Uranium and other heavy metals in soil and vegetation from the Hanford environs

Abstract

Strong winds that could transport contaminated dust and other materials offsite from the Hanford 300 Area typically blow from the west or southwest. Samples were collected from an offsite study area located across the Columbia River and downwind from the 300 Area to estimate the concentrations of uranium and other heavy metals in soils and vegetation. Results were compared to similar measurements collected at control sites located both on and off the Hanford Site. These comparisons were used to test hypotheses that uranium and other heavy metals had been transported offsite by wind-blown dust or other materials. The conclusion from this study was that operations at the 300 Area have not resulted in a detectable impact on the offsite environs across the river. The concentration of uranium in soil samples from the study area was statistically greater than comparable samples from control sites, but there was no evidence that the uranium in the study-area samples was other than naturally occurring. There was no statistical difference in the concentration of lead, silver, zinc or copper in soil samples from the study area as compared to the control sites. No statistically significant differences in uranium or other heavy metals were noted amongmore » vegetation samples from the various sampling sites.« less