Save the Grand Canyon: Block the bailout for uranium mines

Save the Grand Canyon: Block the bailout for uranium mines

Uranium mining is dirty. Mines scar landscapes and contaminate aquifers that feed ecosystems, dealing severe ecological damage long after they close. But now, the Trump administration wants to give $1.5 billion to the flagging U.S. uranium industry for mining projects — and at least one company says that could fund a mine near the Grand Canyon.1

 

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Uranium mining is dirty and dangerous.

We know what would happen if we mined near the Grand Canyon — because we’ve done it before.

Back in the mid-20th century, sites in the canyon were mined for years, kicking cancerous uranium dust into the air, producing radioactive tailings, poisoning tributaries of the Colorado River, and leaving the Navajo miners that worked there with unusually high cancer rates. Waste from mines that closed decades ago still contaminates creeks in the Grand Canyon today.2,3

The Grand Canyon is an irreplaceable ecosystem.

Every uranium mine ever operated in the U.S. has required some form of toxic cleanup. But the Grand Canyon is particularly sensitive to the process: From rim to river, an interconnected, complex system of aquifers sustains the plants and animals of the canyon’s seven unique eco-zones. When that system is poisoned, the effects are far-reaching.4

If we return mining to the canyon, we’ll dig fresh scars in this natural wonder and pollute its air. But that’s not all: We’ll also risk poisoning an ecosystem home to thousands of bird, plant and mammal species.5

We can’t let a few companies benefit at the cost of a natural treasure of immeasurable value.

Let’s save the Grand Canyon from uranium mining.

Thanks to a transition away from nuclear power, uranium mining has decreased across the West since its peak in the 1970s, sparing many more ecosystems from contamination and countless people from sickness. We shouldn’t return to those days, especially when we know that we can power our society with energy from the wind and sun.

Let’s keep the Grand Canyon and other sites unscarred by uranium mining. Take action today.

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  1. Brady McColms and Ellen Knickmeyer, “Trump’s $1.5b uranium bailout triggers rush of mining plans,” Associated Press, February 14, 2020.
  2. Noel Lyn Smith, “Uranium miner: ‘We were faced with dangers every day and not knowing the consequences,’” Farmington Daily Times, October 4, 2019.
  3. “Grand Canyon at Risk: Uranium Mining Threatens a National Treasure,” Environment America Research & Policy Center, June 6, 2018.
  4. “Grand Canyon National Park Arizona: Nature and Science,” National Park Service, last accessed March 18, 2020.
  5. “Grand Canyon National Park Arizona: Nature and Science,” National Park Service, last accessed March 18, 2020.