Depleted Uranium Munitions

What is Depleted Uranium?

Honestly, I probably don’t need a section titled “What is Depleted Uranium” because there are a million other websites that will tell you exactly what it is with every scientific nuance you could possibly want to know. Never the less, it is probably an appropriate introduction, so here is a little about depleted uranium (DU).

To start off it is interesting to note that there are three types of naturally occurring uranium isotopes: 234, 235, and 238. DU is mostly composed of the U-238 variety.

DU in Weapon Form

Most bullet rounds contain a lead projectile; lead is usually the metal of choice because of its dense properties. DU is more dense than lead, approximately 70% more dense, which makes a DU munitions more aerodynamic and capable of penetrating armor. DU has been used heavily in 30mm, 25mm, and 20mm ordnances in a number or different weapons systems for ground, air, and sea based platforms. The US and United Kingdom are the only two countries that have acknowledged using DU weapons but through the international community France, Russia, Greece, Turkey, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt, Kuwait, Pakistan, Thailand, Iraq, and Taiwan are believed to have DU rounds in their military.

Platforms that use Depleted Uranium:

• A-10 Thunderbolt II (GAU-8 Avenger cannon)
• Bradley Fighting Vehicle (M242 gun)
• AV-8B Harrier (GAU-12 Equalizer cannon)
• Phalanx CIWS (M61 Vulcan gatling gun)
• M1 Abrams tanks
• Russian T-62, T-64, T-72, T-80

The problem

If you haven’t figured out by not, DU is radioactive and as such, there is a concern the DU weapons, even small amounts of DU in armor piercing rounds, is detrimental to the environment and to the health of human populations. Similar to other “controversial” products, the health effects from DU munitions has not been proven one way or another to this point. Still, the radioactive level of DU leads many experts and non-experts to believe the abandoned material could cause genetic, reproductive, and neurological effects and possibly lead to cancer.

Efforts to ban DU Munitions

The International Coalition to Ban Uranium Weapons (ICBUW) is a coalition of 92 NGO members and 25 countries trying to ban the use, transport, manufacture, sale and export of all weapon systems that use DU.

Similar to ICBUW, the Campaign Against Depleted Uranium (CADU) is also trying to ban nearly every aspect of DU munitions. CADU is also part of the ICBUW.

Rulings and Decisions

Thus far there has not been any legislation that explicitly bans the use of DU munitions. In fact, the chief prosecutor for the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, Carla Del Ponte, and the chief prosecutor, Louise Arbour, concluded the there is, “No specific treaty ban on the use of DU projectiles.” There have been attempts to place a moratorium on the military use of DU, mainly in the EU, which has yielded no consensus. France and the UK have routinely rejected the efforts to create the moratorium on the EU and UN level.

Some other sources for reading:

Depleted Uranium Inventories http://www.wise-uranium.org/eddat.html

Theodore E. Liolios, “Assessing the risk from the depleted uranium weapons used in operational allied force” http://www.intellnet.org/documents/800/030/838.pdf

Depleted Uranium Human Health Fact Sheet http://www.ead.anl.gov/pub/doc/Depleted-Uranium.pdf