Mine manager hopes to prevent new legacy Copyright © 2008 GRANTS Joe Lister and his wife, Jeanette,
have an idyllic life on the western toe of Mount Taylor. Joe has
a small garden in front of his double-wide home. Hes managed
to produce an impressive tomato crop, but at nearly 8,000 feet,
the other plants struggle. Most evenings, the couple is treated
to fire-red sunsets that light up the western deserts stretching
out before them. Best of all, the two dont have to go far
to get to work. Both are employees of Rio Grande Resources Corporation
at the Mount Taylor mine, which sits right next to their home. Joe
has lived there now for 17 years. Deposits of uranium-rich ore,
yellowed by oxidation, are scattered all around the property. Look, only 10 fingers, Lister says
jokingly, holding out his hands. Dont let his humor fool you. With 30 years
in the business, Lister is deeply aware of the legacy issues, which
have prejudiced so many against the industry. Is there any truth to the legacy issues?
Absolutely, he says. Many people are hoping for the mine to be up
and running again someday soon, supplying the area with high-paying
jobs. Lister says the average miner will make around $40,000 a year,
and he has a whole vision on how the operation can be managed with
greater safety to the worker. It begins with how the workers are
paid. In the past, workers were often paid by how much ore they
produced. In modern mines, that will never happen,
he says. Safety procedures can be time consuming. And
a worker who has an interest in getting more ore out in a day is
more likely to take dangerous shortcuts, especially when the consequences
wont be realized until illnesses develop 30 years down the
road. In addition, the procedures in the mine will
prevent the illnesses that many in the past have suffered from.
Contrary to popular myths, the element itself does not cause cancer.
According to Dr. Fred A. Mettler Jr., who is formally the chairman
of the Department of Radiology at UNM, there have been 11 major
cohort studies on the topic. None of them found any evidence that
uranium causes cancer. The cancer associated with uranium mining comes
from radon gas, which is a decay product of the uranium element.
So, mining procedures have been altered to ensure that workers will
not receive harmful doses of radon, which caused so many cases of
lung cancer in miners in the past. As miners descend underground through the concrete
corridors to the shaft into the mine, they will be greeted by strict
no smoking signs. Not only can they not smoke, they cant take
cigarettes, smokeless tobacco, or even lighters down with them.
And the ventilation systems will blast the mine with clean air from
the surface, so workers wont be breathing in the radon gas
all day. To keep the uranium at the mine where it belongs,
miners will wear special clothing. They will be required to shower
before heading home, and the clothes they wear to and from the mine
will never come in contact with their work clothes. Even their boots,
which never leave the premises, are rinsed off before exiting the
mine. Lister has been waiting for the day when the
promise of the uranium industry can be fully realized. In that time,
hes been called many things because of his association with
the controversy. He says it brings him no joy to see the community
so divided over the issue. For now, he just tries to assure everyone
that things will be different this time, and the workers will be
protected. Lester stands next to the now inoperable shaft
into the mine at the end of the concrete corridor. Last time anyone
descended into the mine was the early 1990s. Since then, the pumps
were shut down, and its filled up with water. The sound of
the trickling water echoes up from deep darkness below. That shaft is 3,340 feet, Lister comments. Not exactly a dog hole. |
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US 491 widening: Reports of its demise grealty exaggerated Mine manager hopes to prevent new legacy Spiritual Perspectives |
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