Military use of depleted uranium: exposure assessment for ...quinto.fi.infn.it/dominici/talks/giannardi.pdf · 30mm Ammunition The 30mm x 173 GAU-8/A ammunition was among the most

Military use of depleted uranium:exposure assessment for the population

Cristina GiannardiARPAT

25-9-2005Castiglioncello

Based onC. Giannardi, D. Dominici, J. Env. Radioactivity 2003UNEP reports on Bosnia, Kosovo, Serbia and MontenegroProceedings of the First International Conference on Environmental Recovery ofYugoslavia, Beograd, September 2001

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Military use of depleted uranium: exposure assessment for the population (page 1) Cristina Giannardi

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Munitions containing depleted uranium (DU) have been usedby NATO and US forces during the wars in

✦ Iraq, 1991 ∼ 300 DU tonnes

✦ Bosnia, 1994 ∼ 3 DU tonnes

✦ Kosovo and Serbia, 1999 ∼ 10 DU tonnes

✦ Afghanistan, Somalia ?

✦ Iraq, 2003 ∼ 115 DU tonnes

according to official US or NATO notes

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US force munitions (FAS)

Type DU (kg)

25 mm BFV, AV-8 Harrier 0.085

30 mm A-10, Apache 0.300

105 mm M1, M60 tanks 2.2-3.7

120 mm M1A1, M1A2 (Abraham) tanks 3.1-4.9

BFV Bradley Fighting Vehicle,120 mm are also used by Leopard (D) and Challenger (UK).

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www.fas.orgFAS | Military | DOD 101 | Systems | Land Warfare | 30-mm Ammo ||||Index | Search | Join FAS

PGU-14/B API Armor Piercing Incendiary [DU] 30mm Ammunition

The 30mm x 173 GAU-8/A ammunition was among the most effectiveammunition used in Operation Desert Storm with proven performance againstall targets, including tanks, armored and light vehicles. The 30mm lightweightfamily of ammunition was developed to optimize the air-to-ground mission ofthe U.S. Army AH-64 Apache helicopter. This ammunition family is alsocompatible with all 30mm x 113 gun systems.

The PGU-14/B API Armor Piercing Incendiary round has a lightweight bodywhich contains a sub-calibre high density penetrator of Depleted Uranium(DU). In addition to its penetrating capability DU is a natural pyrophoricmaterial which enhances the incendiary effects. Depleted uranium results fromthe enriching of natural uranium for use in nuclear reactors. Natural uranium isa slightly radioactive metal that is present in most rocks and soils as well as inmany rivers and sea water. Natural uranium consists primarily of a mixture oftwo isotopes (forms) of uranium, Uranium-235 (U235) and Uranium-238(U238), in the proportion of about 0.7 and 99.3 percent, respectively. Nuclearreactors require U235 to produce energy, therefore, the natural uranium has tobe enriched to obtain the isotope U235 by removing a large part of the U238.Uranium-238 becomes DU, which is 0.7 times as radioactive as naturaluranium. . Since DU has a half-life of 4.5 billion years, there is very little decayof those DU materials. When manufactured as 30mm rounds, each DUprojectile contains approximately 4,650 grains [0.66 pounds (lbs)] of extrudedDU, alloyed with 0.75 weight percent titanium. The projectile is encased in a0.8 mm-thick aluminum shell as the final DU round.

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Air force A-10 aircraft: fires 30 mm DU rounds from itsGAU-8 Gatling gun (3900 rounds per minute)

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Environmental impact consequences

✦ a DU fraction aerosolizes as a dust of uranium oxides(U3O8, UO2, UO3) around the impact point, with higherfraction on hard target (tank)

✦ if rounds miss target, or hit a non armoured target, canpenetrate the ground

✦ DU dust is dispersed into the environment contaminatingair and ground

Post impact main exposure pathways

✦ ingestion, inhalation of DU from resuspendedcontaminated soil

✦ ingestion of DU contaminated food and water

✦ handling DU fragments

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Picture by Dahr Jamail

From UNEP DUflyer:Precautionary steps: do not enter known DU targeted sitesprior to site decontamination.

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DU exposure

Potential health effects from DU include

✦ toxicological effects due to the heavy metal properties ofuranium: kidney is the target organ

✦ radiological effects due to the ionizing radiation emitted

Protection of the population through

✦ 2004 WHO guidance level for uranium concentration indrinkable water (15 µg/l)

✦ dose limit for the population (1 mSv/y)

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Experimental data 1: UNEP surveysUNEP surveys conducted in Kosovo, Serbia and Montenegroand Bosnia.(beta and gamma field measurements: air, soil, water andvegetation samples for laboratory measurements of DUcontamination)

Visited sites:

✦ Kosovo 11 (112 in the NATO list)

✦ Serbia 5, Montenegro 1 (12)

✦ Bosnia Herzegovina 14 (11)

Representatively surveyed target sites with soil contaminationdata (0-5 cm layer)

✦ Kosovo 5

✦ Serbia 3

✦ Bosnia Herzegovina 3

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Experimental data 2: water contamination

Samples collected by UNEP from rivers, public water, wells...

✦ DU contamination found in 2 samples at Hadzici tankrepair (Bosnia)

✦ concentration 1 − 3 µg/l.

The presence of DU a few years after the onset of soilcontamination can be due to buried penetrators (taking intoaccount the reference leaching rate of DU, ∼ 1 cm/y).

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Experimental data 3: Cape Arza decontamination(Vukotic et al 2002 and Vukotic et al 2003)

✦ Cleanup survey (25 members in 220 days): 45000 m2

investigated, 18000 m2 decontaminated.

✦ Inspection by β radiation on a grid (10 m wide, 10-80 mlong); contaminated places cleared manually, layering soiluntil a penetrator was found, up to depth of 100 cm.Otherwise by γ radiation with recovering up to 25 cm.

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Experimental data 3: Cape Arza decontamination(Vukotic et al 2002 and Vukotic et al 2003)

✦ 242 penetrators and 49 fragments recovered (75 kg of DU)of 300 fired penetrators;

204 over 242 found at depths between 25 cm and 100 cm,following contamination markers left on the rocks;

6 m3 of contaminated soil removed.

✦ Recovered DU 85% by weight, the remaining fractionprobably still present as penetrators hidden to surveymeasurements by soil layer thicker than 25 cm.

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Summary of soil data (10% of targeted sites)

area contamination

✦ more than 90% of soil contamination in the superficial 0-5cm layer

✦ average: 2.4 mgDU/kgsoil

spot contamination

✦ few hot spots near DU fragments or penetrators or impactpoints (average 28 per site)

✦ maximum: 235 gDU/kgsoil

✦ DU under the penetrator up to 40 cm in 8 years (completecorrosion in 25-35 years)

Previous assessments/data

✦ area contamination: average 70 mgDU/kgsoil in thesuperficial 10 cm layer (Reference case, UNEP 1999)

✦ spot contamination: max 120 gDU/kgsoil (Ebinger, 1990)25-9-2005

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Average exposure scenario

✦ 300 kg of DU (∼ 1000 DU projectiles of 30 mm) are firedover a 9 104 m2 area

✦ a fraction (less than 0.2) of DU, dispersed as aerosol in theimpact, deposits on the soil surface

✦ a large fraction (about 0.8) of DU penetrators rests buriedin the underlying soil, up to 1-meter depth or more.

Previous assessments/data

✦ 10 kg of DU (∼ 30 DU projectiles of 30 mm) are fired overa 104 m2 area with 100% of DU dispersed as aerosol in theimpact (UNEP 1999)

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Population risk assessment

✦ average effective dose by external irradiation or wateringestion (RESRAD 6.01) (EL = 1 mSv/y)

< 1µSv/y [previous : 1 ÷ 10 µSv/y]

✦ maximum DU concentration in drinkable water(RESRAD 6.01) (CWHO 2004 = 15 µg/l)

1 µg/l [previous ∼ 100 µg/l]

✦ maximum individual dose for breathing in a very dust air orplaying with hands in soil (assuming 1g of contaminatedsoil)

2.8 mSv for inhalation [previous : 1.4 mSv]

0.16 mSv for ingestion [previous : 0.08 mSv]

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Final considerations

✦ The scenario suggested by the measurements in targetsites in the Balkans turns out as one of a low averagewidespread superficial soil contamination with a limitednumber of highly contaminated points.

✦ A very large fraction of the DU projectiles fired over anarea misses the target and rests buried in the soil.

✦ Main actions after contamination: precautionary advise tothe population living in the area, removal of DUpenetrators and fragments and highly contaminated soil,long-term monitoring of drinkable water.

✦ Main difference from UNEP 1999 risk scenario assessment:buried penetrators from 0% to 80% or more.

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Documents

Military use of depleted uranium: exposure assessment for ...quinto.fi.infn.it/dominici/talks/giannardi.pdf · 30mm Ammunition The 30mm x 173 GAU-8/A ammunition was among the most