Next Big Threat to Uranium Mining

Joe Biden banned new uranium-mining projects on almost 1 million acres of Arizona land last month. Climate activists are asking the Department of the Interior to do the same in Utah, where, they allege, mining poses a huge risk to Bears Ears National Monument.

Environment America, a group that petitioned Biden to designate Arizona’s monument, claimed this past week that Energy Fuels’ White Mesa Mill outside of Bears Ears is a “radioactive waste dump,” asking the Biden administration to altogether ban mining in the region. The mill processes uranium-bearing material, then recycles low-level radioactive waste to recover and use its uranium in nuclear-energy projects, Energy Fuels CEO Mark Chalmers said last year. White Mesa is permitted by the State of Utah, which limits and regulates the amount of waste material allowed at the site.

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Haley Strack

Haley Strack is a former staff writer at National Review.

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Joe Biden banned new uranium-mining projects on almost 1 million acres of Arizona land last month. Climate activists are asking the Department of the Interior to do the same in Utah, where, they allege, mining poses a huge risk to Bears Ears National Monument.

Environment America, a group that petitioned Biden to designate Arizona’s monument, claimed this past week that Energy Fuels’ White Mesa Mill outside of Bears Ears is a “radioactive waste dump,” asking the Biden administration to altogether ban mining in the region. The mill processes uranium-bearing material, then recycles low-level radioactive waste to recover and use its uranium in nuclear-energy projects, Energy Fuels CEO Mark Chalmers said last year. White Mesa is permitted by the State of Utah, which limits and regulates the amount of waste material allowed at the site.