Report: Companies knew Agent Orange risks

CHICAGO, Dec. 18 (UPI) -- U.S. military and chemical companies failed to warn of the danger of Agent Orange, the chemical used as a defoliant in Vietnam, the Chicago Tribune reports.

The newspaper examined court documents and government records in the National Archives and concluded soldiers were exposed to Agent Orange without getting information on its risks, making exposure more dangerous.

In 1965, the year the U.S. government escalated the war in Vietnam, Dow Chemical Co. called dioxin, a contaminant in Agent Orange, "one of the most toxic materials known causing not only skin lesions, but also liver damage," the Tribune said. Documents also showed techniques were available to drastically cut the amount of dioxin in the defoliant during manufacture.

Veterans and Vietnamese citizens who were exposed to dioxin have sued the chemical companies. While one suit brought by veterans was settled in 1984 for $180 million, the companies later argued that as government contractors they were immune from lawsuits.