New York's Radiation Control System

Abstract

HUMAN EXPOSURE to radiation poses a significant health challenge in this atomic era. State governments share with the Federal Government responsibility for insuring that populations are not overexposed to radioactivity and fallout. The monitoring of radioactivity from fallout and the control of industrial sources of radioactivity is well within the technical competence of States. However, before radioactivity can be kept within safe limits in the environment, it must be measured. A sound monitoring system is the bedrock measure of a control effort. Cost, of course, is important in any monitoring system, and therefore the problem, briefly, is how to get reliable data at the least possible cost. The New York State Department of Health has developed a program to measure levels of specific radionuclides in air, water, milk, and food. Sampling these environmental vectors is a valid way to measure the exposure of an entire population. But measurements are only a means, not an end. Our purpose in monitoring air, water, and food is to obtain information needed for determining when and where to institute control measures. Our basic guide for deciding when to take countermeasures is the recommendations of the Federal Radiation Council's Radiation Protection Guides (1), which were established for normal peacetime operations. These guides establish limits of exposure for certain body organs in relation to population groups, and define three ranges of intake for four of the more important radionuclides: radium 226, strontium 89, strontium 90, and iodine 131. Sampling the environment for the effects of weapons testing began in 1953, and the first sampling measure was gross beta analysis of surface water supplies. This work has since been extended and refined as more money and personnel have become available. Currently, the department routinely performs radioactivity analyses of 48 water sources, including 25 water supplies, 5 air sampling stations, 15 milk sampling stations, and 5 fallout stations. Many stations are located near nuclear installations and are a part of the related surveillance program of these facilities. Careful plans were made to prepare for this sampling. Our radiological health personnel began by consulting with department colleagues responsible for the general safety of air, water, and milk. From them, we got information that pinpointed the number and location of major supplies and other relevant factors.