Plutonium and the Rio Grande: Environmental Change and Contamination in the Nuclear Age

by William L. Graf

Overview

The first atomic bombs were constructed at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, where lab workers disposed of waste plutonium in nearby canyons leading to the Rio Grande. Today, the environmental consequences are just beginning to be understood as scientists examine the effects created by past mishandling of one of the most toxic chemical wastes known. Written in an engaging, accessible style, Plutonium and the Rio Grande is the first book to offer a complete exploration of this environmental history. It includes an explanation of what plutonium is, how much of it was released by the Los Alamos workers, and how much entered the river system directly from waste disposal and indirectly, as a result of atomic bomb fallout. The book includes extensive appendices, maps, diagrams, and photographs. Environmental managers, ecologists, hydrologists and other river specialists, as well as concerned general readers will find the book readable and informative.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780195089332
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	12/29/1994
Pages:	356
Product dimensions:	6.37(w) x 9.56(h) x 0.98(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Arizona State University

Table of Contents

1. Introduction and Related Research2. Plutonium and Los Alamos3. The Northern Rio Grande4. Fluvial Sediment, Forms and Processes5. Engineering Works6. Riparian Vegetation7. Plutonium Sources in the Rio Grande System8. Annual Plutonium Budget for the Rio Grande9. Plutonium Storage Upstream from Cochiti10. Plutonium Storage Near Albuquerque11. Simulation of Sediment and Plutonium Dynamics12. General Lessons and Conclusions

Editorial Reviews

"This book is an excellent example of how to approach the complexities of identifying the fate of environmental contaminants. ... This book succeeds as a tale of environmental detective work and also serves as a good example of an environmental geology text book. It also provides a much needed data base of references that will be invaluable for anyone working in thes Rio Grande Drainage." — Journal of Environmental Quality

"PLutonium, an element named for the god of the dead, continues to be a highly controversial environmental issue. . .this study could serve as a model in analyzing plutonium and othe heavy metal contamination occurring elsewhere." —Choice

"Persons with little training in environmental matters will have no difficulty with this book, and, indeed, will find it most instructive and insightful. . . .If ever anyone needed evidence of stream dynamics, she or he would need go no further than this book. Plutonium is its explicit subject. Implicitly, though, the book is every bit about the general dynamics of biophysical environments. It is geography at its very best."—Annals of the Association of American Geographers

From the Publisher