Operation Pacer HO was a 1977 operation of the U.S. Air Force that incinerated the Agent Orange stored at Johnston Atoll aboard the Dutch-owned ship M/T Vulcanus in 1977. "HO" was an abbreviation of Herbicide Orange (HO).Operation Pacer IVY (InVentorY) was an associated the United States Department of Defense mission to inventory, collect, consolidate, re-drum, remove from the Southeast Asian theater, and store Agent Orange.
Disposal of the Herbicide Orange under Operation Pacer HO was to begin in the fall of 1974, but because of various delays by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Air Force budget limitation, disposal was postponed until the fall of 1976. Work was then completed on the drum crusher and work area at Johnston Atoll for the transfer of HO from 55-gallon drums to an R-5 refueler truck, and later for transfer to the incinerator ship. The redrumming activity began on September 30, 1974. As a part of the effort to dispose of the HO stored at Johnston Atoll and Gulfport, Mississippi, an attempt was made to filter out the 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-dioxin (TCDD), using filters of coconut charcoal so that the Agents could be re-used or re-sold. The twelve cylindrical filters used at Gulfport, Mississippi, contained approximately 13 grams of the contaminant TCDD. They were transferred to Johnston Atoll on December 8, 1976, and were stored in Bunker 785 while awaiting final disposition. While the TCDD was successfully removed, the resultant filters created a disposal problem beyond current technology.
On April 26, 1977, the EPA issued a research permit to burn the 15,000 drums of HO from Gulfport, Mississippi, during July 1977. Modification of the redrumming facility, installation of needed utilities and communications, and requisitioning/positioning of logistics support (i.e., R-5 refuelers, forklifts, personnel protective equipment) were accomplished in May and June in preparation for the re-drumming operation.
From May to June 1977, 50+ Air Force personnel from the five United States Air Force CLSS (Combat Logistics Support Squadrons) on Temporary Duty Assignment (TDY) at the U.S. Naval Construction Battalion (Seabee) Base at Gulfport, Mississippi transferred 800,000+ gallons of Herbicide Orange from the stored drums to rail tank cars, which were subsequently transferred to the Vulcanus at the dock.