DRC-2023-075120 - 0901a068812abd11

DRC-2023-075120 195 North 1950 West • Salt Lake City, UT
Mailing Address: P.O. Box 144880 • Salt Lake City, UT 84114-4880
Telephone [phone] • Fax [phone] • T.D.D. 711
www.deq.utah.gov
Printed on 100% recycled paper
State of Utah

SPENCER J. COX
Governor

DEIDRE HENDERSON
Lieutenant Governor
Department of
Environmental Quality

Kimberly D. Shelley
Executive Director

DIVISION OF WASTE MANAGEMENT
AND RADIATION CONTROL

Douglas J. Hansen
Director

November 7, 2023

Sarah Fields
Uranium Watch
P.O. Box 1112
Moab, UT 84532

RE: Division Response to Uranium Watch’s Letter Dated October 13, 2023

Dear Ms. Fields:

In a letter dated October 13, 2023, you requested an explanation on the operations at the White Mesa
Uranium Mill (Mill). The first was an inquiry into the Mill producing Radium-226 (radium) at the Mill
and second was whether the Mill needs a license amendment to do solvent extraction processes for rare
earth minerals.

The production of radium will be done under a separate radioactive material license issued to Energy
Fuels Resources Incorporated (EFRI) for research and development. This license currently limits the
amount of radium that the Mill can produce and store. Because it is a research and development license
it does not have public comment and the Division is limited on what details it can provide about it.
Radium is a decay product of the uranium decay chain and will be recovered and produced from the
same ore as the uranium currently recovered and produced at the Mill. The radium will not stay at the
Mill, but will be sent offsite where it will be used to make medical isotopes. Currently the Mill does
have a license to begin this research and development, but they have not started to process the ore for the
radium.

The rare earth solvent extraction will be done within existing solvent extraction building. The mill
removed old equipment and is in the process of replacing it with newer equipment. This included
removing and replacing part of the floor. Removing old equipment and replacing it with new equipment
is not a license amendment action and the Mill is allowed to do those activities. Rare earth minerals are
not radioactive and using a solvent extraction process to recover individual minerals does not fall under
the uranium recovery radioactive material license. Therefore, a license amendment is not required for
this activity.
(Over)

If you have any questions, please call Ryan Johnson at 385-499-4593.

Sincerely,

Phil Goble, Uranium Mills and Radioactive Materials Manager
Division of Waste Management and Radiation Control

PRG/RMJ/wa