Document qYxYgB4e6Y3eDnek8bDn2NzK

ionsanto tW N l'HONtl James D. W ils o n - N3A - 4-5274 'X 4 i l l-JEC T rr.n rN c c o December 3, 1979 ----- Veterans A d m jn ts ra t n s In te re s t 1n D io x in s (n Santophen FILE ce, C. F. C a ll ls - B2SA E. L . Head - B3SB H. W. K ilb o u m e - N3A J . C. M c P h lllip s /R . G. P ie r - B3SC J . S. M e tc a lf - B2NK F. A. P ro vo rn y - B3NJ D. P. Roman - W. B. Bennet - N2B Thursday November 29 I re c e iv e d a te le p h o n e c a l l fro m D ic k Je n te o f Vestal L a b orato ries asking about the 2 ,3 ,7 ,8 -te tra c h lo ro d lb e n zo d io xln co n te n t o f Santophen-1. I re p lie d th a t: a ) We had seen no d e te c ta b le 2378-TCDD i n S - l u s in g a v a lid a te d method w it h a d e t e c t io n l i m i t o f 10 ppb; b) We w ere w o rk in g on a new m ethod, n o t y e t v a lid a t e d , w it h a d e te c tio n l i m i t "around 0 .5 p p b ", and th a t c u r re n t S -l p ro d u c tio n showed no d e te c ta b le 2 ,3 ,7 ,8 -T C D D w it h t h i s m ethod. I a ls o s a id t h a t n o n -d io x in im p u r itie s in S -l seemed to l i m i t o u r s e n s i t iv i t y , w ith e ith e r method, to above 0.1 ppb. He c a lle d us because two VA h o s p it a ls had c a lle d V e s ta l a s k in g to be to ld th a t there, were "no d io x in s " in the cleaners Vestal s o ld i Jente r e p lie d t h a t he c o u ld n o t p ro ve th e c o m p le te absence o f any im p u r it y , because "none means n o n e "- -However, he a ssu re d them t h a t th e re was le s s th a n 1 ppb 2 ,3 ,7 ,8 -T C D D i n t h e i r p r o d u c ts , u s in g th e a n a lo g " le s s than one A y a to lla h in the U.S. p o p u la tio n " as a d e s c rip tiv e analogy. (He a p p a re n tly le a rn e d from B i l l B ennet t h a t S-1 c o n ta in e d le s s than 10 ppb 2,3,7,8 -T C D D .) He w a s n 't s u r e , b u t th o u g h t t h a t j a n i t o r s a t th e VA h o s p it a ls had connected Santophen to d io x in s v ia c h lo ro p h e n o ls and Agent Orange, and demanded t h a t h o s p it a l a d m in is t r a t io n a s s u re them th e y w e r e n 't being poisoned I JDW/bh o O SUBJECT. TO