Radioactive waste traces detected at Saugus plant

SAUGUS – Traces of radioactive waste were picked up in a dump truck at the Wheelabrator plant, according to public health officials.Radiation detectors were set off when a truck from Capitol Waste was being weighed on Nov. 27, said Saugus Public Health Director Frank Giacalone.Officials from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health and the Department of Environmental Protection sourced the radiation to a residential-type of bag that contained traces of iodine-131, a substance commonly used to treat thyroid disorders. It can be found in facial tissues and cigarette butts. Giacalone said the medication can be secreted from the body if a patient blows his or her nose.Giacalone said the detection was no cause for alarm and added that when the Board of Health came to the plant during the sourcing process, no protective gear was needed because the public health officials conducting the search said the radioactive material was at too low a level to cause harm.?No one will turn green or lose their hair,” laughed Giacalone.With the iodine properly disposed of, Giacalone said in hindsight the false alarm was a good exercise to test the safety precautions and proper protocol put in place at the plant in case the detectors pick up on something more dangerous than household waste, such as the materials for a dirty bomb.?The Department of Public Health said this is common enough that these events do happen,” he said.