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Title: Radiation doses from Hanford site releases to the atmosphere

Conference ·
OSTI ID:10178514

Radiation doses to individuals were estimated for the years 1944-1992. The dose estimates were based on the radioactive-releases from the Hanford Site in south central Washington. Conceptual models and computer codes were used to reconstruct doses through the early 1970s. The published Hanford Site annual environmental data were used to complete the does history through 1992. The most significant exposure pathway was found to be the consumption of cow`s milk containing iodine-131. For the atmospheric pathway, median cumulative dose estimates to the thyroid of children ranged from < 0.1 to 235 rad throughout the area studied. The geographic distribution of the dose levels was directly related to the pattern of iodine-131 deposition and was affected by the distribution of commercial milk and leafy vegetables. For the atmospheric pathway, the-highest estimated cumulative-effective-dose-equivalent (EDE) to an adult was estimated to be 1 rem at Ringold, Washington for the period 1944-1992. For the Columbia River pathway, cumulative EDE estimates ranged from <0.5 to l.5 rem cumulative dose to maximally exposed adults downriver from the Hanford Site for the years 1944-1992. The most significant river exposure pathway was consumption of resident fish containing phosphorus-32 and zinc-65.

Research Organization:
Battelle-Northwest, Richland, WA (United States). Pacific Northwest Lab.
Sponsoring Organization:
Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, DC (United States)
DOE Contract Number:
AC06-76RL01830
OSTI ID:
10178514
Report Number(s):
PNWD-SA-3968-HEDR; CONF-9406210-6; ON: DE94017802; TRN: 94:008092
Resource Relation:
Conference: Health Physics Society annual meeting,San Francisco, CA (United States),27-30 Jun 1994; Other Information: PBD: Jun 1994
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English