RADIONUCLIDE CONCENTRATIONS IN CISTERN WATER
NATIONAL
DEPOSITION,
IN WET
FALLOUT LEVELS
COMPARISON WITH GLOBAL
STANDARDS,
AND OTHER SUPPLIES OF FRESH DRINKING WATER
rainfall
and
the
global
sites.
fourth
quarter of
concentrations
The
average
1978
of
905,
amounts
are
of
summarized
the amount of
on a quarterly basis,
Department of Energy presently monitors,
in wet
deposition
705, yn
at
a
rain between
from a recent
number
1976
EML report
in Fig. 2 as a function of the collection-site latitude.
States
United
the
of
(EML)
Laboratory
Measurements
Environmental
The
12
and
and
of
the
shown
During this period,
minimum fallout concentrations were deposited in the Southern Hemisphere and
equatorial regions, and maximum concentrations occurred in wet deposition near
40°N latitude.
The
concentration
discussed
in
the
of
next
radionuclides
section.
900, in cisterns at other atolls
wet deposition shown in Fig.
in
Comparing
Bikini
the
cistern
measured
water
will
be
concentrations
of
(Table 3) to the measured fallout levels in
2, we find that at most Marshall
Islands Atolls
the concentrations are comparable to levels in wet deposition at other global
sites
of
comparable
latitude.
At
no
atoll
(except
Bikini)
was
the
concentration of 70, in cistern water higher than the concentration in rain
in the states of
Canada
and
between
atolls
and
(except
137
Illinois,
The
905,
Bikini)
sampled
is
239+ 240
Cs and
or Washington or
concentration
1978 averaged 342
Enewetak Atoll
levels of
,
Austria.
1975
water at
New York,
New
eci/1,}3 while
1978
in
in
distilled
contained
in
the
York
countries
City
tap
of
water
the cistern water at all
from 40
from seawater;
to
302
the source
fCi/l.
for
Tap
the small
Pu measured is not known.
Several Pacific Islands are included among the global stations routinely
-
.
sampled by EML.
are
summarized
0
.
in
‘Table
5;
Fig.
3
shows
concentrations and mean amounts of rain.
estimate
,
Concentrations of 9 Sr and rainfall amounts at these sites
the average
the
relationship
between
the
Figure 2 and Eq. (1) are used to
904, concentrations expected
in rain
(and
cistern water) at the latitude of each Marshall Islands Atoll.
therefore
in
This estimated
Concentration is compared in Table 5 to the measured concentration in cistern
Water.
Except
Concentration
c
.
for
of
Bikini,
:
905,
Rongelap,
in
-
and
cristern
Oncentration by a factor of two,
Ujelang,
water
.
where
differs
the
average
measured
from
.
the
predicted
the agreement is very satisfactory.