Role of burrowing activities of the Great Basin pocket mouse (Perognathus parvus) in the dispersal of radionuclides on a decommissioned pond
The intrusion of waste burial sites by animals is a common occurrence at nuclear waste facilities. This study identifies parameters associated with burrowing activities of the Great Basin Pocket Mouse at the Hanford Site in southeastern Washington. The objectives of the study were to: (1) document and compare burrow depths on a control site and a decommissioned radioactive waste pond and (2) document /sup 137/Cs concentrations in pocket mice and the soil mounds created by their burrowing activities. Pocket mice burrowed deeper in the backfilled burial site (anti x = 72 cm) than they did in the control site (anti x = 38 cm). The small amounts of /sup 137/Cs found in the mice were an order of magnitude below what was present in the mounds. This indicates that the burrowing habits of these mice and subsequent mound construction may be more important in terms of radionuclide dispersal than the small amounts contained within their bodies. The /sup 137/Cs values reported in the mice and mounds are below Rockwell Hanford Operations (Rockwell) surface soil contamination limits. Information received from test plots will be used in formulating appropriate control mechanisms which may be deployed in the future. In the interim, surface stabilization efforts are being conducted on waste sites to control and deter burrowing animals.
- Research Organization:
- Rockwell International Corp., Richland, WA (USA). Energy Systems Group
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC06-77RL01030
- OSTI ID:
- 6724288
- Report Number(s):
- RHO-HS-SA-10-P; ON: DE83000104
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE WASTES FROM NUCLEAR FACILITIES
510302 -- Environment
Terrestrial-- Radioactive Materials Monitoring & Transport-- Terrestrial Ecosystems & Food Chains-- (-1987)
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
ALKALI METAL ISOTOPES
ANIMALS
BEHAVIOR
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
CESIUM 137
CESIUM ISOTOPES
CONTAMINATION
ECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSPORT
HANFORD RESERVATION
ISOTOPES
MAMMALS
MANAGEMENT
MASS TRANSFER
MICE
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
NUCLEI
ODD-EVEN NUCLEI
RADIOACTIVE WASTE DISPOSAL
RADIOECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
RADIOISOTOPES
RADIONUCLIDE MIGRATION
RODENTS
SOILS
TUNNELS
UNDERGROUND FACILITIES
US DOE
US ERDA
US ORGANIZATIONS
VERTEBRATES
WASTE DISPOSAL
WASTE MANAGEMENT
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES