[ RadSafe ] Re: Fw: Low-Dose Radiation "quibbles"

[Ted Rockwell]

-----Original Message-----
From: radsafe-bounces at radlab.nl [mailto:radsafe-bounces at radlab.nl]On
Behalf Of BLHamrick at aol.com
Sent: Saturday, February 05, 2005 8:14 PM
To: jjcohen at prodigy.net; radsafe at radlab.nl
Subject: Re: [ RadSafe ] Re: Fw: Low-Dose Radiation "quibbles"


> In addition, once a rulemaking is final, the rule can always be challenged
in the courts.  This can be expensive, and it is generally more
cost-effective
if a coalition of affected parties joins together in the  suit.  One such
type of challenge might be under the Data Quality Act,  potentially
challenging
regulations or even such public  published statements as "there is no safe
level of radiation."

Barbara:

I presume you and many others on the list know that RSH (Radiation, Science
& Health, Inc.) took the lead in suing EPA over the Radioactivity in Primary
Water regs, arguing that it was not based, as required, on good science
(Safe Drinking Water Act) and that it did not respond to valid public
comments previously submitted (Adminiostrative Procedures Act).  We were
joined by NEI, some water utilities, and the National Mining Association.
It was a major effort over several years.  We submitted massive
documentation on the lack of basis for finding that small amounts of
radioactivity are harmful.  I have several boxes of files from it.  There
were a least a dozen lawyers in Washington working on it, and many others
eleswhere.  One small Wisconsin utility told me it cost them over a million
dollars.

We of course did not ask the court to make a scientific judgement, but to do
what courts had done with respect to tobacco smoke, chemicals in water and
other cases: merely to find that a reasonable process of arriving at a
scientific judgement had not been properly carried out.  The court concluded
in effect that courts shouldn't be trying to tell executive agencies how to
do their job.  In other words, we shouldn't have even raised the question.

Not very encouraging.

Ted Rockwell