Measure local radiation levels

To the editor:

Since all government agencies have been referring me to other government agencies when I ask them about whether they have been taking radiation measurements of fish and whales entering Alaska waters from the Pacific Ocean, I bought a Geiger counter (Ludlum model 2241 survey meter) and have been taking some readings of my own.

I have taken a random sample of one silver salmon and two humpies (pink salmon) from Willow Creek, and after exhaustive data collection and analysis — compared with fresh-water, farm-raised catfish used as controls — I observed no difference over my standard deviation (SD) in radiation levels in these salmon.

Results are: 4.52 micro-Rad/hr for catfish and 4.42 micro-Rad/hr for salmon with SD = 0.18 micro-Rad/hr. This does not mean that trace amounts of radioactive isotopes are absent in these salmon, but only that radiation levels are within background levels. In fact, I am still worried about fry that dispersed last year into the Pacific Ocean and are feeding there today. But they’ll not arrive here for three to seven years, depending on species, so there may be a delayed spike in radioactivity to look out for. I would like to request a sample of whale from northern coastal Alaska Native tribes.

At first, I thought background radiation levels would be lower in the bike-path tunnel under the highway, so I thought it would be easier to detect lower levels from the fish in there. But I found the radiation level inside bike-path tunnels under the Parks Highway here in Willow to be 7.60 (SD = 0.14) micro-Rad/hour compared with 5.61 (SD = 0.17) micro-Rad/hour out on open ground. That’s 36 percent (SD = 6 percent) higher than outdoors on open ground, which is comparable to radiation exposure from close contact with your smoke detector. This may be due to radioactivity in the rock and rubble used to make the embankments.

Background radiation outdoors, on open ground, was up to 1 micro-Rad/hour higher than indoors on my kitchen counter in a house made of wood, up off the ground and under a metal roof. If one lived in a stone house on rock ground with stone fireplaces and countertops and a shingle roof, then one would have higher background radiation.

Parties interested in their radiation levels may contact Daniel Russell at 373-8176.

Daniel N. Russell

physicist

Willow