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Re: Article: Radiation in Water Stumps Experts
Most likely Rn-222 which has (had?) a limit of 10,000 pCi/L in groundwater. Because of the short half-life of Rn-222
any changes in secondary porosity (think folding and/or faulting) may increase flow rates and allow water with higher
levels of Rn-222 to get into the wells. This possible interpretation would be consistent with findings from my
research on Rn-222 from groundwater from the Ohio Shale (from 10-years ago) and adjacent formations and other folk's
work on the Marcellus Needmore shale in New York state.
If memory serves they shouldn't have any concern of reaching the 4 pCi/L indoor air concentrations from cooking or
showering until they get to 1-2,000 pCi/L in groundwater.
bem
John Jacobus wrote:
> This appeared in today's Washington Post. I wonder
> how expert their experts are.
>
> I would say government officials are not providing any
> service to the public by not quickly determining what
> the problem is, if there really is a problem.
>
> ----------------------------------
> Radiation in Water Stumps Experts
>
> By Joshua Partlow
>
> On the surface, only a smattering of out-of-season
> Christmas decorations call attention to Chapel Point
> Woods, a 95-home subdivision tucked amid the oak trees
> of Southern Maryland.
>
> But 700 feet below ground, something more unusual has
> captured the homeowners' attention. Four months have
> passed since they were told that elevated levels of
> radiation -- about three times above federal standards
> -- were detected in their water system, which comes
> from three wells in the Patapsco aquifer.
>
> "In 1992, the average [radiation] level was 8. In
> 1999, [it] was 8 again. Last year, it was 43," said
> Richard McIntire, a spokesman for the Maryland
> Department of the Environment. "We don't understand
> why we saw the levels increase so dramatically. . . .
> This is a bona-fide mystery."
>
> The elevated levels were found during routine
> water-quality tests of the well system, which is run
> by Charles County. In September, the state issued a
> notice of violation to the county for exceeding the
> federal threshold of 15 picocuries per liter of gross
> alpha radiation, McIntire said.
>
> He said the Chapel Point Woods system had tested at
> 43 pCi/l and above for four consecutive quarters,
> going back to 2002. Before then, the levels had held
> steady -- well below the safe standard -- since the
> wells were put in roughly 15 years ago.
>
> The water in Charles County comes primarily from
> private and public well systems drilled into area
> aquifers. The Patapsco aquifer extends for miles
> beneath the Washington region and is widely siphoned
> by wells in Anne Arundel and Charles counties, and to
> a lesser extent in Prince George's and St. Mary's.
>
> The Patapsco is the second-deepest aquifer in
> Southern Maryland and its waters are thousands of
> years old, according to geologists. The well system in
> Chapel Point Woods, which can pump up to 24,000
> gallons a day, is confined to that subdivision, and no
> other water systems in the area have shown elevated
> radiation levels, state and county officials said.
>
> While water-quality testing continues, some
> subdivision residents are angry that they have not
> been given definitive information about whether to
> stop drinking the water or take other precautions.
>
> "I've never been as sick as I have been since I moved
> here" four years ago, said Sherri Ingagliato, 38, who
> runs a day-care business out of her home. "I'm always
> tired, sick to my stomach, I have headaches. I'm
> not trying to say it's all because of the radiation.
> But I worry."
>
> Radiation can come from several sources, both natural
> and man-made, and long-term exposure can cause cancer.
> In the late 1990s, hundreds of wells in Anne Arundel
> County were found to have elevated levels of radium, a
> radioactive element that occurs in trace amounts in
> rock and soil.
>
> The levels of radium detected in Chapel Point Woods
> are not abnormal, officials said. Tests for uranium
> also came back negative.
>
> "I kind of scratched my head at this," said David
> Bolton, chief of hydrogeology at the Maryland
> Geological Survey, who reviewed the Department of the
> Environment data. "It did not look consistent with
> naturally occurring radium that was found in Anne
> Arundel."
>
> Gary Felton, a water quality specialist at the
> University of Maryland, said the breakdown of
> radioactive materials in the ground is usually
> consistent from year to year. So to him, a sharp rise
> in radiation implies some sort of radioactive
> pollutant. "Something obviously caused it. And I would
> have a hard time believing that this is a naturally
> occurring variance," he said. "When you get unusual
> spikes, that makes me think there's something man-made
> going on."
>
> Others said they consider that scenario unlikely
> because the Chapel Point Woods wells descend hundreds
> of feet into the aquifer and the water is contained in
> thick confining walls. "I would really doubt if it was
>
> anything man-made," Bolton said.
>
> Some speculate that a sudden change in the geology or
> the source of water feeding the Patapsco aquifer could
> have added sources of naturally occurring radiation.
>
> Another factor to consider, officials say, are recent
> changes in water sampling. In 2001, the Environmental
> Protection Agency adopted regulations to implement a
> threshold level for uranium, as well as to alter how
> water is sampled. In Chapel Point Woods, this meant no
> longer testing water from individual homes but at the
> treatment plant before it is distributed, state
> officials said.
>
> The change adds uncertainty to the findings, said
> Alice Mignerey, a professor of nuclear chemistry at
> the University of Maryland who was consulted about the
> situation.
>
> "The key is that we don't really know how recent the
> problem is because they changed" testing procedures,
> she said. "It's now unclear whether this is a new
> occurrence or something that's been happening for a
> long time. . . . This is weird."
>
> While authorities continue to investigate, some
> homeowners have become increasingly concerned. Miriam
> Bois, 43, a clinical social worker, said her family
> has stopped drinking or cooking with tap water since
> she found out about the problem in October. She said
> the family, with two daughters ages 14 and 11, goes
> through two cases of bottled water and a 2.5-gallon
> jug in the refrigerator every week.
>
> "It's irritating that they haven't told us to stop
> drinking the water. It's not like we're blaming them
> for having radiation in our water," she said. "I'm
> very frustrated that they're not being responsible for
> our health."
>
> Department of the Environment officials plan to send
> a letter this week to Charles County outlining the
> possible methods for cleaning Chapel Point Woods'
> water supply.
>
> Among the possibilities are drilling a new well or
> installing a reverse osmosis filtration system to
> clean the water. Both approaches are costly, but
> county officials say they are committed to solving the
>
> problem.
>
> "I think the remedies would be hundreds of thousands
> of dollars. But even that is not going to stop us,"
> said Murray D. Levy (D-At Large), president of the
> Charles County Commissioners.
>
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>
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>
>
> © 2004 The Washington Post Company
>
> =====
> +++++++++++++++++++
> "The care of human life and happiness . . . is the first and only legitimate object of good government."
> Thomas Jefferson
>
> -- John
> John Jacobus, MS
> Certified Health Physicist
> e-mail: crispy_bird@yahoo.com
>
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