Premise: The Government of the Marshall Islands resolves that the People of Enewetak may not resettle Enewcetak Atoll because of unacceptable risks from residual radioactivity and contamination. Response: The Enewetak Radiological cleanup has been accomplished to a degree which will allow for safe habitation of the atoll within the restrictions specified by the United States in the Environmental Impact Statement and accepted by the People of Enewetak prior to the beginning of the radiological cleanup. Generally, the resettlement of Enewetak Atoll will only be constrained to the extent that expected dose from radiation will be limited to levels comparable to natural background radiation in many parts of the world. The restrictions on habitation provide for: (1) dwellings only on southern islands of the atoll; (2) no deliberate cultivation of food on any northern island except for coconuts on ten specific northern islands; (3) no consumption of coconut crabs or use of well water from any northern island; and, (4) no visits to one northern island (Runit}. Thus, the lifestyle to be followed by resettlers is predominantly oriented toward the southern islands where radioactivity is least abundant. The restricted lifestyle is not without sose increase in radiation dose and its associated risk; however, the risks are considered to be quite small. Every person, including the people of Pnewetak, receive some radiation dose due to natural radiation, and this would have occurred at Enewetak even if there had been no nuclear weapons testing program. The US National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements (NCRP) has estimated dose equivalent rates to man in the US as follows: 0.055 rem per year to the whole body from exposure to natural radiation external to the body, and 0.115 rem per year to bone fron exposure to natural radioactivty in the body as well as radiation external to the body. These "natural" dose rate equivalents are also reasonable estimates for background radiation at Enewetak Atoll, exclusive of the man-made radiation. As presented in the EIS, the residual radioactivity throughout the atoll is predicted to cause the peak dose equivalent rate of the average resettler on the atoll to increase by 0.020 rem per year to the whole body and 0.285 rem per year to bone. About 40 percent of each estimated Tate is attributed te the consumption of islands. However, a recent reevaluation that coconut consumption is considerably Accordingly, the dose rates above may be coconuts grown on the northern of the Enewetak diet indicates less than previously assumed. overestimated. Nevertheless, based on the cumulative natural" and "residual radioactivity’ dose rates, persons following the planned lifestyle for Enewetak may receive up to not more than three times the dose they would otherwise receive from nature. The NCRP recommends the dose equivalent rate to whole body for the population (US) as a whole from all sources of radiation other than natural radiation and radiation from the healing arts shall not exceed ar y moo CH um . Q. 158)