Shoshone-Bannock Tribes offer input. The INEEL contracted directly with the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes of the Fort Hall Indian Reservation for their input to the comprehensive investigation. The Tribes' members traditionally occupied the INEEL area and continue to use it for many cultural and economic purposes. The Tribes summarized what is important to them in defining and remediating risks to human and environmental health. The report suggests that corrective action be taken to correct changes, disturbances, and perceived voids in the native landscape ecology, thereby restoring balance to the universe.

Risk to INEEL's ecology studied. Site-wide ecological risk assessment activities were completed as part of the comprehensive investigation. The assessment integrated the results of the individual ecological risk assessments that were conducted previously with additional data collected for this effort. The results of the assessment will be included in a Proposed Plan, expected to be issued in 2001.

Animal and plant samples from the Boiling Water Reactor Experiment-I (BORAX-I) area were studied to determine whether an engineered barrier is keeping buried contamination from coming into contact with the environment.

The samples that were gathered either contained no contamination or had contamination levels similar to levels in plants and animals outside the INEEL's boundaries. Future studies may include using methods to examine DNA in animals living at the INEEL, looking for signs of genetic damage that might indicate exposure to contaminants.

Groundwater monitoring continue. Additional monitoring wells were drilled to expand scientific understanding of the geologic structures beneath the INEEL and contaminant movement.