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Federal officials have approved the reopening and combining of two reclaimed underground uranium mines on the Utah-Colorado line. The U.S. Bureau of Land Management in Moab and Grand Junction, Colo., announced late Friday afternoon that Lakewood, Colo.-based Energy Fuels Resources would combine the Urantah Decline and Packrat Mine into an operation called the Whirlwind Mine. Earlier the agency released an environmental assessment that showed the mine would have no significant impact.

Federal officials have approved the reopening and combining of two reclaimed underground uranium mines on the Utah-Colorado line. The U.S. Bureau of Land Management in Moab and Grand Junction, Colo., announced Friday that Lakewood, Colo.-based Energy Fuels Resources would combine the Urantah Decline and Packrat Mine into an operation called the Whirlwind Mine. Earlier the agency released an environmental assessment that showed the mine would have no significant impact. The Energy Fuels plan allows for up to 200 tons per day of uranium production, which would yield a quarter-ton annually of U308 to be processed to yellow cake in Blanding in southeastern Utah's, home to the nation's only conventional uranium mill. Energy Fuels is a Toronto-based uranium and vanadium mineral-development company that claims more than 40,000 acres of highly prospective uranium and vanadium property located in Utah, Colorado and Arizona. Uranium prices on the spot market currently are about $65 per pound, down from about $90 in December

The town of Ault joined the long list of opposition against a proposed uranium mine Tuesday. At it's meeting Tuesday, Ault's town board passed a resolution opposing any uranium mining in northern Colorado. Powertech Uranium Corp., a Canadian-based company, owns the mineral rights to more than 5,700 acres of land in Weld County near Nunn and wants to mine for the mineral. Ault Mayor Brad Bayne said the board heard presentations Tuesday from Powertech and Coloradans Against Resource Destruction -- a group that opposes uranium mining in the area.

The Northern Territory Government says it will speak to mining company ERA and the office of the Commonwealth Supervising Scientist about contaminated water leaking from the Ranger Uranium Mine. About 100,000 litres of contaminated water is seeping from a tailings dam at the mine every day. Environmentalists are calling for the mine's planned expansion to be put on hold.

A French physicist and a US actor have joined representatives of indigenous peoples from Africa, Australia and the United States to send US lawmakers a stark warning about the dangers of uranium mining. "We want US lawmakers to understand that uranium mining is highly pollutant and that there is currently no scientific answer to the question of radioactive waste containment," Bruno Chareyron of France's CRIIRAD laboratory, which measures radioactivity in the environment, told AFP Friday. "We want them to know that the information they are given by the mining companies is not wholly reliable," he said. Representatives of the Tuareg nomads of Niger, Native Americans and Australian aborigines told of the ravages of uranium mining on their communities.

Uranium has never been mined safely anywhere in the world, in the past nor in the present, and it won't be minded safely here in Virginia. People have suffered from uranium mining in thousands of ways. Air, water, soil, plants, animals, homes, things you touch and eat, your hair and everything else around each person and for hundreds of miles around a mine, gets polluted by radioactive uranium, radon or other poisonous by-products of mining. Once uranium and radon have been released and extracted from the ground, you can be sure it will find its way into your food, clothing, water, homes and, of course, your cells and DNA.

The Nunn town board has passed a resolution opposing a planned uranium mine near the northern Colorado town. The board voted 4-2 Thursday for the measure. One trustee abstained. The resolution can't prevent Powertech Uranium Corp. from building its mine. But the mine's opponents hope it will affect state decisions on the project. The Canadian company has proposed a $20 million uranium mine about 70 miles north of Denver. It has bought mineral rights and applied for permits. Powertech plans to use a process called in-situ mining, which involves pumping treated water into uranium-laced deposits to dissolve the mineral so the uranium can be pumped to the surface.

Two environmental groups are trying to block Utah's first new uranium mine in three decades. The Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance and Uranium Watch want the U.S. Bureau of Land Management to rethink its approval of the Daneros Mine, located about 10 miles from Natural Bridges National Monument. The groups also want the federal agency to stop Australia-based White Canyon Uranium from mining its Daneros claim until BLM's Utah director, Selma Sierra, determines whether her agency studied the environmental consequences sufficiently. "There are a lot of issues associated with uranium mining that were not adequately assessed before the permits were issued," Liz Thomas, an attorney for SUWA, said Friday.

One Coastal Bend county is contesting plans for a new uranium mine. Today, a court hearing was held in Goliad county for residents to voice their opinions. The Coastal Bend is the second biggest area in the nation for uranium mining. This is the first time a Coastal Bend county is challenging a permit application. This 1100 acres of land in Goliad County is the latest battleground over uranium mining. County leaders are challenging the Texas Commission on Environment Quality over its initial decision to approve a permit for Uranium Energy Corporation to mine here. The county is concerned about the future of ground water in the area.

Several proposed uranium mining projects in Wyoming and across the West will be delayed due the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission's recent decision requiring a more thorough site-specific analysis for each project. The NRC will require a supplemental environmental impact statement for each mining project rather than a more simplified environmental assessment, which the agency had considered. Some officials in the uranium industry claim the NRC overreacted to a groundswell of public concern that they say comes from either ignorance of the in-situ leach mining process or a desire to block uranium mining. Industry officials have also told the Star-Tribune they worry that investors are losing patience. However, those who scrutinize the emerging next generation of uranium mining say both the industry and government regulators have a history that deserves skepticism. Shannon Anderson, community organizer for the Powder River Basin Resource Council, said she has researched dozens upon dozens of spills and excursions documented by the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality. The Star-Tribune has also reviewed DEQ documentation describing dozens of violations related to in-situ recovery of uranium in the state.

The Navajo Nation's anti-uranium mining ban scored a victory April 17 when the 10th Circuit Court upheld federal, rather than state, control over a permit for a proposed in situ leach uranium mine in a mixed-ownership area of northwestern New Mexico. Hydro Resources Inc. asked the federal appeals court to overturn an Environmental Protection Agency determination that HRI's proposed mine near Church Rock was in "Indian country" as legally defined and therefore must be permitted by EPA and not by the state.

Great Lakes United, Mining Watch Canada and Ecojustice are hailing a landmark decision from the Federal Court of Canada released late yesterday that will force the federal government to stop withholding data on one of Canada's largest sources of pollution - millions of tonnes of toxic mine tailings and waste rock from mining operations throughout the country. The Federal Court sided with the groups and issued an Order demanding that the federal government immediately begin publicly reporting mining pollution data from 2006 onward to the National Pollutant Release Inventory (NPRI). The strongly worded decision describes the government's pace as "glacial" and chastises the government for turning a "blind eye" to the issue and dragging its feet for "more than 16 years".

*Court upholds EPA ruling that mine site is on Navajo land *Mine would be subject to Clean Safe Drinking Water rules LOS ANGELES, April 17 (Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court on Friday upheld a 2007 finding by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that the site of a uranium mine that Hydro Resources Inc plans to operate is on Navajo Nation land and subject to Safe Drinking Water Act regulations. Hydro Resources (HRI) plans to operate the underground injection mine on a 160-acre (65-hectare) site it owns in McKinley County, New Mexico, a few miles from Church Rock.

"A study to determine whether uranium can be mined and milled safely in Virginia is moving forward. Officials say Virginia Tech's Center for Coal and Energy Research has signed a contract with the National Academy of Sciences' National Research Council for the study. The first phase of the study will focuses on the technical and public-safety aspects of mining. The study's fieldwork will begin this summer and last through the fall of 2011. Virginia Uranium Inc. seeks to mine and mill a 119-million-pound uranium ore deposit in Pittsylvania County. The company will pay for the first phase of the study through Virginia Tech. Before uranium could be mined in Virginia, the General Assembly would have to lift a ban that has been in place since 1982. The study is a first step to lifting that ban. "

Quebec will create a special committee to study the potential effects of uranium exploration and mining on public health, says the province's chief public health officer Dr. Alain Poirier. Poirier made the announcement Friday, following a meeting with a group of 23 doctors in the province's North Shore region. The doctors at the Sept-Îles Hospital have threatened to resign unless the province puts in place a ban on uranium mining and exploration, which they said is a threat to public health. "We agreed to look at all the options and not just only to think if one day there will be a mine - but what are the effects now on the population," Poirier said.

Quebec will create a special committee to study the potential effects of uranium exploration and mining on public health, says the province's chief public health officer Dr. Alain Poirier. Poirier made the announcement Friday, following a meeting with a group of 23 doctors in the province's North Shore region. The doctors at the Sept-Îles Hospital have threatened to resign unless the province puts in place a ban on uranium mining and exploration, which they said is a threat to public health. "We agreed to look at all the options and not just only to think if one day there will be a mine - but what are the effects now on the population," Poirier said.

Word came Thursday that Virginia's uranium mining study has gotten the go-ahead from a top panel of the National Research Council, an arm of the National Academy of Sciences. At last, science and rational thought seem to be prevailing in this decades-long dispute. The National Research Council (NRC) is part of nation's premier scientific organization. Earlier this year, the General Assembly voted to request the NRC study whether a 119 million pound deposit of uranium ore in neighboring Pittsylvania County could be safely mined and milled, without risk to the environment. Since the early 1980s, Virginia has had a moratorium on mining and milling in place, due to concerns as to whether it could be done safely.

Word came Thursday that Virginia's uranium mining study has gotten the go-ahead from a top panel of the National Research Council, an arm of the National Academy of Sciences. At last, science and rational thought seem to be prevailing in this decades-long dispute. The National Research Council (NRC) is part of nation's premier scientific organization. Earlier this year, the General Assembly voted to request the NRC study whether a 119 million pound deposit of uranium ore in neighboring Pittsylvania County could be safely mined and milled, without risk to the environment. Since the early 1980s, Virginia has had a moratorium on mining and milling in place, due to concerns as to whether it could be done safely.

A proposed uranium mine north of Edgemont could add 200 construction jobs before mining ever begins, residents were told Wednesday. Representatives of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and Southwest Research Institute, a nonprofit research and development organization, met with business, community and government representatives to gauge the effects of granting a license to PowerTech USA to mine uranium in the Dewey-Burdock area north of Edgemont and to discuss the status of the application. The NRC is reviewing PowerTech's licensing application and is gathering data that will go into a Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement.

A proposed uranium mine north of Edgemont could add 200 construction jobs before mining ever begins, residents were told Wednesday. Representatives of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and Southwest Research Institute, a nonprofit research and development organization, met with business, community and government representatives to gauge the effects of granting a license to PowerTech USA to mine uranium in the Dewey-Burdock area north of Edgemont and to discuss the status of the application. The NRC is reviewing PowerTech's licensing application and is gathering data that will go into a Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement.

Intera Inc. will assess sites on federal and private lands throughout New Mexico. State Mining and Minerals Division Director Bill Brancard calls the project a step forward in reducing exposure to health and safety hazards associated with abandoned mines and their legacy of radiological contamination. Brancard says there's a need to clean up sites because of renewed interest in uranium exploration in the state. The assessment will cover sites that were part of a uranium mining boom before regulations required reclamation and cleanup.

Intera Inc. will assess sites on federal and private lands throughout New Mexico. State Mining and Minerals Division Director Bill Brancard calls the project a step forward in reducing exposure to health and safety hazards associated with abandoned mines and their legacy of radiological contamination. Brancard says there's a need to clean up sites because of renewed interest in uranium exploration in the state. The assessment will cover sites that were part of a uranium mining boom before regulations required reclamation and cleanup.

"The legal battle over uranium mining in Goliad reached a pivotal point Monday. Monday began a state contested case hearing that will play a factor in deciding whether Uranium Energy Corp. may mine uranium in Goliad County. Three expert witnesses testified and cross-examined based on pre-trial written testimonies. Bill Galloway, a geologist and professor at the University of Texas, was called by UEC's legal team. Arsenic, lead and uranium are elements commonly present in an ore body, such as the uranium-rich deposits that UEC intends to mine. In his pre-trial testimony, Galloway said he expected the groundwater quality in Goliad to be compromised by uranium mining operations. "

The National Research Council governing board's executive committee will meet next month to discuss the study that would determine whether uranium can be mined and milled safely in Virginia. The meeting will take place Nov. 10 in Washington and will be closed to the public, said Jennifer Walsh, spokeswoman for the National Academy of Sciences. Walsh said she does not know if the committee will decide during next month's meeting whether to approve the study. Virginia Uranium Inc. seeks to mine and mill a 119-million-pound uranium ore deposit at Coles Hill, about six miles northeast of Chatham. VUI, through Virginia Tech's Center for Coal and Energy Research, would pay for the study's first phase focusing on the technical and public-safety aspects of mining.

The National Research Council governing board's executive committee will meet next month to discuss the study that would determine whether uranium can be mined and milled safely in Virginia. The meeting will take place Nov. 10 in Washington and will be closed to the public, said Jennifer Walsh, spokeswoman for the National Academy of Sciences. Walsh said she does not know if the committee will decide during next month's meeting whether to approve the study. Virginia Uranium Inc. seeks to mine and mill a 119-million-pound uranium ore deposit at Coles Hill, about six miles northeast of Chatham. VUI, through Virginia Tech's Center for Coal and Energy Research, would pay for the study's first phase focusing on the technical and public-safety aspects of mining.