agent Orange testing and storage locations, and that DOD and VA develop a process for coordinating the communication of information on where Agent Orange was known to have been present. DOD concurred with four recommendations. VA concurred with one recommendation and non-concurred with one recommendation.