Forging a new path forward for clean energy in northern Arizona

By Mark Chalmers

Editor’s note: Mark S. Chalmers is the president and CEO of Energy Fuels.

There is an undeniable shadow cast by past uranium mining that occurred on the Navajo Nation from the 1940s through the 1960s. This legacy is a painful one for many people, marked by environmental degradation and health issues that continue to this day.

As CEO of Energy Fuels, the Colorado-based critical minerals company that owns and operates uranium properties in the western United States, I recognize this dark chapter of history and the painful scars past uranium mining left on the Navajo Nation. I also understand that my words may be met with a healthy dose of skepticism. However, I am grateful for the opportunity to speak honestly and openly with you.

Respecting the fact that Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren recently signed a resolution asking President Biden to use executive authority to prevent the transport of ore from the Pinyon Plain mine through the Navajo Nation, citing health and environmental concerns from historic mining. It is clear that we must address deep-rooted misunderstandings and historical trauma. We hope to open channels of authentic communication and dialogue, while seeking common ground and addressing myths and misinformation that needlessly stoke fear.

Remarkable advancements in uranium mining and milling have been made since the 1940s to 1960s, when most environmental and health issues occurred. Government oversight, limited as it was at the time, prioritized production and national defense over health and the environment. Industry and government regulation began to change in the 1970s with the passage of the National Environmental Policy Act, the Clean Water Act, the Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act, and dozens of other revolutionary new laws. In today’s private industry, worker safety, public health and environmental protection are prioritized above all else, and we now have a much greater scientific understanding of uranium, radiation, health, safety, and environmental protection.

Our Pinyon Plain mine in northern Arizona is operated and regulated to standards that would be largely unrecognizable from the past. This small, 17-acre site holds immense quantities of natural uranium in a geological setting that ensures groundwater will not be adversely impacted. This mine has undergone extensive permitting over many years with thorough environmental and legal reviews, including conditions requested by the Navajo Nation on ore transport. State and federal permits were issued for the mine in 1986, 2011, 2015, 2021, and 2022. Eight deposits similar to Pinyon Plain have been mined in northern Arizona over the past 45 years with no adverse health or environmental issues. Between 2007 and 2015, roughly 300,000 tons of ore were transported in roughly 12,000 truckloads (or about 4 – 5 trucks per day) from these mines to our mill in Utah across the Navajo Nation with no accidents or spills, and residents along the route received zero additional radiation exposure.

At Energy Fuels, we are extremely proud of our work, because we do it to the very highest standards in the world. We are also proud of our role supplying uranium to fuel domestic nuclear plants. Nuclear is a proven technology with an unmatched record of safety and reliability that produces no carbon emissions or air pollution, making it indispensable in the fight against climate change affecting the Navajo Nation today.

In nature, uranium is a mildly radioactive, naturally occurring heavy metal that is roughly as common as tin in the Earth’s crust. Uranium is extraordinarily efficient as an energy source. One pound of natural uranium will produce the same amount of energy as 20,000 pounds of coal. For these reasons, nations around the world are embracing nuclear energy. Energy Fuels also produces rare earths used in EVs, wind energy, and other clean technologies, and we are even doing research on the recovery of other elements found in uranium mines needed for cancer treatments showing immense promise in human trials.

Energy Fuels offers empowerment to the Navajo people, including opportunities for jobs and economic development for the Navajo people. Approximately half of our employees in southeast Utah are Navajo, including those in high-paying management and supervisory roles. Through our charitable foundation, we have donated over $200,000 to Navajo and Native American initiatives.
Furthermore, if given the chance, Energy Fuels could immediately begin to clean up old uranium mines on the Navajo Nation. We are even willing to perform some work free of charge to demonstrate our expertise, professionalism, and goodwill.

We sincerely hope to become a trusted partner of the Navajo Nation. This includes engaging in meaningful dialogue, providing accurate information, and incorporating reasonable input into our practices and decision-making. Transparency is also key. We have hosted and invited Navajo officials to visit our sites, meet our people and observe our commitment to safety, health, and environmental protection.
Energy Fuels is thankful for the opportunity to demonstrate that today’s uranium and critical mineral industries not only pose no threat to the Navajo people but represent opportunity for a brighter future together.