AUDIO: Radioactive waste near Arizona border raises concerns

by Adnan Alam
  • Slug: MoraMedina-UraniumWaste
  • Runtime: 1:50
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Byline: Alexandra Mora/Cronkite News 

HOST INTRO: 

THE GRAND CANYON TRUST RELEASED A REPORT TUESDAY THAT DETAILS THE IMPACT THAT A URANIUM MILL HAS HAD NEAR THE ARIZONA / UTAH BORDER. CRONKITE NEWS’S ALEXANDRA MORA MEDINA EXPLAINS. 

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THE WHITE MESA URANIUM MILL IS THE COUNTRY’S ONLY FULLY LICENSED OPERATION OF ITS KIND IN THE U.S. IT’S NEAR THE UTE MOUNTAIN UTE TRIBE IN SOUTHEAST UTAH. IT WAS BUILT IN 1980 TO PROCESS DOMESTIC URANIUM ORE INCLUDING FROM THE GRAND CANYON REGION. THE REPORT FROM THE GRAND CANYON TRUST FINDS THAT MORE THAN SEVEN HUNDRED MILLION POUNDS OF RADIOACTIVE WASTE IS BURIED IN PITS AT THE SITE. AND THE MILL HAS TAKEN RADIOACTIVE WASTE FROM AROUND THE WORLD INCLUDING CANADA, EUROPE AND JAPAN SINCE THE 1990S.  

THE UTE MOUNTAIN UTE TRIBE CLAIMS THAT RADIOACTIVE MATERIAL FROM THE MILL HAS IMPACTED AIR, LAND AND WATER. 

LAST AUGUST THE TRIBE PASSED A RESOLUTION STATING THE MILL’S OPERATIONS HAS HAD A “SEVERE IMPACT” ON THE HEALTH OF RESIDENTS AT WHITE MESA AND SHOULD STOP OPERATIONS. MANUEL HEART IS THE CHAIRMAN OF THE UTE MOUNTAIN UTE TRIBE. 

“So our concern from the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe is how do we protect our tribal members to access of clean water of radioactive waste that’s two and a half miles three miles from them.”

YOLANDA BADBACK IS A LONG TIME WHITE MESA COMMUNITY MEMBER. SHE’S CONCERNED ABOUT WATER TOWERS BEING CONTAMINATED WITH URANIUM. 

“I want it to move somewhere out a middle of the desert somewhere where it’s not near no Native American reservation, you know, it hurts us people here in our community, because we are downstream from this mill.”

THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY BARRED THE MILL FROM TAKING SUPERFUND WASTE IN DECEMBER BUT NOT FROM OTHER LOCATIONS. IN A STATEMENT TUESDAY  WHITE MESA MILL SAID  IT OPERATES AT THE “HIGHEST GLOBAL STANDARDS.” IT ALSO HIGHLIGHTED IT’S RECYCLING OF MILLIONS OF POUNDS OF URANIUM THAT WOULD OTHERWISE BE LOST TO DIRECT DISPOSAL. 

ALEXANDRA MORA MEDINA, CRONKITE NEWS.