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Modeling and risk assessment of a 30‐Year‐old subsurface radioactive‐liquid drain field
Author(s) -
Dawson Lon A.,
Pohl Phillip I.
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
water resources research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.863
H-Index - 217
eISSN - 1944-7973
pISSN - 0043-1397
DOI - 10.1029/97wr01700
Subject(s) - vadose zone , contamination , sorption , environmental science , infiltration (hvac) , radioactive waste , tracer , hydrology (agriculture) , subsurface flow , soil science , environmental chemistry , environmental engineering , groundwater , geotechnical engineering , geology , waste management , soil water , materials science , chemistry , engineering , ecology , physics , organic chemistry , adsorption , nuclear physics , composite material , biology
The contamination from a 30‐year‐old radioactive liquid drain field was assessed for movement in the subsurface and potential risks to humans. This assessment included determining field concentrations of cesium 137 ( 137 Cs) and other inorganic contaminants and modeling of the flow and transport of the liquid waste that was sent to the drain field. The field investigation detected no contamination deeper than 15 feet (4.6 m) from the bottom of the drain field. Prediction of the water content of the vadose zone showed no saturated conditions for times greater than 10 years after the known infiltration. Sensitivity analysis of the modeling parameters showed the equilibrium sorption coefficient to be the most important factor in predicting the contaminant plumes. Calibration of modeling results with field data gave a 137 Cs sorption coefficient that is within the range of values found in the literature. The risk assessment for the site showed that the contamination poses no significant risk to human health.