More Agent Orange sprayed in Viet Nam than estimated

(04/17/2003 -- 22:00GMT+7)

Ha Noi, Apr. 17 (VNA) - American scientists said the US military used more Agent Orange and other defoliant sprays during the war in Viet Nam than previously thought.

The amount of Agent Orange used was at least 30 percent higher than previous estimates or up to 100 million litres, researchers at Columbia University of the US said in a study.

The use of Agent Orange was stopped in 1971 after it was discovered to contain dioxin.

According to project leader Prof. Jeanne Stellman, there was at least twice as much dioxin in the defoliant than had at first been thought - and this figure is a conservative estimate because it is likely that much of the earlier Agent Orange was much more heavily contaminated with dioxin.

Viet Nam estimates more than a million of its people were exposed to the defoliant.

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See: "The extent and patterns of usage of Agent Orange and other herbicides in Vietnam" at:
http://www.nature.com/cgi-taf/DynaPage.taf?file=/nature/journal/v422/n69...