(The following are examples from material in the GTC report that is based on information from Cogéma.)

According to information furnished by Cogéma, about measurements at Codolet, to the south of the site, the maximum value for the total radioactivity of gases between 1957 and 1983 is 27 Bq/m3. The level of plutonium was always below the level of detection. Iodine 129 and 131 was usually less than 3 mBq/m3 with "some significant values," ie major releases. Iodine is no longer being released, because of the shutdown of UP1. Tritium was less than 8 Bq/m3.

The maximum value for tritium in rainwater at Codolet between 1970 and 1995 was 1400 Bq/l, reached in1975. Today at Codolet the tritium is less, 60 Bq/l, although on the site it can still reach 1500 Bq/l.

The difference in activity above and below the site is essentially due to an increase of several tens of Bq/l in beta activity as the result of releases of ruthenium 106, strontium 90, and tritium. Alpha activity cannot be detected because of the "natural uranium" carried by the Rhône. Cesium becomes fixed on matter in suspension.

At present the radioactivity of the sediments below the site (no specific point(s) given) ranges from 40 Bq/dry kg for cesium 137 and for ruthenium 106 and rhodium106 to about 1 Bq/dry kg for transuranics (americium and plutonium). There is at least one hot point where contaminated sediments have accumulated.

Of the radionuclides evaluated, only tritium has presented an activity of more than a few Bq/dry kg in fruit and vegetables. In the past, it has been as high as 1000 Bq/fresh kg, and today is several hundred Bq/fresh kg, particularly in grapes. This radioactivity is reflected in wine made from the grapes. Until around 1985, the radioactivity was up to 1000 Bq/l for wine from the vineyards closest to the site; and after 1985, several hundred Bq/l. Today wines from the vineyards closes to the site have 100 Bq/l of tritium; those in the region, between 20 and 60 Bq/l. In general French wines have radioactivity on the order of a few Bq/l.

Andra speaks of "several thousands of cubic meters" of contaminated soil with an activity of 3 TBq, excluding tritium. Cogéma reported to the GTC, 300 m3 of contaminated soil at the Stel, 50 m3 in the CDS zone, and 2,500 m3 elsewhere. The Group’s report on Marcoule includes maps locating and tables listing the hot spots as described by Cogéma. No analysis of the soils for chemical pollution has been performed [HC 98].

GTC gives the results of monitoring at the site and in Codolet to its south, in September 1997.

The highest alpha reading was 7 Bq/l; in most piezometers the level was less than 0.25 Bq/l. The highest strontium 90 readings were 7500 Bq/l (at Piezometer F90) and 130 Bq/l (at well F161). Generally the readings were below 0.3 Bq/l.

Maximum values for tritium were 1613 Bq/l, 1327 Bq/l, and 570 Bq/l respectively. The 1613 Bq/l was the result of contamination from the previous storage of tritiated waste outdoors at the CDS. These readings were all on site. Off-site readings ranged from 162 Bq/l to less than 11 Bq/l [HC ].

Prior to 1992, Codolet received its water from a well that, beginning in 1980, presented increasing levels of beta activity, chiefly from strontium 90 and ytrium 90. After the radioactivity reached some ten Bq/l, the authorities drilled a 400-meter deep replacement well in the Aptien sands. Because of the hydrogen sulfide and iron in the water from this new well, this water was sometimes diluted with water from the original well. In 1998 a third well to completely end reliance on the original well was under construction [HC 98].

A molded, L-shaped, underground wall on the south and east side of the Stel, designed to protect the groundwater to the south of the site, has apparently not completely blocked the spread of contamination [HC 98].

Contamination of the alluvial groundwater of the Rhone is likely in case of a spill on site, but the quantity of water moving rapidly in the Rhone means that the contamination would be rapidly diluted and would impact only the use of water a few kilometers from the site. The possibilities of the transfer of contaminated water between the alluvial groundwater of the Rhone and the underlying aquifers that might be drawn on in the future as sources of water should be studied, since contamination in the aquifers would not be so thoroughly diluted.

The characteristics of the contamination as the result of onsite spills should be studied in order to draw up a plan for rehabilitating these areas.

The level of iodine 129 in grasses is now at the level of detection, but this is much higher than normal for vegetation. Therefore the iodine 129 (and carbon 14) in fruit and vegetables should be measured.