BY MIRIAM WASSER
Whether you're concerned about the impact uranium mining has on the air quality of the Grand Canyon or think the issue has been blown way out of proportion, you have one week left to share your thoughts with the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality before the agency renews permits for three uranium mines in the Kaibab National Forest.
ADEQ released revised draft air-quality-control permits for Canyon Mine, Arizona 1 Mine, and EZ Mine earlier this summer, after suspending the permitting process in January following a radioactive dust scare around Pinenut Mine, another uranium mine in the area that became inactive late last year.
Colorado-based Energy Fuels Inc., which operates all four of the mines, reported levels of radioactivity four times higher than normal around Pinenut in December 2015, attributing the aberration to a spike in radioactive dust outside of the cordoned-off mine area. Both Energy Fuels and ADEQ stated at the time that though the levels were higher than normal, it didn't pose a health risk. But critics weren't so sure, noting that the dust particles can travel long distances...