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11 October 2008

Answer to Question #6510 Submitted to "Ask the Experts"

Category: Environmental and Background Radiation — Soil and Fallout

The following question was answered by an expert in the appropriate field:

My husband recently visited Baku, Azerbaijan, and went to see some outcrops there. He traveled by car. He didn't visit any military installations, Armenia, or oil rigs. I understand that some of the natural geology in Baku is radioactive. Because of the large amount of background radiation in Azerbaijan and the improper storage of weapons, should I be concerned about the level of radiation present on his clothes and shoes when he returned home?

There is no cause for concern about the level of radioactivity or radiation that your husband may have acquired on his visit to Baku. It is extremely unlikely that natural background levels there are great enough to be of any health significance. Similarly, improper storage of weapons would be unlikely to release radioactivity in the environment. It is also likely that when he returned to the United States, he and his fellow passengers were monitored for radiation as part of the U.S. Homeland Security antiterrorism program. So don't worry.

Ron Kathren, CHP

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