AOL? 70
|
Maw
United States Departmentof the Interior
OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20240
JUL 23 1979
Dr. Bruce W. Wachholz
Office of Environment
Department of Energy
Washington, D.C. 20545
Dear Dr. Wachholz:
I am enclosing for your information a copy of a letter dated July 10,
1979, from Mr. Ralph Waltz who had a number of comments on the "Notes"
of the June 13 meeting on Bikini matters as well as a copy of my reply
to him dated July 20, 1979.
Mr. Waltz raised a question relating to a comparison of the "Gamma Ray"
levels on Eneu Island and Rongelap Island. He has noticed from the
photographs distributed at the March 22, 1979, House Subcommittee on
Interior Appropriations Hearing that the levels for Eneu and the main
residential island on Rongelap appear to be the same. This leads to
his question as to why were the Rongelapese allowed to return to the
island in 1957 and are still allowed to stay there, while we now say that
the Bikinians should not return to Eneu Island for at least another 25
years.
I had no recourse but to answer that I would forward this
question to your Department for comment.
I know, of course, that the detail maps of Rongelap have not been made
available.
I must confess that when we saw the first set of photographs
on March 22, 1979, a somewhat similar thought as expressed by Mr. Waltz
crossed our minds here.
I realize, of course, that the residents of
Rongelap are examined regularly, including "whole body count" examinations,
and that regular monitoring of plants, soil, water, etc., on Rongelap has
been carried out over the years. Presumably, the radiation levels there
are not considered to pose a danger to the residents.
Mr. Waltz also dwells on the “Rongelap situation" in another aspect,
i.e., he claims that some 25 of the residents of Bikini Island who were
relocated last August had moved there from Rongelap Island and could have
been contaminated on Rongelap which resulted in the higher body levels
on Bikini Island.
[vires
’
SObi ik
~
63953
gine -
{
ffP
ri
OPT
4