CTY Carlisle - Three Mile Island

Parents Forum
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<p>My kid has applied for CTY summer school at Dickinson College, Carlisle. I noted that Carlise is said to be one of the best US cities to raise a family.
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<p>At the same time, I have just learned that Carlisle is only 20 odd miles from Three Mile Island where there was a nuclear power plant accident in 1979. I wonder if the incident still poses any threat to the health of people living nearby including, in particular, the students at Dickinson College.</p>

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<p>I’m not a health expert, or a radiation expert, but with the earthquake/tsunami in Japan, someone has put together a helpful chart comparing radiation exposure from different sources:</p>

<p><a href=“http://xkcd.com/radiation/[/url]”>http://xkcd.com/radiation/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>According to that chart, total radiation exposure within 10 miles of Three Mile Island (at the time in 1979) measured 80 microSv, comparable to a roundtrip flight from LA to NY or living in a stone or brick house for one year.</p>

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<p>It should be clarified that the radiation present at the site now is much much much lower than the radiation in 1979. In fact I would not be surprised if it were not any higher than normal background radiation levels.</p>

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<p>My S spent 2 summers at the Dickinson CTY site. I never gave it a second thought.</p>

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<p>According to something I heard on NPR the other day, at this point it’s not possible to document any ongoing harm to the animals that live in the vicinity of Chernobyl – life expectancies, birth defects, behaviors, genetic mutations are all indistinguishable from populations elsewhere. You might worry about a future problem at TMI (or at any other nuclear power plant, of which there are many), but I wouldn’t worry a bit about the current effects of the 32-year-old incident there. </p>

<p>Carlisle is also west and a little north of TMI, meaning it’s upwind under the weather patterns that prevail 95% of the time. The TMI effect, if there were one, would be much more likely to show up at the large state college at Millersville, or at Franklin & Marshall, both of which are about 20 miles southeast of TMI. I have never heard anyone express concerns about sending kids to Millersville or F&M based on radiation.</p>

<p>And of course all of Pennsylvania’s state government is conducted 10 miles from TMI – governor, legislature, agencies, lobbyists, lawyers, etc., and the families of most of them. While it would be tempting to blame TMI for some of their failings, that’s not a theory anyone advances. If any of them had information that they were putting themselves and their families at risk by living and working in that area, I think we would have noticed some obvious changes in behavior – like maybe moving the state capital. The building that houses the state legislature is lovely, but I don’t think anyone is willing to die for it.</p>

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<p>You worry way too much. Your kid is a lot safer there than s/he will be traveling to and from Carlisle. The odds of being killed in a car accident are much higher than being damaged by any exposure to radiation.</p>

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<p>My kids loved it at CTY Carlisle–indeed, when they returned, they were positively glowing.</p>

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<p>My mother lives in Camp Hill, which is right across the river from Harrisburg, and she hardly glows at all! :rolleyes:</p>

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<p>THe biggest danger in Carlisle are the gross gas stations/rest stops right off the highway before you get on the turnpike! :)</p>

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<p>My husband was out in the woods near TMI on a field trip the day of the accident, and he’s absolutely fine. I don’t think you have anything to worry about.</p>

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<p>Anyone who is concerned about nuclear power plants might want to look and see where they are located and avoid colleges in that area. You also might what to see where the nearest plant to where you live is and what sort of problems you can have if it has a meltdown. I don’t think we consider these things enough. The foolishness of having a powerplant in earth quake area is astonishing to me and I’ve learned that we have some here in CA as well. It’s courting disaster to me. </p>

<p>As others have mentioned, it isn’t the past problem with TMI that is the issue from what I have read. It’s the fact that you are 20 miles from a power plant in Carlisle. The chances of a problem occurring during a summer program are very small. They do go upwards if you are considering going to college there and much more if you move there for a semi permanent residence. You have to reconcile the risks.</p>

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<p>the danger of exploding during “passionfruit” or existentialism class at Carlisle is probably higher than of being hurt by TMI. ;)</p>

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<p>^LOL! </p>

<p>D spent two summers at Carlisle, and the thought of TMI never crossed my mind.</p>

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<p><a href=“http://xkcd.com/radiation/[/url]”>http://xkcd.com/radiation/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>The xkcd link has been given twice so far, and I found it very interesting. I love the footer:</p>

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</p>

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<p>jbusc-I wish this was Facebook so I could like that post.</p>

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<p>Wow, score one for reading huh? Thread 1, Hawkwings 0.</p>

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<p>The University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health has studied cancer incidence in those who lived within a five mile radius of TMI on the day of the accident. The findings, which contain good news overall, are summarized in this issue:
<a href=“http://www.publichealth.pitt.edu/docs/PublicHealth-Sp03.pdf[/url]”>http://www.publichealth.pitt.edu/docs/PublicHealth-Sp03.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;