By Brandon Bennett
Black Hills Pioneer
Chadron, Neb. - Organizations from Nebraska, Wyoming, and South Dakota that are working to address impacts of proposed and operating uranium mines met Saturday, Oct., 25 for a press conference and day-long strategy session.
The meeting was held in Chadron, Neb., the site of an operating in situ leach uranium mine that is currently seeking to expand and is attempting to renew their mining permits.
The groups at the conference included Action for the Environment, Western Nebraska Resources Council, Defenders of the Black Hills, Powder River Basin Resources Council and Bring Back the Way.
In situ leach mining is the process by which water and baking soda are injected into holes drilled in the ground. The solution dissolves the uranium and then the whole thing is pumped to the surface where the uranium is collected.
Water is then injected back into the aquifer to replace the water that was used. But therein lies the problem with the groups who are watching the situation.
"Everyone at this event has similar concerns, starting with the need to keep our water clean and to protect millions of gallons for future use," said Shirley Frederick with the South Dakota Sierra Club. "Our local economies, our health and way of life depend on this."
Charmaine White Face of Defenders of the Black Hills added to that dialogue.
"In South Dakota, our aquifers are already cross-contaminated from thousands of exploratory uranium wells, and rivers and streams are radioactively polluted with the runoff of more than 230 abandoned open-pit uranium mines. It will take hundreds of thousands of years for these to be returned to normal," she said.
The participants also say the search for uranium doesn't make sense given the price of the mineral. According to the groups, high prices for uranium is a thing of the past. Price are down to $46 per pound from $107 a pound in 2007.
That hasn't stopped companies like Powertech Uranium from asking the State of South Dakota for permits for more exploration and mining. Powertech has operations in the Dewey-Burdock area near Edgemont. It recently applied to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources for a determination of special, unique and critical lands in the Dewey-Burdock area, so that no sites of historical or cultural significance will not be disturbed. The Archaeological Laboratory at Augustana College conducted the study and found that there were some areas that yielded artifacts but did not fall within the realm.
The participating groups issued a joint statement on uranium mining. The statement reads:
"We want the uranium industry to know that we stand together on this issue. Whether in a rural setting or a populated area, uranium mining causes radioactive contamination. Past uranium sites continue to contaminate the air, land and water. Any bonds designed to pay for clean-up of former mining areas have not been sufficient and taxpayers have been forced to pay the bill. These problems continue at modern uranium mines. We call on the public and all elected officials to do everything to protect water, land and health, and local economies from proposed uranium activities."
White Face added the groups are going to keep informing the public of the dangers of uranium mining. "We'll just keep informing the public with new information. For instance, we received some data that sates the Tennessee Valley Authority, which regulated uranium mining in the 1950's drilled exploratory wells. A report from 1980 states that just those exploratory wells cross-contaminated aquifers. So what do you think will happen if a full-blown in situ leach mine went into operation. What would it do," she asked.
(all emphases mine...SB)
http://www.bhpioneer.com/articles/2008/11/04/news/northern_hills/doc4910793ee10e2408989694.txt
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