Re: LNT,cabbages and kings

[BLHamrick@AOL.COM]

In a message dated 9/25/2003 5:41:44 AM Pacific Standard Time, 

liptonw@DTEENERGY.COM writes:

Hence, do not rely on your employer or your colleagues to submit comments.  

Your vote, i.e. comment, counts. 

I wholeheartedly endorse this.  Please do not rely on "someone else" to take 

care of it.  I can tell you that with respect to the NRC's rulemaking, they 

received something on the order of 2500 emails from members of the public, 

imploring them not to "de-regulate" radioactive waste.  This will have an impact.



One of the most important messages to get out to the public, and to the NRC, 

so that they make certain they make this plain, is that we have been disposing 

of "radioactive waste" at landfills since time began.  We do it today, via 

license conditions that allow release of items less than Reg. Guide 1.86 

numbers, or other more modern release limits.  We do it with exempt items.  We have 

never, ever required that every atom of radioactive material go to an LLRW 

facility, but this is another myth that the public believes, and believes it quite 

as heartily as they believe that the LNT predicts "real" deaths in the low 

dose or low dose-rate regions.  



It will be an uphill battle to educate the public on these matters, but it is 

important for the integrity of our system to start with the facts and THEN 

make policy decisions.  Starting with the utterly FALSE premise that no 

radioactive material has ever before been LEGALLY sent to landfills or recyclers is 

sure to result in more bad policy.  



Barbara