Regulation Of In Situ Uranium Mining For Purposes Of Protecting Ground Water Quality
Authors: Taylor William R. 
Published: December 2007

GENERAL

In mid-1974, a representative of ARCO Petroleum Company walked into our Austin offices and asked for a permit for ARCO's first Clay-West mine site. This was the first in situ uranium mining permit issued in the United States. That initial permit, issued in January 1975, was for 3 acres. The four years since have been characterized by growth and change. Briefly, today there are 16 permits approved for approximately 1,540 production acres issued to five companies at eight sites in four counties. There are approximately 7 additional permit applications being processed or on the verge of being submitted for an estimated 2,000 additional acres of production. These permits will involve five more companies in two more counties. Based on the inquiries that we have received and the known exploration, it's certain that still other operators will firm up their plans soon. As a rough gauge of the financial scope of this activity at the typical 40 production wells per acre and a conservative $2,000/well, operators have installed or committed to $122,000,000 for production wells. This does not account for the exploration and development wells installed to delineate the ore or the processing facilities for extracting the uranium. Along with this growth, it continues to be an unavoidable necessity for the operators and ourselves to frequently adjust our approach to problems as we learn or understand various "facts of life". There are signs, however, that in our "old age" we are progressing toward a more formal, somewhat less flexible, posture with the development of rules at the state level and Underground Injection Control Regulations at the Federal level.

HISTORY OF URANIUM MINING IN TEXAS

Open pit mining or uranium began in Texas in the 1950's and is continuing today almost exclusively in the Southwest portion of Texas. A few shaft mining efforts were unsuccessfully attempted during the 1950's and 60's.

Information I have concerning early in situ uranium mining activities is "sketchy" but the apparent first on-site test of in situ uranium mining was conducted between 1967 and 1971 at the Duterstat site north of Yorktown in Gonzales County by City Services.

During the 1970–71 period, a consortium involving Conoco, Pioneer Nuclear, Westinghouse, Union Carbide and Getty conducted an on-site test at the Bruni site in Webb County.

During the 1971–73 period, City Services, Dalco and U. S. Steel conducted a test at the Burns site near George West in Live Oak County.

During the 1972–74 period, Dalco and Arco conducted a test at the Clay-West site also near George West.

During the period, between 1967 and 1974, the Water Quality Board personnel in the central and district offices maintained a general surveillance of these various test activities.

With the advent of ARCO's initial production scale (3 acre) effort in the Clay-West area at the Moser mine site, regulation of in situ uranium mining was formalized with the issuance of a permit in January 1975. This effort by ARCO has been progressively expanded at this location to 650 production progressively expanded at this location to 650 production acres authorized by 3 permits and has been transferred to operation by U. S. Steel and Niagra Mohawk Uranium. Another permit application is currently pending for a fourth mine to be developed near this cluster.

Mobil's O'Hern permit and Westinghouse's (now Wyoming Mineral) Bruni permit was approved June 1975 and the Wyoming Mineral's Lamprecht permit was issued August 1975. Dalco obtained a permit August 1976 for the Burns site and transferred its operation to U. S. Steel. IEC's Pawnee permit and the Union Carbide's Palangana permit were issued in January 1977. U. S. Palangana permit were issued in January 1977. U. S. Steel's Clay-West permit was approved December 1977. This year (1978) permits were issued in May to U. S. Steel for the Boots Mine and an enlarged Burns site and to IEC for its Zamzow Mine. Mobil's Holiday and El Mesquite mine permits were approved in July 1978.