We Need a Mechanism to Make USFK Responsible for Environmental Pollution

New testimonies are emerging regarding the disposal of the herbicide dioxin by USFK.

Larry Anderson, who served at the headquarters of the 2nd US Infantry Division in the late 1970s, said through the USFK Internet site that an order was handed down to remove all the dioxin herbicide then in storage.

The time of this order was the same as the time when Steve House said he buried dioxin herbicide in Camp Carroll in Waegwan. After House's revelation, a US soldier who served at Camp Mercer in Ojeong-dong, Bucheon, in the 1960s said there was a chemical storage facility on base, and that, using a bulldozer, he buried hundreds of gallons of all sorts of chemicals imaginable.

The question that emerges listening to these testimonies is, "Is that all?" In 2000, USFK released large amounts of poisonous formaldehyde solution into the Hangang River. According to a government source, there are 98 American bases nationwide, and almost all of them, including Camp Carroll, handle chemicals.

Since the Camp Carroll revelation, a change in the attitude of the US government has been detected. The US government lineup dealing with Korea, including the White House, Defense Department and State Department, is watching with great interest while discussing strategies to cope with the situation.

This is believed to be due to lessons learned from the 2002 incident in which two Korean teenagers were killed when they were run over by a US armored vehicle. The easy-going response by the US military ignited anti-Americanism and had an impact on the Korean presidential election that year.

Perhaps not to repeat that process of trial and error, the United States is quickly and actively coming forth for a joint investigation with Korea.

This is not enough, however. According to the current Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA), within the bases provided indefinitely to the United States, Korea has no authority to investigate independently no matter how much environmental pollution the US military causes with herbicide or oil.

Accordingly, we can say the current joint Korea-US investigation team operates in accordance with US military good will.

The change in the US attitude itself is progress. As one cannot exclude the possibility that massive environmental pollution took place, the United States must engage itself with all sincerity in the joint investigation and come forth to clean up the environment in the relevant districts and pay restitution for damages.

What is more fundamental and important than this, however, is structural support. If the United States truly wants to apologize for its environmental pollution, it must consider the issue of revising the unequal the SOFA in a forward-thinking way.

The Korean government, too, should use this matter to understand anew the seriousness of the issue of environmental pollution on US bases in Korea and demand the revision of the SOFA.

Our reality, in which we ignored pollution at US bases and have failed to demand the rehabilitation of the areas even after learning the actual situation after the base land was returned, is clearly problematic. (Editorial, The Kyunghyang Daily News. May 26, 2011)

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