J O t J f_ UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA THIS DOCUtt ATOMIC ENERGY PROJECT POST OFFICE BOX 31 BEVERLY HILLS CALIFORNIA NUMBER UCLA RB 71 Dr James A Jensen Assistant Director of Medicine Biology U S Atomic Energy Commission Washington D C Dear Dr n This will serve to review and confirm my understanding of the more significant impressions and conclusions reached at Socorro New Mexico Octooer 1 2 nd 3 Dr Harry 7 hippie1 contribution v as very helpful and much appreciated M ilV 0 J j« S Department In order that the record may be straight and more complete we include a'brief review of oral statements made in Washington at the invitation of Dr Shields _ Warren during the week of September 13 1948 and which in part prompted your vis At that time and on the basis of nearly complete data accumulated this year on so activity in about 400 square miles of the contaminated area together with data obtained by Jacobsen and Overstreet on plant uptake Soil Sei 65 129-134 and Dr J Hamilton on animal uptake Plutonium Report together with scattered and very meagre data of our own we emphasized certain facts and their possible impli­ cations 0 These statements were made not only to Dr Shields Warren and yourself but also with his permission to others in Washington These included General » McCormack Mr Shugg Mr Adrian Fisher Mr Edward Trapnell Col Preuss Dr George Lyons Dr Charles 3 Spruit General Nichols Captain YTynant and sever Of Ert fP whose names escape me 1 Historian's Office ARCHIVES joints emphasized were these 6— U 1 Maximum activity in and near considerable variability L e crater area is about 2 7 mr hour with 2 Maximum activity in scattered areas on the Chupadera mesa some 20-30 miles to the north eastward reached 2 7 mr hour The average activity over the 400 scuahFmiles surveyed is considerabl less A guestimate hurriedly made since would indicate average activities less than 2 7 mr hour by a factor of ten or thereaoouts Tnere is no reason to think that any hazard from total body radiation •xists anywhere in the area - unless someone should choose to spend bout two days or more lying on the ground in the most active areas -ol Hazards that may be presented to persons in the area during times wnei Wind-blown dust is in the air which is of frequent occurrence is anbth r natter especially as regards alph naiitcrs e mentioned I data from the Chicago laboratories indicating tnat alpha aggreg tes small as 1 micron may in time induce lung tumors in mice Fur e nar-er L -rS • UCLa 3 71 Y Dr James A Jensen October 6 1948 L Faee 2 6 There is evidence that certain plants will take certain elements from very low concentrations in the soil and concentrate them in high degree For example wheat and other plants in the Great Plains con­ centrate selenium by a large factor V illiams Lakin and Byers 1941» Tech Bui 758 USDA Te do not yet know whether plants in the con­ taminated area are picking up radio active materials or in what tissue or in what amounts TTe do know that certain grasses oats juniper and others show low grade activity from occluded dust and probably metabolized material The laboratory determinations of collected terial is just getting under way out 5000 head of stock is grazing in the 400 square mile area much f it in the Chupadera from the Coker and Harvey herds 8 Radioactive cow dung is easy to find — 2 1 to 9«7 counts sec gram dry weighty i J j -i 9 Fublicvhelations and legal liability matters present potentially serio problems At least one person in Socorro known to us is actively won£4 • dering whether a uterine tumor l and a spleen condition may be due to radiation She tracked gasoline to the Trinity area and had until recently a shoebox full of trimt it '- n V 3'T' pfissftasinn 10 v7e discussed the possibility of using the Trinity area and Base Camp as a training ground for selected enlisted personnel and others t During our conferences in Socorro last week we presented on the basis of such data as we had our conclusion that the next jobs to be done to determine wi a minimum of time and expense whether or not biological hazards still exist in tn i„area 1 The bioassay of the principal organs of livestock known to have grazed for two years or more in the active areas 2 The culture of economically significant plants in contaminated soil c media under laboratory controlled conditions to study the uptake of long lived radio elements their metabolism and transfer to animals It was pointed cut that greenhouse headhouse growing plot and associated laboratory facilities will be required to determine whether or not any of the elen known to occur in the contaminated area are taken up in significant amounts by any crop or garden plant that can be grown in cultivated ajf f in which low grade activity now exists This project should proceed at an early date since we have other basis for estimating long range effects on man of continued use of food plan grown continuously on low activity soil Similar arguments apply to such other radio active elements as may be used in any form of RT7 Transfer to animals of materials taken up by or stored in plants will necessarily be checked on suitable laboratory animals including poultry Fin-dings in the Hanford area indicate the storage of activity in the yolks of duck eggs After extensive discussion it was agreed tentatively tnat 1 Arrangements should be completed and funds provided for the purchase c Department Of Energy ARCHIVES'06 about ten head of cattle two ana if possible three years old -2- $F • Cc Page 3 UCLA R3 71 Dr Jarnes A Jensen October 6 1948 known to have grazed predominantly in the more active parts of the Cnuoadera as well as funds for special equipment It was the consensus of opinion that the stock should be purchased tagged and held by Mr Coker in the Chupadera until suitable arrangements could be made v ith a Los Angeles slaughter house to butcher and store the carcasses and internal organs that certain oon« the GI tr-ct Liver spleen kidneys adrenals pancreas lungs should be quick frozen nd held in deep freeze until wanted in the laboratory that the car­ casses should be held in cold storage until on the basis of the selected parts we can determine whether the carcasses might be released for human consumption or otherwise disposed of lungs Should be examined for damage and for alpha activity FundMill be required for a large drying oven and a large muffle It was thought that when arrangements had been completed with a los Angeles Packing House the animals should be shipped oy truck 2 It was agreed that detailed plans should again be ™s_ef taking as soon as possible The culture of economically plants in contaminated soil including finely r™tite etc and that you will give careful attention to ways and means for mple U menting these plans q • - re discussed also the desirability of bringing in about 20 head of young stuff from outsitfegthe Socorro region and Qst two lots One group to b maintained for several years in ne mos active available area oftithe Chupadera and the othe group in a nearby uncontaminated area Mr Coker who is quite riendlyand cooperative owns both types of ground This experiment eludewith the bioassay of selected oarts It was agreed that this project and associatedmodifications of it should await the outcome of the bioassay mentioned on a previous p ge e„ r T „ discussion of a suitable mobile laboratory suitable for woric of the'type ™ are doing toaccom anypra gr°apan ° use under v ar conditions Our ideas of such facility ttlll P in due course n j V i v P ause of the- fict that the bioassay of It -was generally agreed f thau Realise oi i- getting r«a ibilitv of oreoaring a release for the oocorro X Finally we ciscusseu the feasibility oi e rs of getting too paper to give the local P°P tion sone X r nd that you%dll discuss this familiar with the greenglass and beads vin recall that Department of Energy Historian's Office ARCHIVES • r r— IV I-T-I AJ m L x UCLA i3 71 Dr James A Jensen October 6 1948 Page 4 especially v hen worked into jewelry The release might well be flavored with a • discussion of nuclear energy and applications in biology medicine and industry Fersonally I think it would be a good investment in good will for someone to speak in that area showing one or more of the moving pictures that are available to general audiences These people have a special interest in the matter and doubtless would aporeciate a little special attention Such a talk no doubt would be Piven soace in the local press both before and after the event and would furnish the occasion for including such special information as may be agreed upon by the authorities Some of the same material might well be woven into the taJJC and the essential points driven home both by the spoken and written word Sincerely yours IN IN CiC Albert W Bellamy Chief Alamogordo Section A'vB dw ±3 F 1 clean lr D C Tyler Shields barren M D Department of Energy Historian's Office ARCHIVES -4- 31