Chernobyl Nuclear Accident Congressional Hearings Transcript

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We accomplished our work by collecting available foreign and domestic
information, evaluating and interpreting the data, and then
coordinating the Federal response and the dissemination of the information
to the public.
Key agency contacts were designated to respond to specific types
of public inquiries, and a daily task force report on the Soviet nuclear
accident was issued by EPA from April 29 through May 23.
The response effort at EPA was organized into three groups; data
receipt, evaluation, and interpretation: data reporting and operations
support. This was essentially staffed through Mr. Thomas in
his capacity as chairman.
EPA was the centralized collection point for data on the international
levels of radiation, for monitoring data obtained from DOE's
national laboratories, from the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric
Administration on atmospheric air levels, from EPA's own
ERAMS system, and also from State monitoring, from U.S. Embassies
or diplomatic posts via the State Department, and U.S. scientific
monitoring teams abroad.
A Health Working Group, under the leadership of the Health
and Human Services Department was formed and tasked to examine
potential long- and short-term health effects, to identify symptoms
and effects, and to distribute information to health officials
around the country.
The assessment of agricultural and food effects was also a resp)onsibility
of this work group.
A work group of the task force headed by NRC was given the responsibility
to describe and evaluate possible reactor accident scenarios.
NOAA was responsible for providing the meteorological information
that was also included in the daily task force report.
EPA was responsible for public information, issuing the daily
task force report, and providing information to the public as it
became available.
Also, EPA headed the Dose Assessment Working Group, which
consisted of representatives from several agencies.
On May 1, the State Department issued a travel advisory recommending
against travel to Kiev and adjacent areas in the Soviet
Union and urging the public to monitor press reports for any updated
information.
The following day, the State Department upgraded its travel advisory
to recommend against travel by women of childbearing age
and children to Poland until the situation there was clarified, and
also advised travelers in Eastern Europe to avoid consumption of
milk and dairy products.
The task force decided that contact should be made with counterpart
agencies in affected countries to obtain radiological data.
NRC placed calls to 18 countries between May 2 and May 5 and
the best available information was included in the daily task force
report.
On May 3, the State Department sent cables to diplomatic posts
to request available radiological data be sent to the United States.
The United States dispatched scientists to make environmental
measurements in United States Embassies and consulates in selected
sities in the U.S.S.R, Poland, and Hungary on May 3. EPA sci-