Draft Environmental Impact Statement for Roca Honda Mine

Chapter 3. Affected Environment and Environmental Consequences
6. Social pathologies (e.g., alcohol and drug abuse, violence, child neglect); and
7. Exacerbation of health disparities
Mitigation strategies to help address some of these impacts include:
• transparency in project planning for operation and decommissioning phases;
• involvement of affected communities in development of project operations and
decommissioning plans around issues of importance to the community (e.g., water, land,
air contamination; remediation commitments);
• continuation of local and regional governments’ efforts to diversify the economic base in
the ROI;
• continued cleanup and monitoring of contaminated mines sites and finalizing cleanup
efforts in a timely manner;
• strong commitment to the highest standards of health and safety at uranium mine and mill
worksites; and
• continued study of the environmental and human health effects of uranium mining, as
well as a commitment to commence a comprehensive study of the community human
health impacts of uranium mining.
Legacy Issues – New Mexico Uranium Mining
Legacy Health Issues
As noted in the previous section, among the issues raised during scoping for the proposed Roca
Honda Mine were historical health effects associated with uranium mining, milling, and ore
handling activities in New Mexico and elsewhere. Stakeholders expressed concern about the
extent to which the proposed action and similar actions—such as the nearby proposed La Jara
Mesa Mine, about which a draft EIS was released by Cibola National Forest in March 2012—
would contribute to further similar uranium mining-related health issues.
Potential health and safety impacts associated with the Roca Honda Mine in particular are
discussed under the “Air Quality,” “Environmental Justice,” and “Human Health and Safety”
sections of this EIS. This section discusses historical health issues associated with uranium
mining in the region, including past activities related to uranium mining, processing, waste
disposal, abandoned sites, and the nuclear weapons program. The topic of historical and
remaining health issues and risks that are suspected of being caused by uranium mining and
milling practices that were followed decades ago, including contamination from these activities,
is referred to as “legacy health issues.” The legacy is a history of contamination and various
health problems left by an active uranium mining history in New Mexico that started as far back
as the 1950s.
Legacy health effects result from historical uranium mining and milling activities, particularly in
the Grants Mining District of New Mexico. Such activities have included the mining, transport,
processing (milling), storing, and disposing of uranium ore and waste products. Also referred to
as the Grants Mineral Belt, the area extends along the southern margin of the San Juan Basin,
within Cibola, McKinley, Sandoval and Bernalillo Counties, and on tribal reservation lands. The
Shiprock Mining District and Ambrosia Lake Subdistrict of the Grants Mining District are under
DEIS for Roca Honda Mine, Cibola National Forest 433