Nuclear natural gas

36 years ago the Atomic Energy Commission set off an underground nuclear explosion to fracture rock stubbornly holding onto large reserves of natural gas. The gas was liberated but was too radioactive to exploit. Now, Texas energy company Presco wants to tap natural gas reserves near to the site of the earlier detonation. Here's Los Angeles Times staff writer Julie Carton on the hazards posed by the natural gas:

The residue from the 1969 blast contains some of the most radioactive and toxic substances on Earth, including tritium, carbon-14 and krypton-85.

Either Julie Carton is making a weird joke or she didn't do her research.

Here's the scoop on these oh so dangerous radiation emitters:

tritium: As with all ionizing radiation, exposure to tritium increases the risk of developing cancer. However, tritium is one of the least dangerous radionuclides because it emits very weak radiation and leaves the body relatively quickly.

carbon-14: In all of my research on C-14, I cannot find any indication that it is harmful to humans or any living thing. It’s part of our atmosphere, it’s in our bodies. None of the web sites I searched showed any indication that C-14 poses a health risk.

krypton-85: Radiation doses from inhaling or ingesting krypton are small compared to the dose from external radiation, such as could occur in a cloud of krypton gas. If it is assumed that krypton releases occurred and 100,000 people were continuously exposed to a cloud of air with anaverage concentration of 1 pCi/cm3 over a period of one year, then the estimated number of fatal cancers in this group of 100,000 would be 2 for krypton-81 and less than 1 for krypton-85.

Not only are they definitely not "some of the most radioactive and toxic substances on Earth," none of them appear to pose a significant health risk.

To her credit, Carton does consult a nuclear expert opposed to tapping the gas reserve:

"Let's see, you drill a hole, put a nuclear bomb in it, explode the bomb, then come back and [fracture] it. Real smart," said Scott Brynildson, tapping the side of his head through a white straw cowboy hat. "I think it's very dangerous. They ought to leave a bad thing alone."

Brynildson is an alfafa farmer and owner of a local plumbing shop.

This isn't journalism, it's leftist fear-mongering.