It
also
should
be
noted
environmental-impact review.
responsible authority will
that
the
plans
may
be
affected
by
At present, however, it is not clear who the
be.
the Republic of the Marshall
After the Compact of Free Association with
Islands becomes effective, presumably in 1985,
EPA and/or U.S. Army Corps of Engineers regulations may no longer apply.
In summary, there are two basic approaches to decontamination.
The
wait-it-out
plan
in
which
spontaneous
decay
solves
the
contamination problem is technically the simplest and ecologically the most
benign, but has the major disadvantage of compelling the Bikinians to give
up agricultural
rights
to
Bikini
Island
for 80 years.
The
island would
have to be monitored and otherwise controlled, at a total cost of about $25
million, If the Bikinians settled on the island during this period, a food
import
program
would
water provided.
have
to
be
established and a
substitute
for ground
Or, resettlement could be initiated on Eneu, which is half
the size of Bikini, and Bikini
grown foods could be used.
declared off bounds.
In this case,
Eneu-
The Bikini-Kili Council, however, has rejected
both of these alternatives.
|
The direct approach, on the other hand, removes the top 30 cm of
the
island's
soil, where contamination
is concentrated,
to expose a new,
acceptable layer for planting.
The
disposal
of
the
spoil
generated
requires a choice among three alternatives.
would
be
the simplest and cheapest.
by
the
direct
The first one, lagoon dumping,
The second one, using the spoil
extend the island's seaward perimeter, would provide protection,
affect
the
beach
for
disadvantages as well.
and
require
2-4
years
a
period
of
several
years,
and
might
These alternatives would cost some
for
approach
execution.
(To
achieve mature
to
but would
have
other
$36-42 million
revegetation of
the denuded surface would cost $6-8 million and would take about 10 years.)
900003.
38