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Plutonium releases from the 1957 fire at Rocky Flats
T R Mongan1, S R Ripple, G P Brorby
1ChemRisk Division, McLaren/Hart Environmental Engineering, Inc., Alameda, CA 94501, USA.
Health Physics
|October 1, 1996
Summary
A 1957 fire at the Rocky Flats plant released plutonium, estimated at 1.9 GBq. This study reconstructed potential public doses, finding the highest effective dose to be approximately 13 microSv.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Science
- Radiological Health
- Nuclear Safety
Background:
- A significant fire occurred in September 1957 at the Rocky Flats nuclear weapons plant.
- The fire breached the building's air filtration system, leading to a release of plutonium.
- This event is part of a larger study by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment to assess public exposure.
Purpose of the Study:
- To reconstruct contaminant doses to the public from the Rocky Flats nuclear weapons plant.
- To estimate the plutonium release from the September 1957 fire.
- To determine off-site air concentrations, deposition, and effective dose to the public.
Main Methods:
- Utilized environmental data collected around the time of the fire.
- Employed an air dispersion model to estimate plutonium release and spread.
- Calculated off-site air concentrations and plutonium deposition.
Main Results:
- The approximate upper bound of the total plutonium release was estimated at 1.9 GBq (0.05 Ci).
- The release estimate has an uncertainty of about two orders of magnitude.
- The highest predicted off-site effective dose was approximately 13 microSv (1.3 mrem).
Conclusions:
- The 1957 Rocky Flats fire resulted in a quantifiable plutonium release.
- Public exposure from this event was estimated, with a maximum effective dose identified.
- The study provides crucial data for understanding historical radiological impacts from the facility.