nuclear-news

Bankrupt company to avoid uranium cleanup costs?

Tronox Bankruptcy raises questions about uranium cleanup

The Black Hills Pioneer & Rapid City Weekly News | BHPioneer.com | News for Spearfish, South Dakota > Breaking News > Tronox Bankruptcy raises questions about uranium cleanup

By Brandon Bennett
Black Hills Pioneer Weekly News January 13, 2009

<!–

–> HARDING COUNTY – Tronox Incorporated announced on Monday that it and certain of the company’s subsidiaries filed voluntary petitions for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.

That raises questions about its obligations in Harding County in northwest South Dakota with regard to reclaiming land formerly used for uranium mining.

The land had been mined in the 1950s by Tronox’s predecessor, Kerr-McGee, and was left in poor condition…………………………..The company began the reclamation and environmental cleanup in 2007 after an unusually large number of cancer cases were reported in the Riley Pass area of the Cave Hills.

Ranchers asked the U.S. Forest Service to take action, and since the land was federally owned the agency asked Tronox, as a successor to Kerr-McGee, to reclaim the land in question and remove some dirt that some feel has contributed to the unhealthy situation.

Some work had been done, but Forest Service officials weren’t sure where this bankruptcy leaves them.
…………………….Meanwhile, the ranchers who have been affected by the mining have been watching what has been going on and aren’t sure if they’ll ever get rid of the problem.

Tags: nuclear, antinuclear, radioactive, uranium

January 14, 2009 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs