Assessment of the fresh water residenc: time will be made from the data. The well network, once established. ‘ill be available for resampling on subsequent trips we plan to the ato ] to thoroughly assess the dynamics of radionuclide evcling in the round water reservoir and to maintain a surveillance on the water cua.i’.. The program operation will be fashioned after our knewetak ground water study and comparison of the data from both atolls should be especial.v valuable for predicting the mechanism and rates cf ‘constituents in gromd water at Pacific atolls. The U. of Hawaii (Dr. R. Buddemeier) will iave the analytical responsi- bility for major element analysis and LL. V. E. Noshkin) will have the responsibility for radionuclide assessment. We vill determine the concentrations o: Cs137, Sr90, and plutoniim in all samples by radio chemical techniques. Gamma emitters preseit in a ferric hydroxide pre- cipitate will be identified and the levels assessed from the spectrometry data. Tritium wi’] o.« measured on select 2d samples. Plant/Soil SamplingProgram Purpose: The main thrust of the program «ill be to determine radionuclide concentrations in food species, to correlate these with soil concentrations at various depths, te determine nuclide availability to plants in the coral soils, and to relate the food-species radioactivity to other indigenous nonfood species whi.h may have incicator species potential. The unique information that this surve- will | rovide is: 1. Soil-to-plant able and soil-to-fruit ccneentration factors for detect- radionuclides. 2. The relationshir petween food s:ecies and nonfood species at the same locatio 3. The relationship vetween total -o > activity which the time o: is available to the radioactivity and the radiopliant in the soil solution at -ampi ng. 4, The relationsh:1 -f vegetation, -o1], soil water, litter, and humus 5. The relationsh.r water and jian’s 0.f lens water vadioactivits to that in soil szrowing apove the .¢ens zone in order to deter- mine the toss in the everall cscling of radionw rate of (time ides in mature depenitent information) food crops. from the coral atoll ervirenment. 6. Intra-islane viriibility in vegetition radionuclide concentrations. 7. Supply the aata base for assessment of terrestrial food chain transfer o1 radioactivity from he: soil to man for long-term dose evaluation ‘01 rehabiliatioen o7 ie aroll.