Recent experiences in Grand Junction, Colorado, have indicated the significance of uranium tailings as sources of nonoccupational exposure and suggest that current methods for perpetual care and isolation of the large areas covered by tailings piles at inactive mill locations may be inadequate for minimizing human exposure. This paper presents the rationale and the procedures used in reviewing the adequacy of proposed criteria for remedial action at these sites. Exposures due to aquatic, terrestrial, airborne, and direct contamination pathways were compared to determine the most important radionuclides in the pile and their pathways to man. It is shown that the ...
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Oak Ridge National Lab., Tenn. (USA)
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Tennessee
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Recent experiences in Grand Junction, Colorado, have indicated the significance of uranium tailings as sources of nonoccupational exposure and suggest that current methods for perpetual care and isolation of the large areas covered by tailings piles at inactive mill locations may be inadequate for minimizing human exposure. This paper presents the rationale and the procedures used in reviewing the adequacy of proposed criteria for remedial action at these sites. Exposures due to aquatic, terrestrial, airborne, and direct contamination pathways were compared to determine the most important radionuclides in the pile and their pathways to man. It is shown that the most hazardous components of the tailings are $sup 226$Ra and $sup 230$Th. The long half-lives of these radionuclides require the consideration of continuous occupancy of the vacated site at some future time, even if the immediately projected land use does not anticipate maximum exposure. (auth)
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Goldsmith, W.A.; Haywood, F.F. & Jacobs, D.G.Guidelines for cleanup of uranium tailings from inactive mills,
article,
January 1, 1975;
Tennessee.
(digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc872312/:
accessed December 17, 2018),
University of North Texas Libraries, Digital Library, digital.library.unt.edu;
crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.
