Evolution of uranium mining practices: an overview - 5398

Uranium mining remains controversial principally because of legacy environmental and health issues created during the early phase of the industry. Today, uranium mining is conducted under significantly different circumstances and is now the most regulated and one of the safest forms of mining in the world. For instance, mine and mill workers are trained in safe working practices and are protected from unacceptably high exposures of radiation through a combination of working practices and high-capacity ventilation systems that continuously evacuate airborne radioactive particles. The full report on which this paper is based features comparisons between historic uranium mining practices and leading practices in the modern era, providing an overview of the considerable evolution of regulations and mining practices that have occurred in the last few decades. Case studies of past and current practices are provided to highlight these differences and to contrast the outcomes of historic and modern leading practices. As the regulatory regime evolved and the industry adapted and developed innovations to meet emerging requirements and issues, a number of parameters have been introduced into leading practice operations that were seldom, if ever, used or even considered during the mine life cycle in the early stages of the industry. These additional aspects of mine development, operation and closure are today considered crucial to effectively managing the health, safety and environmental impacts of the operations. With the implementation of these mine life cycle parameters and regulatory requirements, leading practice uranium mining has become a leader in safety and managing environmental impacts