Utah State Office
| Contacts: | Rebecca Doolittle | , (435) 259-2141 |
Laramide La Sal Plan Available for Public Review
The Moab Field Office of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is seeking comments on Laramide La Sal Inc.’s Mining Plan of Operations to reopen the La Sal #2 mine for uranium sampling.
The La Sal #2 mine is located south of the town of La Sal in San Juan County. It encompasses public lands under the regulatory jurisdiction of BLM.
Laramide La Sal Inc. proposes to reopen the La Sal #2 mine to conduct underground sampling, including the removal of approximately 10,000 to 20,000 tons of presumed ore that would be transported and processed at the White Mesa mill. This exploration work would include the opening of the mine portal, rehabilitation of a ventilation shaft and the installation of trailers that would provide support facilities to the sampling operation. These facilities include a mine change trailer, office trailer, maintenance facility, fuel storage area, and explosives storage. The plan would disturb about five acres of land. Laramide La Sal Inc. also proposes to conduct a reclamation program at the end of the sampling project, which is expected to end by mid-2012.
The BLM is also seeking the assistance of the public in identifying issues (scoping) to be analyzed in the environmental assessment to be prepared for the mine plan. A thirty-day public comment period on the mine plan and scoping period for the EA are being conducted. Comments are due by June 6, 2011.
The mine plan amendment is available for review at: http://www.blm.gov/ut/st/en/fo/moab/more/la_sal_mines_complex.html. A hard copy of the plan is also available for review at the Moab BLM Field Office, 82 E. Dogwood, Moab, UT, 84532. For more information, call the Moab Field Office at 435-259-2100. Comments should be submitted in writing by mail to the Moab BLM Field Office, 82 E. Dogwood, Moab, UT, 84532 or by email to UT_Moab_Comments@blm.gov.
The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land, the most of any Federal agency. This land, known as the National System of Public Lands, is primarily located in 12 Western states, including Alaska. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. In Fiscal Year (FY) 2011, recreational and other activities on BLM-managed land contributed more than $130 billion to the U.S. economy and supported more than 600,000 American jobs. The Bureau is also one of a handful of agencies that collects more revenue than it spends. In FY 2012, nearly $5.7 billion will be generated on lands managed by the BLM, which operates on a $1.1 billion budget. The BLM's multiple-use mission is to sustain the health and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations. The Bureau accomplishes this by managing such activities as outdoor recreation, livestock grazing, mineral development, and energy production, and by conserving natural, historical, cultural, and other resources on public lands.
Utah State Office 440 West 200 South, Suite 500 SLC, UT 84101-1345