EXPLORATION PROJECT PROPOSED AT A VERY SPECIAL PLACE

Pair a misnamed company with a place that needs the strongest protection from mining, and what do you get?  You get the proposed uranium drilling east of Edgemont in the southern Black Hills, which is part of the larger Chord Project.

The company, whose actual name is “Clean Nuclear Energy Corp.” (CNEC or C-NEC), was obviously trying to score public relations points when they chose a name.  The nuclear industry – including uranium mining – is a very dirty enterprise.  

CNEC wants to spread radioactivity across water and land in an area of the Black Hills that is so culturally and archeologically important that the US Forest Service said in 2015 that its importance “cannot be overstated.”  This includes ancient petroglyphs and pictographs, as well as other sites.  The Forest Service concluded that any adverse effect on this area “is rightly viewed as an affront to plains Native American culture and Indigenous human rights.”

The newly proposed drilling area would be within sight and sound of those praying or studying at this unique site.   

Some of the cultural resources in this area that are on federally-controlled land are already protected from mining by a mineral claims withdrawal.  Some additional areas that are part of the Chord Project were proposed for a second mineral claims withdrawal in the 2010s.  That proposal recently disappeared from the Black Hills National Forest’s list of proposed projects.  So far, we haven’t gotten any answers to our questions about why this second mineral withdrawal disappeared from consideration.

The current proposed drilling would be on a part of the Chord Project that is on state-controlled land.  State-controlled land is not eligible for a mineral withdrawal.  The current proposal would involve 50 drill pads – likely including multiple drill holes per pad.

Because CNEC wants to drill for uranium, rather than other minerals, there is a hearing process before the state Board of Minerals and Environment.  This process can include the public, governments, and/or organizations, any of which can become formal intervenors.  Intervenors can call witnesses, question witnesses, make motions, introduce documents, and take other actions as part of the hearing process.  

We don’t anticipate that this project will move forward during the summer (although one never knows).  Everyone is encouraged to consider becoming an intervenor when the process ramps up.  Individuals can intervene on their own.  Groups and governments need to have a lawyer.

You can review their application and the information they filed on the state’s website under “Clean Nuclear Energy Corp. Uranium Exploration Permit Application (New)”

Watch this space for more information!  Stop uranium drilling in the Black Hills!

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