A new study is being conducted by a Native American community that is located near the U.S.’s only working uranium mill. This will help answer long-standing questions about how it affects their health.
White Mesa residents of the Ute Mountain Ute tribe, Utah, claim they have witnessed an alarming rise in their health problems in recent decades.
Scott Clow, tribal’s environmental director, says that he is aware of an increase in cancer rates. “We don’t have any evidence linking that to the mill at the moment, but we have our concerns.”
Clow explains that the Environmental Protection Agency gave $75,000 to the tribe of approximately 2,000 members in June to help them design a study with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The study will examine tribal members’ health and assess their environmental conditions in order to determine if there are any connections to the Energy Fuels mill. Expected results are in 2025.
He says, “We just want the tribe to understand the situation and to determine what the dangers may be.”
The White Mesa facility at Energy Fuels is also used to dispose of radioactive waste that has been imported from abroad.
As climate change concerns increase, the company plans to expand uranium-milling.
Russia’s invasion in Ukraine has driven demand for domestically-produced fuel for U.S. nukes. The United States have sourced almost half of their fuel from Russia or former Soviet republics. Energy Fuels received a permit from Arizona in April to reopen an abandoned uranium mine.
For thousands of years, the area around the mill has been home to the Ute Mountain Utes as well as their ancestors. The mill’s site is accessible from Bears Ears National Monument. This sacred site is home to the local Indigenous people.
Michael Badback, a tribal member, is from White Mesa. His family has lived there for generations. They are now more concerned about their ability to maintain their lifestyle into the future.
Badback says, “This land is still virgin and we want it that way.” “This is how our ancestors used the land. We want to continue the tradition and walk on it as our ancestors did.
Badback and other opponents to radioactive material storage and production at the Energy Fuels site are not alone.
He says, “We don’t know about the health problems that go along with this stuff.” “Many of our people suddenly started to get sick. Asthma began to affect children and adults alike in a way that was unlike anything else.
Local groundwater has been found to contain contaminants. Advocate group The Grand Canyon Trust says that samples taken from the groundwater below the mill show alarming levels of acidity, as well as chemicals such as chloroform.
It is not easy to link health conditions and environmental contamination. Energy Fuels claims that the contaminants found in the aquifer should not be feared.
Curtis Moore, company vice president, stated that “you will see very large fluctuations in naturally occurring components.” “That’s exactly what we are seeing right now.”
Energy Fuels claims that the element is not enough to present a risk to human health. Energy Fuels can store increasing amounts of radioactive waste locally, as well as waste from overseas, according to state regulators.
Clow of the tribe says, “It’s obviously not natural.” “Those are orders-of-magnitude higher than what would be found in there naturally.”
Moore said that the mill takes precautions. The mill stores radioactive waste in special ponds known as tailing cells. Liner prevents material from seeping into ground.
Some cells also have leak detection systems. However, older cells do not because they were constructed before this technology became standard. According to the Grand Canyon Trust, that means it is impossible to determine if they are leaking.
Air pollution is also a concern for the Ute Mountain Utes.
The water in the tailing cell acts as a barrier to prevent radiation from entering the atmosphere. For the past two years, radioactive material in a 40-acre cell has been kept above water. According to the EPA, this is a violation federal law.
According to the agency, the exposed cell could emit up to ten-times more radiation than if it was under water. Therefore, the agency requires that radioactive waste from the mill be kept submerged at all costs. Energy Fuels was informed by the agency that the cell must be filled in December.
Moore said that the company is currently working on it. Moore also said that filling the cell could take several months due to the limitations on the amount of water that can be pumped from the high desert wells.
Clow states, “At the End of the Day, the Clean Air Act requires that this thing have liquid on it.”
