Uranium mining bill sent to gov

By Jenny Michael, Associated Press Writer | Monday, November 20, 2006

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PIERRE - The South Dakota House approved a bill Wednesday that would allow the state to regulate a special type of uranium mining.

SB62, sent 64-4 to Gov. Mike Rounds, would let the state Board of Minerals and Environment establish rules for a process in which test holes are drilled, a solution is pumped into the ground to dissolve uranium and the dense metal is then pumped out.

Before companies could begin exploration, they would have to provide sufficient financial assurances to cover the entire cost of plugging test holes and reclaiming land.

Existing law allowing uranium exploration permits requires financial assurances for the cost of plugging only 10 percent of the holes or $20,000.

The bill would allow rules to be set for construction, operation, inspection and closure of uranium mines using the special leaching process.

Rep. Thomas Deadrick, R-Platte, said uranium prices were $10 a pound three years ago but have tripled to $30 a pound because of international interest in nuclear power. Because of the hot market for uranium, companies are increasingly interested in uranium exploration and mining in South Dakota, especially in Fall River and Custer counties, he said.

The companies considering coming to the state would use the new mining technique, called in situ leach mining, Deadrick said. He said the process has not been used before in South Dakota.

Rep. Mike Vehle, R-Mitchell, said the process differs from the process of heap leach mining, which is used to retrieve gold and silver from the Black Hills. In that process, ore is dug from the ground, placed on protective pads and a chemical solution is used to leach out the precious metals, he said.

In situ leach mining pumps the solution directly into the ground, Vehle explained.

It's important to have the rules in place before companies begin prospecting for uranium so they know what is expected of them, Deadrick said.

"This certainly puts us ahead of the curve, and it looks like that curve is coming to South Dakota," Deadrick said.

"We need to make sure this is properly regulated," Vehle agreed.

Rep. Jim Bradford, D-Pine Ridge, said South Dakota's American Indian tribes want some say on whether the Black Hills are mined for uranium.

"I feel any part of the Black Hills that is mined or touched, they would like to have at least some input," Bradford said.

Indian tribes claim they own the Black Hills under treaties made with the United States government, but courts have refused to return the land to the tribes.

SB62 was passed earlier by the Senate.