| anning Sail Cleanup Pl By mid-December 1977, a month after cleanup was scheduled to begin as obvious that Runit soil characterization would take far more effo and other resources than originally estimated. Field Command se wa Wa ine of 15 January 1978 for completion of the effort.\2 The F de ment search and soil profiling were completed before the deadli eepite two severe storms and other setbacks. However, little effort w made on the in situ survey until February 1978, and no results we iwailable until April 1978. In February 1978, COL Treat was forced to low the priority of the Runit characterization effort to release ERSP resourc io complete surveys of other islands.53 Meanwhile, the uncertainty ov the cleanup guidelines and the lack of results from another radiologic survey stalled the DNA planning. Without these elements, DNA did n have sufficient data upon which to base decisions on what soil was to removed and how the available resources could best be used. JANUARY 1978 CONFERENCES [t had been planned that soil cleanup, i.e., the excision ai encapsulation in Cactus Crater of contaminated soil, would begin on November 1977, the date of commencement of the cleanup pha: However. the uncertainty over the cleanup guidelines and the lack results from a detailed, island-by-island soil characterization stalled the s: cleanup operation. Director, DNA and Commander, Field Command realized clearly th soil cleanup resources were limited and, if they were to be used in ¢ long-range best interest of the dri-Enewetak, they must not be committ to projects that could not be completed, projects that were unnecessar projects that were of low priority, etc. Until some reasonably detail approximation of the overall soil contamination problem could | developed (i.e, how many cubic yards of contaminated soil, of wh transuranic concentration, was present on each island of the atoll), ai start at actual soil excision could prove to be a false start and could provi results which would be ofless benefit to the dri-Enewetak than envision: during the planning. As the delays which resulted from the need to accommodate t changes brought about by the inclusion of all transuranics in the cleanu the linkage of criteria to island use, the changein priority after BG Tate visit, and the desire to have more detailed island radiologic characterizations stretched into December 1977, the Director, DI initiated Washington-level action to expedite resolution of the issues. major DOE-DNA conference was scheduled to alert top DC Headquarters officials to the serious implications of the delay 2