You’ve probably never heard of me, even though I have studied herbicides used in forests for over 50 years, all of it published in weed science literature. However, you have heard of one famous substance I studied; Agent Orange. Agent Orange is now known to have contained a contaminant “dioxin,” the generic name of over 70 organochlorine compounds that vary in toxicity. Agent Orange was a mixture of the well-known herbicides 2,4-D and 2,4,5-T and was put into use in Viet Nam by President John F. Kennedy, at the request of the President of South Vietnam. The goal was to defoliate the forests and gain visibility of enemy action. It was later discovered that in the synthesis of 2,4,5-T, traces of 2,3,7,8-tetrachloro-dibenzo-dioxin (TCDD) were found as by-products of that synthesis. And it is very, very toxic to most animals. Read more.
