Uranium in Food Grown in an American Indian Community

描述（由申请人提供）：本研究的广泛和长期目标是确定铀(U)污染对迪尼（以前称为纳瓦霍）保留地收获的动植物的健康风险和影响。本研究提供了新墨西哥州西北部美国印第安人（AI）保留地U暴露的食物链评估。从1945年到1988年，该研究区域是用于军事目的的铀开采的主要目标。目前仍有1100多个未开垦的废弃铀矿和建筑物。这些废弃的铀矿、建筑和尾矿污染了人类和牲畜赖以生存的土地和植被。研究的具体目的是：(1)描述迪尼居民的饮食行为，特别是与摄入当地收获的动植物有关；(2)比较来自已知环境铀污染程度高的地区和来自已知环境铀污染程度低的地区的当地收获的动植物中的铀水平；(3)探索当地收获的动植物暴露于U的潜在途径；(4)向纳瓦霍保留地的领导和社区传播研究结果。这是一项比较研究，检查来自已知环境铀污染水平高的保留区的当地收获的动植物与来自已知环境铀污染水平低的保留区的动物和植物的污染水平。从母体研究或DiNEH （Dini环境健康网络）队列（N=1,304）获得的数据将作为确定研究对象和样本的来源。在DiNEH队列应答者中，那些对收获绵羊（n=280）和作物（n=180）的问卷反应积极的个体将被选中进入本研究。动物数据U水平将以每千克微克（<g）为单位确定，植物数据U水平将以百万分之一（PPM）为单位报告。通常收获的食物将在这个社区进行检查。铀浓度水平将利用电感耦合等离子体质谱法（ICP-MS）从收获的卵巢或绵羊（n=38）、包括草药和饲料在内的植物（n=26）、作物（n=98）和土壤中获得。代表性动物（O. aries）、作物（如玉米、南瓜、豆类、甜瓜）和植物材料（包括当地牧草和草药）将从废弃铀矿、尾矿/废物堆和建筑物中心半径2英里（3.2公里）范围内的样本区域收集。该研究将探索当地收获的动植物暴露于U的潜在途径（例如水和土壤）。土壤环境评价将与国家铀资源评价和DiNEH数据相结合。这项研究将确定迪尼保留地当地收获的动植物是否可以安全食用。研究结果将通过通讯、社区和分会论坛向迪尼社区传播和提供教育信息。铀浓度水平的发现对于预测铀向收获食物的转移以及对未来评估铀开采对关键食物链的影响具有重要价值。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The broad, long-term objective of this study is to identify the health risks and impact of uranium (U) contamination on harvested animals and plants on the Dini (formerly known as Navajo) reservation. This study provides a food chain assessment of U exposure in an American Indian (AI) reservation in northwestern New Mexico. The study setting was a prime target of U mining for military purposes from 1945 to 1988. More than 1,100 unreclaimed abandoned U mines and structures remain. These abandoned U mines, structures and tailings contaminate the land and vegetation on which humans and livestock consume. The specific aims of the study are to: (1) describe the dietary behavior in Dini residents specifically related to ingestion of locally harvested animals and plants; (2) compare U levels in locally harvested animals and plants from areas known to have high levels of environmental U contamination to those from areas known to have low levels of U contamination; (3) explore potential routes of U exposure for locally harvested plants and animals; and (4) disseminate study findings to the leadership and community on the Navajo reservation. This is a comparison study examining contamination levels in locally harvested animals and plants from reservation areas known to have high levels of environmental U contamination to those from areas known to have low levels of U contamination. Data obtained from the parent study or the DiNEH (Dini Network for Environmental Health) cohort (N=1,304) will serve as the source from which to identify subjects and samples for the research. Of the DiNEH cohort respondents, those individuals who reported positively to questionnaire responses to harvesting sheep (n=280) and crops (n=180) will be selected into the present study. Animal data U levels will be determined on a scale of micrograms (<g) per kilogram (kg) and plants will be reported at Parts Per Million (PPM). Commonly harvested foodstuffs will be examined in this community. Uranium concentration levels will be derived from harvested Ovis aries or sheep (n=38), botanicals including herbs and forage (n=26), crops (n=98), and soil utilizing Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS). The representative animal (O. aries), crops (e.g. corn, squash, beans, melon), and plant materials including local forage grasses and herbs will be collected from sample areas within a two mile (3.2 km) radius from the central part of abandoned U mines, tailings/waste piles, and structures. The study will explore potential routes (e.g. water and soil) of U exposure for locally harvested plants and animals. Environmental assessments of soil will be integrated with the National Uranium Resource Evaluation (NURE) and DiNEH data. This research will determine if locally harvested animals and plants on the Dini Reservation are safe for consumption. Study findings will be disseminated and educational information will be provided to the Dini community via newsletters, community and chapter house forums. Findings of U concentration levels will be valuable for predicting U transfer to harvested food and for conducting future evaluations of the impacts of U mining on critical food chain.