The Newsletter of the Hanford Health Information Network Connections

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The Newsletter of the Hanford Health Information Network Radiation Science Update: Scientific Experts Evaluate Hanford’s Plutonium Release Estimates by Jim Thomas, HHlN Research Director Recent news stories have described a scientific report critical of some of the Hanford Environmental Dose Reconstruction Project (HEDR) release estimates. The scientific report is part of the legal case which downwinders have filed against former Hanford contractors. The report criticizing HEDR’s work is from Alex Klementiev, one of the plaintiffs’ (downwinders) consultants. Klementiev, a Russian scientist, has assisted with some Chernobyl studies. Klementiev has speculated that Hanford could have released as much as 1,600 curies of plutonium (Pu-239). HEDR estimated the plutonium release was about 2 curies. Why such a huge difference? Klementiev Scenarios for Plutonium Releases (1945-1969) I 1 Scenario A 1 Scenario B 1 Scenario C 1 Scenario D 1 Scenario E 1 Scenario F In his report, Klementiev developed a set of six scenarios which he labeled A to F (see table). Each scenario was developed using a different set of assumptions about how the plants operated and how well the filters worked. Scenario A is essentially the amount that HEDR estimated. Scenario F, the largest estimate, has drawn the most attention. He based “F” primarily on an obscure 1961 memo that was attached to a 1977 internal Hanford report on plutonium inventory problems. The 1961 memo stated that 1 to 2 kilograms of plutonium were going up the stack and into the air (one kilogram of plutonium contains about 63 curies). This memo was written by George J. Brabb. Brabb was an economics professor who was then at the University of Washington. During the summer of 1961, Hanford asked for Brabb’s assistance with plutonium inventory problems at the Plutonium Finishing Plant (also known as Z Plant). In a 1996 letter to Klementiev, Brabb recalled, “I went through (Z Plant) several times [in 19611 and found that the filtering system was not adequate to capture the vaporized plutonium oxide which was essentially in a gaseous form when released by burning. This was revealed by the fact that a significant amount of plutonium was found in the ducts of the vacuum system ...even though it was protected by filters. This convinced me that fine plutonium was being released into Scientists who reviewed Klementiev’s report for the defendants (former Hanford contractors) in the litigation had a different opinion. One is Joseph K. Soldat, a health physicist at Hanford from 1948 to 1995. In his review of Klementiev’s plutonium report, Soldat likely to be close to Klementiev’s Scenario C Scenario F for Plant Z is unreasonable, as it is based on unsubstantiated speculation and is not supported by available data.” Another scientist working for the defendants is Dade W. Moeller. He served with the See RADIATION SCIENCE page 3

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expressed in this newsletter are those of the author, not necessarily of the The Hanford Health tion among three states and nine Our work is based on respect for the als and their right to make personal decisions with the For information, or for this newsletter, contact the Hanford Line for your state In other states HHIN Home Page World Wide Web: 2 > HHIN Connections, Fa Projects Address Health of Former Hanford Workers Submitted by Kitty Taimi, USDOE Office of Environment, Safety and Health Two projects funded by the U.S. Department of Energy (USDOE) to evaluate the health status of former Hanford workers will begin this fall. The two are among six pilot projects developing plans for medical screening programs for former workers at USDOE nuclear sites who may be at risk from past occupational exposure to radioactive or hazardous substances. The projects were selected from a nationwide competition, based on the ratings of a peer review panel. USDOE plans to fund additional projects next year. The Hanford projects will evaluate the health of former construction, production and other workers. Participation is voluntary.A team led by the Center to Protect Workers’ Rights is conducting one of the projects. The University of Washington is conducting the other. Contacting former workers will be a key activity in the projects’ first phase. This phase will be a needs assessment, and will examine exposure and health data, estimate the most significant worker hazards, and identify Nlew from HHIN Order any of the following at no charge from HHIN (toll-free numbers at left). Conference Tapes from HHIN k Radiation Health Effects Conjerence, September 1994 - Annotated list of speakers and their topics. Indian Nations Affected by Hanjord RadiaA Listing of Radionuclides Released from Hanford - Names and physical half-lives of 237 radionuclides which the HEDR Project estimated Hanford released into the air and the Columbia River. Articles from Other Sources “Health Consequences of Exposures to Ionizing Radiation from External and Internal Wolfgang Kohnlein, Ph.D., Medicine and Global Survival (1 995). HHIN Order #504 0 approaches for medical screening. A second phase involves medical screening for target groups of former workers based on exposure history and potential risks. Any former Hanford worker interested in participating should contact the appropriate project. Former construction workers, contact: Dr. h u t Ringen, Center to Protect Workers’ Rights, 1 1 1 Massachusetts Ave., N.W., ers, contact: Tim K. Takaro, M.D., University of Washington, 4225 Roosevelt Way N.E., The Northwest Portland Area Indian Health tions of Seattle, Wash., has produced a on the Hanford Nuclear Site.” The Tribal rated on the video. The video will be used as an educational tool for the nine Hanford tribes and other interested groups. The video projects the impact of the Hanford Nuclear Reservation on the culture, lifestyle and health of the tribes. To present a realistic perspective, the participants in the video were tribal members. For historical accuracy, A1 Conklin of the Washington State Department of Health’s Radiation Protection Division and a former Hanford employee, was included as a narrator and script consultant along with William Burke, the former The video not only presents history, but documents a realistic drama of the changing lifestyle of the affected tribes. For a copy, contact the HHIN Tribal Service Program, Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board, 520 S.W. Harrison St., Suite 335, Portland, OR 9720 1, (503) 228-4 185 or

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Archives Opens to Chronicle More than 50 years after radioactive materials were first released from the Hanford Nuclear Reservation, the Hanford Health Information Archives opened its doors at Gonzaga University’s Foley Center Library in Spokane, Wash. The Archives is the nation’s first public collection of personal experiences and health records of people living in areas exposed to radioacment of Energy nuclear facility. Anyone interested can view materials individuals have contributed to the Archives. The Archives is also accepting new contributions. Donations include personal writings and recollections, edical records, photographs, books and videotapes. Many are from I \ downwinders who have health uroblems: of the Hanford Downwinders Coalition, said that what people have donated is as signififrom other times and places. “You could read volumes on World War 11, but nothing will touch you as much as that diary of one young Dutch girl. And what would the story of the Oregon Trail migration be without the personal accounts people kept along the way?” Speaking on behalf of the HHIN Tribal Advisory Board, Moses Dick Squeochs, a member of the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation, noted that tribal members have many concerns about the environment. “Participating in the Archives will make sure the Native American component is there-to help us gather further knowlcommitment: “Today we begin a new era of providing access to unique information about downwinders’ health concerns to the local community and the greater public through Knowledge and Access See ARCHIVES OPENS, over other donors lived in the exposed areas and are healthy. Speaking at a ceremony to open the Archives, Judith Jurji, president Why I Gave to the Archives Many people who have donated information to the Archives see this as a way of helping others. For example, Archives donor Juanita P. Guthrie says she tried to hide her chronic loss of energy until she learned that others had similar problems. She She was born in 1930 in Walla Walla, Wash., where she lived until 1952. Her diet included garden vegetables and fresh milk and eggs. She was healthy and “robust.” ortly after the December 1949 Green Run experiment at Hanford, Juanita began running low-grade fevers, then collapsed. She was put on thyroid medicine but has had other health problems. “I cannot help but wonder if the emissions from Hanford altered my immune system,” she said, To Juanita, the Archives is a “testament that what happened back then matters.” She filled out the Archives Personal Health Information Questionnaire. “ I hope my Archives contribution will be a relief to someone else,” she said.

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Downwinder Finds Clues in Archives tci Early Experiences Martha McNeely has been living with childhood memories that didn’t make sense to her. In recent months, “I’ve been trying to piece things together,” she says. Her early years were in Richland Wash., from 1946 to 1954, when her father and mother worked for Hanford. Old records of her mother’s have provided some insights into what happened back then. But Martha has also found help at the Hanford Health Among Martha’s finds in the Archives were the donations of former Hanford workers and others who lived in Richland. She was interested to see what they recalled and what had happened in their lives. With help from Assistant Archivist John Bolcer, she also found helpful information in the Foley Library’s government documents collection and through an on-line search about “Project Sunshine,” which involved Richland school children. “I’m very interested in continuing my research at the Archives,” Martha said. She’s also writing her own recollections and gathering family records and photos to donate. 0 Were you downwind or downriver from Hanford between 1944 and 1972? If so, the Archives invites you to donate information about your health and experiences. Here are four ideas: 1 Write, tape record or videotape your recollections-as though you’re writing or speaking to a downwinder or your grandchild. You can write out questions for yourself in advance. Describe when and where you lived in the Hanford exposure area. Tell about your experiences and things you saw. Talk about any health concerns you may have. Share what you want others to hear and know. 2 Look for photos of yourself and your community from the time you were in the exposure area and other times you think are important. 3 See if you have old letters or diaries from the time your family was in the exposure area. 4 Fill out the Archives Personal Health Information Questionnaire. You can donate confidentially or with your name open to the public. Call the Archives for more ideas on what to donate and to get the forms you’ll need. Each person’s experience is a piece of the puzzle. Your information can help others, now and in the future, to understand the whole picture of how Hanford has affected people in the Northwest. 0 How To Contact Foley Center Library Archives Opens, continued People anywhere in the world can access the Archives on-line to search the collections. Archives Manager Pennington Ahlstrand says this person-to-person connection is part of what makes the Archives unique. “The material in the Archives is generally untouched by anyone except its original creator,” she said. Assistant Archivist John Bolcer noted: “Users of the Archives may analyze the People who use the Archives are discovering its resources. “It’s very moving to see how much it means to people who find something in the Archives that touches on their own appreciate the time, caring and generosity of those who contribute their personal information to the Archives.” The Archives is sponsored by the state health agencies of Washington, Idaho and Oregon, through the Hanford Health Information Network. Gonzaga University manages and operates the Archives. 0

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These Radiation Risk Communicators 1Washington HHIN Educates Health Care Providers HHIN’s Washington program held a Radiation Risk Communication training conference in Seattle in early September. More than 40 Washington health care providers, including physicians, nurses, nurse practitioners and naturopaths, learned about Hanford history, radiation science, radiation health effects, risk communication, ongoing studies, and ethical and psychosocial issues surrounding Hanford’s from other health care professionals about Hanford-related issues. Washington health p care providers will receive a list with the ab names and telephone numbers of these HHIN’s home page on the World Wide Web (see box on page 2) will soon link to Radiation Risk Communication updates. These updates will keep RRCs and anyone who visits the Web site informed about studies on radiation health effects and related news. 0 Recent meetings of the Hanford Environmental Dose Reconstruction (HEDR) Task Completion Working Group have included updates on work on three issues: milk producers; reports on the releases of plutonium and ruthenium particles and of shortlived radionuclides; and demographic information on migrant farm workers. For information, call Elke Shaw-Tulloch, (208) Hanf ortl I I ca It ti I<ifec t 3 \ti hco mni itt ec At the December 5-6 HHES meeting, Dr. Owen Hoffman will present his report reviewing HEDR’s dose estimates for the Columbia River pathway. Future meetings are set for Feb. 20-2 1, 1997, in Portland, Ore.; May 8-9 in Kennewick, Wash.; July 24-25 in San Francisco; Oct. 9-10 in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho; and Dec. 11-12 (place TBA). For information, contact Jim Carpenter, Designated Federal Official or Linda A. Carnes, ATSDR Health Council Advisor, A fundraising effort is underway for this study. The study’s overall goal is to determine if the exposed servicemen stationed at Hanford suffer a higher cancer death rate than servicemen not exposed. A contact person will be hired when funds can be found. If you have not received the Fall 1996 IDA information sheet, please call the contact person for your state: Idaho: Steve West, (208) 334-0606; Oregon: Laura Chenet Leonard (503) 73 1-4025; Washington: John Erickson, (360) 664-2958. Or call toll-free: Radiation Science Update (continued from page 1) U.S. Public Health Service and was also a professor in environmental health at Harvard University. In his critique, Moeller states that Klementiev’s report “does not actually come to a conclusion regarding what release estimates should be considered valid. Furthermore, I find that concluded his rebuttal by stating: “There is enough evidence to believe that the routine measurements would fail to detect a documented significant amount of...the light and fine form of Pu-239.” After having the opportunity of reviewing the reports by Soldat and Moeller, Klementiev The chair of the HEDR Task Completion Working Group, Steve West, has said that the Working Group will ask the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for a formal review of the Klementiev information and the critiques. 0 The day before a meeting of the Health Projects is for your area Call for dates (see Zall for future Wash. See phone Iates and times may HHIN Connections, Fall 1996 ) 3

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This column focuses on wwys to cope with health concerns downwinders have expressed to …