Evacuation of Uranium Mine Sites: Uranium shipments stopped, due to wildfires

“Mining giants Cameco and Areva have had to stop shipping uranium from their northern operations as highways and airstrips are periodically closed by smoke and flame.”

Wildfires Force Evacuation of Uranium Mine Sites; Stop Shipments of Uranium; Endanger Firefighters and Environment miningawareness, 2 Aug 15, Wildfires and uranium mining make a bad mix, as do all parts of the nuclear energy chain. Cameco’s Crow Butte In Situ Leach (ISL) Mine in Nebraska had to be evacuated in 2012, as did personnel from their Rabbit Lake, Saskatchewan operation in 2012, and the MacArthur Lake Mine in 2002, due to wildfires. Shipments of uranium were stopped, a few weeks ago, from Cameco-Areva’s Saskatchewan uranium mines due to wildfires.

Evaporation Pond Crow Butte ISL Uranium Mine

Crow Butte ISL (ISR) Uranium Mine in Nebraska “ordering an evacuation of the mine site due to threatening wildfire to the east of the mine… The wildfires did not enter the licensed area and as a result there were no releases to the environment.”http://pbadupws.nrc.gov/docs/ML1226/ML12268A060.pdf This implies that if the wildfires had entered the licensed area then there could have been radioactive releases to the environment. So too does evacuation of the site. Did anyone stay on site to protect it from fire?

2012: “July, personnel evacuated from the Rabbit Lake operation in northern Saskatchewan due to forest fire activity.” http://www.wise-uranium.org/uissr12.html
Cameco’s “Rabbit Lake is the second largest uranium milling facility in the western world, and is the longest operating uranium production facility in Saskatchewan.”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rabbit_Lake_mine

n 2002 “McArthur River mine threatened by forest fire: On June 26, 2002, a forest fire came into close proximity of the McArthur River uranium mine site. The mine’s airport was shut down, and 110 employees were evacuated to Key Lake. Approximately 60 people stayed on site to keep the plant operating and to fight the fire. On June 27, 2002, the fire had been progressing towards the site, but it slowed down in its progress.” (CNSC meeting transcript, June 27, 2002 PDF, p. 19-20) http://www.wise-uranium.org/umopcdn.html
“The McArthur River Uranium Mine, in northern Saskatchewan, Canada, is the world’s largest high-grade uranium deposit“. It is 70% owned by Cameco and 30% by Areva:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McArthur_River_uranium_mine

A few weeks ago: “Sask. uranium giant Cameco suspends shipments because of fires CEO Tim Gitzel says one in 10 people displaced works for Cameco” CBC News Posted: Jul 09, 2015 8:46 AM CT Last Updated: Jul 09, 2015 8:46 AM CThttp://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatoon/sask-uranium-giant-cameco-suspends-shipments-because-of-fires-1.3144686

“Mining giants Cameco and Areva have had to stop shipping uranium from their northern operations as highways and airstrips are periodically closed by smoke and flame.” From “Officials say mining sector in Saskatchewan being affected by wildfires/ Mines suspending operations as fires rage through province” July 16, 2015 by The Canadian Press http://nuclear-news.net/2015/07/11/uranium-shipments-suspended-by-cameco-areva-due-to-saskatchewan-fires/

“‘Unprecedented’ wildfires force out 13,000 Sask. evacuees Biggest ever exodus of its kind in Saskatchewan, Red Cross says” CBC News Posted: Jul 06, 2015 7:56 AM CT Last Updated: Jul 07, 2015 8:04 AM CT This was the situation at the La Ronge airport on the weekend. (Prince Albert Fire Department/Twitter)” https://mobile.twitter.com/pafirefighters
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/unprecedented-wildfires-force-out-13-000-sask-evacuees-1.3139554

(These cases are given as examples. There are most probably more cases of wildfires impacting operating uranium mines than these.)

Old Uranium Mines are also a Risk

From a US government web site:
“Abandoned uranium mines exist on both BLM and Forest Service lands and interagency Wildland Firefighters maybe required to fight fires in these areas. General knowledge and understanding of potential radiation exposure on these sites is necessary for the fire community to make valid risk assessments during fire activities……. https://wordpress.com/read/post/feed/4410547/768414199