How does Agent Orange destroy the environment in Vietnam?

During the Vietnam war, especially from 1965 to 1971, the US empire used many types of herbicides and defoliants to destroy us in terms of military and economy. The three main types of toxic chemicals used by the US military in Vietnam are: Agent Orange, white substance used to destroy forests, green matter used to destroy crops.

Agent Orange contains dioxin, is a powerful poison, very stable, difficult to decompose. Therefore, they exist for a long time in the environment, accumulating after repeated use, causing soil and water to be heavily polluted, forest trees destroyed.

A total of US imperialists sprayed 72 million liters of herbicides (including 44 million liters of Agent Orange, 20 million liters of white matter, 8 million liters of green matter) to 1.7 million hectares of cultivated land and forests in the South. Vietnam, at least 12% of the forest area, 5% of arable land is sprayed with Agent Orange one or more times.

The herbicides, defoliant for the first time in human history, used on a large scale in southern Vietnam have caused serious consequences for the ecological environment and humans.

Agent Orange contains dioxin, is a powerful poison, very stable, difficult to decompose.

Millions of hectares of inland forests and coastal mangroves have been sprayed with Agent Orange many times. Immediately after being sprayed with herbicides for the first time, there were 10-20% of the highest trees (accounting for 40-60% of forest biomass) died. As a result, the climate in the lower layer is changed, because the humidity decreases, the intensity of illumination increases, so young trees, even if survived, are difficult to develop. By the dry season, forest fire caused by bombs to spread to destroy the seedlings. Following the rainy season, the soil is gradually eroded and degraded, only some light-demanding plants such as chips, tea, mop, bamboo, and trees are the ones with strong root development, strong underground and strong body. Being arid can grow. Many forest areas are contaminated with too much poison, so far, there has not been any tree growing back.

Deforested trees and polluted water also affect animals. Animals die from lack of food, because there is no shelter, because drinking contaminated water. The survivors must move to other places, even if the conditions of living in those new places are not entirely convenient for them. It can be said that the rich rain forest ecosystem has completely disappeared, replaced by a poorly degraded ecosystem. Where forests grow back, mop, bamboo is a good hiding place for rat family. The natural predators of the rat's civet are very few, and their reproductive power is incomparable to that of mice. Results places where the mouse prevails. In summary, herbicides cause environmental ecological imbalance.

Variations in birth due to dioxin-infected parents

The mangrove forest system in the South, especially the Tham forest (in the northeast of Ho Chi Minh City) and the forest in Nam Can district (Minh Hai) were heavily destroyed. The supply of timber for people is no longer available, animals have no place to live, the great role of mangrove forests in land preservation and sea encroachment is reduced.

Herbicides also have a very bad effect on people. People living in the area were sprayed with herbicides that were lacking in food because of crops, trees were destroyed. Many civilians and soldiers living in sprayed areas have suffered from serious diseases, especially cancer. Many women have miscarriages and premature births. The most dangerous is that Agent Orange has left sequelae for the next life, children of those infected with toxic chemicals, although born after the war, even far away from the place of war, also suffer from serious diseases such as dumb, blind, deaf, mental . or have a strange shape. The existence of a series of malformed children in poisoned areas and in veteran families with a parent who has worked or fought in an area contaminated with Agent Orange, is becoming a problem. great pain and burden not only for children and families, but also for society. Today, the State and the people of Vietnam and many progressive organizations in the world have had certain sympathies and support for these unfortunate babies. However, it can be said that it is too late.

In summary, the consequences of the use of Agent Orange in the US chemical war in Vietnam are large, long-term, complex, not fully studied and there is no way to overcome it completely. fast.