Re: Newspaper Story About Soviet Pu Workers in 40's and 50's

[mgoldman@ucdavis.edu (Dr. Marvin Goldman)]

>
>     Fellow Radsafers,
>
>     I have just come across a May 25 newspaper clipping
>     in the Ottawa Citizen discussing the story
>     of Soviet weapons facility workers in the
>     late 40's and early 50's.
>
>     The article says that there were very poor
>     working conditions at the plant at Dubna
>     and that a number of workers died of an
>     apparently Pu-induced pneumo-sclerosis.
>
>     I apologize if this is old news to you
>     but I would like to know if there is more
>     information out there on this topic.
>
>     Jim Presley
>     Health Physicist
>     AECB
>
>     presley.j@atomcom.gc.ca
I would check the news paper source.  Dubna was not into Pu heavily.

However, a part of Mayak PA, the radiochemical plant at Ozorsk
(Chelyabinsk-65), from '48-'58 did experience major regional,  population
exposures as well as the highest ever recorded worker Pu exposures,
resulting in chronic radiation sickness, increased leukenmia and lung
cancer risk and major liver burdens as well.

These are continuing to be studied and is the subject of a major bi-lateral
research program between USA and Russia;  some of the early information
will be in the July '96 issue of the Health Physics Journal.  The
collective dose from all operations and accidents there is likely to be
larger than that for Hiroshima and Nagasaki (and the folloup time is
roughly comparable.  We may have the potential for an independent
assessment of human radiation risks from non-acute exposures if the
resources are available to do the work).

Additional Pu risks may have been experienced at Tomsk-7 and at
Krasnyarsk-26, but little has been published about these places.

Marvin Goldman