Summary of the engineering assessment of inactive uranium mill tailings, Shiprock Site, Shiprock, New Mexico [electronic resource].
- Published
- Washington, D.C. : United States. Dept. of Energy, 1981.
Oak Ridge, Tenn. : Distributed by the Office of Scientific and Technical Information, U.S. Dept. of Energy. - Physical Description
- Pages: 58 : digital, PDF file
- Additional Creators
- United States. Department of Energy and United States. Department of Energy. Office of Scientific and Technical Information
Access Online
- Restrictions on Access
- Free-to-read Unrestricted online access
- Summary
- Ford, Bacon and Davis Utah Inc. has reevaluated the Shiprock site in order to revise the March 1977 engineering assessment of the problems resulting from the existence of radioactive uranium mill tailings at Shiprock, New Mexico. This engineering assessment has included the preparation of topographic maps, the performance of core drillings and radiometric measurements sufficient to determine areas and volumes of tailings and radiation exposures of individuals and nearby populations, the investigations of site hydrology and meteorology, and the evaluation and costing of alternative corrective actions. Radon gas released from the 1.5 million dry tons of tailings at the Shiprock site constitutes the most significant environmental impact, although windblown tailings and external gamma radiation also are factors. The eight alternative actions presented in this engineering assessment range from millsite decontamination with the addition of 3 m of the stabilization cover material (Option I), to removal of the tailings to remote disposal sites and decontamination of the tailings site (Options II through VIII). Cost estimates for the eight options range from about $13,400,000 for stabilization in place to about $37,900,000 for disposal at a distance of about 16 miles. Three principal alternatives for the reprocessing of the Shiprock tailings were examined: (a) heap leaching; (b) treatment at an existing mill; and(c) reprocessing at a new conventional mill constructed for tailings reprocessing. The cost of the uranium recovered would be about $230/lb by heap leach and $250/lb by conventional plant processes. The spot market price for uranium was $25/lb early in 1981. Therefore, reprocessing the tailings for uranium recovery is not economically attractive.
- Report Numbers
- E 1.99:doe/umt-0104s
doe/umt-0104s - Subject(s)
- Other Subject(s)
- Abandoned Sites
- Decontamination
- Cost
- Human Populations
- Radiation Hazards
- Mill Tailings
- Radiation Monitoring
- Radioactive Waste Processing
- Radioactive Waste Disposal
- Radon
- Environmental Impacts
- Drill Cores
- Feed Materials Plants
- Hydrology
- Land Reclamation
- Leaching
- Meteorology
- New Mexico
- Recovery
- Stabilization
- Topography
- Uranium
- Actinides
- Cleaning
- Dissolution
- Elements
- Fluids
- Gases
- Hazards
- Health Hazards
- Industrial Plants
- Management
- Metals
- Monitoring
- Nonmetals
- North America
- Nuclear Facilities
- Populations
- Processing
- Rare Gases
- Separation Processes
- Solid Wastes
- Southwest Region
- Tailings
- Usa
- Waste Disposal
- Waste Management
- Waste Processing
- Wastes
- Note
- Published through SciTech Connect.
07/01/1981.
"doe/umt-0104s"
"DE81030511"
Ford, Bacon and Davis Utah, Inc., Salt Lake City (USA) - Funding Information
- AC04-76GJ01658
View MARC record | catkey: 14151595