Technologically Enhanced Radioactive Materials (TERM) | Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials (NORM)

New Orleans NORM Attorneys

Oil & Gas Litigation Services for Clients Nationwide
At Smith Stag, our Louisiana radioactive matrerial attorneys are pioneers in the field of TERM/NORM plaintiff litigation. Our firm’s experience in handling radioactive by-product and other types of toxic tort cases range from class and mass actions brought about by communities affected by environmental hazards to individual plaintiff’s cases.

We represent clients in a variety of actions that can be brought under federal and state environmental laws, such as civil enforcement, tort, trespass, breach of contract, property damage and personal injury claims. Smith Stag handles toxic tort cases aggressively and effectively, pursuing the best possible outcome for our clients.

Louisiana toxic material lawyer

TERM, Technologically Enhanced Radioactive Material,is produced when activities such as uranium mining, oil and gas production or sewage sludge treatment, concentrate or expose naturally occurring radioactive materials in ores, soils, water, or other natural materials.

TENORM is defined by the National Research Council of the National Academy of Sciences as: Technologically Enhanced Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials are any naturally occurring radioactive materials not subject to regulation under the Atomic Energy Act whose radio nuclide concentrations or potential for human exposure have been increased above levels encountered in the natural state by human activities.

While federal and state agencies have tried to develop ways to protect humans and the environment from harmful exposure to the radiation in such materials, TERM remains a challenging problem in the United States. Because many industries and types of products potentially contribute to excess radiation production, including mineral extractions and refining, oil and gas production, drinking water treatment processes and wastewater treatment plants, scientists, researchers and legislators are struggling to find viable solutions.

NORM, an acronym for Naturally Occurring Radioactive Material, includes all radioactive elements found in the environment. Long-lived radioactive elements such as uranium, thorium and potassium and any of their decay products, i. e radium and radon, have always been present in the earth's crust and within tissues of all living beings.

Although the concentration of NORM in most natural substances is low, higher concentrations may arise as a result of human activities. For example radium may be precipitated out in scale that forms in a natural gas processing pipe or radon decay products may concentrate on the turbine blades of a natural gas pump. Enhancement of natural radioactivity has been found in:

• Petroleum and natural gas production
• Mineral extraction and processing
• Metal recycling
• Forest products and thermal - electric production
• Water treatment facilities
• Tunneling and underground workings

Additionally, technologically enhanced levels of NORM or (TERM or TENORM) often build up in oilfield equipment used to collect and dispose of produced water.  Equipment such as downhole tubing, surface piping, separator tanks, etc. are often found to have elevated levels of radioactive scales built up which can be a hazard whenever these fixtures are removed or disassembled for maintenance.
If you suspect that you or someone in your family has suffered personal or property damage injury due to possible exposure to TERM/NORM toxic substances, and you wish to initiate a legal investigation, we invite you to call our law firm at (504) 593-9600. We will gladly arrange an appointment to explore how our expertise can resolve your problem.