Re: Radioactive Rock Found In Science Class

["Kim D. Merritt" <k.merritt@larc.nasa.gov>]

>I have had two simiar experienced during my career.



>1.  I used to do some volunteer teaching at a high school science 

>class.  In a file cabinet in the class I found a large rock with a very 

>soft uranium ore compound in it.  The teacher used it for demonstrating 

>principles of radiation in some of her classes so did not want to get rid 

>of it.  I sealed it up in plastic for her to keep it from spreading 

>contamination around the lab and cleaned up the drawer it was kept 

>in.  (Waste went out in the trash, after it all it was only rock 

>dust.)  No panic, no hazmat team, no evacuation of three counties.  Was 

>there an outcry of concern for the health of the students, no.  Why?  They 

>had alread been educated in the properties of radiation, from both a 

>health and physics perpsective.  Later in the year I took them on a tour 

>of the national lab where I worked and one of the physicists guiding the 

>tour there was stunned by their knowledge of nuclear science.  There is 

>hope folks.



2.  When working at a national lab a worker came in to my office with a 

small bag containing an old metal tin.  Apparently his father had died and 

left him an old desk that he had used for building watches, a hobby of 

his.  Since the guy apparently knew that the paint was probably radioactive 

(which it was) he brought it to me to see if we could properly dispose of 

it for him.  As it was not part of our already characterized waste stream 

the answer was no.  I called the state radiation control office to see if 

they could take it off of his hands.  Their answer was that basically it 

wasn't their problem and they felt that I should take care of it.  I 

explained why we couldn't and told them that since neither of us could help 

him that I would just tell him to do what he wants with it, implying it 

goes in the first dumpster he passes (as long as it is outside of the 

gate).  They called me back a few hours later and told me that it could be 

dropped off at their office downtown and they would make sure that it got 

disposed of properly.



If I have typos or grammatical errors, keep it to yourself, I don't care.



Kim Merritt

Radiation Safety Officer

HazMed, Inc.

NASA Langley Research Center

<mailto:k.merritt@larc.nasa.gov>

(757)864-3210

cell (757)342-2843



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