Defense Sites Research Articles

Pilot-Scale Destruction of TNT, RDX, and HMX on Contaminated Soils Using Subcritical Water

Subcritical (hot/liquid) water was used in a simple static (nonflowing) vessel to treat two soils from former defense sites which were contaminated with the explosives TNT (12 wt %) or RDX (0.32 wt...

Plant enhancement of indigenous soil micro-organisms: a low-cost treatment of contaminated soils

AbstractThe United States has more than 1000 individual areas of petroleum-contaminated soil at formerly used defense (FUD) sites located in cold regions. This paper investigates biotreatment systems based on exploiting naturally occurring phenomena in the rhizosphere — the soil adjacent to and influenced by plant roots. Rhizosphere-based remediation systems would be inexpensive to implement and maintain and would be applicable to remote or permafrost sites. Herein, this paper provides the rationale for using rhizosphere-based biotreatment systems and some initial results. In both laboratory and field studies, successful plant germination, plant growth, and root intrusion into and through contaminated soil are demonstrated.Using a Captina silt loam in a 10-week laboratory study, the effects of vegetation and contamination on microbial numbers were compared. The vegetation treatments included an unvegetated control and a vegetated treatment seeded with bahiagrass (Paspalum notatum). The contamination treatments included an uncontaminated control and a treatment with 2000 mg pyrene kg-1 soil added. Microbial numbers at 10 weeks were not significantly influenced by the contaminant level of 2000 mg pyrene kg-1 soil compared to the control. However, microbial numbers were greater in the rhizosphere of the bahiagrass-vegetated soil compared to the unvegetated soil.In a 34-week field study, total petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH) concentrations of a diesel-contaminated soil decreased significantly more in the rhizosphere+nutrient treatment compared to the control that was not vegetated or fertilized. Bacterial numbers in the field study were 287 times greater in the rhizosphere+nutrient treated soils than in the control treatments. Measurable TPH compounds in the plant tissue were insignificant. The data demonstrated that rhizosphereenhanced treatment of organic-contaminated soils can be effective in reducing soil petroleum concentrations and may be a cost-effective strategy particularly suited for treating cold-region sites where remediation options are limited by cost, remoteness of the site, and/or brevity of the treatment season.

Four times heroic

The Port of Veracruz is known in the epic of Mexican history as the city “four times heroic”—a phrase that glorifies acts of local sacrifice in the name of national sovereignty. Battles fought on home turf against the Spanish in 1825, the French in 1838, the North Americans in 1847 and the gringos again in 1914 constitute four dramatic episodes that distinguish the port as a site of Mexican defense against foreign invaders. In the 1914 U.S. intervention in Mexico the reports of foreign correspondents chronicled North American bias as well as different forms of resistance to the occupation by Mexicans. As was the case with other acts of U.S. imperialism throughout the hemisphere at the time, the Veracruz event revealed an attitude on the part of the North Americans which was generally arrogant and disrespectful. For this reason the Mexicans called them gringos.

Remediation of Hazardous-Waste Sites by New England Division of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) New England Division (NED) remediates hazardous-waste sites for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Superfund Program and the Department of Defense. In fiscal year 1996 (October 1995–September 1996), over $115,000,000 was expended on work associated with 19 Superfund sites, Army facilities at Fort Devens and the Materials Technology Laboratory (MTL) in Watertown, Mass., as well as numerous formally used defense sites throughout New England. Noteworthy projects include the Baird and McGuire Superfund site in Holbrook, Mass., where contaminated soil is being excavated and incinerated on-site, and the Raymark Superfund site in Stratford, Conn., where 13 acres of industrial buildings were demolished with the site now being capped. NED expects that over $100,000,000 will be expended in fiscal year 1997 as work continues at Baird and McGuire, Raymark, Fort Devens, and the Army's MTL. NED also expects to begin work on the Estuary, Lower Habor/Bay portion of t...

Implementing relative risk site evaluations at air force installations

AbstractIn April 1994, the Department of Defense issued management guidance directing the Services to begin developing their environmental restoration program guidance using a relative risk evaluation framework. The resulting Relative Risk Site Evaluation Framework categorizes sites and areas of concern in the Defense Environmental Restoration Program (DERP) into high, medium, and low relative risk groups to facilitate the prioritization of funding allocations. This article examines the Air Force's implementation of this guidance through the development of the Relative Risk Site Evaluation Framework at base closure sites managed by the Air Force Base Conversion Agency and by the Army Corps of Engineers in the restoration of formerly used defense sites (FUDS). Installations have the choice of two automated applications to assist them in the implementation of relative risk: the Relative Risk Site Evaluation Program (RRSEP) and the Relative Risk Mapinfo Interface (RRMI). Together, these user‐friendly automated systems provide installations with a flexible means of creating and managing remediation data to implement relative risk evaluation and communicate results of the evaluation to the stakeholders.

Immunosuppressive factor from Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans down regulates cytokine production

A cytoplasmic soluble fraction of Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans Y4 was isolated and characterized as suppressing mitogen-stimulated proliferation of and cytokine production by C3H/HeN mouse splenic T cells. This factor, designated suppressive factor 1 (SF1), was isolated from the supernatant of sonicated whole bacteria and purified by Q-Sepharose Fast Flow column chromatography, DEAE-Sepharose Fast Flow column chromatography, hydroxyapatite high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC), and Protein Pack 300 & 125 gel filtration HPLC. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis analysis revealed that the purified SF1 migrated as a single band corresponding to a molecular mass of 14 kDa. This molecule was protease labile, heat resistant, and noncytotoxic. N'-terminal sequence analysis revealed no homology with any known peptides of periodontopathic bacteria or with any host-derived growth factors. Purified SF1 suppressed the proliferation of mouse splenic T cells which had been stimulated with concanavalin A, as well as suppressing the production of interleukin-2 (IL-2), gamma interferon, IL-4, and IL-5 from CD4+ T cells as 0.1 microgram/ml or more. These data suggest that SF1 produced by the periodontal pathogen A. actinomycetemcomitans functions as a virulence factor by down regulating T-cell proliferation and cytokine production at local defense sites.

Neurochemical mechanisms underlying amygdaloid modulation of aggressive behavior in the cat

Studies designed to determine the respective roles of substance P, excitatory amino acids, and enkephalins in amygdaloid modulation of defensive rage behavior in the cat are presented. The basic design of these studies involved three stages. In stage I, cannula electrodes for stimulation and drug infusion were implanted into medial hypothalamic of midbrain periaqueductal gray (PAG) sites from which defensive rage behavior could be elicited. Then, a stimulating electrode was implanted into a site within the medial, basal, or central nuclear complex from which modulation of the defensive rage response could be obtained. Amygdaloid modulation of defensive rage was determined in the following manner: it employed the paradigm of dual stimulation in which comparisons were made of response latencies between alternate trials of dual (i.e., amygdala+medial hypothalamus [or PAG]) and single stimulation of the hypothalamus or PAG alone. Thus, stage I established the baseline level of modulation (i.e., facilitation or suppression of defensive rage) in the predrug stimulation period. In stage II, a selective or non-selective receptor antagonist for a given transmitter system was administered either peripherally or intracerebrally at the defensive rage site, after which time the same dual stimulation paradigm was then repeated over the ensuing 180 min postinjection period in order to determine the effects of drug delivery upon amydaloid modulation of defensive rage. Stage III of the study took place at the completion of the pharmacological testing phase. The retrograde axonal tracer, Fluoro-Gold, was microinjected into the defensive rage site within the medial hypothalamus or PAG, and following a 6-14 day survival period, animals were sacrificed and brains were processed for histological and immunocytochemical analyses for the neurotransmitters noted above. This procedure thus permitted identification of cells within the amygdala which were labeled retrogradely and which were also immunostained positively for substance P, excitatory amino acids, or enkephalin. For studies involving substance P, defensive rage was elicited from the medial hypothalamus and for studies examining the roles of excitatory amino acids and enkaphalin, defensive rage was elicited from the PAG. In the first study, facilitation of hypothalamically elicited defensive rage was obtained with dual stimulation of the medial nucleus of the amygdala. In separate experiments, the selective NK 1 non-peptide antagonist, CP 96,345, was administered both peripherally as well as intracerabrally into the hypothalamic defensive rage sites in doses of 0.5-4.0 mg/kg (i.p.) and 0.5-2.5 nmol (i.c.). Following drug delivery, the facilitatory effects of medial amygdaloid stimulation were blocked ina dose- and time-dependent manner in which the effects were noted as early as 5 min postinjection. The maximum drug dose (4.0 mg/kg) employed for peripheral administration resulted in a 42% reduction in the facilitatory effects of the medial amygdala (P<0.002). This drug, when microinjected directly into medial hypothalamic defensive rage sites at the maximum dose level of 2.5 nmol, resulted in an 84% reduction of the suppressive effects of amygdaloid stimulation (P<0.5) at 5 min postinjection. In the next study, an N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) antagonist, DL-α-amino-7-phosphonoheptanoic acid (AP-7), was administered either peripherally (0.1-1.0 mg/kg) or intracerebrally (0.2 and 2.0 nmol) into PAG defensive rage sites

Characterization of T Lymphocytes and Antigen-presenting Cells in the Murine Male Urethra

The male lower urogenital tract is exposed to sexually transmitted pathogens and is therefore a strategic site of immune defense. To further define the immunodynamics of this region, we studied the histology, immune cell distribution, and draining lymph nodes of the murine male lower urogenital tract. The external surface of the foreskin was covered by skin composed of keratinized stratified epithelium containing numerous hair follicles and sebaceous glands. Immunologically the penile foreskin was characterized by the presence of few T lymphocytes and macrophages. Numerous Langerhans cells, however, were detected within the epithelium. The penile urethra was composed of stratified columnar epithelium, with a meatus lined by keratinized squamous epithelium preceding the opening proper. The most abundant immune cells of the penile urethra were macrophages. In young adult, virgin males, these were found primarily underlying the urethral epithelium, but in older, mated mice, they were usually intraepithelial in location, and were more abundant. Langerhans cells could not be specifically identified in the urethral mucosa. T lymphocytes were found underlying and occasionally within the epithelium of the urethral mucosa, with CD4+ cells more abundant than CD8+ cells. The majority of lymphocytes observed around the urethra were positive for the integrin beta 7 alpha M290, which is selectively expressed by mucosal lymphocytes, providing indirect evidence that the urethra is part of the common mucosal system. Lymphocytes expressing the gamma delta T cell receptor and IgA-positive plasma cells were not detected. The primary draining nodes for the vas deferens and urethra were the lumbar nodes. Lymphatic drainage from the rectum also involved the lumbar nodes. Information obtained in this study should help to elucidate optimal genital tract vaccination strategies for defense of the male urogenital tract against sexually transmitted pathogens.

An enkephalinergic mechanism involved in amygdaloid suppression of affective defence behavior elicited from the midbrain periaqueductal gray in the cat

A series of recent studies in our laboratory have provided evidence that opioid peptides powerfully suppress feline affective defense behavior at the level of the midbrain periaqueductal gray (PAG). In the present study, we tested the hypothesis that the central (CE) nucleus of the amygdala constitutes a significant inhibitory input to the PAG which utilizes enkephalins as its neurotransmitter or neuromodulator. Cannula-electrodes were implanted into the PAG for the elicitation of affective defense behavior as well as for infusion of opioid antagonists. Monopolar stimulating electrodes were also implanted into the central, lateral and medial amygdaloid nuclei from which suppression or facilitation of affective defense behavior could be obtained. Initially, 4 trials of concurrent, subseizure stimulation of the CE or lateral amygdala at very low (100 μA, 60 Hz) currents and PAG resulted in an immediate suppression of this response which displayed a time dependent decline after 30 min. In the next stage of the experiment, naloxone (2.7, 18.9 and 27.5 nM) was microinjected through the cannula-electrode into the PAG affective defense site and the experimental procedures noted above were repeated. Naloxone treatment (at 27.5 and 18.9 nM) blocked the suppressive effects of CE and lateral amygdaloid stimulation in a dose and time dependent manner. Further analysis revealed that this effect is likely mediated via the μ receptor since the suppressive effects of amygdaloid stimulation were blocked by the selective μ antagonist, β-Funaltrexamine (0.05 and 0.2 nM) but not by the selective σ-antagonist, ICI 174,864 (0.7 nM). Moreover, facilitation of affective defense behavior following dual stimulation of the medial amygdala and PAG was not affected by naloxone administration (27.5 nM). The final stage of the study was designed to further test the hypothesis that neurons in the CE contain cell bodies that are both enkephalinergic and project to the dorsal aspect of the PAG associated with the expression of affective defense behavior. This aspect involved the combination of retrograde tracing of amygdaloid neurons into the PAG following microinjections of the retrograde tracer, Fluoro-Gold, and the immunocytochemical analysis of amygdaloid cells that immunoreact positively for Met-enkephalin. The results indicated the presence of many retrogradely labelled and immunocytochemically positive cells within the CE and adjoining regions of the lateral nucleus as well as others that were double labelled. The overall findings support the view that the CE powerfully inhibits affective defense behavior at the level of the PAG and that this phenomenon is mediated via an enkephalinergic mechanism.

The organization of the hypothalamic pathways mediating affective defense behavior in the cat

The purpose of this study was to describe the hypothalamic pathways which mediate affective defense in the cat utilizing the methods of [ 14C]2-deoxyglucose (2-DG) and [ 3H]leucine radioautography in concert with the technique of electrical brain stimulation. The feline affective defense response, characterized by pupillary dilatation, piloerection, ear retraction, hissing, growling and striking with the forepaws, was elicited consistently by stimulation of sites within the ventromedial hypothalamus and anterior aspect of the medial hypothalamus. In one series of experiments, 2-DG autoradiography was employed to describe the brain regions activated following stimulation of site in the region of the ventromedial hypothalamus from which affective defense had been elicited. Ventromedial hypothalamic stimulation produced activation primarily in forebrain regions situated rostral to the level of the stimulating electrode. These structures included principally the anteromedial hypothalamus and medial preoptic area, as well as the bed nuclei of the stria terminalis and anterior commissure, diagonal band and lateral septal area. The caudal extent of activation included only the dorsal and perifornical hypothalamus at the level of the stimulation site. In a second series of experiments, affective defense sites in the anteromedial hypothalamus were stimulated and the regional distribution of 2-DG label was identified. In contrast to the results obtained from ventromedial hypothalamic stimulation, these experiments revealed a marked descending distribution of label within the posterior hypothalamus, midbrain central gray and ventral tegmental area. Results obtained from studies in which tritiated amino acids were injected into affective defense sites in both the ventromedial nucleus and anteromedial hypothalamus confirmed the general findings observed with 2-DG autoradiography. From these observations, we have concluded that the organization of the pathway mediating affective defense behavior from the ventromedial hypothalamus to the midbrain involves an initial synapse within the region of the anteromedial hypothalamus and a second synapse in the midbrain central gray substance. The significance of the anteromedial hypothalamus for the expression of affective defense behavior was considered in the Discussion.

Small Pressures and Cultural Drift as Explanations for Abandonment of the San Juan Area, New Mexico and Arizona

AbstractDuring the 12th and 13th centuries A.D., diverse populations of Pueblo Indians gradually withdrew from the drainages of the San Juan River and its tributaries, leaving the area uninhabited and open to future reoccupancy by Navajos. Two hypotheses have been put forward to explain these emigrations: the great drought theory and the Athabaskan raider theory. However, data from recent field work in the Four Corners area can be put together with clues from the literature to construct a third hypothesis: that late Pueblo II population shifts from the north created multiple, small pressures which slowly built into a chain-reaction of anxieties, producing widespread population rearrangements in the San Juan regions, cultural and stylistic changes and, finally, an increasing trend toward emigration. Paiute pressures in the north may have combined with climatic deterioration to initiate withdrawal of the Utah peripheral farmers who, in retreating, disturbed precarious balances of San Juan groups who were already maximally expanded in population. These, in turn, began to move about more frequently than previously, disturbing one another. Stylistic changes in pottery and architecture, large towns, and defensive sites reflect the unrest which resulted in final migration to more peaceful drainages.

Archaeological History of Nambe Pueblo, 14th Century to the Present

AbstractNambe is a Pueblo Indian town whose history is very poorly known. In 1962 arrangements were made to excavate in the village ash piles so that the data might be used in the tribe's land claim. Sherds from the excavations indicate that the people of Nambe have utilized this site from 1350 to the present. By checking surface survey materials against tribal tradition, a history of movements from highlands to lowlands has been out-lined. (1) From 1350 to 1425 there were five villages in a north-south line and two in an east-west line in the high foothills, but the adjoining farm lands were insufficient and in peaceful periods some of the inhabitants of these defensive sites came down to the present Nambe during the summer to farm where water and land were more available. (2) From 1425 to 1550 only one of the high defensive sites continued to be occupied; the others were abandoned, and the people moved down to live in Nambe on a year-round basis. (3) Between 1550 and 1700 the last defensive site was abandoned and Nambe pueblo housed the tribe, but the old lands near the ruins were still used for hunting, gathering, religious shrines, and some farming. (4) The Spaniards found the Nambe area attractive and settled near the pueblo. This began an acculturative process which has involved mixing of blood, loss of Indian lands, and amalgamation of the two cultures. Nambe is now one of the least "native" of the northern Pueblo Indian towns.

Excavations on Defence Sites, 1939–1945. I. Mainly Neolithic – Bronze Age. By W. F. Grimes. H.M. Stationery Office, London, 1960. Pp. 259, 102 text figs., 48 pls. Price £4 4s.

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Underground Sites for Factories

BEFORE bringing out the special considerations it might be well briefly to survey the development in this country of the concept of underground defensive sites. Any advantage we would find for a normal factory installation in an underground site would be duplicated when applied to atomic research laboratories. Considerable interest in underground sites was taken by the joint Army-Navy Munitions Board during and directly after World War II . Its interest, however, was almost entirely confined at first to a survey which it was making of natural caverns. The revolutionary concept of underground defensive sites has not received the publicity in this country that usually introduces new ideas. The public appeal of the idea has fallen short. Occasionally in the press one finds a brief word expressing the view of the Army Air Forces that complete underground factories would be the most practical protection against air attacks, or quoting a retired general who ...

Treaties, Executive Agreements, and the Panama Joint Resolution of 1943

A recent Congressional debate appears to have been one of the opening skirmishes on the question of whether the postwar commitments of the United States should be accepted by treaty or by unfettered executive discretion. On August 13, 1942, President Roosevelt transmitted to Congress a request for the passage of an enclosed draft joint resolution ostensibly “authorizing the execution of certain obligations under the treaties of 1903 and 1936 with Panama, and other commitments.” The President's message, after referring to the “thoroughly coöperative” attitude of the Panamanian Government in the present crisis and stating that “on March 5, 1941, the President of the Republic of Panama issued a manifesto making available for use by the United States certain defense sites in the territory of that Republic,” added that the time had come to make certain concessions long desired by the Republic of Panama. “Accordingly,” continued the message, “I deem it advisable that this Government convey to Panama the water and sewerage systems in the cities of Panama and Colon; that it relinquish its extensive real-estate holdings in the cities of Colon and Panama, so far as these holdings are not essential to the operation and protection of the Canal; and that it liquidate the credit of two and a half million dollars made available to the Republic of Panama by the Export-Import Bank for the construction of Panama's share of the Chorrera-Rio Hato Highway, a road essential to our defense requirements and constructed in accordance with standards made essential by these requirements.”