reliable estimate of the extent to which this would occur. Neglecting 

 this factor provides an additional factor of safety in the estimates of 

 maximum concentration that would be realized in nature, as the pro- 

 cess is known to be effective in removing many dissolved and sus- 

 pended substances from solution. 



It should be noted that evaluation of the hazard level using only 

 those factors that can be dealt with in a quantitative or semi -quantita- 

 tive manner leads to the conclusion that present production rates of the 

 radioactive substances that will get into civilian disposal routes are 

 approaching rates that might create a hazard. If production levels 

 ■were to be increased by three, and possibly only tw^o, orders of magni- 

 tude, it is conceivable that the resulting wastes might create a hazard 

 if disposed into some of the suggested locations. 



Under conditions of a constant rate of disposal of packaged 

 wastes, the build-up of activity in the water and in the marine biota 

 surrounding the disposal site to steady state will require from ten to 

 twenty years. 



Because of the many uncertainties in the estimates that form the 

 basis for these conclusions, the recommendation of a pre -survey of all 

 areas that are chosen as disposal sites, followed by surveys at inter- 

 vals after disposal is started, is thought to be an essential part of the 

 disposal problem. 



