WHITE HOUSE APPROVES RADICAL RADIATION CLEANUP ROLLBACK
Civilian Cancer Deaths Expected to Skyrocket Following Radiological Incidents
Posted on Apr 08, 2013
________________________________
Washington, DC — The White House has given final approval for dramatically
raising
permissible radioactive levels in drinking water and soil following
“radiological incidents,” such as nuclear power-plant accidents and
dirty bombs. The final version, slated for Federal Register publication
as soon as today, is a win for the nuclear industry which seeks what its
proponents call a “new normal” for radiation exposure among the U.S
population, according Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility
(PEER).
Issued by the Environmental Protection Agency, the radiation guides (called
Protective Action Guides or PAGs) allow cleanup many times more lax than
anything EPA has ever before accepted. These guides govern evacuations,
shelter-in-place orders, food restrictions and other actions following a wide
range of “radiological emergencies.” The Obama administration
blocked a version of these PAGs from going into effect during its first
days in office. The version given approval late last Friday is
substantially similar to those proposed under Bush but duck some of the
most controversial aspects:
In
soil, the PAGs allow long-term public exposure to radiation in amounts
as high as 2,000 millirems. This would, in effect, increase a
longstanding 1 in 10,000 person cancer rate to a rate of 1 in 23 persons
exposed over a 30-year period;
* In water, the PAGs punt on an exact new standard and EPA “continues
to
seek input on this.” But the thrust of the PAGs is to give on-site
authorities much greater “flexibility” in setting aside established
limits; and
* Resolves an internal fight inside EPA between nuclear versus public
health
specialists in favor of the former. The PAGs are the product of Gina
McCarthy, the assistant administrator for air and radiation whose
nomination to serve as EPA Administrator is taken up this week by the
Senate.
* Despite the years-long internal fight, this is the first public
official
display of these guides. This takes place as Japan grapples with these
same issues in the two years following its Fukushima nuclear disaster.
“This is a public health policy only Dr. Strangelove could embrace. If this
typifies the environmental leadership we can expect from Ms. McCarthy,
then EPA is in for a long, dirty slog,” stated PEER Executive Director
Jeff Ruch, noting that the EPA package lacks a cogent rationale, is
largely impenetrable and hinges on a series of euphemistic “weasel
words.” “No compelling justification is offered for increasing the
cancer deaths of Americans innocently exposed to corporate
miscalculations several hundred-fold.”
Reportedly, the PAGs had been approved last fall but their publication was held
until after the presidential election. The rationale for timing their
release right before McCarthy’s confirmation hearing is unclear.
Since the PAGs guide agency decision-making and do not formally set standards
or repeal statutory requirements, such as the Safe Drinking Water Act
and Superfund, they will go into full effect following a short public
comment period. Nonetheless, the PAGs will likely determine what actions take
place on the ground in the days, weeks, months and, in some cases, years
following a radiological emergency.
http://www.nuclearfreeplanet.org/news/2013/04/09/white-house-approves-radical-radiation-cleanup-rollback.html#.UWpBtDulSzY.email
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