4OV7 82 United States Department of the Interior OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY WASHINGTON, D.C. 20240 Mr. Bryant S. Zebedy Clerk of the Marshall Islands Nitijela Post Office Box 24 Majuro, Marshall Islands Dear Mr. JU N29 978 96960 Zebedy: I wish to acknowledge on behalf of Secretary Andrus, receipt of the certified copy of Resolution No. the Nitijela, the 15 N.D.-l of "A Resolution requesting the Government of the United States of America to immediately conduct a radiological survey in the Marshall Islands." I feel constrained to point out that paragraph 4 of this resolution makes a very broad and sweeping statement, that as far as I am aware of, is not borne out by recent radiological data. This is the statement, "Whereas, recent radiological data, accumulated by the United States Government indicates an extraordinarily high incidence of apparently radiological induced physical disorders among Marshallese residents, outside what was originally thought to be the range of contamination caused by the nuclear explosions at Bikini and Enewetak; particularly, on Likiep Atoll and Wotje Atoll”. Recently, when the Marshall Islands Political Status Delegation was here in Washington, it raised this question with respect to Likiep Atoll but the question rested not on "recent radiological data accumulated by the United States", but rather on data collected by a Marshall Islands Likiep Survey team and presented to the Department of Energy and to Our Department by the Secretary of Foreign Affairs for the Marshall Islands Government, Mr. Anton DeBrum, at a meeting here on May 16, 1979. This Department and the Department of Energy assured Mc. DeBrum that priority attention would be given to the reduest that a medical survey be conducted of the people of Likiep Atoll. We will discuss the other aspects of the resolution, il.e., the portions requesting a radiological survey of the Northern Marshalls, with the Department of Fnergy. It appears to me that most, if not all, o€ this request may have been met by the recent radiological survey conducted on | cc: }Dr. Walter Weyzen, DOE, with copy of enclosure. ane wt REMSTE ERO DPBOYpacn a abo