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Basics for Monitoring
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Overview
of Monitoring Activities
Contact INL Oversight
Boise
Office
1410 N. Hilton
Boise, ID 83706
ph: (208) 373-0498
fx: (208) 373-0429
Idaho
Falls Office
900 N. Skyline Dr.
Idaho Falls, ID
83402
ph: (208) 528-2600
fx: (208) 528-2605
INL
Oversight Staff List |
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INL Oversight:
Contaminants We Monitor
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Common
ions and nutrients, measured in water samples, are
naturally occurring elements and compounds that make up ninety-nine
percent of all dissolved constituents in ground water or surface water.
These include calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium, chloride, fluoride,
sulfate, nitrate, phosphorus, and dissolved carbon dioxide. These
common ions and nutrients also make up the vast majority by weight
of dissolved contaminants disposed of in waste water at INL. Together,
these ions allow an assessment of the overall health of the groundwater.
Trace metals, measured
in water samples, are those metallic elements that are present at
very low concentrations in groundwater. These elements also appear
naturally, but at very low levels. Some of these, such as chromium,
zinc, and barium were also disposed in INL wastewater.
Gross alpha and beta radioactivity is monitored for in air and water. It can be natural or man-made. The test for these types of radioactivity is a screening test, measuring contaminants or naturally occurring radionuclides that emit alpha and beta radiation. If measured radioactivity exceeds expected background levels or historic INL operations suggest it, then further analyses are done to identify specific radioactive isotopes.
Gamma-emitting radionuclides are monitored for in air, precipitation, water, soil, and milk by examining the spectrum of gamma radiation given off by a sample. This spectrum is like the spectrum of light we see when light passes through a prism. Cesium-137, Iodine-131, and naturally occurring Potassium-40 are a few isotopes specifically identified by their unique gamma-radiation energies.
Tritium is monitored
for in precipitation, water vapor in the air, and water. Tritium is
a radioactive isotope of hydrogen that is most often found taking
the place of nonradioactive atoms in water molecules. It is made naturally
in the atmosphere and it can be created in nuclear accelerators or
reactors. It is present in spent nuclear fuel. Tritium gives off a
low-energy beta particle and is not seen in a gross beta analysis.
Strontium-90, monitored
for in selected water and air samples, is one of the many isotopes
created when uranium or plutonium is fissioned in a reactor. It decays
with beta radiation.
Technicium-99
is monitored for in selected water samples. This isotope is produced only in nuclear reactors and was historically released into the environment when wastewater was disposed of in ponds or wells. Technicium-99 decays with beta radioactivity.
Transuranic radionuclides have more protons in their nuclei than uranium. They are created in a nuclear reactor as a result of nuclear fission. Transuranic radionuclides are monitored for as particles captured on air filters. We also look for them dissolved in groundwater. Plutonium and americium are among the specific transuranic radionuclides we monitor. Transuranic elements typically emit alpha-particle radioactivity and may also be seen with screening for alpha radioactivity or by gamma-spectroscopy analysis.
Iodine-129 and chlorine-36
are monitored in ground water. They are radioisotopes that
occur naturally at very low levels, but were also produced during
worldwide nuclear weapons testing. These isotopes are also characteristic
of INL wastewater, and travel quickly with ground water. These isotopes,
which we test for only as part of special studies, are generally present
at very low levels (to a million times lower than drinking water standards)
and require special testing methods to see them at these atoms-per-liter
levels.
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