1995-04-17_GENERAL DOCUMENTS - M1977451 ‎(4)‎

• Permit No: M1977451
• IBM Index Class Name: General Documents
• Doc Date: 4/17/1995
• Doc Name: COTTER CORP IKE 1 MINE PN M-77-451
• From: DMG
• To: JIM DILLIE
• Media Type: D
• Archive: No

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999
STATE OF COLORADO
DIVISION OF MINERALS AND GEOLOGY
of
Department of Natural Resources
1313 Sherman 5t., Room 215
Denver,Colorado 80203
Phone:[phone]
FAX:[phone]
NATURAL
TT PARRTMENOTF
1V
DATE: April 17, 1995 AlURAL
RESOURCES
TO: Jim Dillie �)
[////� / Roy Romer
(�u' l
FROM: Harry P Governor
osey
lames S.Lochhead
RE: Is it a DMO? Cotte Corporation; I No. 1 Mine; Permit No. MEivjt Tector
M iichhaell B.Long
Division Director
Per your request I have examined the information provided by Donald L. Little of
Cotter Corporation, particularly Dick White's evaluation of uranium and vanadium
mineral solubilities pertinent to the mine.
The thoughts in this report may hold certain importance for the other Morrison
Formation-hosted uranium deposits on the Colorado Plateau as the mineralogy of each
of these deposits should be fairly similar. Therefore, I would suggest that the
Division allow some time to investigate the assertions further.
BACKGROUND
The thesis of the report is that uranium minerals at the Ike No. 1 mine are not
soluble, at least to the degree that would be of environmental significance. Several
Eh-pH diagrams are included to verify this thesis. Also included is a discussion of
the mineralogical pathways that were apparently followed during primary mineralization
and that may be followed during weathering.
From the list of metals and minerals provided by Cotter Corporation, the list of
potentially significant elements at the site may include U, V, Co, Ni, Cu, As, Se,
Mo and Pb. All of the information needs to be considered in terms of water quality
standards for surface and groundwaters as established by the Colorado Department of
Public Health and Environment. Metals that may reach surface water need to be
evaluated in terms of hardness as the acceptable levels of metal increase with
increasing hardness. Surface waters that are class ifie as fisheries can tolerate
a relatively large amount of uranium (about 120 to 4000P r a hardness range of 10
to 250) . Vanadium is not regulated in surface water; however it is regulated in water
that is used for agriculture, and cannot exceed 0.1 mg/L.
Overall, the operator should determine how much material is likely to be weathered,
and what the regulated metal and other material concentrations are likely to be upon
reaching water use points.
Additionally, the operator should evaluate the effects of airborne emissions on
populations (human and wildlife) downwind.
REVIEW
Mineralogy.
The report indicates that the dominant minerals at the Ike mine are uraninite and
carnotite. As most of the discussion about uranium solubilities centers around these
two minerals, we should have verification that this is accurate.
Weathering of uraninite and coffinite
The figure from USGS Professional Paper 320 (Figure 13) shows that uraninite and
coffinite weather and release uranyl ion to solution. Depending on the local