Mr. Joe Deal | January 5, 1979 - 3- a data base which would be adequate to permit such a possible analysis we have decided that a 50 m grid for soil sampling should be completed on Engebi Island. Samples on a 100 m grid wiil initially be analyzed and additional samples will be analyzed as is deemed necessary. All soil sampling will consist of soil profiles through 60 cm. I am attaching a brief memo I sent to Roger Ray discussing what would be needed in the way of soil sampling and data in order to evaluate Enewetak Atoll after clean-up. It is estimated that the sample collection would take 16-20 days and the analytical program about 11 weeks. Therefore. if the go ahead were given immediately for supplying support for the sampling program and additional funding were made available to allow analytical work at ' Albuquerque as well as at Enewetak Atoll, we could probably generate an assessment of Engebi Island in the May time frame previously discussed. It is emphasized that support such as backhoes, boats, personnel, analytical capacity, etc. must be available as soon as possible to have any hope of meeting the May time line for Engebi Island and for developing an adequate data base for the rest of the Northern part of the atoll by the scheduled wrap-up of the clean-up project. However, all samples and all analytical work should be handled through NVOO. They have a sampling program in place and a quality control program for the analytical work. They do of course need tasking and support to accomplish the program. We will work directly with NVOO and have access to the data for developing our final assessments. Our plans for assessment of Engebi Island include using an island average for soil radionuclide concentrations, or perhaps, divide the island into three of four areas if the data generated from the sampling program justify such an approach. 1. B. A very important feature of all of our dose assessments is the assumed diet which is the basis for estimating the daily radionuclide intake. This has been an area of uncertainty and a part of the dose model which has concerned me for a long time. Previous diet models were based upon published data developed by observation at many atolls for short periods of time during the 1950's, by some of our staff for a two week period and with discussions with an anthropologist living in the Marshalls but where main objectives were not detailed evaluation of diet. The initial diet generated from these sources and used in past dose assessments was thought to be conservative (i.e. possibly over estimated the daily intake) and was appropriate in the previous assessments to evaluate the general situation at the atoll and ensure an initial, safe public health approach. It is now critical to better define an average diet and make the dose assessments as realistic as possible to provide a basis for