Oct. 13, 2010
Subcommittee Recommending Tours of Former Portsmouth Nuclear Plant
Depleted Uranium Stored for Conversion to Less Hazardous Material
By Tony Rutherford
Huntingtonnews.net Reporter
Piketon, OH (HNN) – The Community Involvement Subcommittee of the Portsmouth atomic plant advisory board will recommend establishing public tours of the site for informational and educational purpose. In addition, since one of the challenges is determination of future use of portions of the site, tours would be one method of overcoming the numerous negative connotations about the site.
On the other hand, a former worker at the Portsmouth Gaseous Plant along with a subcommittee member raised radiation exposure concerns for those taking the proposed tour. For that reason and others (such as security), the recommendation will likely be broken down into both a physical tour and an online tour recommendation.
Maria Galanti, site coordinator Division of Emergency and Remedial Response for Ohio EPA, injected that all available environmental and exposure laws would be followed for those taking a site tour. In fact, the perimeter road section likely could not be immediately available due to its current use in the waste removal process, Galanti said.
The subcommittee consensus was to draft a recommendation to the board which would include residual radiation issues at the site.
Those taking the proposed tour would likely ride in the Department of Energy’s on-site tour bus which seats 13 people.
Following the meeting, Vina Colley, president of PRESS, the Portsmouth/Piketon Residents for Environmental Safety and Security, and co-founder of National Nuclear Workers for Justice, told HNN that tour participants could receive the approximate radiation dosage of an x-ray. This is why both she and Terri Smith, Site Specific Advisory Board member, suggested that participants be informed of the exposure and sign waivers.
“My theory is they won’t tell people what they are close to when they go on tours,” explained Colley. “If you are a child or a woman who has never had a child , you should not take a tour of the facility.” Ms. Smith told sub-committee members that she has declined to participate in plant tours due to the radiation risks.
Colley and Smith also had concerns that the number of radiation emitting cylinders has increased, not decreased due to the receipt of some from two other plants.
“Portsmouth has over 25,000 cylinders ,” stated Colley. “Some of these were sent from Oak Ridge, Tenn. and Paducah , Ky. to prevent violation of a consent agreement. “These cylinders carry depleted plutonium , neptunium, uranium, and all the daughter products of radiation.”
Ms. Smith added, “they are still rusting, decaying, and could be leaking.”
Why do the cylinders set above ground on the property?
Colley offered an explanation: “They are converting the Depleted Uranium into supposedly a less hazardous material which they are using for military munitions in places like Iraq and Afghanistan. It’s all contaminated.”
Colley recalled a tour in the 2004 in which children had their pictures taken next to cylinders of radioactive waste, which give off the “highest neutron exposure on the site. Information was given about the plant, but no information was given about contamination. The cylinders are out in a yard. I once heard if you drove around the facility you would get the equivalent of an x-ray.”
One woman [ Carol Rainey] on the tour bus became “inspired” by Colley and wrote, “One Hundred Miles from Home: Nuclear Contamination in the Communities of the Ohio River Valley…”
Responding to possible absorption of radiation by potential tourist in 2010 or 2011, Colley revealed “the part of the road where the cylinders are is shut off. Still, they are decaying, there are airborne particles, such as particulate matter which has radioactive elements in it.”
The former atomic worker at the plant explained that “there’s a high level of particulate matter in Scioto County, which if you inhale or ingest [could cause] lung cancer, bronchitis , and asthma attacks. Here at Piketon, we have particulate matter with radiation in it. No one has mentioned [the potential ] radiation throughout Scioto County.
In short, “We don’t know what kind of chemical and radiation you will be exposed to [on the site],” Colley said. At one time there was radioactive oil dripping from the PCB piping in the process buildings. Even the area where they had secretaries working, it was coming up through the vent systems. People who worked in the offices developed all kinds of cancers [when the A-plant was still operating].”
(Editor's Note: Under the tour recommendation, those individuals fearful of potential radiation exposure would be able to take a similar interactive tour on a to be constructed website.)
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Subcommittee Recommending Tours of Former Portsmouth Nuclear Plant
Depleted Uranium Stored for Conversion to Less Hazardous Material
By Tony Rutherford
Huntingtonnews.net Reporter
Piketon, OH (HNN) – The Community Involvement Subcommittee of the Portsmouth atomic plant advisory board will recommend establishing public tours of the site for informational and educational purpose. In addition, since one of the challenges is determination of future use of portions of the site, tours would be one method of overcoming the numerous negative connotations about the site.
On the other hand, a former worker at the Portsmouth Gaseous Plant along with a subcommittee member raised radiation exposure concerns for those taking the proposed tour. For that reason and others (such as security), the recommendation will likely be broken down into both a physical tour and an online tour recommendation.
Maria Galanti, site coordinator Division of Emergency and Remedial Response for Ohio EPA, injected that all available environmental and exposure laws would be followed for those taking a site tour. In fact, the perimeter road section likely could not be immediately available due to its current use in the waste removal process, Galanti said.
The subcommittee consensus was to draft a recommendation to the board which would include residual radiation issues at the site.
Those taking the proposed tour would likely ride in the Department of Energy’s on-site tour bus which seats 13 people.
Following the meeting, Vina Colley, president of PRESS, the Portsmouth/Piketon Residents for Environmental Safety and Security, and co-founder of National Nuclear Workers for Justice, told HNN that tour participants could receive the approximate radiation dosage of an x-ray. This is why both she and Terri Smith, Site Specific Advisory Board member, suggested that participants be informed of the exposure and sign waivers.
“My theory is they won’t tell people what they are close to when they go on tours,” explained Colley. “If you are a child or a woman who has never had a child , you should not take a tour of the facility.” Ms. Smith told sub-committee members that she has declined to participate in plant tours due to the radiation risks.
Colley and Smith also had concerns that the number of radiation emitting cylinders has increased, not decreased due to the receipt of some from two other plants.
“Portsmouth has over 25,000 cylinders ,” stated Colley. “Some of these were sent from Oak Ridge, Tenn. and Paducah , Ky. to prevent violation of a consent agreement. “These cylinders carry depleted plutonium , neptunium, uranium, and all the daughter products of radiation.”
Ms. Smith added, “they are still rusting, decaying, and could be leaking.”
Why do the cylinders set above ground on the property?
Colley offered an explanation: “They are converting the Depleted Uranium into supposedly a less hazardous material which they are using for military munitions in places like Iraq and Afghanistan. It’s all contaminated.”
Colley recalled a tour in the 2004 in which children had their pictures taken next to cylinders of radioactive waste, which give off the “highest neutron exposure on the site. Information was given about the plant, but no information was given about contamination. The cylinders are out in a yard. I once heard if you drove around the facility you would get the equivalent of an x-ray.”
One woman [ Carol Rainey] on the tour bus became “inspired” by Colley and wrote, “One Hundred Miles from Home: Nuclear Contamination in the Communities of the Ohio River Valley…”
Responding to possible absorption of radiation by potential tourist in 2010 or 2011, Colley revealed “the part of the road where the cylinders are is shut off. Still, they are decaying, there are airborne particles, such as particulate matter which has radioactive elements in it.”
The former atomic worker at the plant explained that “there’s a high level of particulate matter in Scioto County, which if you inhale or ingest [could cause] lung cancer, bronchitis , and asthma attacks. Here at Piketon, we have particulate matter with radiation in it. No one has mentioned [the potential ] radiation throughout Scioto County.
In short, “We don’t know what kind of chemical and radiation you will be exposed to [on the site],” Colley said. At one time there was radioactive oil dripping from the PCB piping in the process buildings. Even the area where they had secretaries working, it was coming up through the vent systems. People who worked in the offices developed all kinds of cancers [when the A-plant was still operating].”
(Editor's Note: Under the tour recommendation, those individuals fearful of potential radiation exposure would be able to take a similar interactive tour on a to be constructed website.)
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Make HNN Your Homepage (IE Users Only)
