Agent White was the second most used herbicide mixture (5 million gallons sprayed) in Vietnam.  Unlike Agent Orange, there have been very few studies to examine the toxic properties of Agent White.

Code Name: Agent White, a mixture of an approximate ratio of 4:1 of Tordon 101 containing Picloram (4-amino-3,5,6-trichloropicolinic acid).and 2,4-D 2,4-D (2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid). Picloram, however, is the real bad guy. EPA cannot give you the discussion of Contaminants, which were part of the original registration of Tordon 101.

1985, in RED Facts by EPA on Picloram, in order for DOW Chemical to gain re-registration of Picloram, it had to reduce the contamination to less then 200 parts per million of HEXACHLOBENZENE and less then 1 percent NITROSAMINES. Dow has reduced HCB and now has no Nitrosamines in Picloram. No telling how high it was with the swill they were using in Vietnam.

Bottom line, HCB is the only chemical that is very close to being labeled a Class 1 Carcinogen, that is "it causes Cancer." It is stable in water and seeks out the aquifier system. If left in soil, it degrades to become PENTACHLORPHENOL which is know to be dangerous by skin contact. Compare some of the health problems listed by DVA as lacking sufficient evidence, and then look at what HCB and Pentacholorphenol cause; and a coincidence begins to appear.

Remember that EPA cannot release the listing of other chemicals found in solution to other government agencies, such as DVA. They are forbidden by law. DVA cannot use animal testing results in support of medical solutions. However, the Air Force update and the European Herbicide study support what is happening to VETS.

 

 

               Terms:

                  2,4-D:

                2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid.

 

                2,4,5-T:

                                2,4,5-trichlorophenoxyacetic acid.

 

                Agent Blue:

                                Code name for cacodylic acid (dimethyl arsenic acid).

                Agent Orange:

                Code name for mixture of 2,4,5-T (2,4,5-trichlorophenoxyacetic acid) and 2,4-D (2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid).

                Agent White:

                Code name for a mixture of an approximate ratio of 4:1 of 2,4-D (2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid) and picloram (4-amino-3,5,6-trichloropicolinic acid).

                Auxins:

                Plant hormones. The most important Auxin produced by plants is indole-3-acetic acid (IAA). Some of the most common weed killers are synthetic auxins, such as: 2,4-D and 2,4,5-T.

                Carcinogenic:

                                Causing cancer.

                Chloracne:

                The most clearly established health effect of dioxin in humans is a skin eruption called chloracne.

                CS:

                                (o-chlorobenzalmalonitrile), an anti-personnel (harassing) agent.

                Dioxin:

                                Short for 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-para-dioxin, also TCDD.

                Dioxin is formed as an unintentional by-product of many industrial processes involving chlorine such as waste incineration, chemical and pesticide manufacturing and pulp and paper bleaching. The major sources of dioxin are in our diet. Since dioxin is fat-soluble, it accumulates in the food chain and it is mainly found in meat and dairy products. In fish alone, the toxins accumulate so that dioxin levels in fish are 100,000 times that of the surrounding environment.

                Indolylacetic acid:

                                (IAA) Was the first plant growth hormone to be discovered.

                Malathion:

                                (S-(1,2-dicarbethoxyethyl)-0,0-dimethyldithiophosphate), an insecticide.

                Mutagenic:

                                Causing genetic damage.

                Half Life:

                The length of time required for half a quantity of drug, or other substance residing in a living organism to be metabolized, or eliminated by normal biological processes. It is also called the biological half-life. The half-life of dioxin is 8.7 years in humans (as determined in the Ranch Hand (follow-up) studies).

                MCPA:

                                2-methyl-4-chlorophenoxyacetic acid.

                Teratogenic:

                                Causing birth defects.