89 



river systems, and a human health survey in the Tamyr region. 

 Seven other countries have also participated in this program. 



Mr. Chairman and distinguished members, before outlining some 

 of ANWAP's accomplishments and addressing your interest in a fu- 

 ture research agenda, I want to emphasize the tremendous lever- 

 age this program has enjoyed. The results achieved to date in ad- 

 dressing an acute problem of national concern would never have 

 been possible in 3 short years without the prior decades of basic 

 research investment by my organization in the Arctic. A high-qual- 

 ity pool of scientists with high-latitude expertise, reliable and accu- 

 rate field instruments, and powerful numerical models were all 

 available when we needed them. 



This technology base grew from our sustained commitment to re- 

 search in the Arctic. The $30 million of this particular program's 

 effort has capitalized on more than $500 million of research over 

 the last 30 years. This is a good example of how wise investment 

 in science and technology pays dividends for national security in a 

 world where threats may come in unexpected forms. 



The over 70 different projects in this pro-am include field sur- 

 veys, laboratory experiments, modeling studies, and archival data 

 analysis. Over 120 investigators from academic institutions, gov- 

 ernment laboratories and agencies, foreign institutions, and indus- 

 try are participating. 



I have brought several posters which I would like to refer to dur- 

 ing my presentation, and I would point out that Lt. Comdr. Bob 

 Edson is my program manager. He is an oceanographer in this 

 field. 



The first poster, and I know it is difficult to read but I think you 

 can see it in context, shows the research surveys which this pro- 

 gram has sponsored over the last 3 years in order to quantify the 

 radionuclide levels and the relevant transport pathways. Twenty- 

 three multinational and multidisciplinary cruises, including the 

 submarine USS Cavalla, have conducted survey operations. These 

 surveys have collected water, sediment, and biological samples and 

 have covered the Eastern Arctic near the dump sites, the Ob, 

 Yenisey, Lena, Kalema, and Anadyr River systems, the Kara, 

 Laptev, East Siberian, Chuckchea, Beaufort, and Bearing Seas, and 

 across the Arctic basin. 



Surveys provide the necessary chemical, physical, and biological 

 baseline data to understand environmental processes and to assess 

 the potential threat of radioactive contamination to the Alaskan 

 economy, for example, or the health of U.S. citizens in that region, 

 which was one of the interests of the congressional mandate. 



The results of the sampling support the preUminary conclusion, 

 and I will say preliminary because, as I will state later, our final 

 report will probably be out early in 1997 as we are still analyzing 

 data, the preUminary conclusion that the radioactive waste dis- 

 posal activities of the Soviet Union have to date not significantly 

 impacted the Arctic environment. 



On the next chart, one of the methods used for tracking radio- 

 nuclide contamination is analysis of sediment cores. A representa- 

 tive core sample taken from the old estuary by the Woods Hole 

 Oceanographic Institute is shown in this poster. These cores show 

 a clear record of radioactivity levels back to the prenuclear age. A 



