The Water Information Program

With plans for a uranium mine in Paradox Valley looming on the horizon, the San Miguel County Commissioners gave the go-ahead to the Cyprus Amax Minerals Company to perform voluntary remedial cleanup work of radioactive material at the former Newmire Vanadium Mill site on Highway 145 near Silver Pick Road. At a public hearing in Telluride on Wednesday, the commissioners unanimously approved a Floodplain Development Permit, a Development Permit and a Wetland Buffer Zone Special Use Permit for the remediation project that is expected to begin sometime this summer after the company receives the proper Colorado Department of Transportation permits. It is uncertain when the needed road permits will be issued, but project manager Barbara Nielsen said she had a meeting with CDOT officials later on Wednesday. A total of 5.5 acres will be cleaned up with two of those acres resting south of the highway next to the San Miguel River. Crews are expected to remove 19,000 to 25,000 cubic yards of radioactive material from the site and transport it to a storage facility in the northeastern Colorado town of Deer Trail. The contaminated soil will be replaced with clean soil from a location that has yet to be determined. The greater part of the project’s excavation will take place on the north side of the highway with heavy machinery, while radioactive hotspots on the south side next to the river will be removed by hand to minimize damage to the riparian landscape.

To view the full article, visit the Telluride Watch. For a copy of the original article contact the WIP at (970) 247-1302 or stop by the office at 841 East Second Avenue in Durango.