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An Atomic Safety and Licensing Board (ASLB) will hear oral arguments June 9 on two challenges to a license renewal application by Cogema Mining Inc. for the Irigaray and Christensen Ranch in-situ uranium recovery facilities in Wyoming's Powder River Basin. Oral arguments by lawyers for the parties will be heard in the Presentation Hall (Room 136) of the Whitney Building on the campus of Sheridan College in Sheridan, Wyo. The proceedings will continue on June 10 if necessary. Cogema submitted an application for a 10-year renewal of the Irigaray and Christensen Ranch recovery facilities on May 31, 2008. The facilities, which are under a single license, have not been operational since 2002; however, on Sept. 30, 2008, the NRC approved Cogema's request to return the facilities to operational status. The agency received petitions from the Oglala Delegation of the Great Sioux Nation Treaty Council and the Powder River Basin Resource Council, raising various contentions challenging Cogema's application. The oral arguments will discuss the standing of the petitioners and the admissibility of their contentions under NRC regulations. Lawyers from the NRC staff and Cogema will also participate.

There are a few unmistakable realities in the world. One of them, Vince Matthews thinks, is that increasing energy demands are unstoppable. Another is that Colorado has a wealth of mineral and energy reserves that could be vital in meeting national and global appetites. Matthews, Colorado state geologist and director of Colo­rado Geological Survey, presented his views during the first seminar Thursday morning of the Fueling Energy Summit 2009, hosted by Yampa Valley Partners at the Holiday Inn of Craig.

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.

CH2M-WG Idaho (CWI), contractor for the Idaho Cleanup Project, resumed work Wednesday morning on construction of the Integrated Waste Treatment Unit (IWTU) facility after suspending work on Tuesday, June 30, as a result of recent minor injuries to workers on the project. "We met with the IWTU construction workforce this morning to review the safety issues we've experienced and to get them involved in improving safety on the project," said Brent Rankin, Vice President and Chief Operating Officer for CWI. "We know from experience that the workers on the front line can help identify issues or opportunities for improvement." The IWTU is being constructed to treat 900,000 gallons of liquid, sodium-bearing waste currently stored in three underground storage tanks at the Idaho Nuclear Technology and Engineering Center. Steam-reforming technology will be used to convert the liquid waste into a more stable granular solid for eventual disposal at a national geologic repository.

By letter dated July 3, 2008, Energy Metals Corporation (Energy Metals) submitted a Source Materials License application to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for the Antelope and JAB Uranium Project in Sweetwater County, Wyoming. The Antelope and JAB Uranium Project would involve the recovery of uranium by in situ leach (ISL) extraction. An NRC Administrative review, documented in a letter to Energy Metals dated March 9, 2009, found the application acceptable to begin a technical and environmental review. Before approving the license application, the NRC will need to make the findings required by the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and NRC's regulations. These findings will be documented in a Safety Evaluation Report (SER) and a site-specific environmental review consistent with the provisions of 10 CFR Part 51.

Notice is hereby given that the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), with the cooperation of the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality, Land Quality Division, is issuing a final Generic Environmental Impact Statement (GEIS) that assesses the potential environmental impacts of the construction, operation, aquifer restoration, and decommissioning at an in-situ leach (ISL) uranium milling facility located in particular regions of the western United States. The rationale for developing the GEIS is that ISL facilities use the same or very similar technology, such that the potential environmental impacts associated with the technology could be assessed on a generic (programmatic) basis. In this way repetitive reviews of certain of these impacts could be avoided, thus focusing NRC's evaluation on unique issues of concern for each ISL license application.

Adams County wrongly spent $750,000 in fees from a hazardous waste dump to sue the state for allowing the dump to accept low-level radioactive material, a judge has ruled. The judge said the county must return the money to a fund set up to offset costs associated with the dump. Adams County District Judge John T. Bryan issued the order late Thursday.

"The first million tons of uranium tailings have been taken away from a huge pile near Moab. The U.S. Department of Energy says the milestone was reached this week as part of an ongoing project to remove 16 million tons of radioactive waste from the shores of the Colorado River. The waste is being loaded on trains and shipped to a disposal site 30 miles to the north. The Energy Department is overseeing the work. Crews began loading railroad cars in April and hauling the waste to a series of cells at Crescent Junction designed for long-term storage for hazardous waste. The project is expected to cost around $1 billion."

Tuesday, during a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing, Senator John Barrasso criticized the Department of Energy's (DOE) management of its excess uranium stockpiles. He noted that DOE's policy of forcing too much of its uranium stockpile into the market will artificially drive down uranium prices, undercutting domestic uranium mining and hurting jobs in Wyoming. "There is a lot at stake for Wyoming jobs and the uranium industry's investment in Wyoming. The Department's short-sighted proposal promises temporary jobs in Ohio at the expense of long-term jobs in Wyoming," said Barrasso.

Tuesday, during a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing, Senator John Barrasso criticized the Department of Energy's (DOE) management of its excess uranium stockpiles. He noted that DOE's policy of forcing too much of its uranium stockpile into the market will artificially drive down uranium prices, undercutting domestic uranium mining and hurting jobs in Wyoming. "There is a lot at stake for Wyoming jobs and the uranium industry's investment in Wyoming. The Department's short-sighted proposal promises temporary jobs in Ohio at the expense of long-term jobs in Wyoming," said Barrasso.

The uranium industry was born on the west end of Energy Alley, the run from Green River, Utah, to Rifle. It has burst into bloom and sputtered to obscurity more than once. Like the half-lives by which radiation is judged to decay, though, the industry never has died. Two companies are burrowing into the red bluffs and canyons of western Colorado and eastern Utah to dig out uranium and start the process of generating electricity. Although the history of the uranium industry in the region goes back to Madame Curie and her discoveries in the late 19th century, the supply is far from played out. Miners dug out about 250 million pounds of uranium for the World II and Cold War efforts, said George Glasier, president and CEO of Energy Fuels Inc., a Canadian, publicly traded company.

The uranium industry was born on the west end of Energy Alley, the run from Green River, Utah, to Rifle. It has burst into bloom and sputtered to obscurity more than once. Like the half-lives by which radiation is judged to decay, though, the industry never has died. Two companies are burrowing into the red bluffs and canyons of western Colorado and eastern Utah to dig out uranium and start the process of generating electricity. Although the history of the uranium industry in the region goes back to Madame Curie and her discoveries in the late 19th century, the supply is far from played out. Miners dug out about 250 million pounds of uranium for the World II and Cold War efforts, said George Glasier, president and CEO of Energy Fuels Inc., a Canadian, publicly traded company.

During a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing Tuesday, U.S. Senator John Barrasso criticized the Department of Energy's management of its excess uranium stockpiles. Barrasso noted that the DOE's policy of forcing too much of its uranium stockpile into the market will artificially drive down uranium prices, undercutting domestic uranium mining and hurting jobs in Wyoming. Barrasso highlighted the negative impact the DOE's plans will have on Wyoming if it transfers $150-$200 million worth of excess government uranium to the U.S. Enrichment Corporation over the next year.

During a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing Tuesday, U.S. Senator John Barrasso criticized the Department of Energy's management of its excess uranium stockpiles. Barrasso noted that the DOE's policy of forcing too much of its uranium stockpile into the market will artificially drive down uranium prices, undercutting domestic uranium mining and hurting jobs in Wyoming. Barrasso highlighted the negative impact the DOE's plans will have on Wyoming if it transfers $150-$200 million worth of excess government uranium to the U.S. Enrichment Corporation over the next year.

"The Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality is proceeding with permits to allow uranium developers to inject wastewater underground despite federal regulators' concerns. The department recently issued a draft permit to allow Ur Energy Inc. to operate five underground injection wells at the company's proposed Lost Creek uranium mine in Sweetwater County. The agency is accepting public comments on the draft permit through April 26. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, meanwhile, has raised objections that could hold up federal certification of the Sweetwater County project and two other similar projects in the state. The federal agency is concerned that injecting wastewater underground could pollute drinking water supplies."

An environmental group won its request to review safety and engineering records of a Department of Energy nuclear reactor 100 miles upwind of Yellowstone National Park, according to federal court records. The Jackson-based Keep Yellowstone Nuclear Free will be able to review 1,400 pages evaluating the safety of the advanced test reactor (ATR) at the Idaho National Laboratory, according to the Sept. 14 order by Chief U.S. District Judge William Downes. The lab is a 890-square-site with three main complexes west of Idaho Falls. "KYNF has been anxiously awaiting this decision because they maintain that the redacted documents contain the DOE's assessment of the safety and consequences of an accident at the controversial ATR, the largest nuclear test reactor in the world, said Mary Woollen, the environmental group's director. However, the environment group did not disagree with a Department of Energy motion granted by Downes to put the order on hold until Nov. 27 because of a possible appeal. The government also needs the time to review the documents and edit certain details.

An environmental group won its request to review safety and engineering records of a Department of Energy nuclear reactor 100 miles upwind of Yellowstone National Park, according to federal court records. The Jackson-based Keep Yellowstone Nuclear Free will be able to review 1,400 pages evaluating the safety of the advanced test reactor (ATR) at the Idaho National Laboratory, according to the Sept. 14 order by Chief U.S. District Judge William Downes. The lab is a 890-square-site with three main complexes west of Idaho Falls. "KYNF has been anxiously awaiting this decision because they maintain that the redacted documents contain the DOE's assessment of the safety and consequences of an accident at the controversial ATR, the largest nuclear test reactor in the world, said Mary Woollen, the environmental group's director. However, the environment group did not disagree with a Department of Energy motion granted by Downes to put the order on hold until Nov. 27 because of a possible appeal. The government also needs the time to review the documents and edit certain details.

Gov. Dave Freudenthal is trying to stop the transfer of $150 to $200 million worth of excess government uranium to the United States Enrichment Corp. that he says will hurt Wyoming's resurgent uranium mining industry. Freudenthal wrote a letter to the U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu on Monday. "There is no question that the non-competitive introduction of such a large quantity of uranium will adversely impact the uranium producing industry in my state," he wrote There also would be an extra $450 million of excess government uranium transferred in the next three years, according to the letter. "The loss of mining and mining-related jobs in Wyoming and elsewhere will be a direct outcome of the Department's present course," Freudenthal wrote. Several uranium mines in Campbell and Sweetwater counties plan to re-open under new ownership in the next year. Uranium One Inc., one of the largest uranium mining operations in the world, plans to make Wyoming the center of its U.S. operations. The company bought the Irigaray in-situ recovery central processing plant in Johnson County, the Christensen Ranch processing facility in southwest Campbell County and several uranium resources in the Powder River Basin for $35 million. Both processing facilities already are permitted and licensed, and the company hopes to start production next year.

Gov. Dave Freudenthal is trying to stop the transfer of $150 to $200 million worth of excess government uranium to the United States Enrichment Corp. that he says will hurt Wyoming's resurgent uranium mining industry. Freudenthal wrote a letter to the U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu on Monday. "There is no question that the non-competitive introduction of such a large quantity of uranium will adversely impact the uranium producing industry in my state," he wrote There also would be an extra $450 million of excess government uranium transferred in the next three years, according to the letter. "The loss of mining and mining-related jobs in Wyoming and elsewhere will be a direct outcome of the Department's present course," Freudenthal wrote. Several uranium mines in Campbell and Sweetwater counties plan to re-open under new ownership in the next year. Uranium One Inc., one of the largest uranium mining operations in the world, plans to make Wyoming the center of its U.S. operations. The company bought the Irigaray in-situ recovery central processing plant in Johnson County, the Christensen Ranch processing facility in southwest Campbell County and several uranium resources in the Powder River Basin for $35 million. Both processing facilities already are permitted and licensed, and the company hopes to start production next year.