Stormwater Modeling of a Radiological Dispersal Device Incident
About the Webinar
Originally presented July 12, 2023
Managing the response to urban radiological terrorism requires advanced planning and rapid response to minimize health risks and mitigate long-term impacts to municipal infrastructure and the environment. A radiological dispersal device (RDD) can result in a widespread depositional plume that presents both an immediate exposure risk and a potential long-term risk through processes such as storm-induced transport. A well-organized response is critical to effective management of potential transport and exposure pathways, thereby reducing further spread of radiological contamination. Stormwater modeling is one tool to explore the feasibility of different remediation and sampling options.
This webinar will provide an overview of stormwater modeling-RDD research using example models for Detroit, Michigan, as well as results from a table-top exercise on stormwater models at U.S. Coast Guard Base Elizabeth City in North Carolina to track and quantify washoff of deposited Cesium-137. The presentation will discuss unique considerations when building stormwater models for an RDD scenario and show example model outputs.
About the Presenters
Anne Mikelonis is a researcher in the EPA's Office of Research and Development's Center for Environmental Solutions and Emergency Response, Homeland Security and Materials Management Division. Her current work focuses on the fate and transport of biological and radiological contaminants in urban areas. Previously, her research focused on physical/chemical water and wastewater treatment processes and nanoparticle synthesis and characterization. Anne holds a B.S. in civil engineering from Northwestern University (Evanston, Illinois), a M.Eng. in environmental engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Cambridge), and a Ph.D. in environmental engineering from the University of Texas at Austin. She is also a registered professional engineer in the state of North Carolina.