Radiological survey of the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard

Technical Report · Tue Oct 01 00:00:00 EDT 1991

OSTI ID:6263209

Semler, M O

Since 1963, the National Air and Radiation Environmental Laboratory (NAREL), US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in cooperation with the US Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA), has surveyed facilities serving nuclear-powered warships on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts and the Gulf of Mexico. These surveys assess whether the construction, maintenance, overhaul, or refueling of nuclear-powered warships have created elevated levels of radioactivity. The surveys emphasize sampling those areas and pathways that could expose the public. In 1984, NAVSEA requested that EPA again survey all active facilities servicing nuclear-powered warships. The Portsmouth Naval Shipyard was surveyed September 11 to 15, 1989. This facility was previously surveyed by EPA in July 1977. At that time, no Co-60 ws found in any of the silt samples, but tritium (H-3) activities of 200 to 400 pCi/L were found in water samples from both background sites and shipyard sites. Cesium-137 and Zr-95/Nb-95, which are products of atmospheric nuclear weapons testing and are not due to the operations of the shipyard, were also detected in silts and biota.

• Research Organization: National Air and Radiation Environmental Lab., Montgomery, AL (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USEPA; Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC (United States)
• OSTI ID: 6263209
• Report Number(s): EPA-520/5-91-003; ON: TI92003680
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
45 MILITARY TECHNOLOGY, WEAPONRY, AND NATIONAL DEFENSE
HARBORS
RADIATION MONITORING
MILITARY FACILITIES
SITE SURVEYS
COBALT 60
MAINE
NUCLEAR SHIPS
RADIOACTIVITY
RADIOECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
SEDIMENTS
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
COBALT ISOTOPES
DEVELOPED COUNTRIES
ECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
FEDERAL REGION I
INTERMEDIATE MASS NUCLEI
INTERNAL CONVERSION RADIOISOTOPES
ISOMERIC TRANSITION ISOTOPES
ISOTOPES
MINUTES LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
MONITORING
NORTH AMERICA
NUCLEI
ODD-ODD NUCLEI
RADIOISOTOPES
SHIPS
USA
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOT
540330* - Environment
Aquatic- Radioactive Materials Monitoring & Transport- (1990-)
450000 - Military Technology
Weaponry
& National Defense