The Amchitka Independent Assessment Science Plan (Hereinafter Referred to As Science Plan)
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AMCHITKA INDEPENDENT ASSESSMENT SCIENCE PLAN Prepared for the Interagency Amchitka Policy Group June 24, 2003* CRESP Amchitka Oversight Committee Charles W. Powers, PhD Principal Investigator—CRESP & UMDNJ David Barnes, PhD Barry Friedlander, MD CRESP-University of Alaska Fairbanks CRESP-Deputy Executive Director & UMDNJ Joanna Burger, PhD Michael Gochfeld, MD, PhD CRESP-Rutgers University CRESP-UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School Lawrence K. Duffy, PhD Stephen Jewett, PhD CRESP-University of Alaska Fairbanks CRESP-University of Alaska Fairbanks John Eichelberger, PhD David Kosson, PhD CRESP-University of Alaska Fairbanks CRESP-Vanderbilt University CRESP II 317 George Street, Suite 202 New Brunswick, NJ 08901 Telephone 732-296-1960 FAX 732-235-9607 http://www.cresp.org * corrected for typographical and similar errors Amchitka Independent Assessment Science Plan June 24, 2003 TABLE OF CONTENTS I. Executive Summary..................................................................................................................... 6 Disclaimer................................................................................................................................... 9 II. Introduction .............................................................................................................................. 11 A. CRESP and PCCRARM ..................................................................................................... 13 B. Risk Assessment and Uncertainties..................................................................................... 14 1. Ecological Risk Assessment ............................................................................................. 16 2. Categories of Uncertainties:............................................................................................. 18 C. Location and Background .................................................................................................. 22 1. The Bering Sea Ecosystem ............................................................................................... 22 2. Biodiversity and Amchitka ............................................................................................... 22 D. History of Amchitka............................................................................................................ 23 1. Chronology ...................................................................................................................... 24 2. Recent History ................................................................................................................. 27 E. Importance of the Problem .................................................................................................. 29 F. Previous Environmental Sampling Efforts at Amchitka ..................................................... 32 G. Scientific Approach............................................................................................................. 34 H. Chemical Tracers and Radiological Signature.................................................................... 36 III. The Contaminant Path............................................................................................................. 39 A. Source Term......................................................................................................................... 40 B. Rock Envelope ..................................................................................................................... 40 C. Groundwater Flow................................................................................................................ 41 D. Marine Environment- Physical ........................................................................................... 45 E. Marine Environment – Biological....................................................................................... 46 1. Humans and Food Webs ................................................................................................... 49 2. Bioavailability, Bioaccumulation and Biomagnification.................................................. 51 3. Receptors of Concern........................................................................................................ 53 IV. Long Term Stewardship ......................................................................................................... 55 V. Quality Assurance and Data Quality Objectives..................................................................... 57 A. Data Quality Objectives Process.......................................................................................... 58 VI. Health and Safety Plan......................................................................................................... 61 VII. Relationship of this Project to Previous Work .................................................................... 62 VIII. Expected Outcomes............................................................................................................. 64 IX. Prioritization of Tasks and Subtasks...................................................................................... 65 A. Clarification of Criteria for Prioritization ............................................................................ 65 X. NNSA Funding ........................................................................................................................ 73 XI. Tasks....................................................................................................................................... 75 Task 1 Sampling The Marine Environment............................................................................ 75 Task 1.1 Biological Sampling.............................................................................................. 75 Task 1.2 Physical Marine Environment............................................................................... 86 Task 1.3 Radionuclide Analysis of Marine Samples.......................................................... 90 1 Amchitka Independent Assessment Science Plan June 24, 2003 Task 1.4 Consumption of Marine Food by Humans............................................................ 92 Task 2 Ocean Conditions......................................................................................................... 97 Task 2.1: Ocean floor characterization ................................................................................. 97 Task 2.2 Salinity Structure and Discharge......................................................................... 102 Task 2.3 Ocean Circulation................................................................................................ 104 Task 3: Amchitka Geology and Hydrology............................................................................ 109 Task 3.1 Amchitka Data Recovery and Synthesis............................................................. 109 Task 3.2 Amchitka Structure and Determination of Subsurface Freshwater/saltwater Interface. ............................................................................................................................. 112 Task 3.3 Groundwater Recharge........................................................................................ 115 Task 3.4 Radionuclide Content of the Test Area: The Source Term................................. 119 Task 3.5 Water/rock Interaction in the Rock Envelope..................................................... 121 Task 3.6 Radionuclide Sorption on Sediments................................................................. 123 Task 3.7 Deformation of the Amchitka massif.................................................................. 125 Task 4 Stakeholder Dimensions............................................................................................. 132 Task 4.1 Stakeholder Participation .................................................................................... 132 Task 4.2 Long-term Monitoring ......................................................................................... 133 XII. Management and Oversight................................................................................................. 135 XIII. References.......................................................................................................................... 143 Appendix 1.................................................................................................................................. 164 2 Amchitka Independent Assessment Science Plan June 24, 2003 FIGURES AND TABLES FIGURES: Fig. 1. PCCRARM: Model of risk assessment and risk management 13 Fig. 2. Exposure pathway from south to population effects 16 Fig. 3a. Map of the Aleutian chain showing Amchitka 20 Fig. 3b, 3c Map of Amchitka showing test sites and faults 21 Fig. 4. Primary productivity map of North Pacific and Bering Sea 30 Fig. 5. Bathymetry map of Amchitka region 31 Fig. 6. Tectonic schematic of Amchitka 32 Fig. 7. Temporal pattern of studies from source to food chain effects 35 Fig. 8. Schematic of an underground nuclear test shot cavity 39 Fig. 9 Generic cross section of hydrology 42 Fig 10 Site motion vectors for Aleutian arc 43 Fig. 11 Radar interferogram of displacement at Amchitka 44 Fig. 12 Marine food web for Amchitka 50 Fig. 13 Conceptual model of relationships among tasks and migration pathway 67 Fig. 14 Possible transfer of radionuclides through Amchitka food web 78 Fig. 15a Ocean floor off Amchitka 98 Fig. 15b High-resolution