No airborne or groundwater radioactivity from current Nevada Test Site operations was detected off-site in calendar year 2005.

This is the assessment of the Nevada Test Site Annual Site Environmental Report 2005, released by the National Nuclear Security Administration Nevada Site Office. The report includes monitoring conducted by the management and operations contractor at the test site, and the Community Environmental Monitoring Program under the direction of the Desert Research Institute of the Nevada System of Higher Education.

Bruce Hurley, Nevada Site Office environmental monitoring program manager, said, "The environmental monitoring results once again confirmed that activities on the (test site) are being conducted in a manner that safeguards workers, the environment and the public."

He added, "In addition to radiological results, air and water quality samples confirm that no hazardous constituents were released off the Nevada Test Site."

Off-site monitoring is conducted by the Community Environmental Monitoring Program, which is composed of 27 air sampling stations surrounding the Nevada Test Site. The emphasis of the program is to monitor airborne radioactivity and weather conditions and make the results available to the public. Each station is operated by local citizens, including science teachers, farmers, and ranchers, trained to independently verify the results of the monitoring.

The monitors are knowledgeable on subjects ranging from radiation detection to identifying environmental concerns for people in their communities. Visit www.cemp.dri.edu/cemp.html for more information on the monitoring program.