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Moab, Utah

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August 17, 2008

Hearing on Water Appropriation for Green RiverUranium Mill - August 27, 2008

The Utah Division of Water Rights will hold a hearing on three protests of an application by Mancos Resources LLC to appropriate water from the Green River for a proposed uranium mill 6 miles west of the town of Green River, Utah. The hearing will be held on Wednesday, August 27 at 10 a.m. at the City Council Chambers, 240 East Main, Green River. Protests of the use of 800 acre feet of water were filed by Green River farmer, Tim Vetere, the Green River Canal Company, and by Red Rock Forests and Living Rivers. The hearing will be open to the public. Read More . . . .

August 5 , 2008

DOE to Use Rail to Move Moab Uranium Mill
Tailings

The Department of Energy (DOE) issued a news release announcing their decision to rely primarily on rail transportation to move the Moab, Utah, UMTRA Project uranium mill tailings from the flood plain of the Colorado River. The tailings will be moved 30 miles north to a disposal impoundment in Crescent Junction. A Union Pacific rail line runs near both sites. DOE contractors will start work on the rail line infrastrucure later this year. Earlier this year the DOE amendmed the Record of Decision to include the possible use of trucks to transport the tailings. Opposition to the use of trucks by the local community, logistical problems, and, apparently, a more cooperative attitude by Union Pacific resulted in the decision to rely on the original rail transportation plan.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has given condiitional approval of the Remedial Action Plan. Final approval is dependent on the DOE's groundwater remediation plan for the former Atlas uranium mill site.

August 2 , 2008

Lawsuit Filed Against DOE Colorado
Uranium Mine Leasing Program

Four groups have filed a suit in the Denver U.S. District Court to challenge the environmental analysis conducted by Department of Energy (DOE) for the expansion of the DOE's Uranium Sites Leasing Program in south west Colorado. Information Network for Responsible Mining, Colorado Environmental Coalition, Center for Native Ecosystems, and Center for Biological Diversity joined in the suit. Plaintiffs, represented by the Energy Minerals Law Center and the Western Mining Action Project, claim that the DOE failed to properly implement the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The DOE by failed to adequately address a number of significant impacts to the Dolores River area from the leasing program, other proposed an ongoing uranium mining and milling in the area, and from past uranium mining activities. News Release . . . . Story 1 . . . . Story 2 . . . .

July 28, 2008

Draft Generic Environmental Impact Statement for
In Situ Leach Uranium Recovery Operations Available for Public Comment

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Environmental Protection Agency have announced availability of the Draft Generic Environmental Impact Statement for In Situ Leach Uranium Milling Facilities. Comments are due on October 7, 2008. Public meetings to accept comments are to be held in New Mexico, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Wyoming.

The Federal Register Notice (FRN) was published on July 28, 2008 (73 Fed. Reg. 43795-43798). Draft GEIS and Additional Information . . . .

July 22, 2008

Draft of Vol. 2 of NRC ISL GEIS Publicly Available

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has made publicly available the draft of Vol. 2 of the Generic Environmental Impact Statement for In-Situ Leach Uranium Milling Facilities, Chapters 5 through 12 and Appendices A through F, June 30, 2008, NUREG-1910. Read More . . . .

July 17, 2008

Judge Holds Mining Company Responsible for Pollution at Washington Uranium Mine

A U.S. District Judge from Washington determined that the Newmont Mining Corp. of Colorado was responsible for cleaning up a large uranium mine site on the Spokane Tribe's land. Newmont's subsidiary, Dawn Mining Company, operated the mine, which continues to pollute nearby land, water, and wildlife. Read more . . . .

July 2, 2008

Power Resources Inc. Requests Permission to Process Resins from Other In Sutu Leach Operations

On June 19, 2008, Power Resources (doing business as Cameco Resources) requested an amendment to their Nuclear Regulatory Commission license to authorize the processing of resins from other in situ leach (ISL) uranium recovery operations. The resins would be processed at the Smith Ranch-Highland Project in Wyoming. The amendment request indicates that the amendment is minor and should receive a categorical exclusion from a National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review.

June 27, 2008

House Committee Stops New Uranium Mine Claims in Grand Canyon Area

On June 25, 2008, The House Natural Resources Committee adopted an Emergy Resolution stopping any new uranium mine claims on lands near the Grand Canyon National Park for up to three years. The resolution was introduced by Arizona Representative, Raul M. Grijalva, in order to protect the National Park area from the impacts of uranium mining. The resolution would impact over 1,000,000 acreas of federally owned land north and south of the Grand Canyon. Read More . . . .

June 10

Protests of Mancos Resources Water Right Appropriation Application

Three protests of Mancos Resources' request for 800 acre feet of water from the Green River for a planned uranium mill were filed with the Utah Division of Water Rights. The State Engineer will determine whether a hearing will be held on the objections to the use of the water by Mancos Resources. More . . . .

May 20, 2008

BlueRock Resources Ltd. Purchases Mancos
Uranium Mill Project

BlueRock Resources, Ltd., a Canadian firm, announced that it purchased a 100% interest in the Mancos Resources, Inc., proposed Mancos Uranium Mill Project, Emery County, Utah. Completion of the purchase is subject to certain steps in the land and water aquisition and state permitting processes. As expected, Mancos Resources does not have the resources to complete the mill project on its own. The proposed mill would be constructed in an industrial park area six miles north west of the town of Green River. Mancos Resources has applied to the Utah Division of Water Rights for 800 acre feet of water per year from the Green River for the mill. BlueRock Resources has uranium mine interests in the San Raphael Swell and Temple Mountain Uranium Districts in Utah and in Montrose County, Colorado.
More . . . . May 20, 2008

Colorado Governor Signs Uranium In Situ Leach Law

Governor Bill Ritter of Colorado signed House Bill 1161, designed to protect groundwater from in situ leach (ISL) uranium extraction operations. The law requires the restoration of water to original water quality or to state standards. Groundwater impacted by ISL uranium extraction is also subject to Nuclear Regulatory Commission and Environmental Protection Agency groundwater restoration regulations. More . . . .

HOW TO LOCATE LICENSING DOCUMENTS IN THE NRC ELECTRONIC READING ROOM (ADAMS):

1. Go to  http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html   
2. Click on Web-based access / Begin ADAMS search / Advanced Search 
3. Enter Docket Number in the Docket Number box.
4. Sort by Document Date in Descending order.  Some document packages are undated and are found at of beginning of end of list of documents in Descending order and at beginning of list of documents in Ascending order.
More about NRC document access . . . .

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Updated August 17, 2008