Hanford Works; Hanford Laboratory; Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL); Battelle Northwest; Battelle Pacific Northwest; Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL)

Pacific Northwest Laboratory was operated by Battelle Memorial Institute of Battelle-Northwest in Richland, Washington. 

Summary of Studies

Main Isotopes studied: 238PuO₂; 239PuO₂; 239Pu(NO3)4
Additional isotopes studied: 131-I; 238-PuO₂; 239-PuO₂; 239-Pu(NO3)4; 244-CmO₂; 253Es(N0₃)₃ ; HN0₃; Hcl; H₂S0₄; 232-U; 232-Th; 233-U; 85-Kr [krypton: sheep, rats and beagles]; 106-Ru [Neonatal rat, guinea pig, swine]; 238-Pu ingestion; 90-Sr ingestion [miniature swine]

Mode: Chronically administered ingestion of radioiodine in sheep, chronically administered ingested 90-Sr in miniature swine, single inhalation plutonium beagle studies, chronic inhalation of radon daughters to mimic uranium mine atmospheres, and a few injection studies.

Radiobiology subjects: Sheep, swine, miniature swine, canines, guinea pigs, hamsters, rats (multiple breeds), chinook salmon, alligators, rabbits, Gravid Baboons.

Animal numbering system: Animal subjects were assigned a chronological number followed by the gender initial [e.g., 1042 F] When the data was transferred to the NRA, they added “P00” or “P000” as a prefix to all numbers and dropped the gender initial when they converted the data to their system to avoid confusion with later assimilated and compared studies with ITRI which have similar numbering systems [e.g., “P001042”]

Software database system names: RIB, Snoopy

Directors and scientific investigators: Leo Bustad, William J. Bair, D.H. Willard, J.F. Park, Roy Thompson, F.P. Hungate, FT Cross, GE Dagle, CL Sanders, Wiley. 

Lab Managers of the Biology Department: Dr. Harry A Kornberg (1948 -1968); WJ Bair, 

Written and researched by Lori Snyder, MLIS January 16, 2024

1950: The “Experimental Animal Farm” at the Hanford Laboratory, on the grounds of the Hanford Atomic Products Operation plant, under the direction of General Electric, held 120 sheep for Iodine studies to assure Washington residents that Plutonium production was safe for people and agriculture.[1] [2] [3] Additional reasoning was to gather the pathology from toxic levels permissible to livestock from ingesting grasses that may have exposure and understand the effects of person working with livestock.[4]

The effects of these studies were first documented in the 1951-52 Annual Report:

1. K. BUSTAD, K. E. HERDE, D. E. WARNER, and H. A. KORNBERG, Toxicity of 1T31 in sheep. I. General (Preliminary report on low-level chronic effects). Biology Research- Annual Report 1951, Document HW-25021 139-159 (1952) (official use only)
2. K. BUSTAD, D. E. WARNER, and H. A. KORNBERG, Toxicity of I131 in sheep. V. General (Low-level chronic effects). Biology Research-Annual Report 1952, Document HW-28636 136-147 (1953) (unclassified).

1953: A comparative study of the Hanford sheep exposed to 131-I was made to contrast the Utah range sheep, authored by Bustad, Marks, Dockum, Kalkwarf, and Kornberg[5]. The range sheep were taken from flocks that were in Cedar City, Utah, adjacent to the Nevada Proving Ground. The studies concluded that there were no abnormalities found in the Utah range sheep for the thyroid or other organs and a dose rate of 480 µc/day was found to be the minimum for health impairments in adult sheep.

1957:  Leo Bustad [et al.] published paper on ingestion of 131-Iodine effects on sheep under contract to the Atomic Energy Commission and General Electric Company within the Biology laboratory in the Radiological Sciences Department of Hanford Laboratories in Richland, Washington.[6][7]

1959: PNL started its life-span dog plutonium experiments[8]. The studies include inhalation of plutonium oxide and plutonium nitrate. Dr. William J. Bair led the studies of inhalation exposure of plutonium (gaseous form as 131-Iodine) that began in 1959 on 48 beagle dogs.

1961: Bair and Willard publish “Plutonium Inhalation Studies III”  that details 48 beagles being exposed to plutonium with details on the methodology.[9]

1962: Paper published:

BAIR, W J, and D H WILLARD. “Plutonium Inhalation Studies. IV. Mortality in Dogs after Inhalation of Pu239O2.” Radiation research 16 (1962): 811–.

1964: Hanford Radiological Sciences annual report [BNWL-36] on “radioactivity in…Eskimo” and details the progress in whole body counting and instruments in plutonium dosimetry.[10] McClellan and Bustad publish, “Toxicity of Significant Radionuclides in Large Animals”.[11] Hanford Biology Research Annual Report BNWL-122 offers the most significant research on the 131-Iodine Sheep concludes; studies finding leukemia is prevalent in the radiated miniature swine fed 90-Sr and 239-Pu; “Chronic Effects of Inhaled Pu23902 in Dogs” by J.F. Park, Clarke, and Bair gave significant findings on the progress on the inhalation studies.[12]

1965: The Hanford Labs previously operated by the General Electric Company began a new contract with Battelle Memorial Institute and was named the Biology Department of the Pacific Northwest Laboratory.[13],[14] The newly separated operations from General Electric’s Hanford, now performed work under the auspices of the Biology Department of the Pacific Northwest Laboratory operations. The operations remained within Richland, Washington. The 1966 Annual report is addressed to the United States Atomic Energy Commission [USAEC] Division of Biology and Medicine.[15]  After a review of priorities, the Biology Department made the inhalation studies and 90-Sr Swine studies the top two objectives.

Leo Bustad publishes, “Use of Pigs in Biomedical Research” under the auspices of the Biology Department, Pacific Northwest Laboratory, Battelle Memorial Institute, Richland, Washington.[16]

1968: Another extensive reorganization for the Biology Department, where several departments were shifted and joined together. The biology’s technical services were moved into the Environmental and Life Sciences Division of Battelle-Northwest which combined the Biology’s Technical Services Section as a part of the Radiological Sciences Department. W. J. Bair became manager of the Biology Department in July, and his former position as manager of the Inhalation Toxicology Section was assumed by J. F. Park.[17]

1976: Studies were prolific with multiple inhalation studies being conducted on beagles, rats, hamsters, swine, and miniature swine. Studies conducted relating to the uranium miners exposed animals to uranium ore dust. Other exposure isotopes included inhalation of 238-PuO₂; 239-PuO₂; 239-Pu (No₃); 244-CmO₂; 253Es(N0₃)₃ and 85-Kr_. A few ancillary studies exposed beagles to cigarette smoke and rats exposed to coal dust and diesel engine exhaust. Also, 239-Pu injection studies with rats, Sr-90 ingestion studies with swine and gut related radionuclide absorption studies with 241-Am and 233-U; 85-Kr [krypton: sheep, rats, and beagles]; 106-Ru [Neonatal rat, guinea pig, swine]; 238-Pu ingestion; 90-Sr ingestion [miniature swine].[18] [BNWL-2100 PT1 1976]

1977: Last year of radionuclide exposure to dogs –observation begins to life of dog or sacrifice.[19]

1978: Annual reports on Inhalation studies of Plutonium Oxide in Beagles dogs led by J.F. Park; Busch; Dagle; Ragan; [et al.] and Chuck Watson in a paper “Dose-effect Studies with Inhaled Plutonium Oxide in Beagles”.  Additional Plutonium Nitrate studies in dogs, as well as many rodent studies.[20] [PNL-2850]

1981: See appendix of 1981 annual report for full data on the 238/239-Pu beagle studies. Full data on dogs was on a computer software called “Snoopy System”.[21]

1989: The “project” National Radiobiology Archives (NRA), operating within PNL, was erected to preserve and maintain radiated animal tissues and their related scientific data and research notes from the Department of Energy sponsored life-span animal studies from eight United States laboratories. The NRA translated all this data into “computerized” relational databases that could be shared upon request for future research.[22]

1995: Lab renamed Pacific Northwest National Laboratory [PNNL] see PNNL-11379.[23]

1996: NRA transferred and moved into Washington State University’s USTUR facility. USTUR actively promoted the availability of the tissues and data for further research. This continued until April 30, 2009 when the financial support for the NRA was depleted and continued for one year until the completion on April 30, 2010. [24]

2010: NRA transferred the archive to Gayle Woloschak’s lab archive, adding to existing Argonne archive, operating under the Feinberg School of Medicine’s Radiation Oncology lab of Northwestern University.

References

[1] Parker, HM. (1952). Biology Research – Annual Report 1951. Radiological Sciences Department, Hanford Works. Richland, Washington. HW-25021.

[2] Bolman B. (2021). Pig mentations: race and face in radiobiology. Isis 694–716. https://doi.org/10.1086/717070

[3] Bustad, L K, Marks, S, Dockum, N L, Kalkwarf, D R, and Kornberg, H A. (1953).A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF HANFORD AND UTAH RANGE SHEEP. Annual Report HW-30119. United States.

[4] Ibid.

[5] Bustad, L K, Marks, S, Dockum, N L, Kalkwarf, D R, and Kornberg, H A. (1953).A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF HANFORD AND UTAH RANGE SHEEP. Annual Report HW-30119. United States.

[6] Bustad, L. K., George, L. A., Marks, S., Warner, D. E., Barnes, C. M., Herde, K. E., Kornberg, H. A., & Parker, H. M. (1957). Biological Effects of I131 Continuously Administered to Sheep. Radiation Research, 6(3), 380–413.

[7] McClellan, & Bustad New York Academy of Sciences, 111(2), 793–811. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1749-6632.1964.tb53147.x

[8] Watson, C. (n.d.). Pacific Northwest Laboratory (and predecessors). National Radiobiology Laboratory. Washington State.

[9] Pacific Northwest Laboratory. (1962).Hanford Radiological Sciences Research and Development Annual Report for 1961. AEC Research and Development Report HW-68645.

[10] Pacific Northwest Laboratory. (1965).Hanford Radiological Sciences Research and Development Annual Report for 1964. AEC Research and Development Report BNWL-36.

[11] McClellan, & Bustad, L. K. (1964). TOXICITY OF SIGNIFICANT RADIONUCLIDES IN LARGE ANIMALS. Annals of the Continuously Administered to Sheep. Radiation Research, 6(3), 380–413.

[12] Thompson, R C, and Woods, S W. HANFORD BIOLOGY RESEARCH ANNUAL REPORT FOR 1964. United States: BNWL-122. 1965. Web. doi:10.2172/4589144.

[13] About PNNL – Timeline. Accessed online from: https://www.pnnl.gov/about/timeline.asp

[14] Thompson RC, Swezea EG. (1966). Pacific Northwest Laboratory Annual Report for 1965 in the Biological Sciences; to the USAEC Division of Biology and Medicine. Pacific Northwest Laboratory, Richland, Wa. BNWL-280.

[15] Thompson RC, Swezea EG. Pacific Northwest Laboratory United States Department of Energy Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (U.S.) United States Department of Energy Office of Scientific and Technical Information Thompson R. C. & Swezea E. G. (1966). Pacific northwest laboratory annual report for 1965 in the biological sciences. United States. Dept. of Energy ; Distributed by the Office of Scientific and Technical Information U.S. Dept. of Energy.

[16] Bustad. (1966). Pigs in the Laboratory. In Scientific American (Vol. 214, Issue 6, pp. 94–103).

[17] Thompson RC., Stack MS.,Swezea, EG. (1970). Pacific Northwest Laboratory Annual Report for 1968 to the USAEC Division of Biology and Medicine. V.1.,Pt1. BNWL-1050.

[18] Thompson RC. (1977). Pacific Northwest Laboratory Annual Report for 1976 to the ERDA Assistant Administrator for Environment and Safety. Pt 1. Battelle, Richland, Wa. BNWL-2100.

[19] Wiley WR. (1978). Pacific Northwest Laboratory Annual Report for 1977 to the DOE assistant Secretary for Environment. Battelle, Richland, Wa Pt 1. PNL-2500 PT1.

[20] Wiley WR. (1979). Pacific Northwest Laboratory Annual Report for 1978 to the DOE assistant Secretary for Environment. Battelle, Richland, Wa Pt 1. PNL-2850

[21] Drucker H. (1982). Pacific Northwest Laboratory Annual Report for 1981 to the DOE office of Energy Research. Pt 1. Battelle, Richland, Wa. PNL-4100.

[22] Park JF. (1991). Pacific Northwest Laboratory Annual Report for 1990 to the DOE office of Energy Research. Pt 1. Pacific Northwest Laboratory. Richland, Wa. PNL-7600.

[23] Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. (1996).  FY96 Annual Self-Evaluation Report. Battelle. PNNL-11379.

[24] Watson, CR. (n.d.). U.S. Transuraium and Uranium Registries National Radiobiology Archives. From: https://ustur.wsu.edu/nra/