“Our greatest fear” as uranium mining starts

“It is with heavy hearts that we must acknowledge that our greatest fear has come true,” read a statement from the Havasupai Tribal Council after learning that uranium mining has begun just south of the Grand Canyon. Energy Fuels Inc. says it has begun operations at its Pinyon Plain Mine and bluntly dismissed and disregarded the safety concerns of the tribe for whom the area also has cultural importance. The mine sits above an aquifer that supplies drinking water to the Havasupai who are the guardians of the Grand Canyon, committed to protecting “our people, our land, our water, our past, our present and our future,” the Council said. The Navajo Nation also objects to the mine and subsequent transportation risks.

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