"DOE ARCHIVE

ididiiaienen
should substantially reduce the dose rate.
radivactivity is «1 relatively iong- 1% ved:
of the external dose.

:

As expected, the residual
Cst3T contributes 70-80 percent

Thus only a slow decrease with time can be expected

from radioactive decay.
Plant and animal tissue contained varying amounts of fission and
activation products.

Pre-1946 Bikinian diet consisted predominantly of

bt

fish, with pandanus fruit,
esser intake.

coconut, arrow-root, and land crabs supplying a

Imported foods such as dried milk, canned meats, flour,

rice were seldom used by the Bikini people prior to 1946.

and

Contacts with the

Qutside world doubtless have tended to alter former tastes.

Fish fortunately

showed low levels of radioactivity and could be eaten in normal amounts (1-2
pounds per day per aduit) without reservation.

Pandanus, coconut meat and

milk, as well as coconut crabs (land crabs) all contain substantial amounts
of cell and sr?

Further work must be done with raw data before a realistic

evaluation of radiation risk due to consuming these foodstuffs can be made.
Exciasion of some :tocally-preduced food items from the diet may be indicated,
as was done in the case of land crabs in the resettlement of Rongelap.
In summary,

it appears that re-occunpation of Bikini Atoll within the

near future would result in un external radiation exposure about double that
incurred by

the average U.

S.

population but similar to that now incurred by

residents of the Colorado Plateau area.

‘The matter of soil burial or plowing

would presumably reduce such exposure to near average levels.

(It should be

noted that the soil cover is thin--a few inches--and disruption of this might
impair the rertility of the islands. )

Consumption of local produce in normal

amounts would yield radioactive body buriens of Csl37 26 to 50 times greater

Select target paragraph3