I've long held the opinion that when it comes to environmental degradation our public agencies are some of the worst offenders. Much slip-shod waste disposal and contamination has been tolerated in the name of "balancing the public interest." Not to mention that some of our public servants consider it a benefit of their employment to impose, rather than follow regulations.

And our military agencies have been among the worst offenders, as evidenced by the fact that every site they vacate is in need of environmental cleanup and remediation. So, it's not surprising that eight years of occupation have left Iraq in a mess. Some of which our own Congresswoman has tried to address by outlawing burn pits and insisting on proper waste disposal. But, who's going to pay for it?

The Navy Times reports:

Burn pit data worthless, expert says

By Kelly Kennedy - Staff writer

Posted : Friday Dec 18, 2009 17:27:31 EST

The airman who first raised health concerns over burn pits at Joint Base Balad in Iraq says the Defense Department data — which officials used to say the burn pits cause no known long-term health effects — is worthless.

And Air Force Lt. Col Darrin Curtis, a bioenvironmental flight commander who retired in November, is the one who created the plan to collect the air specimens near the plume.

“You could only sample so much,” he said Friday. “I think it’s more than difficult; it’s impossible. It would cost as much to bring in incinerators as it would to do an adequate study.”

No doubt, collecting and analyzing the smoke would be a complex project requiring sophisticated equipment that would be hard to maintain in a place where the air is filled with sand. Never mind that the sand particles themselves serve as ideal vehicles for contaminants in both water and air.

....the military burned Styrofoam, unexploded ordnance, petroleum products, plastics, rubber, dining facility trash, paint and solvents, and medical waste in the Balad burn pit. The memo said those items could have exposed troops to benzene, an aircraft fuel known to cause leukemia; arsenic; dichlorofluromethane, or Freon; carbon monoxide; ethylbenzene; formaldehyde; hydrogen cyanide; nitrogen dioxide; sulfuric acid; and xylene.

But, while the resulting brew of toxins has now been admitted to cause ill effects, it's the fault of the victims. According to R. Craig Postlewaite,

“Certain individuals may be more susceptible to the effects of burn-pit smoke because of genetics and pre-existing health conditions, and that some of these personnel may be at risk of more serious health effects following prolonged smoke exposure.” Postlewaite is the acting director, force health protection and readiness programs, office of the assistance secretary of defense for health affairs.

According to the Defense Department, the burn pits at Balad were shut down Oct. 1, but burn pits at other bases throughout Iraq and Afghanistan are still operating. Incinerators can cost millions of dollars.

But, as Rumsfeld observed of the troops, people are "fungible." So what if some get sick and die early? We can always make more of them, if the women of the world will just cooperate.