Look West: Public lands and energy news from the Center for Western Priorities


** Court rules in favor of uranium mine next to Grand Canyon
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Thursday, February 24, 2022
Radiation warning sign at the Grand Canyon. Photo: Akos Kokai/Wikimedia ([link removed](16143292798).jpg)

A federal appeals court has found that a uranium mine less than 10 miles ([link removed]) from the south rim of the Grand Canyon can continue to operate ([link removed]) , ruling in favor of Canada-based Energy Fuels and against environmental groups and the Havasupai Tribe.

“This ruling doesn’t diminish our concern about the mine’s potential to permanently damage Grand Canyon’s aquifers and springs,” said Taylor McKinnon with the Center for Biological Diversity, one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit.

The Pinyon Plain Mine, formerly known as the Canyon Mine, is located within a 1,562-square-mile area surrounding the Grand Canyon that was withdrawn from new mining claims for 20 years. But the mining claim held by Energy Fuels at the site pre-dates that withdrawal. The mine has long posed environmental threats ([link removed]) to the Grand Canyon and its inhabitants.

The mine is currently idle due to the low price of uranium, but the Forest Service determined in 2012 ([link removed]) that Energy Fuels had a sufficient quantity and quality of uranium to make a profit of around $29 million. The plaintiffs in the suit—originally filed in 2013—argued that the federal government erred in determining that number, and so the mine permit should be rescinded.

Recent polling from Colorado College ([link removed]) found the majority of Arizonans support making the mining withdrawal permanent. The same poll found overwhelming support in 2016 ([link removed]) for designating an area around Grand Canyon National Park as a national monument. Yet legislation to permanently withdraw the area around the canyon from mining or designate it as a national monument has stalled in Congress since 2009 ([link removed]) .
Quick hits


** Report: Global methane emissions underreported at "alarming" rate
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Washington Post ([link removed]) | F ([link removed]) inancial Times ([link removed]) | Axios ([link removed])


** Oil and gas companies penalized by regulators in New Mexico
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Associated Press ([link removed])


** Offshore wind lease sale brings in $1.5 billion in one day
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Reuters ([link removed]) | E&E News ([link removed])


** New poll highlights environmental concerns among Latinos in the West
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NM Political Report ([link removed])


** Thick grease smeared on rock climbing boulders in Moab
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Fox 13 ([link removed]) | K ([link removed]) SL ([link removed])


** United Nations predicts 30% increase in wildfire risk by 2050
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New York Times ([link removed]) | W ([link removed]) ashington Post ([link removed]) | Guardian ([link removed])


** Wyoming lawmakers advance bill to pay royalties back to fossil fuel companies
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WyoFile ([link removed])


** Petroglyph site in Utah threatened by "hydrocarbon highway"
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Salt Lake Tribune ([link removed])
Quote of the day
” It is not an exaggeration to say that, when we talk about air pollution, we are talking about a matter of life and death for the Latino communities.”
—Shanna Edberg, director of conservation programs of Hispanic Access Foundation, N ([link removed]) M Political Report ([link removed])
Picture this


** @G ([link removed]) randCanyonNPS ([link removed])
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Rocky Mountain elk and Mule deer of Grand Canyon, weathering out a snow storm. Their thick winter coats turn a frigid snow into just another day in the park!
[Audio described version > [link removed]… ([link removed]) ]
#WildlifeWednesday ([link removed]) #WednesdayWisdom ([link removed]) #Serenity ([link removed]) #Arizona ([link removed]) #GrandCanyon ([link removed])

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