Pentagon Warns Some Blankets Given to Homeless Contain DDT

The Defense Department has decided to tell shelters and other organizations for the homeless to get rid of more than a million blankets the Pentagon has distributed over the past six years because some of them contain small amounts of DDT.

In a letter that will be distributed to homeless agencies on Monday, the Defense Logistics Agency said that even though there is “negligible risk” to people using the blankets, “we recommend that any blankets you may have be discarded as soon as it is practical to do so.”

Larry Wilson, the logistics agency’s director of public affairs, emphasized that shelters should not dispose of the blankets in cases where they are still urgently needed. “If someone’s going to freeze to death, don’t do it,” Wilson said. He also noted that health risks can be reduced by placing a sheet or layer of clothing between the blanket and the skin.

DDT was used as a pesticide to protect military cloth from moth infestation until 1972, when the Environmental Protection Agency found that it was toxic to animals and banned its use. The Defense Department offered no explanation of why it distributed the blankets over a six-year period, more than a decade after the use of DDT was banned.

Defense Department officials said blue and cream-colored blankets do not contain DDT and can continue to be used. Some olive-colored blankets contain DDT, while others do not. People who have questions about the blankets or want additional information about them can call a toll-free number, 1-800-888-3338.

The Pentagon is not recalling the blankets or asking them to be sent back. The EPA has said that, under federal standards, blankets with DDT can be thrown away through regular trash pickups. However, the Defense Department urged shelters to check with local or state governments for their advice about disposing of the blankets.

Joan Alker, assistant director of the National Coalition for the Homeless, said in a statement that “these blankets have been distributed to people on the streets for six years, and there will be no way to track them all down now.”