continued from page 30

Internal Contamination

Having documented that personnel at Operation GREENHOUSE were not only overexposed, but also exposed to radioactive fallout and were in a position to inhale and or ingest resuspended radionuclides and that these particles were of such size which could be inhaled and/or ingested unknowingly, the question then becomes: Could such internal contamination result in a subsequent radiocarcinogenic outcome or cause a breakdown in the autoimmune system of the human body to cause death from an otherwise believed non-carcinogenic illness?

"Whenever fallout occurs there is a possibility that radioactive material will enter the body through the digestive tract (due to the consumtion of food and waler contaminated with fission products), through the lungs (by breathing air containing fallout particles), or through wounds or abrasions. The general biological effects of nuclear radiations from internally deposited sources are the same as those from external sources. However, it should be noted that even a very small quantity of radioactive material present in the body can produce considerable injury." 51(emphasis added).

"12.98. In considering the possible effects on the body of ionizing radiation from external sources, it is necessary to distinguish between an "acute" ( or 'one-shot') exposure and a 'chronic' (or extended) exposure. In an acute exposure the whole radiation dose is received in a relatively short interval of time. This is the case, for example, in connection with the initial nuclear radiation. It is not possible to define an acute dose precisely, but it may be somewhat arbitrarily taken to be the dose received in a 24-hour period. Although delayed radiations from early fallout persist for longer times, the main exposure would be received during the first day and so it is regarded as being acute. On the other hand, the individual entering a fallout area after the first day or so and remaining for some time would be considered to have been subjected to chronic exposure. 52(emphasis added).

It should be noted that in the case of GREENHOUSE personnel they did not enter the fallout area, rather they remained trapped in a radioactive environment for more than sixty consecutive days, not counting that they were living in an area previously contaminated by Operstion SANDSTONE in 1948. Thus, they received both internal and external acute and chronic exposure.

continue

Operation Greenhouse || Email: Robert Campbell
Atomic Test Series and Dates || T-Shirts || Videos
NAAV Medical Data Base Information