RE: Please critique this fact sheet!

[Free Spirit <FRANK@rover.bsd.uchicago.edu>]

>From:	SMTP%"radsafe@romulus.ehs.uiuc.edu" 27-OCT-1995 09:17:47.40
>To:	FRANK
>CC:	
>Subj:	Please critique this fact sheet!
>
>Tritium has a half life of 12.5 years. At this rate it will be in our
>waters and food chain (shellfish and finfish) for approx. 250 years.
>
>Strontium-90 is defined in Webster's Dictionary has "a deadly radioactive
>isotope of strontium" with a half life of 30 years, it will be in our
>waters and food chain for 600 years.

	By requiring 20 half-lives they are waiting for the activity
	to die down to 1 part in a million. They also conveniently
	ignore any possible chemical reaction or sedimentation. Rumor
	mongering of the first class.

	Unfortunately, its almost impossible to refute wild claims
	(tritium causing breast cancer for example,) when emotions are
	involved.

	About the only things I would suggest would be.

	1/ Talk about the actual cost of remediation vs lives saved.
	   From the levels I would generate a SWAG that actual studies
	   would generate odds of something of 0.1 to .01 lives saved for a
	   cost of $20-million or so. Contrast that with spending the same
	   money to re-design the rr crossing NW of Chicago where we just
	   had that tragic school bus vs train accident.

	2/ Maybe its time to get Frontline to do a story. 

Frank R. Borger - Physicist     ___      "If I ever had to pick 6 guys to
Michael Reese - U of Chicago   |___      storm a pillbox, and there was no
Center for Radiation Therapy   | |_) _   coming back, I'd pick 6 White Sox
net: Frank@rover.uchicago.edu    | \|_)  fans, because all they've ever known
ph: 312-791-8075 fa: 791-2517       |_)  is loosing, and death holds no terror
 					 for them anymore." - Gene Shepard