Resources on Radioactivity in the Marcellus Shale

In the Matter of Chemung County Landfill, DEC permit proceeding. Decision of DEC Commissioner issued August 4, 2011. "Department staff is directed to review whether additional or revised permit conditions, or revisions to the landfill's operating procedures, are necessary with respect to the questions relating to the radiation monitoring/detection system, landfill leachate management, and restrictions on disposal of drill cuttings in the onsite construction and demolition debris landfill, as set forth in this decision."

The Low-Level Radiation Puzzle, by Matthew L. Wald, New York Times Green Blog, May 2, 2012

Low-Level Radiation Risks, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, May/June 2012

Special issue on the risks of exposure to low-level radiation, by Jan Beyea, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists May/June 2012 68: pp. 10-12, doi:10.1177/0096340212445026
The scientific jigsaw puzzle: Fitting the pieces of the low-level radiation debate, by Jan Beyea, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists May/June 2012 68: pp. 13-28, doi:10.1177/0096340212445025
Lessons from Hiroshima and Nagasaki: The most exposed and most vulnerable, David Richardson, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists May/June 2012 68: pp. 29-35, doi:10.1177/0096340212444876
Principles in practice: Radiation regulation and the NRC, by Terry A. Brock and Sami S. Sherbini, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists May/June 2012 68: pp. 36-43, doi:10.1177/0096340212444869
Unmasking the truth: The science and policy of low-dose ionizing radiation, by Gordon Thompson, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists May/June 2012 68: pp. 44-50, doi:10.1177/0096340212444872
The low-dose phenomenon: How bystander effects, genomic instability, and adaptive responses could transform cancer-risk models, by Colin K. Hill, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists May/June 2012 68: pp. 51-58, doi:10.1177/0096340212444874
The social amplification of risk and low-level radiation, by Roger E. Kasperson, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists May/June 2012 68: 59-66, doi:10.1177/0096340212444871
The perception gap: Radiation and risk, by Paul Slovic, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists May/June 2012 68: 67-75, doi:10.1177/0096340212444870
Underestimating effects: Why causation probabilities need to be replaced in regulation, policy, and the law, by Sander Greenland, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists May/June 2012 68: 76-83, doi:10.1177/0096340212444873

Health Risks from Exposure to Low Levels of Ionizing Radiation: BEIR VII Phase 2, Committee to Assess Health Risks from Exposure to Low Levels of Ionizing Radiation, National Research Council, 2006

Radiation Toxicity: The Petkau Effect, see http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/2947, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Petkau_effect, http://doctorapsley.com/RadiationTherapy.aspx

Radon in Homes and Natural Gas, Charles J. Barton, Sr., 2008

Radon in Natural Gas from Marcellus Shale, by Marvin Resnikoff, Radioactive Waste Management Associates, January 10, 2012

Natural Gas from Hydrofracking in Marcellus Shale May result in High levels of Radon Gas and Lead in Homes, Oneida County Courier, Oct. 9, 2011

Radioactivity in the Marcellus Shale, Dr. Marvin Resnikoff, Forum at Binghamton University, Nov. 16, 2011

Professor Says DEC Regulations on Shale Radiation Lacking, Fox40, WICZ Binghamton, Nov. 16, 2011

Comments on DSGEIS on Marcellus Shale Development, Marvin Resnikoff, Ph.D., Radioactive Waste Management Associates, September 2011

Throop Borough Council seeks ban on Marcellus waste as landfill cover, Citizens Voice, Luzerne County, PA, July 1, 2011

More than 200 Show Up for Forum on Drill Cuttings, The Corning Leader, June 14, 2011; WENY video clips of the Drilling Cuttings Forum in Bath, June 13, 2011

New York State Dismisses Radiation Threat From Gas Drilling Cuttings, Peter Mantius, DCBureau.org, May 10, 2011

Regulation Lax as Gas Wells’ Tainted Water Hits Rivers, Ian Urbina, New York Times, February 26, 2011

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2011/02/27/us/natural-gas-map.html

Radionuclides Rule: A Quick Reference Guide. Overview of EPA's Radionuclides Rule. 66 FR 76708. December 7, 2000. Vol. 65, No. 236.

Dunmore, PA landfill accepting gas drilling waste that may be radioactive, Steve McConnell, Scanton Times Tribune, February 20, 2011.

Environmental Levels of Radium in Water of Central New York, Thomas F. Kraemer, U.S. Geological Survey, Finger Lakes Research Conference, December 4, 2010

Radioactivity and Shale Gas: Some Like It Hot? David Lewis, December 1, 2010.

Uranium in Groundwater? 'Fracking' Mobilizes Uranium in Marcellus Shale, ScienceDaily, Oct. 25, 2010.

Is New York’s Marcellus Shale Too Hot to Handle?, Abrahm Lustgarten and Krista Kjellman Schmidt, ProPublica, November 9, 2009.

NYS DEC Regulations relating to Radiation

Fractured Gas Shale Potential in New York, D. G. Hill, T.E. Lombardi and J.P. Martin, NYSERDA, n.d.

Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials (NORM) in Produced Water and Oil-Field Equipment— An Issue for the Energy Industry, USGS, 1999.

A Study of Radium-226 and Radon-222 Concentrations in Ground Water Near a Phosphate Mining and Characteristics of the Area Manufacturing Facility with Emphasis on the Hydrogeologic Characteristics of the Area, Barry F. Milsch, James E. Watson, Jr. and James A. Hayes, Water Resources Research Institute, University of North Carolina, March 1984.

Microbial Mobilization of Uranium from Shale Mine Waste, by Birgitta E Kalinowski, Anna Johnsson, Johanna Arlinger, Karsten Pedersen, Arvid Ödegaard-Jensen, Frida Edberg, Geomicrobiology Journal, 2006, Vol. 23, Issue: 3, Pp. 157-164.

Geochemistry of trace elements and uranium in Devonian Shales, J. S. Leventhal, J. G. Crock, M. J. Malcolm, US Dept. Interior, 1981.

Black Shale and Sandstone Facies of the Devonian "Catskill" Clastic Wedge in the Subsurface of Western Pennsylvania, Robert G. Piotrowski and John A. Harper, US DOE, 1979.

Oil Yield and Uranium Content of Black Shales, Vernon E. Swanson, US Dept. Interior, 1960.

Review of ²²²Rn in Natural Gas Produced from Unconvential Sources, Carl V. Gogolak, DOE, November 1980.

Radiological Survey Report Marcellus Shale Drilling Cuttings from Tioga and Bradford Counties, Pa. and New England Waste Services of N.Y., Inc. Landfill Sites in Chemung, NY Campbell, NY Angelica, NY, Theodore E. Rahon, CoPhysics Corporation, April 2010

Letter re Marcellus Shale Drill Cuttings Disposal in New York State Landfills, Scott J. Foti, DEC Regional Materials Management Engineer, January 14, 2011.

Letter re Marcellus shale potential public health concerns, Edward G. Hom, Director, Division of Environmental Health Assessment, NYS Department of Health, July 21, 2009

Methods for Determination of Radioactive Substances in Water and Fluvial Sediments, L. L. Thatcher and V. J. Janzer, U.S. Geological Survey and K. W. Edwards, Colorado School of Mines, Chapter A5 of Techniques of Water-Resources Investigations of the United States Geological Survey, USGS, 1977

Interactive Map: Wastewater Samples From Gas Wells Test Positive for Radioactivity

http://www.propublica.org/special/interactive-map-wastewater-samples-from-gas-wells-radioactivity-1109

New York's Department of Environmental Conservation analyzed 13 samples of wastewater brought thousands of feet to the surface from 12 gas wells being drilled in the Marcellus Shale. Of those 13 samples, 11 contained levels of radium-226, a derivative of uranium, above the legally allowed amount safe for discharge, which is 60 pCi/L. One sample tested as high as 267 times that amount. Gross alpha and gross beta represent general detections of multiple kinds of radioactive isotopes. The size of the markers on the map above correlates to the number of times the sample from that well tested above the legal limit for radium-226. The DEC's data is reported in Appendix 13 of the DSGEIS on hydrofracking.