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Machine-read from the scan, so expect some errors. Lines that couldn’t be read are left out.
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PLUTONIUM CONTAMINATED AREAS PRODUCED BY PARTIAL HIGH EXPLOSIVE DETONATION, AND BREAKUP AND DISTRIBUTION OF THE PLUTONIUM IN TWO OF THE FOUR WEAPONS IN VOLVED IN THE ACCIDENT. NO CRITICALITY OCCURRED.' THE TWO CONTAMINATION PATTERNS ARE SUFFICIENTLY FAR APART THAT NO OVERLAP RESULTED. TWO DISCRETE AREAS ARE INVOLVED. EACH OF THESE AREAS ARE, IN GENERAL QUITE SIMILAR TO WHAT WAS OBSERVED IN THE NEVADA TESTS OF NONCRITICAL DETONATIONS AND THE AMOUNTS OF PLUTONIUM INVOLVED IN EACH DEVICE WAS THE SAME AS USED IN THE NEVADA STUDIES. OF GREATEST CONCERN IS THE AREA ACTUALLY IN THE COMMUNITY OF PALOMARES WHICH HAS A POPULATION OF ABOUT 1000 OR SOMEWHAT GREATER. THE NATURE OF THE COMMUNITY IS VERY MUCH THAT OF A PUEBLO AND THE CONTAMINATION INCLUDES NOT JUST THE PEOPLE BUT THEIR FARMS AND THEIR DOMESTIC ANIMALS. THEIR FARMING PRACTICES CONSIST OF IRRIGATED SMALL PLOTS OF VEGETABLES (TOMATOES PRIMARILY, WHICH PROVIDES A LARGE PORTION OF THEIR INCOME) AND ALFALFA. THE DOMESTIC ANIMALS ARE HOGS, GOATS, A FEW COWS, SHEEP AND RABBITS. THE SECOND CONTAMINATED AREA IS ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF THE COMMUNITY AND INVOLVES DRY, ROCKY, MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN EXCEPT FOR A SMALL VALLEY THE LOWER END OF WHICH CONTAINS IRRIGATED TOMATOES, TWO OR THREE HOMES AND THE CEMETERY. THE TRAJECTORY OF THE CONTAMINATION WAS DOWN THIS VALLEY. THIS AREA POSES NO SIGNIFICANT POTENTIAL HAZARD TO THE PEOPLE OF THE COMMUNITY. IT DOES POSE PROBLEMS OF INCONVENIENCE TO THE PEOPLE, PSYCHOLOGICAL IMPACT AND ECONOMIC LOSS LARGELY BECAUSE THEIR PRODUCE IS BEING DISCRIMINATED AGAINST IN THEIR THE GREATEST CONCERN IS OVER THE CONTAMINATED AREA WITHIN THE COMMUNITY [TSELF. IN THIS CASE HOMES ARE LOCATED WITHIN ABOUT 100 YARDS OF THE IMPACT mu, am & sikh 7"" material contains tnfonnadoa efiarfl
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POINT. FORTUNATELY THE MAJORITY OF HOMES WERE IN THE UPWIND DIRECTION. THE MAJOR PORTION OF THE AREA HOWEVER INVOLVES CULTIVATED PRODUCE PLOTS UNDER IRRIGATION. PLUTONIUM CONTAMINATION IN THIS AREA RANGES FROM ABOUT 200,000 600,000 COUNTS/MINUTE WITHIN A FEW FEET OF IMPACT POINT TO 1,000 TO 2,000 COUNTS/MINUTE AT ABOUT 0.6 MILES IN THE DOWN WIND DIRECTION. WITHIN THE LIMIT OF ACCURACY OF THE FIELD MONITORING INSTRUMENT THIS RANGE COVERS FROM ABOUT LOOO MICROGRAMS PER SQUARE METER AT IMPACT POINT TO 10-20 MICROGRAMS PER SQUARE METER AT ABOUT ONE-HALF MILE. AS WOULD BE EXPECTED FROM THE NEVADA TESTS, THE PATTERN IS NOT AN EVEN SPREAD DECREASING WITH DISTANCE. AS PREDICTED BY SUTTONS EQUATIONS. HOT SPOTS THAT ARE AS MUCH AS A FACTOR OF 10 HIGHER THAN THE GENERAL AREA LEVEL OCCUR. ACCORDING TO THE NEVADA STUDIES, AN AREA NOT CONTAMINATED IN EXCESS OF 1000 MICROGRAMS PER SQUARE METER IS INHABITABLE FOR A LIFETIME IF THE CONTAMINATED AREA IS SUBJECT TO LOW WINDS AND LOW RESUSPENSION ACTIVITY. THE WINDS IN THIS AREA ARE HIGH AND BECAUSE OF FARMING OPERATIONS RESUSPENSION FORCES ARE HIGH ALSO. IT WOULD SEEM THEREFORE THAT THE SITUATIONS IN THIS AREA SHOULD BE TREATED IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE RECOMMENDATION (DERIVED FROM THE NEVADA STUDIES) FOR DIRTY RUr/aL ATMOSPHERE WHICH SPECIFIES 100 MICROGRAMS PER SQUARE METER AS THE LIMIT FOR CONTINUOUS LIFE-TIME OCCUPANCY. THIS CORRESPONDS TO A COUNT OF 13,000 PER MINUTE FOR THE COUNTING CONDITIONS AND EFFECTIVE PROBE AREA BEING USED IN THIS OPERATION. ON THIS BASIS IT WOULD SEEM TO BE MANDATORY TO CARRY OUT CONTROL AND RECONTAMINATION PROCEDURES ON ALL PORTIONS OF THE AREA SHOWING SURFACE DEPOSITION IN EXCESS OF lL,000 COUNTS PER MINUTE. fjOE ARCHIVES FOR THE ABOVE REASONS I RECOMMENDED TO THE SPANISH AND MILITARY AUTHORITIES THAT ALL AREAS WITH COUNTS IN EXCESS OF 100,000 PER MINUTE BE SCRAPED OFF TO A DEPTH OF AT LEAST 5 TO 6 CENTIMETERS, HAULED AWAY AND REPLACED WITH FRESH UNCONTAMINATED SOIL. RECOMMENDED IS ALSO THAT REGIONS OF THE AREA SHOWING LEVELS OF FROM 100,000 TO 7000 COUNTS PER MINUTE BE WETTED DOWN AND PLOWED IMMEDIATELY TO A DEPTH OF AT LEAST .10 CENTIMETERS AND WETTED DOWN AGAIN IMMEDIATELY AFTER PLOWING,
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THIS WOULD BE CARRYING THE RECOMMENDATIONS DOWN TO ABOUT 50 MICROGRAMS PER SQUARE METER, WHICH WOULD SEEM PRUDENT IN VIEW OF THE AMOUNT OF WIND AND CULTIVATION INHERENT TO THE AREA. THIS IS A FACTOR OF 2 BELOW THE RECOMMEKDATIOKS FOR CONTINUOUS LIFE-TIME OCCUPANCY. IT WAS RECOMMENDED FURTHER THAT ALL REGIONS SHOWING SURFACE COUNTS OF FROM 7000 TO 500 PER MINUTE BE WETTED DOWN TO PROVIDE ADDITIONAL SAFETY BY ABSORPTION FIXATION OF THE PLUTONIUM PARTICLES IN THE RESPERABLE SIZE RANGE TO SOIL PARTICLES WHICH ARE TOO BIG TO ENTER THE EXCHANGE SPACE OF THE LUNGS. IN ADDITION TO THE ABOVE RECOMMENDATIONS, CALCULATIONS WERE MADE OF THE POTENTIAL IRRIGATION HAZARDS TO ANIMALS EATING ALFALFA CONTAMINATED TO THE EX' OF 7000 COUNTS/MINUTE (15,000 DISINTERGRATIONS PER MINUTE ASSUMING 50# EEFIC AND THE POTENTIAL HAZARD TO PEOPLE EATING THE MEAT FROM SUCH ANIMALS. BECAUSE OF THE VERY SMALL ABSORPTION CDEFICIENTS OF PLUTONIUM FROM THE GUT OF MAN AND B THERE IS INSIGNIFICANT HAZARD EITHER TO THE ANIMAL OR TO MAN. ANY PART CF ANY ANIMAL EATING RATIONS FROM AN AREA NOT CONTAMINATED TO OVER 7000 COUNTS PER j MINUTE MAY BE EATEN WITHOUT ANY HESITANCY OR FEAR AT ANY TIME. THIS INCLUDES PIGS AS AN EXAMPLE THE LIVER (WHICH CONCENTRATES OVER 35# OF THE ABSORBED PLUTONIUM) y OF AN ANIMAL FED ON THE ALFALFA FOR 2 YEARS WOULD CONTAIN 6 X 10"5 MICROCURIES ' PER GRAM. THE MAXIMUM PERMISSIBLE LEVEL OF PLUTONIUM IN FOOD (ICRP) FOR CONTINUOU LIFE TIME CONSUMPTION IS 5 X 10"5 MICROCURIES PER GRAM. IF THIS IS DECREASED BY A FACTOR OF 10 (5 X 10"6) TO APPLY TO A GENERAL POPULATION GROUP, THE RESULTS SB THAT LIVERS FROM ANIMALS GRAZING ON ALFALFA SURFACE CONTAMINATED TO THE EXTENT CF 7000 COUNTS/MINUTE COULD BE EATEN EVERY DAY FOR A LIFE-TIME WITHOUT EXCEEDING THE SIMILAR CALCULATIONS FOR MILK SUGGEST THAT MILK FRCM ANIMALS EATING ALFALFA I FROM THE 7000 COUNT PER MINUTE AREAS WOULD BE AT LEAST ONE MILLION TIMES LOWER THAN THE ICRP RECOMMENDATIONS FOR LIFE-TIME CONSUMPTION BY THE GENERAL POPULATION UNWASHED TOMATOES THAT WERE IN THE AREA AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT IS THE ONLY
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QUESTIONABLE FOOD ITEM. ALL JUDGEMENTS OF SUCH FOODS BY THE ICRP RECOMMENDATIONS ARE BEING MADE ON THE BASIS OF LIFE-TIME CONSUMPTION. THIS OF COURSE IS NOT THE CASE WHICH APPLIES HERE. ONLY THE CROPS IN THE FIELD ARE SUSPECT. FUTURE CROPS WILL NOT BE AFFECTED BECAUSE OF THE INABILITY OF PLANT ROOTS TO ABSORB PLUTONIUM THE PLANT UPTAKE COEFICIENT IS AT LEAST 10 "8. IF THE HIGHER AREAS ARE PLOWED TO DILUTE THE PLUTONIUM THROUGH A LARGE VOLUME OF SOIL THE UPTAKE BY PLANTS WILL BE UNDETECTABLE BY TEE MOST SOPHISTICATED LAB CHAT'CRY TECHI7IQUE3. IN KEEPING WITH THE ABOVE LINE OF REASONING IT IS I-IY CONTENTION THAT THE POTENTIAL HAZARD IMPOSED ON THIS UNFORTUNATE COMMUNITY WILL BE COMPLETELY INSIGNIFICANT IF THE DECONTAMUtAT] PROCEDURES RECOMMENDED HERE-IN ARE REASONABLY COMPLIED WITH. THIS DOES NOT MEAN THAT THEY HAVE NOT BEEN SUBJECTED TO SIGNIFICANT ECONOMIC AND PSYCHOLOGICAL FACTORS. THE LATTER IS LIKELY TO BE THE MOST DIFFICULT ONE TO CONTROL IN THE LONG RUN. SICKNESS OF ANY SORT, LOSS OF CROPS AND DEATH OF ANIMALS IN THIS AREA IN THE FUTURE REGARDLESS OF ACTUAL CAUSE WILL PROBABLY FREQUENTLY BE ATTRIBUTED TO PLUTONIUM. I RECOMMEND THEREFORE, THE SPANISH ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY BE GIVEN SOME CON SIDERATION AND HELP IN DEALING WITH THE FUTURE IMPACT OF THE PSYCHOLOGICAL FACTOR SINCE THEY WILL PROBABLY BE LOCKED TO BY THE PEOPLE AND THE GOVERNMENT AS THE EXPERTS ON MATTERS INVOLVING EITHER REAL OR IMAGINARY PLUTONIUM EFFECTS. . GOOD EQUIH-EKT WITH WHICH TO MEASURE PLUTONIUM AND STUDY THEIR OWN PROBLEMS GRCWUK! OUT 0? THIS INCIDENT WOULD BE A BIG HELP IN COMBATING FEARS AND RUMORS. GROUP LEADER OF BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH AND ASSISTANT HEALTH DIVISION LEADER LOS ALAMOS SCIENTIFIC LAB