Health risk analysis for ingestion of contaminants from existing groundwater contamination at selected UMTRA project sites

Technical Report · Thu Sep 01 04:00:00 EDT 1988

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/7087643· OSTI ID:7087643

Hamilton, L D; Medeiros, W H; Meinhold, A; Morris, S C; Moskowitz, P D; Nagy, J

This study examines potential hazards to human health from the ingestion of chemicals in ground waters beneath and adjacent to four abandoned uranium mill-tailings sites: Gunnison, Colorado; Lakeview, Oregon; Monument Valley, Arizona; and Riverton, Wyoming. Chemicals of concern in the ground water near these sites include arsenic, cadmium, chromium, lead-210, molybdenum, nitrate, polonium-210, radium 226 and radium 228, selenium, sulfate, thorium-230, uranium and vanadium. Hazards to health were evaluated by implementing the method outlined in the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) Superfund Public Health Evaluation Manual. Conservative assumptions in the method, and the effect of these on the risk estimates and EPA's indices of harm are discussed. Because the method has a number of built-in conservatisms, the estimated risks and indices only indicate sites and chemicals requiring further analysis. The chemicals and sites identified as presenting risk in this first screening step should be investigated in more detail. Necessary steps are given. Sites and chemicals identified as harmless in this initial screening can be eliminated from further consideration. 9 refs., 4 figs., 4 tabs.

• Research Organization: Brookhaven National Lab., Upton, NY (USA)
• Sponsoring Organization: DOE/NE
• DOE Contract Number: AC02-76CH00016
• OSTI ID: 7087643
• Report Number(s): BNL-44772; ON: DE90015134
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

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ABANDONED SITES
ACTINIDE ISOTOPES
ACTINIDE NUCLEI
ACTINIDES
ALKALINE EARTH ISOTOPES
ALPHA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
ARIZONA
ARSENIC
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
CADMIUM
CARBON 14 DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
CHROMIUM
COLORADO
COMPILED DATA
CONTAMINATION
DATA
DAYS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
DOSE EQUIVALENTS
ELEMENTS
ENVIRONMENTAL EXPOSURE
ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
EVEN-EVEN NUCLEI
FEDERAL REGION IX
FEDERAL REGION VIII
FEDERAL REGION X
GROUND WATER
HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
HAZARDS
HEALTH HAZARDS
HEAVY ION DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
HEAVY NUCLEI
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
INFORMATION
INGESTION
INTAKE
ISOMERIC TRANSITION ISOTOPES
ISOTOPES
LEAD 210
LEAD ISOTOPES
MATERIALS
METALS
MILL TAILINGS
MOLYBDENUM
NANOSEC LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
NEON 24 DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
NITRATES
NITROGEN COMPOUNDS
NORTH AMERICA
NUCLEI
NUMERICAL DATA
OREGON
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
POLONIUM 210
POLONIUM ISOTOPES
PUBLIC HEALTH
RADIOISOTOPES
RADIUM 226
RADIUM 228
RADIUM ISOTOPES
REMEDIAL ACTION
RISK ASSESSMENT
SELENIUM
SEMIMETALS
SITE SURVEYS
SOLID WASTES
SULFATES
SULFUR COMPOUNDS
TAILINGS
THORIUM 230
THORIUM ISOTOPES
TRANSITION ELEMENTS
URANIUM
USA
VANADIUM
WASTES
WATER
WATER QUALITY
WATER USE
WYOMING
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES