NEECREST

SBEST Te eo lay esety ye oe

Piles

Decembef 31, 1956

?. A. Sullivan, Envircanental
Sciences Branch, DSM

RADIOACTIVITY (BETA) IN FISH
TISSUES AT RONGCELAP ATOLL

Or. Seymour furnished the following data by telephone this morning:
“Average gross beta values for Rongelap fish in teres ef micro curies

per kilogram of wet tissue are as follows:

ARO,
%

7

yet

.

1.

March 1958, Kebelle Island reef fish - auscle .026, whole fish
apprexinmately .16.

2.

March 1958, Rongelap Island reef fish - muscle .006, whole fish
approximstely .010.

3.

dAnguet 1958, Rengelap Island reef fish - average naximm value for
muscle is .065.

4.

Current average valves are as low or lewer than values frou any of
the previous collections.

_ Leotopic coupesiticn of emmples: a

—"—

ISHSICN

BO

.

1.

The estimated amount of K-40 in wescle is approximately .003 micro

2.

Zinc 65 is the principal gemma emitter in fish auscle.

3.

Traces of Cobalt-60 are also present.

4.

Only other isotope expected in measurable amounts in fish muscle
would be iron 55.

5.

Stroatiue-90 has not been found in fish auacle in either the 1956

cc:

curfes per kilogran.

Maximus value

from August 1955 collection is 0.2 wicre curies per kilogran.

er 1957 collection. "
Dr.
Dr.
‘Dr.
Dr.

Dunhen
Wolfe
Boss
Suoning

Select target paragraph3