colorado legislative update

It may interest BLR shareholders to read this news release.

The link is to the bill as introduced
http://www.leg.state.co.us/Clics/CLICS2014A/csl.nsf/fsbillcont3/677A5FF1E6D4A26887257C97007294D2?Open&file=192_01.pdf

For Immediate Release: April 21, 2014
Contact: Chris Arend, Conservation Colorado, 303-908-7910
Jeff Parsons, Western Mining Action Project, 720-203-2871
Sharyn Cunningham, Colorado Citizens Against Toxic Waste, (719) 275-3432
Carol Dunn, Colorado Citizens Against Toxic Waste, 719-275-2822

Coloradans Applaud Legislation to Protect Ranches, Homes, and Colorado’s Water from Uranium Mining

A diverse group of impacted citizens throughout Colorado, including ranchers and farmers praised the introduction of Senate Bill 192 by Senator Mary Hodge (D-Brighton). The legislation includes a series of measures to better protect landowners and communities from ongoing contamination from uranium milling facilities, sets stronger protections for potential new uranium recovery technologies, and updates Colorado’s major uranium milling and oversight law to be in compliance with federal regulations.

“There is a long history of problems with uranium processing in Colorado, this bill will help clean up old messes and prevent new ones from occurring,” said Jeff Parsons with the Western Mining Action Project. “This legislation significantly strengthen Colorado’s existing uranium milling and mining laws and will help protect our water and Coloradans public health.”

Residents of Canon City have felt the impact of the Cotter Corporation uranium milling site from contaminated wells and groundwater since becoming a Superfund Site in 1984. The legislation introduced today will ensure that the Cotter Corporation and future uranium mills cleanup ongoing contamination of resident’s groundwater to safe levels and past historical use.
“The Cotter Uranium Mill has closed and we need the groundwater cleaned with the best available technology to finally restore the use of our water wells,” stated Sharyn Cunningham, Canon City resident and impacted well owner.

In addition to addressing ongoing uranium milling contamination, the bill also strengthens protections to ensure that Colorado’s uranium oversight laws account for new technologies being proposed for the extraction and concentration of uranium.
These new technologies involve extraction through the creation of an underground uranium slurry (i.e., underground borehole mining) and concentration through physical, rather than chemical means (i.e., ablation). These new uranium recovery methods are being proposed for uraniummdeposits in Fremont County (Tallahassee Creek/Arkansas River) and in Weld County (Centennial Project and Keota).

“Homeowners in our part of Fremont County have nothing against our neighbors who wish to develop their mineral rights,” said Kay Hawklee, resident and mineral rights owner in Tallahassee Creek area in Fremont County. “We only want to see protections in place for new technologies that have the potential to contaminate our groundwater. If it’s going to be done it needs to be done in a manner that will protect everyone’s rights.”

Finally, the Act will update the Colorado Radiation Control Act to comply with federal licensing standards. The Colorado Department of Public Health and the Environment has repeatedly been criticized by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission for its outdated approach to licensing. Commonsense revisions to the Radiation Control Act can bring Colorado’s program into compliance with federal requirements and provide a fair, transparent, scientifically credible permitting procedure that will include required public hearing opportunities.

SB 192 is expected to be heard in the Senate Health and Human Services Committee this week.