A field study is currently being concluded at Grand Junction and Durango, Colorado, and at Monticello and Salt Lake City, Utah, to evaluate the public health aspects of atmospheric 222Rn in the vicinity of uranium tailings piles. Air is collected continuously for 48 hr periods from each station in order to average out diurnal fluctuations. The integrated sample is then analyzed for 222Rn. A total of 57 stations is in operation. Each station is re-sampled every three weeks for one calendar year to include seasonal fluctuations and to permit a more realistic estimate of the yearly dose to people in the immediate vicinity. This paper presents data and conclusions from the 1 yr study. Of the 13 stations directly over tailings, average radon concentrations ranged from 3.5 pCi/l. to 16 pCi/l. Of the 44 stations not over tailings, only two averaged greater than 1 pCi/l. The results indicate negligible radiation exposure of the surrounding population from this source.
Water-resources data for the 1993 water year for Texas consists of records of stage, discharge, and water quality of streams; stage and contents in lakes and reservoirs; and water levels and water quality in wells.Volume 4 contains water levels for 771 observation wells and water-quality data for 226 monitoring wells.These data represent that part of the National Water Data System operated by the U.S.
This report presents a new method for accurate and fully independent direct measurement of the gas transfer and reaeration capacity of natural streams. The field technique involves the simultaneous use of tracers for dis persion and for dissolved oxygen. The initial laboratory investigations on the relative transfer properties of dissolved gases have been described in an earlier paper (1), and a detailed report of subsequent extensive laboratory stud ies and field trials has been completed and soon will be available (2). This paper reports the results of tracer measurement of the reaeration ca pacity of a 17-mile (27.2-km) reach of the Jackson River, between Coving ton and Clifton Forge, Virginia. The field studies were conducted during
Laboratory leaching tests conducted on uranium mill waste solids and river sediments collected from several locations in the Colorado Plateau area of the United States have shown that the amount of radium-226 that can be leached is primarily controlled by the liquid-to-solid ratio (volume of leaching liquid per unit weight of solids). The diffusion of radium-226 from the interior to the surface of the particles was found to be insignificant since the amount leached was essentially independent of time of contact after 15 min. Natural and synthetic river waters showed no greater tendency to leach radium-226 than did distilled water. Leaching tests conducted with 0.01 molar solutions of the common inorganic cations found in river waters showed that only barium significantly promoted the leaching of radium-226 from the solids studied.
Sulfur oxides emissions and their environmental effects are described. Fuels contain varying amounts of sulfur which is oxidized to sulfur dioxide or sulfur trioxide during combustion. These oxides are transformed into acid sulfate aerosols which can be transported in the atmosphere for long distances. These aerosols cause adverse effects on human health, vegetation, materials, and visibility. They are respiratory irritants because their small particle size allows deep penetration into the lung. Adverse effects on public health include aggravation of asthma, increases in deaths, and aggravations of illness among the elderly and infirm. Recent reductions of SO/sub 2/ emissions in major cities have not controlled urban sources of acid sulfate aerosols. Massive conversion of urban power plants to high sulfur fuels or unrestricted use of tall stacks and supplementary control systems can greatly aggravate the acid sulfate aerosol problem. Flue gas desulfurization, cleaner fuels, or modified combustion processes are required to control the acid sulfate aerosol problem. (Air Pollut. Abstr.)
