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Arizona's attorney general is at odds with the state's governor over the safety of the controversial Pinyon Plain uranium mine near the Grand Canyon. Last week, Attorney General Kris Mayes asked the U.S. Forest Service to conduct an environmental review of the mine, which had been dormant for decades before production restarted last December.
Mayes' letter notes that the Forest Service last reviewed the mine 38 years ago—a review that "is based on an outdated, inaccurate understanding of the risks" that the mine poses to the water supply of Tribal communities in northern Arizona.
Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs, however, insists the mine is safe and is regularly inspected by state officials. Hobbs's office told the Arizona Capitol Times in June that Pinyon Plain is “one of the most closely regulated mines in the country.”
The governor's office is currently holding talks between uranium company Energy Fuels Resources, which owns Pinyon Plain, and the Navajo Nation over transportation of uranium ore from the mine across Navajo land.
Mayes told KNAU radio that while she's hopeful the Forest Service will conduct the environmental review, her office is "evaluating all of our legal options right now" in case the agency doesn't respond.
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...in what other area of science would we rely on 40-year-old data? This is just unacceptable to be reliant on data from 38 years ago. I think the people of northern Arizona deserve better than that. They deserve peace of mind and the tribes in this area, especially the Havasupai, which are the Guardians of the Grand Canyon and who rely on this aquifer, deserve peace of mind that their water supplies aren’t going to be contaminated with uranium and other chemicals.”
