CITIZEN POWER ALLIANCE

Chemung County officials over the weekend released results of a study that shows radiation levels in soil pulled from the ground during natural gas exploration are well below Environmental Protection Agency standards.

But residents who oppose dumping that soil, called drill cuttings, into the Chemung County Landfill remain unconvinced about its safety.

The report was prepared by Theodore E. Rahon, a certified health physicist and president of the CoPhysics Corp., a Monroe, N.Y.-based company that provides radiation protection services.

The gist of the report is that the soil that the county landfill would accept from Marcellus Shale drilling poses no health threat from radiation, said County Executive Tom Santulli.

"These people are experts. They made it very clear that this material is less radioactive than the countertops in our houses and soil in our gardens," Santulli said. "My message is simple -- this stuff is not toxic. It's no more radioactive than the soil in your garden and bricks on your house. All this testing verifies that. This is way below any EPA levels.

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