Nuclear power push ramps up uranium mill — and tribal health concerns

Health Nuclear power push ramps up uranium mill — and tribal health concerns August 12, 20265:00 AM ET From By  Melissa Bailey The White Mesa Mill's radioactive waste is stored in five tailings cells, which occupy 284 acres of land in Blanding, Utah, as shown overhead from a plane on March 22. EcoFlight hide caption toggle caption EcoFlight WHITE MESA, Utah — On a hot April day, Malcolm Lehi maneuvered his Jeep Wrangler over a rough dirt road. He drove past junipers and sagebrush in search of Entrance Spring on land long connected to his tribe, the Ute Mountain Ute. The cool, mossy spring lies just across the highway from White Mesa Mill, the nation's only remaining conventional uranium mill, which produces yellowcake for nuclear power fuel. For decades, the mill has sparked debate over whether radioactive contamination threatens human health by getting into the water and the air. Concerns run especially deep in the White Mesa Ute Community, where Lehi and about 200 members of his tribe live some 5 miles south of the facility. Sponsor Message State regulators and the company that owns the mill contend that any pollution associated with it is contained. That's little consolation to nearby tribal members, who — aware of uranium's deadly legacy across the Colorado Plateau — have raised questions about the potential spread of toxic waste. Many won't drink the local water, relying on bottled water instead. For stories on the science of healthy living, subscribe to NPR's Health newsletter. Now the tribe's concerns have taken on new urgency as the U.S. pushes to revive domestic uranium production. A federal law, passed in 2024, bans imports of Russian uranium by 2028, increasing pressure to develop domestic fuel supplies. President Trump set a goal to quadruple U.S. nuclear energy capacity by 2050. He issued orders to prioritize mining on federal lands and fast-track approval of mining projects. The Velvet-Wood uranium mine in Utah, for instance, zipped through federa...