RE: Tooth Fairy Project Presenting Findings at Ottawa Conference

[Franz Schoenhofer <schoenho@via.at>]

At 10:32 26.07.1999 -0500, you wrote:
>I realize I am preaching to the choir here, but why is it that people
>remember that the US and USSR stoped atmospheric testing, but always
>forget to remember the french and chinese tests, not to mention
>Chernobyl as possible sources for Sr (if any) in baby teeth.  It just
>shows how disingenuous some of these people are, hoping that the general
>public has a short memory even about their own doom-saying
>pronouncements,
>
>Jim Willison, CHP
>willisonj@ttnus.com
----------------------------

Sorry, I totally disagree with your statement - in several aspects. First,
the "honour" of contaminating the world and there especially the Northern
hemisphere with fission products from atmospheric nuclear tests goes
without doubt to the USA and the former Sovjetunion. The contribution of
the Chinese atmospheric tests is negligible. Nearly all of the French
nuclear tests have been performed in the Southern hemisphere and their
yield has been negligible as well even in the Southern hemisphere with
respect to the contamination caused by the USA and the Sovjetunion. Also
the contamination originating from the atmospheric tests of Great Britain
(mostly in the Southern hemisphere) which you forgot to mention, are
negligible. There is enough reliable scientific literature available on
this matter.

There is as well reliable literature available on the consequences of
Chernobyl. Not only was the impact restricted to Europe and the integrated
contamination with Cs-137 was in almost all areas much lower than during
the period of atmospheric nuclear tests, but the Sr-90 releases were only
of importance in the vicinity of the power plant and not in whole Europe,
not to talk about distant countries like the US. 

Therefore it is justified to blame elevated concentrations of Sr-90 in baby
teeth to the atmospheric nuclear tests of the USA and Sovjetunion - but
only during the late 50's up to the mid-60's. The atmospheric contamination
is well known and there exist in Europe several comprehensive studies on
Sr-90 in baby-teeth, which show the general pattern of Sr-90 concentration
like it was found in milk, or the C-14 and tritium patterns found in
aerosols and wine, and other fission products in various media. 

I have some time ago commented on RADSAFE on the "baby tooth project" in an
extremely negative way. I have not changed my opinion. The Sr-90 content
will depend on the nutrition of the mother and even to some extent on the
Sr-90 content of her skeleton - if she breast-feeds the baby - or on the
baby formulas fed to the baby. Both the nutrition of the mother and the
baby formulas will not be representative of local food - it might come from
everywhere in the world. Any connection to the local environment and any
nuclear power plant in the vicinity has therefore to be excluded. 

What I dislike about your comment - please correct me, if I am wrong - is
that by trying to blame Sr-90 contamination to other "nuclear powers" to
share, you indirectly leave open that the actual environmental
contamination by Sr-90 could be a cause of health problems. I categorically
refuse such speculations. 

Franz


Franz Schoenhofer
Habicherg. 31/7
A-1160 Vienna
Austria
Tel.: +43-1-495 53 08
Fax.: same number
mobile phone: +43-664-338 0 333
e-mail: schoenho@via.at

Office:
Hofrat Dr. Franz Schönhofer
Federal Institute for Food Control and Research
Department of Radiochemistry
Kinderspitalg. 15
A-1095 Vienna
Austria
Tel.: +43-1-40 490 27820
e-mail: schoenhofer@baluf.via.at
************************************************************************
The RADSAFE Frequently Asked Questions list, archives and subscription
information can be accessed at http://www.ehs.uiuc.edu/~rad/radsafe.html