Los Alamos County Research Articles

Children Speaking: Agency and Public Memory in the Children’s Peace Statue Project

Scholars in rhetoric have been slow to recognize children as capable of exercising rhetorical agency. This oversight inadvertently recapitulates the divestment of agency experienced by children who speak publicly about civic concerns. This essay examines the argumentative and organizational strategies of a group of children from New Mexico who worked in the early 1990s to publicize, design, and fund the Children’s Peace Statue and who repeatedly petitioned the Los Alamos County Council to accept the statue as a gift to the city of Los Alamos. Analyzing the children’s rhetorical strategies alongside responses of adult opponents, I show how opponents rejected the statue in part by resisting engaging with children as rhetorical agents. This research underscores the stakes of recognizing children’s agency as complexly meaningful.

Consequences of Assessment Limits

Assessment limits are a type of tax expenditure that limits or places a cap on the amount a property can increase in assessed value for taxation each year. Few states estimate the consequences of the assessment limit they adopt in annual tax expenditure reports. The paper reviews the prevalence of assessment limits in the U.S. and motivations for adoption, and discusses the potential consequences. Then, an empirical analysis estimates the impact of New Mexico's assessment limit on the tax base, revenue, equity, and distribution of the tax burden in Los Alamos County and San Juan County using property valuation data. It is important for state policy makers to systematically consider the costs of assessment limits, both in foregone revenues for local governments and the distribution of property tax liabilities, which could ultimately impact the legitimacy of the tax.

WILDFIRE CLOSES LOS ALAMOS

A WILDFIRE BURNING in New Mexico led officials to evacuate the city of Los Alamos and shut down the adjacent Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) from June 27 through at least July 1. As of C&EN press time on June 30, no city or lab structures had burned. Dubbed Las Conchas, the fire lined the city and lab on the west and south sides, and had burned more than 92,000 acres, according to the New Mexico Fire Information website. The fire briefly crossed over onto lab property on June 27, but it burned only about an acre and was put out within an hour, LANL Director Charles McMillan said at a press conference. The blaze started about 12 miles southwest of Los Alamos around 1 PM local time on June 26, probably from a spark from a power line, Los Alamos County Fire Chief Doug Tucker said. And the fire grew ferociously, says Alan ...

Horsehair Worms (Gordius robustus) in Nests of the Western Bluebird (Sialia mexicana): Evidence for Anti-Predator Avoidance?

Hairworms (Nematomorpha: Gordiida) are internal parasites that alter the behavior of their terrestrial insect host, forcing it to enter the water to reach its reproductive habitat. After reproduction of the free-living adults, the larvae encyst in aquatic insects and are retained upon metamorphosis of the insect into an adult fly. This paratenic host links the aquatic and terrestrial environments after its consumption by omnivorous or predatory insects. Therefore, hairworms are usually only associated with invertebrates, and few reports discuss hairworm interactions with vertebrate species. Here, we report on the finding of horsehair worms in nests of a cavity-nesting bird species in Los Alamos County, New Mexico. From 2004 to 2008, 7 nests within nest boxes occupied by the western bluebird (Sialia mexicana) contained 8 hairworms that were identified as Gordius robustus. All of the nest boxes with worms were less than 100 m from stagnant or low-flowing streams. The most likely explanation for the presence of the worms in the nests is that worms engaged in anti-predator avoidance after their insect hosts were collected and before digestion by nestling birds.

WORK TO SAVE DOSE: CONTRASTING EFFECTIVE DOSE RATES FROM RADON EXPOSURE IN WORKPLACES AND RESIDENCES AGAINST THE BACKDROP OF PUBLIC AND OCCUPATIONAL REGULATORY LIMITS

Office workers are exposed to radon while at work and at home. Though there are a multitude of studies reporting radon concentrations and potential lung and effective doses associated with radon progeny exposure in homes, similar studies in non-mine workplaces are lacking. Additionally, there are few, if any, comparative analyses of radon exposures at more "typical" workplace with residential exposures within the same county. The purposes of this study were to measure radon concentrations in office and residential spaces in the same county and explore the radiation dose implications. Sixty-five track-etch detectors were deployed for 3-mo sampling periods in office spaces and 47 were deployed in residences, all within Los Alamos County, New Mexico. The measured concentrations were used to calculate and compare effective dose rates resulting from exposure while at work and at home. Results showed that full-time office workers receive on average about 8 times greater exposure at home than while in the office (2.3 mSv y-1 vs. 0.3 mSv y-1). The estimated effective dose rate for a more homebound person was about 3 mSv y-1. Estimating effective doses from background radon exposure in the same county as Los Alamos National Laboratory, with thousands of "radiological workers," highlights interesting contrasts in radiation protection standards that span public and occupational settings. For example, the effective dose rate from background radon exposure in unregulated office spaces ranged up to 1.1 mSv y-1, which is similar to the 1 mSv y-1 threshold for regulation of a "radiological worker," as defined in the Department of Energy regulations for occupational exposure. Additionally, the estimated average effective dose total of >3 mSv y-1 from radon background exposure in homes stands in contrast to the 0.1 mSv y-1 air pathway effective public dose limit regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency for radioactive air emissions, and both these are substantially lower than effective doses associated with priority radon levels in homes of "tens of pCi L-1 and greater" (>370 Bq m-3), as suggested by the Health Physics Society.

Help Your Health! Establishing a Consumer Health Program in a Small Public Library

Public libraries play a vital role in providing current, accurate consumer health information. This article details the use of an Express Consumer Health Outreach Award from the National Network of Libraries of Medicine South Central Region to build a consumer health program for seniors at the Los Alamos County Public Library, and share the lessons learned during the implementation along with the lasting benefits of the award.

LANL Operating Experience with the WAND and HERCULES Prototype Systems.

The Waste Assay for Nonradioactive Disposal (WAND) and the High Efficiency Radiation Counters for Ultimate Low Emission Sensitivity (HERCULES) prototype systems have been operating at Los Alamos National Laboratory's (LANL's) Solid Waste Operation's (SWO'S) non-destructive assay (NDA) building since 1997 and 1998, respectively. These systems are the cornerstone of the verification program for low-density Green is Clean (GIC) waste at the Laboratory. GIC waste includes all non-regulated waste generated in radiological controlled areas (RCAS) that has been actively segregated as clean (i.e., nonradioactive) through the use of waste generator acceptable knowledge (AK). The use of this methodology alters LANL's past practice of disposing of all room trash generated in nuclear facilities in radioactive waste landfills. Waste that is verified clean can be disposed of at the Los Alamos County Landfill. It is estimated that 50-90% of the low-density room trash from radioactive material handling areas at Los Alamos might be free of contamination. This approach avoids the high cost of disposal of clean waste at a radioactive waste landfill. It also reduces consumption of precious space in the radioactive waste landfill where disposal of this waste provides no benefit to the public or the environment. Preserving low level waste (LLW) disposal capacity for truly radioactive waste is critical in this era when expanding existing radioactive waste landfills or permitting new ones is resisted by regulators and stakeholders. This paper describes the operating experience with the WAND and HERCULES since they began operation at SWO. Waste for verification by the WAND system has been limited so far to waste from the Plutonium Facility and the Solid Waste Operations Facility. A total of461 ft3 (13.1 m3) of low-density shredded waste and paper have been verified clean by the WAND system. The HERCULES system has been used to verify waste from four Laboratory facilities. These are the Solid Waste Operations Facility, the TA-48 Chemistry Facility, the Shops Facility, and the Environmental Facility. A total of 3150 ft3 (89.3 m3) of low-density waste has been verified clean by the HERCULES system.

Increased incidence and prevalence of multiple sclerosis in Los Alamos County, New Mexico.

The incidence and prevalence of multiple sclerosis (MS) in Los Alamos County, New Mexico, were investigated because the number of reported cases appeared to have increased. The point prevalence on November 1, 1979, was 75.7 per 100,000, and average annual incidence rates for the period 1960-1969 and 1970-1979 were 3.4 and 3.7 per 100,000, respectively. The rates of MS in Los Alamos County were greater than expected from previous epidemiologic surveys of North America. The unusual ethnic composition and high socioeconomic level of the population probably contributed to the increases.

Morbidity and mortality in Los Alamos County, New Mexico: I. Methodological issues and preliminary results

Cancer among Los Alamos County, New Mexico, male residents, all of whom have worked in or have lived within a few kilometers of a major plutonium plant and other nuclear facilities, has been reviewed with respect to mortality between 1950 and 1969 and incidence between 1969 and 1974. A possible excess of neoplasms of the reticuloendothelial system was detected, but the incidence data suggest that this excess, if real, is no longer occurring. Several potentially causal occupational exposures have existed. Higher than expected incidence, currently, of cancers of the colon and rectum appears to be explained better by socioeconomic than occupational factors. Neither mortality nor incidence data suggest an excess of lung cancer in Los Alamos males. Healthy worker and healthy military effects, white ethnicity, and migration are discussed as intervening variables relevant to interpreting mortality data in counties dominated by a single major facility. The utility of county data bases in the study of single local area mortality rates is reviewed.

Groove-Billed Ani and Golden-Crowned Sparrow in New Mexico

On 4 December 1966 a Groove-billed Ani (Crotophaga sulcirostris) was observed from 14:20 to 15:30 in a suburban area of the Rio Grande Valley in the northwest section of Albuquerque, Bernalillo County, New Mexico. Eight people watched the bird from approximately 35 feet; two of them advanced to within 20 feet while photographing it. James S. Findley observed that the bird was in good plumage with the exception of the tip missing from one of the rectrices and three small spots of guano, and thought that it did not show any obvious signs of former captivity. There is no specimen known for New Mexico, although there are fall and winter records from nearby states (AOU Check-list 1957). J. S. Ligon (New Mexico Birds and Where To Find Them, pp. 140-141, 1961) lists two sight records, one in Albuquerque. There are also sight records from Santa Fe (Audubon Field Notes 19:1, 1965), and from Rattlesnake Springs, Eddy County, New Mexico, 13 November 1966 (Patricia Snider personal communication). A photograph of the bird taken 4 December 1966 is on file at the Museum of Southwestern Biology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque. On 5 January 1967 a Golden-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia atricapilla) was taken from a mist net at Cedar Crest, Bernalillo County, New Mexico, a rural area at 6700 feet elevation in the Sandia Mountains east of Albuquerque. The bird was examined in the hand by six observers, measured and photographed, banded, and released. The crown was gold, supercilliary stripes very dark brown with a few gold feathers interspersed, upper mandible black; measurements: wing (chord) 80.2 mm, tail (quite worn) 77.0 mm. A subadult White-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys) netted at the same time provided a good basis for comparison; one photograph was taken of the two birds together. The Golden-crowned Sparrow was caught again 17 days later on 22 January 1967 in the same net at Cedar Crest. No specimen is known for New Mexico. There is one other record of one banded (F. and W. S. Band No. 27-178815) in Los Alamos, Los Alamos County, New Mexico, at 7500 feet elevation in the Jemez Mountains west of Santa Fe, 5 October 1959 by James R. Travis (Audubon Field Notes 14:1, 1960). Two photographs of the Cedar Crest bird are on file at the Museum of Southwestern Biology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque. I wish to thank James S. Findley for critical comments on the manuscript.