Our Experience

Fugro Airborne Surveys has conducted airborne gamma-ray spectrometry (AGS or radiometrics) since 1961. During this period we have performed major government and defense industry sponsored surveys for emergency response and clean up operations as well as mineral industry exploration work world-wide with both fixed-wing and helicopter aircraft. During the last three years alone, Fugro Airborne Surveys has flown more than 700,000 line-km of fixed-wing and helicopter AGS surveys. The picture above shows a typical Fugro helicopter spectrometer installation.

The following projects are selected examples of aerial radiological work that has been done for governments and defense clean-up contractors:

In the fall of 2001: the Low level Radiation Waste Management office of Atomic Energy Canada (a Federal Agency) contracted Fugro to map natural radioelements and potentially processed concentrations of radium and uranium in a community surrounding a uranium ore processing site. The aerial radiometrics survey, designed as part of a clean up initiative and for long term management of low-level radioactive waste, was conducted over a semi populated area which included a town and several farms in the area. The survey was flown with a spectrometer with 50 liters of main downward sodium iodide detector crystal.

In September 2001: Fugro completed an airborne radiological survey for The IT Group at Fort McClellen, Alabama. The purpose of the survey was to identify if any man-made sources (¹³⁷Cs and ⁶⁰Co) were present and locate these sources for safe removal. The survey area comprises approximately 5,600 acres with several buildings, electrical utility lines andtree coverage. The airborne survey took approximately 3 weeks to complete.

According to an article "Radioactive material found near McClellan treated with caution", written by Nathan Solheim, Staff Writer, the Anniston Star; "The Army discovered two radioactive elements within Anniston's city limits last October after an aerial survey of the former Fort McClellan. Signs of Cesium-137 and Cobalt-60, both of which emit high-energy gamma particles, were detected in a wooded area on city property more than 200 yards away from the Lenlock Community Center".

In 1998: the Canadian Department of National Defence selected Fugro Airborne Surveys to respond to an urgent situation when they could not locate several radioactive sources in Eastern Canada. The situation received national press coverage and the Federal Government had to react quickly. The high public interest in quickly locating these sources required extremely efficient and time-sensitive survey operations. Fugro was awarded the helicopter borne radiometrics contract. Our crew was on site within 24 hours and located a "mysterious gauge buried in a scrapyard." This quote, taken from a Canadian press release, went on to say that previous to this, soldiers had failed to find the gauge despite more than a week of digging involving over 1,000 man hours.

In 1996: Fugro worked with the Australian Nuclear Science & Technology Organisation (ANSTO) to perform an aerial gamma-ray spectrometry survey the Rum Jungle mine site in Australia. The maps clearly showed elevated count-rates around the site as well as in a creek downstream from the confluence with Old Tailings Creek. Elevated uranium daughter concentrations in the east branch of the river were most likely due to accumulation of weathering products from before the mining or tailings washed into the river during operation of the mine.

In October of 1995: an aerial gamma-ray spectrometry survey was carried for Ontario Hydro over the Bruce Nuclear Power Development site including nuclear reactors, waste storage sites and surrounding communities. The purpose was to study the natural and man-made gamma emitting isotopes in an around the site and assess their impact on the community. The conclusions were that there were no leaks of gamma emitting materials and that radiation exposure rates in the surrounding communities were at natural levels.

In 1992: Fugro mapped a uranium mine, it's tailings, waste rock, soils and surface water, in Eastern Europe using an airborne gamma-ray spectrometer. The survey was commissioned in 1992 to determine the extent of fugitive uranium and daughter product radium distributed by wind-borne particulate and water soluble compounds, and to provide confirmation of isotopic concentration algorithms used to deconvolve the spectral gamma radiation data. Results (right) were superimposed on SPOT satellite panchromatic imagery with a 10 meter pixel resolution. The colour map shows uranium (ppm) in a non-linear colour scale. Blue is background (below 3 ppm) yellow about 3.5 ppm, red about 5 ppm and white in excess of about 6.5 ppm. Contamination likely continues into the groundwater and definitely impinges on local agricultural land. The area shown is 21 X 18 km or 378 km². Approximately 1500 line kilometres were flown in a short time.

Fugro's environmental airborne gamma-ray spectrometry experience is supported by over 40 years of mineral exploration surveying. This includes for example, the largest combined helicopter-borne gamma-ray spectrometer/electromagnetic survey in history. This survey was performed for the Ministry of Mines, Kingdom of Morocco and consisted of 80,000 line kilometres of data acquired over 32,000 square km in the mountainous Anti-Atlas region. On the basis of the volumes of AGS data handled annually by Fugro Airborne Surveys, the depth of Fugro's acquisition expertise, the extent of data processing and analysis resources, Fugro is unparalleled world-wide in performance of airborne gamma-ray spectrometry.