No enhanced radioactive exposure in the vicinity of Asse
Additional environmental monitoring shows: All samples neutral. Examined were fruit, vegetables, milk, and water.
There is no enhanced radioactive exposure in the vicinity of the Asse mine in the rural district of Wolfenbüttel. That is the result of an interim report presented by LUFA Nord-West (Landwirtschaftliche Untersuchungs- und Forschungsanstalt der Landwirtschaftskammer Niedersachsen) and the Braunschweig district office of the Landwirtschaftskammer Niedersachsen.
According to information provided by LUFA and the Federal Office for Radiation Protection (BfS), 132 samples were taken around the Asse mine between 1 January and 30 September 2009 at distances of 1, 5, and 20 kilometres. For example, the cities of Braunschweig, Königslutter, Schöningen, Osterwieck, and Salzgitter are located within a radius of 20 km. The cities of Wolfenbüttel and Schöppenstedt are located within a radius of 10 km. In addition to the running emission and immission measurements, feedstuffs, fruit, vegetables, milk, surface water, foliage, needles, and groundwater and drinking water from wells in the vicinity were examined on the initiative of local farmers. All activities measured in the samples are in correspondence with normal levels and are safe to use.
The objective of the supplementary monitoring programme is to ensure trust into the safety of food and natural resources in the vicinity of the mine Among others, the specific activities of the radioactive substances tritium, potassium-40, caesium-137, strontium-90, and radium-226 were examined. LUFA sent a radiological inspection report to the farmers and private persons who had handed in the samples.