Fort Greely SM-1A Nuclear Reactor
FORT GREELY (a/k/a FORT GREELY MILITARY RESERVATION)
FORT GREELY, SOUTHEAST FAIRBANK COUNTY, ALASKA
CONCLUSION
From the information reviewed, ATSDR’s finding includes:
At the time of disposal (1972), the radiological concentrations
were below the federal regulatory guidelines. Although there is no current
radiological sampling of the recharge well, the underlying aquifer, the Jarvis
Creek, or water sampling in the vicinity of the old SM-1A reactor site, there
is little likelihood that consumption of water from these sources would comprise
a public
health hazard because the process of radiological decay has reduced the
concentrations well below the current drinking water standards. The drinking
water standards are set by the EPA to ensure that anyone drinking 2 liters
of water per day (about ½ gallon) would not receive an annual dose equivalent
of 4 millirem per year (40 microsieverts per year).
Because no recent validated groundwater or surface water exists, ATSDR is
unable to determine if current conditions exist that could impact public health.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Although the levels of radiological contaminants are not thought to be a
health problem, and because no adequate sampling has occurred in the past
25 years, ATSDR believes that one round of confirmatory sampling should be
performed. This sampling should include the recharge well at the point were
it intersects the groundwater and any sludge at the bottom of the well, the
aquifer down gradient from the recharge well, groundwater seeps into Jarvis
Creek and Jarvis Creek itself. The radiological sampling should include tritium,
gross alpha radiation and gross beta radiation using the protocols and methods
as outlined in the EPA drinking water regulations (40 CFR 141. [6])
and a complete gamma radiation scan for fission products.
Consideration should be given to determine the existence of any residential
wells located down gradient from Ft. Greely and if wells are identified, these
wells should be sampled as well.
Paul A. Charp, Ph.D.
Senior Health Physicist
REFERENCES
Environmental Baseline Survey for Fort Greely (1997?). Prepared
by Woodward-Clyde Federal Services for the Army Corps of Engineers.
SM-1A nuclear power plant final decommissioning report (1964).
United States Army Engineer Power Group, Fort Belvoir, Virginia, May 1964.
Impact of the SM-1A reactor and decommissioning on ground
water. Fort Greely, AK. US Army Corps of Engineers. June 1, 1998.
Facsimile from Mike White, US Army to Paul Charp, ATSDR.
Includes comments on original draft from Ft. Greely staff. October 23, 1998.
Final radiological survey of the SM-1A nuclear power plant
facility and site (1973). Operations Division. United States Army Engineer
Power Group, Fort Belvoir, Virginia. September 1973.
US Environmental Protection Agency. Title 40 Code of Federal
Regulations, Chapter 141.
