MEMORANDUM FOR:

SUBJECT:

1,

CJTF SEVEN

10 March 1954

Report on “Soil and Wator Sampling Mission

‘In compliance with your oral instructions, tho undersigned visited Not je,

Erikub, Maloolap, Wotho, Majuro Atolls in tho Marshall Islands 5 through 7 March

1954 for the purpose of obtaining oarth and drinking water samples, and of moasur-

ing gamma way doso rates, and also checkod tho radiological condition of the S.S.
ROQUE on its arrival at Majuro 7 March 1954,

2.

Tho first four atolls wore visited by Marshalleso intcrprotor Takushi

and the writcr by mans of an UF-1 amphibious aircraft. Majuro was reached by
C-47. Erikub might havo beon omitted since it was not inhabited, boing proporty

of tho Wotjo tribo which goos thoro only occasionally to gather copra.

(This was

unimown until after tho visit.)

3. At cach atoll, oly tho principal inhabited island was visited, At cach
visited island an cffort was made to compose a reprosontativo soil avcrago by
collecting into a single container sovoral samples, coach approximatcly ono squr
foot of aroa and one inch depth.

sources currontly in use.
AarCaSe

Wator samples wore collected from tho princip:...

Tho gamma doso rates aro averegos for the inhabited
.
°

4.

With rogard to certain minor discrepancies botwoen the survoy methods us-

5.

Gamma-ray dose rates on Wotje and on Erikub aro cach the averago of MX~5

by Major R. D. Crea and tho writer; it was originally planned to perform the surt
jointly, and when it bccamo advisable to scparato and survey difforcnt atolls, no
time romainod for discussion of details of techniques,
and AN/PDR-39 avorage readings which agreed reasonably woll., Tho MX~5 was rondec
inoperative when the rubber life raft was swamped by surf on‘tho first attcmpt to

launch from the beach at Erikub.

Following tho Wotho survoy, the PDR-39 dovoloper

a tomperature—dependent reading of 0,4 = 2 arf/hr, so that later readings in this
range arc of very dubious reliability.

6.

The following tabulation summarizes the atoll survey.

Water Samples

S is Seil, Wis

ATOLL

ISLAND

DATE

TOE

SAMPLE NO

MRAIR & SAMPLING

WOTJE

ORMED

5 Mar

1600

85

3.5 orfnr, l~beach, 3-mid-vill-

W6
ERIKUB

ERIKUB

5 Mar

1715

S6

age, l-back village.

" 4 well plus 4 catch basin.
1.5 mfhr.

l-mid-village, 1

on path to boach.

No inhabit-.

ants, no water supply found.

SRD- 213 -SY-2E

‘

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