Re: Kosov DU - New Scientist Report

[Bernard L Cohen <blc+@pitt.edu>]

On Sat, 5 Jun 1999, Frederic Dawson wrote:

>  From New Scientist, 5 June 1999
> 
> There is evidence that civilian authorities take the threat from DU very
> seriously. In the aftermath of the Gulf conflict, the UK Atomic Energy
> Authority came up with some frightening estimates for the potential effects
> of the DU contamination left by the conflict. It calculated that if 23
> tonnes of DU were inhaled--8 per cent of the amount actually fired in the
> Gulf--this could cause "500 000 potential deaths". This was "a theoretical
> figure", it stressed, that indicated "a significant problem".

	--Inhalation of 8% is very highly unrealistic. My paper in Health
Physics 47:281-292;1984 shows that if fine dust is distributed throughout
the atmosphere in U.S.,less than one part in a million would be inhaled by
people.

 Bernard L. Cohen
Physics Dept.
University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, PA 15260
Tel: (412)624-9245
Fax: (412)624-9163
e-mail: blc+@pitt.edu


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