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Uranium Mill Tailings: Cleanup Continues, but Future Costs Are Uncertain

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Report Type Reports and Testimonies
Report Date Dec. 15, 1995
Report No. RCED-96-37
Subject
Summary:

For decades, uranium processing for the nation's nuclear weapons and energy programs continued to radioactive contamination at 50 ore processing sites and thousands of nearby areas. The Energy Department (DOE) now expects to spend more than $2.4 billion during the next 20 years to clean up surface and groundwater contamination at the sites. Various factors could affect the future federal costs and ultimate completion dates of the cleanups. These factors include whether (1) DOE will keep option part of one disposal site to dispose of tailings unearthed during future work on roads and utilities and (2) the affected states will contribute their 10-percent share of the groundwater cleanup expenses. Depending on what happens, these factors could add millions of dollars and years of work to the cleanup effort.

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