Offsite environmental monitoring report: Radiation monitoring around United States nuclear test areas

Technical Report · Mon Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1990

OSTI ID:5492455

This report describes the Offsite Radiation Safety Program conducted during 1990 by the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) Environmental Monitoring Systems Laboratory -- Las Vegas. This laboratory operates an environmental radiation monitoring program in the region surrounding the Nevada Test Site (NTS) and at former test sites in Alaska, Colorado, Mississippi, Nevada, and New Mexico. The surveillance program is designed to measure levels and trends of radioactivity, if present, in the environment surrounding testing areas to ascertain whether current radiation levels and associated doses to the general public are in compliance with existing radiation protection standards. The surveillance program additionally has the responsibility to take action to protect the health and well being of the public in the event of any accidental release of radioactive contaminants. Offsite levels of radiation and radioactivity are assessed by sampling milk, water, and air; by deploying thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLDs) and using pressurized ion chambers (PICs); and by biological monitoring of animals, food crops, and humans. Personnel with mobile monitoring equipment are placed in areas downwind from the test site prior to each nuclear weapons test to implement protective actions, provide immediate radiation monitoring, and obtain environmental samples rapidly after any occurrence of radioactivity release.

• Research Organization: Environmental Protection Agency, Las Vegas, NV (United States). Environmental Monitoring Systems Lab.
• Sponsoring Organization: DOE; EPA; USDOE, Washington, DC (United States); Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC (United States)
• DOE Contract Number: AI08-76DP00539; AI08-86NV10522
• OSTI ID: 5492455
• Report Number(s): DOE/DP/00539-063; EPA--600/4-91/030; ON: DE92010386
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
540130* -- Environment
Atmospheric-- Radioactive Materials Monitoring & Transport-- (1990-)
540150 -- Environment
Atmospheric-- Site Resources & Use Studies-- (1990-)
540230 -- Environment
Terrestrial-- Radioactive Materials Monitoring & Transport-- (1990-)
540250 -- Environment
Terrestrial-- Site Resource & Use Studies-- (1990-)
540330 -- Environment
Aquatic-- Radioactive Materials Monitoring & Transport-- (1990-)
540350 -- Environment
Aquatic-- Site Resource & Use Studies-- (1990-)
560101 -- Biomedical Sciences
Applied Studies-- Radiation Effects-- Dosimetry & Monitoring-- (1992-)
61 RADIATION PROTECTION AND DOSIMETRY
ABANDONED SITES
AIR
ALASKA
ANIMALS
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BIOLOGICAL MATERIALS
BODY FLUIDS
COLORADO
DEVELOPED COUNTRIES
DOCUMENT TYPES
DOSIMETRY
ENVIRONMENTAL EXPOSURE
FEDERAL REGION IX
FEDERAL REGION VI
FEDERAL REGION VIII
FLUIDS
FOOD
GASES
HAZARDS
HEALTH HAZARDS
HUMAN POPULATIONS
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
HYDROGEN ISOTOPES
ISOTOPES
LIGHT NUCLEI
MATERIALS
MILK
MISSISSIPPI
MONITORING
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
NEVADA
NEVADA TEST SITE
NEW MEXICO
NORTH AMERICA
NUCLEI
ODD-EVEN NUCLEI
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PLANTS
POPULATIONS
PROGRESS REPORT
PUBLIC HEALTH
RADIATION HAZARDS
RADIATION MONITORING
RADIATION PROTECTION
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS
RADIOISOTOPES
THERMOLUMINESCENT DOSIMETRY
TOXICITY
TRITIUM
US DOE
US ORGANIZATIONS
USA
WATER
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES