Animal Investigation Program 1976 annual report: Nevada test site and vicinity. [Radioanalysis of tissues from animals residing on or near NTS in 1976]
Data are presented from the radioanalysis of tissues collected from cattle and mule deer, desert bighorn sheep, feral horses, and other wildlife that resided on or near the Nevada Test Site during 1976. Other than the naturally occurring potassium-40, gamma-emitting radionuclides were detected infrequently with the exception of /sup 131/I in animal thyroid samples collected after September 25 (the date of a Chinese nuclear test). Strontium-90 concentrations in bones from deer, cattle, and desert bighorn sheep continued the downward trend of recent years. Tritium concentrations were generally within ambient limits with the exception of animals exposed to sources of contamination; e.g., Sedan Crater, drainage ponds from Area 12 tunnels, etc. Analysis of actinide in tissues was emphasized during 1976. Graphs illustrate the /sup 239/P levels in lungs, livers, and femurs from Nevada Test Site beef cattle for the years 1971 through 1976. Femur and lung residue data are nearly identical for each year with liver concentrations being a factor of 2 or 3 lower. Hypothetical dose estimates to man were calculated on the basis of the daily consumption of 0.5 kilogram of liver or muscle from animals that contained peak actinide levels. The highest postulated dose was 11 millirem from tritium from tissues for a mule deer. This dose is about 2% of the 500 millirems/year guide for radiation doses to an individual in the general public. All other postulated doses for consumption of the tissue containing other radionuclides are less than 0.1% of this guide. The food habits of desert bighorn sheep were discussed according to the geographic locations of the animals at time of collection. Grasses made up approximately 60% of the diet at all locations, with shrubs content approaching 30%, and the remainder consisting of various forbs. The movement of 13 mule deer fitted with collars containing a radiotransmitter unit was monitored on a weekly basis.
- Research Organization:
- Environmental Protection Agency, Las Vegas, NV (USA). Environmental Monitoring and Support Lab.
- DOE Contract Number:
- EY-76-A-08-0539
- OSTI ID:
- 6511232
- Report Number(s):
- EMSL-LV-0539-20; TRN: 79-005727
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Animal investigation program 1980 annual report: Nevada Test Site and vicinity
Animal investigation program 1978 annual report: Nevada Test Site and vicinity
Related Subjects
63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
CATTLE
CONTAMINATION
RADIONUCLIDE KINETICS
DEER
FOOD CHAINS
GAMMA SOURCES
RADIATION MONITORING
RADIOECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
HORSES
HUMAN POPULATIONS
ENVIRONMENTAL EXPOSURE PATHWAY
RADIATION DOSES
IODINE 131
PLUTONIUM 239
SHEEP
DIET
POPULATION DYNAMICS
STRONTIUM 90
TRITIUM
WILD ANIMALS
FEMUR
LIVER
LUNGS
NEVADA TEST SITE
SKELETON
THYROID
ACTINIDE ISOTOPES
ACTINIDE NUCLEI
ALKALINE EARTH ISOTOPES
ALPHA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
ANIMALS
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BODY
DAYS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
DIGESTIVE SYSTEM
DOMESTIC ANIMALS
DOSES
ECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
ENDOCRINE GLANDS
EVEN-EVEN NUCLEI
EVEN-ODD NUCLEI
GLANDS
HEAVY NUCLEI
HYDROGEN ISOTOPES
INTERMEDIATE MASS NUCLEI
IODINE ISOTOPES
ISOTOPES
LIGHT NUCLEI
MAMMALS
MONITORING
NUCLEI
ODD-EVEN NUCLEI
ORGANS
PLUTONIUM ISOTOPES
POPULATIONS
RADIATION SOURCES
RADIOISOTOPES
RESPIRATORY SYSTEM
RUMINANTS
STRONTIUM ISOTOPES
VERTEBRATES
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
510302* - Environment
Terrestrial- Radioactive Materials Monitoring & Transport- Terrestrial Ecosystems & Food Chains- (-1987)
560172 - Radiation Effects- Nuclide Kinetics & Toxicology- Animals- (-1987)
560171 - Radiation Effects- Nuclide Kinetics & Toxicology- Man- (-1987)