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STATEMENT OF 



THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 



BEFORE THE 



SENATE SELECT COMMITTEE ON INTELLIGENCE 



UNITED STATES SENATE 



AUGUST 15, 1992 



The Department of Energy (DOE) is pleased to provide its views on a developing 

 issue: the discharge of radioactive and hazardous materials into the Arctic by 

 the Former Soviet Union. The Department is aware of the importance of this 

 matter to the citizens of Alaska and to the State and Local governments 

 relative to the possible risks of radioactive and hazardous material 

 contamination. One of the lessons of the Chernobyl accident is that 

 radioactivity does not respect national boundaries. However, the dual degree 

 of contamination and whether it has reached and contaminated Alaska is not 

 known. Thus far most of these reports have been unconfirmed and 

 unsubstantiated. 



What concerns us today is possible radioactive and hazardous material 

 contamination in the Arctic and Alaska which may have resulted from past 

 Soviet practices. The contaminants of concern may include many of those with 

 which DOE is examining, such as uranium and its decay products, heavy metals, 

 organic contaminants, industrial solvents, and a wide range of pollutants from 

 power plants and nuclear facilities. With respect to our domestic residue of 

 the cold war years, DOE is dealing with all phases of cleanup, from assessing 

 the nature and extent of contamination to developing remediation technologies 

 design to improve current environmental restoration techniques. 



