Fifth Public Meeting
Public Comments / Questions and Answers

(These statements are NOT direct quotes. All statements are paraphrased. "Team" refers to either one or more members of the project team who responded to a questions or comment. )

Question: Will the documents be scanned and made available on the Internet?

Response Widner: We have discussed this, and will need to work with CDC regarding this proposal.

Question: Will a public announcement be made when the records are made available?

Response Widner: Yes. If the Web site is published, the announcement will be made there.

Question:In the 1990s there were many reported cases of thyroid cancer with a suspected cause being the source term from the Omega West reactor. Has anyone seen which specific isotopes were released?

Response 1: We have not seen good data on that matter, but we will keep that concern in mind.

Response 2 Widner:When you talk about a release, correction factors often have to be applied. One of these is determining the significance of releases in D Building in earlier periods. Large unknowns exist that we are focusing on now. D Building is the first plutonium processing building.

Question Margaret Anne Rogers: I am concerned about about reconstructing history. I don't see reference to my work. It would have been a short cut.

Response Widner: We have not seen your files.

Question Margaret Anne Rogers: In those files are interview tapes of old-timers that have died. My emphasis was different because I was trying to figure out what was contaminated.

Response 1 Widner: We would like to sit down and talk to you. We want to gear up interviews again, because we gain a lot of useful information and learn more about where and what to look for.

Question: Useful information would include when stacks operated, what equipment was used, what were the specified emissions, and what tests were conducted.

Response: Widner: We have found quiet a bit of information on these subjects. I agree, it's important.

Question: In order to identify holes, you need to know what to look for. There has never been a study to confirm official releases.

Response Widner: I think we can modify some of our summary methods to document that better.