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.