Majuro, Marshall Islands Meeting, September 1, 1975

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Participants: Oscar DeBrum, TTPI Roger Ray, ERDA Kristine Morris, ERDA This was an informal meeting to org~i~ the presentation of tions on the Bikini Master Plan and second phase of resettlement housing for our meeting with the Kili people. Distad DeBrum expressed his thanks to us fOr answering his request and accompanying him on his trip to Kili and Bikini. Joe Murphy, editor of the Micronesia questions to Distad DeBrum concerning Paul Gudiksen prepared answers to the We wanted to accomplish the following Independent, had submitted a list of radiation and the habitation of Bikini. goals at Kili and Bikini: People can live safely on Bikini for an indefinite period of tirns. Distad DeBrum asked if the houses hadn’t been built on Bikini would Bikini be quarantined? Apparently this was the impression held by the TTPI representatives as a result of the August 12 meeting at Livermore. Dr. Biles was alleged to have said this. Roger Ray sent a TWX to Washington for clarification and received a clarification Distad Debrum said he felt insulted by the Departmnt of Interior because they released the press announcement concerning a six month delay in the return to Bikini without informing or consulting him. Why announce it DeBrum said people are still planning to return to Bikini. We assured him ERDA doesn’t believe there should be a delay. The number of people returning is limited only by the available housing. ERDA feels nothing we will learn six months from now would effect the return to Bikini. The info~mation to be gained from SOJ1, water and biota analysis will be an understanding of which food production areas should be studied more and which foods should be deleted from the diet. We reiterated that @Bruin should emphasize development of Enyu. Copra production can be done on both Bikini and Enyu, however, only Enyu should be used to grow subsistence crops.

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Majuro, Eirshall Islands ___ DeBrum pointed out that -the-Bikinians at Kili have always lived in one village. He wasn’t sure how they would react to living in two villages. He felt they would be willing to be separated if their safety is insured. Nathan, the scribe at Kiii, has said that no more houses will be built on Bikini and no one will return. Roger stated that he has Bikini and promising not DeBrum said it was up to reservations about having people return to to eat breadfruit and pandanus when it matures. the people to make and keep such promises.

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Majuro, Marshall Islands Ataji Bales, cotig-reisof Micronesia Kristine Morris, ERDA Roger Ray, ERDA Allen was hostile the moment he entered the room stating he was “goddamn” mad our “senior scientists” didn’t come with us. He followed this with opinions Allen said he and his clients were not competent technically to make a decision about living on Bikini. Allen wanted to know if comparative studies on marine life in the lagoon before testing at Bikini and now had been done. Did the pass blwn in the reef allow sharks into the lagoon? Allen expressed his concern about the ERDA recommendation not to drink groundwater at Bikini. He feels that Bikini is far enough north that water could become a problem for a large community. We attempted to res~nd to all of these subjects, however, Allen was abrupt, rude and interrupted with other topics and Participants: Oscar DeBrum; Distad Harley Earewicker, Dist. Att’y. Majuro ‘ Roger Ray, ERDA Kristine Morris, ERDA Essentially this meeting “covered same areas as yesterday’s meeting. Roger went over two TWX’s (Reports 1 and 2 from Majuro). No one had any comments. We discussed Dr. Conard and a potential problem with misinterpreting his reports and actions. One example from Distad DeBrum: He quoted a congress of Micronesia Fact Finding ‘report which said that people living on Rongelap eating indigenous foods grown there, have an increase in their “radiation” count. The numbers mentioned were 30% to 60% higher. Roger and Paul both said they were unfamiliar with this information. It seems to be misconstrued. A meting with the Kili Council, Nitijela representatives and Congress of Micronesia representatives was planned for 1:00 P.M.

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Participants: Oscar EeBrum, Distad Carmen Bigler, Rep. to the Cong2ess of Micronesia Charles lbninik, Rep. to Congress of Micronesia Ataji Bales, Rep. to Congress of Micronesia Larry Edwards, Distad Rep. Ebeye Lanlin Alik, Distad Rep. Bikini Nathan Note, Scribe Anien, Nitijela, Speaker Ekpap Silk, Nitijela Representative Jim McAfee, Legislative Counselor Adjin Paul, Nitijela Representative Kita Lanin, Nigijela Representative Ray: Thank you Distad DeBrum. As Mr. DeBrum said I am from the ERDA as is =S Morris, what you for~rly knew as AEC. Dr. Gudiksen is from Lawrence Livernwre Laboratory and has been an active participant in surveys at both Enewetak and Bikini including the most recent one at Bikini in June. About a year ago Mr. DeBrum asked us, asked ERDA, to assist in the review of the Master Plan for the development of Bikini and very specifically, to comment upon the proposed locations of new housing features of that community. In January of this year in a reeting in Anaheim attended by Distad lkBrum and others from Majuro, we looked over the preliminary Master Plan and asked that action on that plan be delayed until we could make a new comprehensive survey, especially of Bikini Island. Our reason for that was that for the first time we saw a plan to build houses on the interior and not on the lagoon, as the present houses are. SO we felt it was necessary to learn, to know, more about the possible radiation levels in the interior before we suggest that plan be We had planned that that comprehensive survey include an aerial survey of all other islands in the atoll including Bikini and Enyu. . We hoped that that survey would take place starting in about April of this year. It required that we have aircraft and ships and substantial supprt from the Department of Defense. We planned that and requested that from the Dept. of Defense but for reasons of interference from other activities it could not be scheduled to provide this support in time to do this survey as we had hoped to do. So we revised our plan and using our research vessel, our LCU, the Liktm-ur, which is based at Kwa]-alein, in June we sent about 25 wn to Bikini to conduct a detailed survey on the ground. The results of that survey are in two parts. First, our purpose was to make measurements with instruments right on the ground of the radiation levels that would be experienced by people on the islands, to determine if there were places where the radiation levels were too high for the full time residents and to map that in order to be able to advise on housing locations. This information was available al~st immediately after the survey. It took us a little while to plot it on maps and interpret that but that information was available quite promptly after our survey in June. The second tgpe of information we wanted to get, was information about concentrations of radiation in the soil, the plants, vegetables and small animals that might be a part of the food of people residing on Bikini. That information will

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take about six months to learn after we’ve taken the samples and the samples have been taken back to Lawrence Livermore Laboratories and otier laboratories where they will be analyzed and by the end of this year the information from that On August 12, just two weeks ago or a little nmre, we met at Livernwre, California to present for the firSt time the results of the first phase of the survey, the measurements that had been made on the ground. There were several representatives from Majuro there: Mr. DeBrum, Dennis McBreen, Harley Earwicker as well as Mr. Allen from MLSC. At that ti~ we presented the results, that we will go over briefly with you this afternoon, and the Distad at eat tiw asked US to come here and accompany him to Kili and Bikini to discuss these findings first hand with the people of both Kili and Bikini: And that’s our purpose in being here. NW in the meantime we understand that a lot of conversation, a lot of runwrs have been discussed here at Majuro and I suppse elsewhere in #e Marshalls. Those that we’ve heard about are pretty serious distortions of the facts of the understanding that we have and I’m sure we welco~ the op~rt~ity we have to tell you first hand what we’ve found and give you the opprt~ity to ask questions. We’d like to know what your questions are and to try to respond to them. First and most important of what I’d like to leave with you is the houses now built on Bikini Island are safe for people to live in. They have been safe for people to live in since they were built and they continue to be safe to live in. The radiation levels in that part of the island along the lagoon where those houses are built are well within the standards acceptable for human habitation. But with the understanding that people who live in those houses should not have their diet, their food, come entirely from Bikini island. SonE of the food, especially breadfruit and pandanus grown in the soil of Bikini island, would have radiation levels high enough that if they were a major part of the diet over a lifetime there would be unacceptably high levels of radiation for those people. Let me say again it’s not the houses, it’s the food grown there. And since the people at Bikini now are not subsisting, not eating a diet from Bikini island, there’s no reason for them to be apprehensive or concerned about their health. There’s no reason for them to be feeling there’s been a mistake made by letting them be there. There’s no reason that every one of those houses should not now be occupied. If peop~e chose to live in them understanding that their food must come from elsewhere as it is nw. One other condition that we do not know enough about is the groundwater, the well water, to be able to say that is safe for long term consumption. There certainly are not high enough levels in that water that a small amount of it or drinking it over a period of a few weeks is a serious thing. l%t we have not yet studied the groundwater enough. We’ve not done enough analysis of it to give that a clean bill and say it’s alright for consumption. So we would recommend that if the hou~es on Bikini island be occupied, there be sufficient catchments so that people can rely u~n catchment water for drinking and cooking purposes and not rely upon groundwater. Those are the only two conditions that we would suggest be placed upon taking up residence on Bikini. Let me say that we are not urging people to go to Bikini, nor are we urging them not to. That is not our decision. Our business is to advise the Distad and advise the council and the people to the best of our ability as to what the conditions are. It’s your choice and their’s as to whether it’s a reasonable thing to do to live on an island where you can’t raise all your food. But that has not anything to do with the safety of being in those houses. They are safe for habitation. The rest of the island is safe for the people to walk around and visit on. It’s simply that we do not believe that additional houses should be built inland on Bikini at this time.

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The additional information we have already from the survey is that Enyu island is perfectly safe from all standpoints. CrOpS grown on Enyu are safe to eat. Houses built anywhere on Enyu are safe to live in. _~d there would be no constraints, we know of no constraints or conditions that need to be placed on people that would live on Enyu island permanently. For that reason we have s Uggested that consideration be given to changing the impetus, the grw~ of Bikini Atoll, &e development of Bikini Atoll, shifting the emphasis of growth to Enyu at this time. Not withdrawing from Bikini, ” unless it becomes just inconvenient for people to live on Bikini. We don’t say that for safety reasons people not live on Bikini. We say that we think a better community, a wre complete community and one that will be much ~re compatible with the lifestyle of the people can be done on Engu. TWO more points I’d like to make: All of the fish, all the food from the lagoon, are safe to eat. No radiation levels of any consequences are in the fish products at Bikini Atoll. The point I’d like to be sure to make iS that it is our intention, regardless of what decisions are made about the repopulation of Bikini island, it is our intention to continue research, to study, monitoring and surveillance of that island and of Enyu for that matter and of #e people to be assured that these recommendations we make continue to be valid. We do intend a long term program co try to learn how to raise crops on Bikini island without them having high levels of radiation. And we think there are very good possibilities that that will materialize. We are committed, we ERDA are committed, to a long term program of study, research, and surveillance and as you know Dr. Conarti and his medical team have been conducting surveillance and nwnitoring of people at Rongelap and recently at Bikini. They will continue that. Should there be any evidence of radiation appearing in the diet, they’ll know it before it can be of any c(.nsequence or damage to the people. Dr. Conard has reported his surveys of people who have been living there now for a couple of years that he has found no significant radiation levels in those people. ‘That they have not been in any sort of hazardous condition. Have I missed anything? **(did not msntion in this meeting about the restriction on Enyu well water. This was later corrected Distad that’s a summary and we would welcome any questions from anyone. Ekpsp: In your summary you concentrate on only two islands, Bikini and Enyu Islands. What happened to tie rest of of the islands? Should the people decide to go there and pick pandanus and breadfruit would they be safe? Ray: In the recommendations that were made before the cleanup and resettlement of Bikini, it’s indicated, I believe, that most of those islands are free for Visitation. Visiting, collecting birds eggs, fishing and so forth. There’s been one misunderstanding about that which came to me in questions addressed to the Distad. It said that people should not stay more …