The funny thing about uranium is that when first discovered, it wasn't considered a valuable or useful ore. Officially, the mineral was discovered in 1789 although miners had been aware of it for many years, even centuries. The ore is heavy and because of that at one time it was even used as a door stop. It would be many years later that this ore and uranium mining would become valuable for the construction of nuclear weapons and also for providing fuel for power generation.
In the U.S., the first uranium was discovered in 1879 in Colorado. According to the New Mexico Mining Museum, uranium is more abundant than gold or silver and is about as common as tin. Another interesting fact put forward by the New Mexico Mining Museum is that spent fuel from nuclear power plants can be reprocessed to provide about 50 percent more energy. It's also a fact that Madame Curie used uranium from the Colorado plateau uranium mines for her radium experiments during the late 1800's. While much of the deposits of uranium are spread thin, there are several places where it's much more concentrated thus making it economically feasible to mine for. Unlike many other ores, uranium is radioactive and this makes it's detection that much easier with the use of electronic detectors. Prior to World War Two, the ore was used for it's radium. A variety of uses for the radium included the manufacture of watch dials and in several types of instruments. Radium is luminescent due to it's instability and it's also radioactive. The prewar years was during a time when the potentially harmful radiation effects of the mineral were not fully understood.
Today, most of the uranium being used by our reactors in the U.S. is being imported from Canada and Australia. There is very little production coming from U.S. uranium mines. It all started for New Mexico when a Navajo sheepherder in 1950 discovered uranium about fifteen miles northwest of Grants New Mexico. This discovery involved surface uranium and simply happened by chance. Grants is located along Interstate 40 about 77 miles west of Albuquerque. In addition to the spectacular scenery in this part of New Mexico, Grants is also the location of the very interesting New Mexico Mining Museum. If your western road trip takes you through New Mexico, particularly along Interstate 40, you will enjoy a fun and educational visit to this museum which will allow you explore in their underground mine shaft. Many authentic artifacts are on display such as the tools used by the miners including safety and detection equipment as well as an audio/video presentation. There's also an excellent exhibit in the mine shaft explaining how explosive charges were used.
The city of Grants itself went through many phases of commerce. First as a railroad camp during the 1880's and then as an agricultural area due to the rich volcanic soils and then as a burgeoning uranium mining center. The uranium mining boom started in the 1950's and lasted all the way into the 1980's. The uranium belt in the Grants area is about 100 miles long and as much as 20 miles wide running in a southeast to northwest direction towards the Four Corners area. Although uranium mining has ceased in New Mexico, the uranium deposits are still considered large. The large price drop in uranium, mostly because of high grade foreign production, caused the U.S. uranium production to decline. It was reported that by the year 2001, there were only three uranium mines operating in the United States.
There is also a health risk associated with uranium mining which was recognized early on. In 1962, the federal government published a study which connected cancer with uranium mining. In 1969 the government set amounts of radon that miners could be legally exposed to. In 1990, the U.S. Congress passed the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act which offered compensation to miners adversely affected by mining. According to the Scientific American, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as of the end of 2010 is involved in an effort to assess 520 open abandoned uranium mines all over the vast Navajo Reservation in the American southwest. Many people believe that the number of mines is twice that figure. The main exposure of Navajo Nation people is their exposure to uranium through airborne dust and contaminated water for drinking.
The Manhatten Project was launched after scientist Albert Einstein convinced President Franklin Roosevelt that Nazi Germany was active in trying to purify Uranium-235 for atomic weapons. The U.S. program started shortly thereafter and ended up with a total cost of some $2 billion, an enormous amount in 1940 dollars. Ironically, while the Manhatten Project was working feverishly in Los Alamos New Mexico during World War Two, most of it's supply of uranium for experiments actually came from the Belgian Congo and some from Canadian uranium mines. The discovery outside Grants, some 140 miles southwest of Los Alamos, didn't occur until five years after the war. The discovery in New Mexico of large deposits ushered in a thirty year mining boom.
Two additional related articles you'll find interesting are the Turquoise Mines of Cerrillos New Mexico and the Los Alamos Museum.
If you haven't visited this unique museum, it is well worth the stop and it's a great side trip for the entire family. The New Mexico Mining Museum is located at 100 North Iron Avenue in Grants New Mexico.
(Photos are from author's private collection)
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| New Mexico Mining Museum |
Today, most of the uranium being used by our reactors in the U.S. is being imported from Canada and Australia. There is very little production coming from U.S. uranium mines. It all started for New Mexico when a Navajo sheepherder in 1950 discovered uranium about fifteen miles northwest of Grants New Mexico. This discovery involved surface uranium and simply happened by chance. Grants is located along Interstate 40 about 77 miles west of Albuquerque. In addition to the spectacular scenery in this part of New Mexico, Grants is also the location of the very interesting New Mexico Mining Museum. If your western road trip takes you through New Mexico, particularly along Interstate 40, you will enjoy a fun and educational visit to this museum which will allow you explore in their underground mine shaft. Many authentic artifacts are on display such as the tools used by the miners including safety and detection equipment as well as an audio/video presentation. There's also an excellent exhibit in the mine shaft explaining how explosive charges were used.
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| Gamma Analyzer on display at NM Mining Museum |
There is also a health risk associated with uranium mining which was recognized early on. In 1962, the federal government published a study which connected cancer with uranium mining. In 1969 the government set amounts of radon that miners could be legally exposed to. In 1990, the U.S. Congress passed the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act which offered compensation to miners adversely affected by mining. According to the Scientific American, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as of the end of 2010 is involved in an effort to assess 520 open abandoned uranium mines all over the vast Navajo Reservation in the American southwest. Many people believe that the number of mines is twice that figure. The main exposure of Navajo Nation people is their exposure to uranium through airborne dust and contaminated water for drinking.
 |
| Display showing blasting holes in underground shaft |
Two additional related articles you'll find interesting are the Turquoise Mines of Cerrillos New Mexico and the Los Alamos Museum.
If you haven't visited this unique museum, it is well worth the stop and it's a great side trip for the entire family. The New Mexico Mining Museum is located at 100 North Iron Avenue in Grants New Mexico.
(Photos are from author's private collection)
View Larger Map
