Heavy element radionuclides (Pu, Np, U) and (sup 137)Cs in soils collected from the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory and other sites in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming

摘要

The isotopic composition of Pu in soils on and near the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL) has been determined in order to apportion the sources of the Pu into those derived from stratospheric fallout, regional fallout from the Nevada Test Site (NTS), and facilities on the INEEL site. Soils collected offsite in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming were collected to further characterize NTS fallout in the region. In addition, measurements of (sup 237)Np and (sup 137)Cs were used to further identify the source of the Pu from airborne emissions at the Idaho Chemical Processing Plant (ICPP) or fugitive releases from the Subsurface Disposal Area (SDA) in the Radioactive Waste Management Complex (RWMC). There is convincing evidence from this study that (sup 241)Am, in excess of that expected from weapons-grade Pu, constituted a part of the buried waste at the SDA that has subsequently been released to the environment. Measurements of (sup 236)U in waters from the Snake River Plain aquifer and a soil core near the ICPP suggest that this radionuclide may be a unique interrogator of airborne releases from the ICPP. Neptunium-237 and (sup 238)Pu activities in INEEL soils suggest that airborne releases of Pu from the ICPP, over its operating history, may have recently been overestimated.