LAT: 2-year hold on mining claims near Grand Canyon

The freeze reverses a Bush-era ruling that opened the land to uranium mining. The Interior Department plans to study the environmental impact.

Los Angeles Times, Julie Cart
Published July 21, 2009

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar on Monday called for a two-year "timeout" on new mining claims on nearly 1 million acres near Grand Canyon National Park in northern Arizona. The move reverses a decision by the George W. Bush administration to open the land flanking the park to hard-rock mining. That ruling, which opened the way for lucrative mining of uranium ore, was opposed by some in Congress and within the National Park Service over concerns about the toxic heavy metal's potential effect on the park's watershed, wildlife, and cultural and archaeological resources. Mining claims within five miles of the park increased to more than 1,100 last year, from 10 in 2003, according to government data reviewed by the Environmental Working Group. The entire article can be found here: http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-uranium21-2009jul21...