From 1985 to 2001, personnel at Naval Air Facility (NAF) Atsugi in Atsugi, Japan may have been exposed to environmental contaminants from off-base waste incinerators.
Atsugi was built in 1938, by the Japanese Imperial Navy as the Kamikaze Naval Air Base. On August 15, 1945, Japan announced its unconditional surrender. On August 30, 1945, General Douglas MacArthur landed with 8,000 troops at Atsugi to accept the formal surrender and assume the duties as military Governor of Japan. For several years, the Army used the base as a storage area. In 1950, at the outset of the Korean War, the Navy selected/commissioned Atsugi as its major naval air station in the Far East and base restoration and development immediately began. At the height of the Korean War, more than 250 aircraft flew daily from Atsugi. After the War, NAS Atsugi began downsizing. At this time, the U.S. Navy and Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force (JMSDF) became base partners, sharing the facilities at NAF Atsugi.
Potential health impacts claimed by those exposed include:
- AML Leukemia
- Basal Cell Carcinoma
- Brain Cancer
- Breast Cancer
- Bone Cancer
- Cervical Cancer
- Lymphoma
- Neuroblastoma
- Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma
- Pancreatic Cancer
- Renal Call Carcinoma
- Rectal Cancer
- T-Cell and Thyroid Cancer
Chemicals involved include:
Acetaldehyde, Arsenic, Benzene, Beryllium, Carbon Tetrachloride, Cadmium, Chloroform, Chromium, Dioxin, Formaldehyde, Hydrochloric Acid, Lead, Mercury, Nickel, Nitrogen Dioxide, Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs), Respirable Particulates (PM 10), Sulfur Dioxide, Tetrachloroethene (PCE), Trichloroethene (TCE), Vinyl Choride, cis-1,3 Dichloropropene, trans 1,2 Dichloropropene, 2,3,7,8, TCDD, 1,2 Dichlorethane, 1,2 Dichloropropane, 1,4 Dichlorobenzene, and others.
The VA Public Health Website contains the following quote:
Currently there is no definitive scientific evidence to show that living at NAF Atsugi while the incinerator operated caused additional risk for disease.
Relevant Links & Resources:
- VA Public Health Page – Atsugi
- Navy Document on Atsugi Incinerator
- NAF Atsugi Incinerator Group Page
- Stars & Stripes – Clearing the Air Around Atsugi Incinerator
- Japan Times – Is the Atsugi Tragedy Finally Drawing to a Close?
- Impacts of Dioxin Emissions from the Shinkampo Incinerator to the U.S. Naval Air Facility at Atsugi, Japan
4 comments
Does anyone here know how to file a claim against the U.S. Navy for this exposure? My wife who was stationed with me from 89-92 at USNAF Atsugi Japan lived in quarters 516-C. Our quarters was 200 meters from the Incinerator fence. My wife has had Cancer since we have returned. No one notified me about this exposure. I found out by googling “USNAF Atsugi” on July 14th, 2018. I have been diagnosed with several ailments by the VA that can be attributed to these exposures. I filed a claim for my exposure, but I have not found where to file for my wife. She was a dependent on an accompanied three year tour to USNAF Atsugi with me. If anyone has any information please provide it.
Paul Broadway, I am AW2 Kern from NAF ATSUGI do you have any footage of the incinerator or other areas of Atsugi while you were there? I also would like to help you if I can with a claim.
[…] Atsugi Naval Air Facility, which served as a cover for the largest CIA station in the world. [Source: civilianexposure.org] […]
I was diagnosed with non Hodgkins lymphoma and one of my lymph nodes was removed while I was on active duty. I need assistance in receiving help.