For the first time in United States history, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) will be challenged in Federal appeals court for its approval of a source materials license for an in situ leach uranium mine. Oral arguments will be presented on May 12 to a panel of Federal judges in Denver asking that the NRC decision to allow mining be set aside. Read the Press Release from New Mexico Environmental Law Center (in pdf format).

British Columbia has slapped an official moratorium on uranium exploration and development in the province, reinforcing a long-standing informal ban on the nuclear fuel and dashing the hopes of companies that hoped to take advantage of soaring prices for the commodity (click here to read the story in ReportonBusiness.com).

Powertech Uranium Corporation, a British Columbia corporation, cannot mine uranium in their backyard so they want to mine it in ours. We hope not.

Powertech Uranium Corporation has never operated an in-situ leach uranium mine or any uranium mine for that matter. As a result, we cannot determine, based on Powertech’s experience and history, whether they can conduct uranium mining operations in northern Colorado without significant impact to our ground water, environment, and health. We can however look to what has been considered Wyoming's "model" in-situ uranium mine, and the only operational uranium facility in the state in recent years, to get a glimpse of what our future might be like with an operating uranium mine. As noted by a recent article in the Casper Star-Tribune and the report below, that mine is under scrutiny by state regulators for what they describe as an alarming volume of environmental violations.

“Someone put a stop to this before it is too late!” wrote Betty Primer of Wellington in a recent letter to the editor of the Fort Collins Coloradoan (Stop Uranium Mine). That someone can be you but you need to act. Unless you express your concerns to our county commissioners and local and state lawmakers and encourage them to change outdated mining laws and a permitting process that does not afford sufficient protection to our precious ground water then we will have a uranium mine in northern Colorado.