U.S. Military Is Scrutinized Over Trash Burning in Afghanistan --- The United States military spent millions of dollars on garbage incinerators in Afghanistan that went unused as tons of trash burned in open piles, wafting toxic smoke over thousands of troops, according to a report released Tuesday by an American watchdog agency. -- The new report focused on Shindand Air Base in western Afghanistan but echoed the findings of three previous reports by the agency, the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, since April 2013. All found that the Defense Department wasted millions of dollars on incinerators at major bases that operated at a fraction of capacity — if at all — while the open burning of toxic material continued. -- The reports also concluded that the military in Afghanistan violated regulations put in place by Congress and the Pentagon to end large-scale open-pit trash burning after the health risks of the practice gained national attention during the war in Iraq. -- Despite these regulations, every base in Afghanistan visited by inspectors continued to burn waste, including tires, plastics, batteries and other potentially toxic junk, in open pits, sometimes shunting the smoky job off to Afghan troops. And though a 2010 law requires the military to notify Congress whenever certain toxic materials are burned, the report said no notifications were sent. -- “There was a lack of planning and a lack of holding people accountable and as a result the health of our troops was put at risk,” John F. Sopko, special inspector general for Afghanistan reconstruction, said Tuesday. -- While the science remains inconclusive, there is growing concern among veterans, members of Congress and some medical experts that exposure to the acrid smoke from military burn pits in Iraq and Afghanistan could lead to lasting health problems, including lung disease and cancer. -- “When you burn this caustic, dangerous stuff, it can release neurotoxins, carcinogens,” said Dr. Anthony Szema, assistant professor of medicine at Stony Brook University School of Medicine in New York, who has studied lung problems among war veterans. “There are long-term health effects. This is a ticking time bomb here that could last for years.” -- At Shindand, inspectors found that the military spent $5 million on incinerators. The equipment was large enough to handle all trash produced by the 4,000 coalition troops and contractors at the base, but for two years about two-thirds was burned in nearby pits run by Afghan troops. -- The report noted that an “Afghan-run open-air burn pit burned at much lower temperatures and thus smoldered much of the time, creating large volumes of smoke and volatile gases.” - More, DAVE PHILIPPS, http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/23/us/us-military-is-scrutinized-over-trash-burning-in-afghanistan.html?_r=0