Yanlex t1_iszj2hs wrote on October 19, 2022 at 8:59 PM

Reply to comment by Kagrok in Missouri school to close after radioactive waste report by KCPanther

Yes, but they are talking about radioactive materials being present: lead-210, polonium, and radium. The 22x amount specifically for the lead-210, not radiation level in general.

zer1223 t1_iszkz99 wrote on October 19, 2022 at 9:11 PM

There's a tiny bit of that stuff everywhere, yes. And I mean really really tiny

kapootaPottay t1_it0nunu wrote on October 20, 2022 at 1:56 AM

in your runninh microwave, but not in your popcorn.

Yanlex t1_iszmnjo wrote on October 19, 2022 at 9:22 PM

No, there is not radioactive lead and polonium everywhere.

razorirr t1_iszzhz5 wrote on October 19, 2022 at 10:51 PM

Yeah there is for lead 210. Its a naturally occuring trace element in soil.

Dig up the ground on your property, send it for analysis, and they will find some amount of it. In the vast majority of places this amount will be so small, it wont matter.

Same goes for polonium 210.

The numbers are tiny, but they are not 0

DiscountFoodStuffs t1_it05rse wrote on October 19, 2022 at 11:39 PM

Lol what? Google: Polonium-210 and lead-210 in the terrestrial environment: a historical review or Occurrence and Geochemistry of Lead-210 and Polonium-210 Radionuclides in Public-Drinking-Water Supplies from Principal Aquifers of the United States

bretto2004 t1_iszwjhm wrote on October 19, 2022 at 10:30 PM

Are you stating a horrible fact, or genuinely sleep better at night thinking that only "tiny" amounts somehow don't cause cancer?

Mend1cant t1_it04uyq wrote on October 19, 2022 at 11:32 PM

I mean, tiny amounts don’t necessarily cause cancer. It really depends on how tiny it is. Radiation effects aren’t a black and white thing at low levels. Airline pilots are exposed to radiation at a higher level than most people working next to nuclear reactors just from background.