UNITED STATES ATOMIC ENERGY COMMISSION WASHINGTON, D.C. 20545 NOY § Mr. Stanley Carpenter Director of Territorial Affairs Department of the Interior Washington, D.C. 20240 SEST COPY AVAILABLE Dear Mr. Carpenter: ahh ge Te | qQ7d. As a result of our visit to Enewetak and Biicini Atolls and the difficulty the Defense Nuclear Agency (DNA) is experiencing in obtaining cleanup funds, we would like to call several items to your attention. \ We believe itis essential to verify that the radiation doses to the returning Bikini people do indeed fall within the predictions and that they do not exceed Federal standards. In viewof the complexity of the radiation protection measures necessary for safe resettlement of Bikini Atoll, we see a need for our respective offices to maintain a closer working relationship. We urge that future rehabilitation plans such as development of a proposed Bikini master plan be coordinated with us in advance of imple- mentation. For some time we have been concerned that recommendations on Bikini rehabilitation (that called for construction of the first housing and planting of immediate food crops on EneuIsland) were not strictly followed. Instead houses were built on Bikini Island and there appears to be a prospect of more home construction on Bikini Island. While we do not believe there is an immediate problem with external radiation doses exceeding standards for people living on Bikini Island in the houses already constructed along the lagoon road, there are two other considera tions that can have an impact on total dose levels. First, we are unable to predict the full effect of use of significant amounts of locally produced food such as pandanus and breadf{ruit that will contribute to internal dose. Second, with space on cach Wato near the lagoon shore already occupied by existing housing, future construction must necessarily be on land nearer the interior of the island, an area known to have higher external radiation levels than the shore areas. It is conceivable that the combination of living in the island intcrior and eating foods grown on Bikini Island could result in annual doses higher than predicted by our earlier studics. 5.008.475 ODSETBergwetCRITLTRHONOREES EREone a ed ST I peer nee ome rine - eet nepeeirn +