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Author Pree, T.A.D. url  openurl
  Title The politics of baselining in the Grants uranium mining district of northwestern New Mexico Type Journal Article
  Year 2020 Publication Journal of Environmental Management Abbreviated Journal  
  Volume 268 Issue (up) Pages 110601  
  Keywords Critical stakeholder analysis, Environmental cleanup, Environmental monitoring, Mining reclamation/remediation/restoration, Politics of baselining  
  Abstract During the second half of the twentieth century, northwestern New Mexico served as the primary production site for one of the world’s largest nuclear arsenals. From 1948 to 1970 the “Grants uranium district” provided almost half of the total uranium ore accumulated by the United States federal government for the production of nuclear weapons, in addition to becoming a national source for commercial nuclear energy from the late 1960s to the early 1990s. By the twenty-first century, after a prolonged period of economic decline that began in the late 1970s, all uranium mining and milling in New Mexico had ceased, leaving a legacy of environmental health impacts. What was once referred to as “The Uranium Capital of the World” now encompasses over a thousand abandoned uranium mines and seven massive uranium mill tailings piles, which are associated with airborne and soil contamination as well as groundwater plumes of uranium and other contaminants of concern, in a landscape that has been fractured by underground mine workings and punctured by thousands of exploratory boreholes. This article presents an ethnographic study of the diverse forms of expertise involved in monitoring and managing the mine waste and mill tailings. Drawing from over two years of ethnographic research, I describe the relationship between different stakeholders from local communities, government agencies, and transnational mining corporations as they deliberate about the possibility of cleaning up the former mining district. My thesis is that the possibility of cleaning up the Grants district hinges on the “politics of baselining”—a term I introduce to describe the relationship between stakeholders and their competing environmental models and hydrogeological theories; each accounts for a different geological past prior to mining that can be deemed “natural,” as the background against which to measure the anthropogenic impacts from mining.  
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  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN 0301-4797 ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes Approved no  
  Call Number THL @ christoph.kuells @ pree_politics_2020 Serial 151  
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Author Tanwer, N.; Arora, V.; Kant, K.; Singh, B.; Laura, J.S.; Khosla, B. url  isbn
openurl 
  Title Chapter 17 – Prevalence of Uranium in groundwater of rural and urban regions of India Type Book Chapter
  Year 2024 Publication Water Resources Management for Rural Development Abbreviated Journal  
  Volume Issue (up) Pages 213-234  
  Keywords Distribution, Heath impacts, Remediation techniques, Sources, Uranium  
  Abstract Abnormally high uranium (U) prevalence in groundwater is a neoteric subject of concern throughout the world because of its direct impact on human health and well-being. Groundwater is used as the most preferred choice for drinking because of its good quality and ease of availability in rural and urban parts of India, and also in different parts of the world. India is an agriculture-dominant country and its 50–80% irrigational requirement is met by groundwater, besides this nearly 90% of rural and 50% of urban water needs are fulfilled by groundwater. The uranium concentration in groundwater in different parts of India namely Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, etc. found to be varying from 0 mg/L to 1443 mg/L, and in different parts of the world, it is found up to 1400 mg/L in the countries like United States, Canada, Finland, Mongolia, Nigeria, South Korea, Pakistan, Burundi, China, Afghanistan, etc. Various natural factors such as geology, hydro-geochemistry, and prevailing conditions as well as anthropogenic factors including mining, nuclear activities, erratic use of fertilizers, and overexploitation of groundwater resources are responsible for adding uranium in groundwater. Groundwater is considered a primary source of uranium ingestion in human beings as it contributes 85% while food contributes 15%. Uranium affects living beings as a two-way sword, being a radioactive element, causing radiotoxicity, and on the other hand as a heavy metal, it causes chemotoxicity. The main target organs affected by the consumption of uranium-contaminated water are kidneys, bones, lungs, etc. It can cause renal failure, impair cell functioning and bone growth, and mutation in DNA. Although, its toxic effects, being a heavy metal, are more severe than its radiotoxicity. Various techniques are available for the efficient removal of uranium from the groundwater such as bioremediation, nanotechnology-enhanced remediation, adsorption, filtration, etc. This chapter entails a comprehensive investigation of uranium contamination in groundwater of rural and urban parts of India their probable sources, health impacts, treatment, and mitigation techniques available to manage groundwater resources.  
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  Publisher Elsevier Place of Publication Editor Madhav, S.; Srivastav, A.L.; Izah, S.C.; Hullebusch, E. van  
  Language Summary Language Original Title  
  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN ISBN 978-0-443-18778-0 Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes Approved no  
  Call Number THL @ christoph.kuells @ madhav_chapter_2024 Serial 152  
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Author Ruiz, O.; Thomson, B.; Cerrato, J.M.; Rodriguez-Freire, L. url  openurl
  Title Groundwater restoration following in-situ recovery (ISR) mining of uranium Type Journal Article
  Year 2019 Publication Applied Geochemistry Abbreviated Journal  
  Volume 109 Issue (up) Pages 104418  
  Keywords Aquifer stabilization, Ground water restoration, In-situ leach mining, In-situ recovery, Uranium  
  Abstract From 1950 through the early 1980’s New Mexico accounted for roughly half of domestic uranium (U) production for the nuclear power industry and the nation’s weapon programs. Increased interest in nuclear energy has led to proposals for renewed development using both underground mining and uranium in situ recovery (ISR). When feasible, ISR greatly reduces waste generated by the mining and milling processes, however, the ability to restore ground water to acceptable quality after ISR ends is uncertain. This research investigated two methods of stabilizing an aquifer following ISR. Batch and column studies were performed to evaluate chemical and biological methods of stabilization. Columns packed with ore were first leached with an aerated NaHCO3 ground water solution to simulate ISR. Constituents present at elevated concentrations after leaching included molybdenum (Mo), selenium (Se), U, and vanadium (V). Chemical stabilization was studied by passing a phosphate (PO43-) amended solution through the ore to achieve passivation of mineral surfaces by P precipitates. Microbial stabilization was studied by passing a lactate solution through the ore to stimulate growth of anaerobic metal- and sulfate-reducing organisms to reduce U and other elements to less soluble phases. Analyses of the solids from the columns after completion of these experiments by X-ray photo electron spectroscopy (XPS) identified phosphate on samples near the column inlet of the chemically stabilized columns. Microbial populations were characterized by Illumina DNA sequencing and confirmed the presence of metal- and sulfate-reducing organisms. Neither chemical nor microbial stabilization method achieved contaminant immobilization, which is believed due to limited mixing of the stabilization solutions with the contaminated leach solutions. These results emphasize that ground water hydrodynamics, especially mixing, must be considered in aquifer restoration of soluble constituents.  
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  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN 0883-2927 ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes Approved no  
  Call Number THL @ christoph.kuells @ ruiz_groundwater_2019 Serial 153  
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Author Pontér, S.; Rodushkin, I.; Engström, E.; Rodushkina, K.; Paulukat, C.; Peinerud, E.; Widerlund, A. url  openurl
  Title Early diagenesis of anthropogenic uranium in lakes receiving deep groundwater from the Kiruna mine, northern Sweden Type Journal Article
  Year 2021 Publication Science of The Total Environment Abbreviated Journal  
  Volume 793 Issue (up) Pages 148441  
  Keywords Isotope ratios, Mine water, Sediments, Uranium  
  Abstract The uranium (U) concentrations and isotopic composition of waters and sediment cores were used to investigate the transport and accumulation of U in a water system (tailings pond, two lakes, and the Kalix River) receiving mine waters from the Kiruna mine. Concentrations of dissolved U decrease two orders of magnitude between the inflow of mine waters and in the Kalix River, while the concentration of the element bound to particulate matter increases, most likely due to sorption on iron‑manganese hydroxides and organic matter. The vertical distribution of U in the water column differs between two polluted lakes with a potential indication of dissolved U supply from sediment’s pore waters at anoxic conditions. Since the beginning of exposure in the 1950s, U concentrations in lake sediments have increased \textgreater20-fold, reaching concentrations above 50 μg g-1. The distribution of anthropogenic U between the lakes does not follow the distribution of other mine water contaminants, with a higher relative proportion of U accumulating in the sediments of the second lake. Concentrations of redox-sensitive elements in the sediment core as well as Fe isotopic composition were used to re-construct past redox-conditions potentially controlling early diagenesis of U in surface sediments. Two analytical techniques (ICP-SFMS and MC-ICP-MS) were used for the determination of U isotopic composition, providing an extra dimension in the understanding of processes in the system. The (234 U)/(238 U) activity ratio (AR) is rather uniform in the tailings pond but varies considerably in water and lake sediments providing a potential tracer for U transport from the Kiruna mine through the water system, and U immobilization in sediments. The U mass balance in the Rakkurijoki system as well as the amount of anthropogenic U accumulated in lake sediments were evaluated, indicating the immobilization in the two lakes of 170 kg and 285 kg U, respectively.  
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  Language Summary Language Original Title  
  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN 0048-9697 ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes Approved no  
  Call Number THL @ christoph.kuells @ ponter_early_2021 Serial 154  
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Author Liu, Z.; Li, C.; Tan, K.; Li, Y.; Tan, W.; Li, X.; Zhang, C.; Meng, S.; Liu, L. url  openurl
  Title Study of natural attenuation after acid in situ leaching of uranium mines using isotope fractionation and geochemical data Type Journal Article
  Year 2023 Publication Science of The Total Environment Abbreviated Journal  
  Volume 865 Issue (up) Pages 161033  
  Keywords Acid in situ leaching, Geochemical and isotopic tracing, Groundwater contamination, Natural attenuation, Uranium post-mining  
  Abstract Acid in situ leaching (AISL) is a subsurface mining approach suitable for low-grade ores which does not generate tailings, and has been adopted widely in uranium mining. However, this technique causes an extremely high concentration of contaminants at post-mining sites and in the surroundings soon after the mining ceases. As a potential AISL remediation strategy, natural attenuation has not been studied in detail. To address this problem, groundwater collected from 26 wells located within, adjacent, upgradient, and downgradient of a post-mining site were chosen to analyze the fate of U(VI), SO42−, δ34S, and δ238U, to reveal the main mechanisms governing the migration and attenuation of the dominant contaminants and the spatio-temporal evolutions of contaminants in the confined aquifer of the post-mining site. The δ238U values vary from −0.07 ‰ to 0.09 ‰ in the post-mining site and from −1.43 ‰ to 0.03 ‰ around the post-mining site. The δ34S values were found to vary from 3.3 ‰ to 6.2 ‰ in the post-mining site and from 6.0 ‰ to 11.0 ‰ around the post-mining site. Detailed analysis suggests that there are large differences between the range of isotopic composition variation and the range of pollutants concentration distribution, and the estimated Rayleigh isotope fractionation factor is 0.9994–0.9997 for uranium and 1.0032–1.0061 for sulfur. The isotope ratio of uranium and sulfur can be used to deduce the migration history of the contaminants and the irreversibility of the natural attenuation process in the anoxic confined aquifer. Combining the isotopic fractionation data for U and S with the concentrations of uranium and sulfate improved the accuracy of understanding of reducing conditions along the flow path. The study also indicated that as long as the geological conditions are favorable for redox reactions, natural attenuation could be used as a cost-effective remediation scheme.  
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  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN 0048-9697 ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes Approved no  
  Call Number THL @ christoph.kuells @ liu_study_2023 Serial 155  
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