NukeWorker Forum

Career Path => Radiation Safety => Topic started by: tolstoy on Oct 22, 2014, 08:55

Title: The EPA Changes it's mind - surprising response to my letter
Post by: tolstoy on Oct 22, 2014, 08:55
I was reading through the EPA's Rad Town site - a primer of sorts for laymen - and was surprised to find a statement that natural background radiation (specifically K-40) causes animals no harm since our bodies have adapted through evolution with mechanisms that protect us from these emissions. Huh? Others sites have used this to argue that while background radiation doesn't harm us even the smallest amounts of Cs-137 is deadly.

I wrote the EPA and very nicely asked where they got such a cockamamie idea. I expected to wait about three years for a jargon laden pseudo-explanation that was long on words and short on meaning. Instead - very surprisingly to me - I got an email back in a couple of weeks explaining that while they are sure the writer meant well they have removed the content.

Sweet. Now I can add "EPA regulations consultant" to my resume.

I wrote it up here at My Selfish Gene: http://dennismitton.wordpress.com/2014/10/05/epa-radtown-huh-bad-science-fixed/ (http://dennismitton.wordpress.com/2014/10/05/epa-radtown-huh-bad-science-fixed/)