CCHPS Technical Meeting

During a May 2011 golf-tournament in Ponte Vedra, Florida, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), with assistance from the United States Department of Energy (DOE) Radiological Assistance Program (RAP), performed a radiation survey of the surrounding area using a truck-mounted portable scanner. DOT and DOE reported an instance of elevated gamma radiation from along Solana Road.

Upon further investigation, it was discovered, prior to development into a beachside resort and golfing community, the city of Ponte Vedra was known as “Mineral City”. The National Lead Company operated a sand mine along 17 miles of oceanfront, removing the small percentages of heavy metal-bearing minerals in the sands. Minerals such as rutile and illmenite were recovered for their titanium content, which was needed during World War I for steel production. The operation was started in 1914 and continued into the 1920s when the mine was closed due to a depressed demand for steel after the war. One of the ancillary minerals in the sand is monazite. Although monazite is a naturally-occurring radioactive material (NORM), it is believed that concentrating monazite during the mineral separation process may have produced tailings piles. While actual production records are not available, it is believed that this technologically-enhanced naturally-occurring radioactive material (TENORM) could have later been used as fill or simply knocked down and spread out once the mine closed and the property was developed.

The EPA worked quickly with State Representatives to remove large hotspots on the property. Christopher Royce was the supporting Health Physicist to the project and shares experiences from that work in this presentation. 

Speaker Bio