West Coast Whole Body Counting & Chernobyl

[eh_carbaugh@ccmail.pnl.gov (Eugene H Carbaugh)]

     Marti & others interested:
     
     The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, Washington can 
     also provide whole body counts.  Contact is Tim Lynch on (509) 
     376-6281.
     
     As a point of possible interest, a number of PNNL staff have made 
     trips of varying duration to the Chernobyl site.  In staff that have 
     returned from several months in the region, with on-site work, we have 
     observed up to about 10-15 nCi of Cesium-137.  This has been limited 
     to about two or three people.  Casual travelers to the region with 
     typically don't show much, if anything.  Our routine whole body exam 
     (NaI detectors) has an MDA of about 3 nCi, however by using a scanning 
     germanium detector system with a 10 or 20 minute count time we can get 
     as low as about 0.5 nCi MDA.  We rarely see cesium-137 in Hanford 
     employees using the NaI system.  When we do, we recount them on the Ge 
     system.  Occasionally we find some wild game eaters (moose, elk, deer) 
     who will indicate a few (less than 10) nCi - these are due to 
     worldwide fallout.
     
     Gene Carbaugh
     PNNL Internal Dosimetry
     eh_carbaugh@pnl.gov