Wednesday, July 2, 2008

Hispanic voters and 2008 The Moderate Voice: "During the primaries a strong argument used against Democratic Senator Barack Obama was that he received tepid support from Hispanic voters and therefore could not be counted on to get that crucial part of the party's constituency come November. But that argument is no more: a new Gallup Poll shows Hispanic voters strongly support the Democratic party's presumptive nominee." "2008 pres" 6:21:52 PM

Energy policy: Nuclear Here's an update on uranium mining in Colorado, from The Denver Post. From the article: In 12 Western states, the number of uranium mining claims has doubled since 2003 to 414,228, according to an analysis of federal data by the Washington, D.C.-based Environmental Working Group. In Colorado, uranium-mining claims filed on federal land have gone from 120 in 2003 to almost 11,000 last year, according to the federal Bureau of Land Management. "We are surely in a boom," said Ronald Cattany, director of the state Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety. A more telling measure - for the claims are often speculative - is exploration permits from the state and the BLM. State permits doubled over the past year to 90, Cattany said, and in the past six months, the number of federal exploration permits jumped almost 50 percent to 67... The state Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety is now setting draft rules to meet the two uranium-mining laws. One law requires more public disclosure of uranium prospecting. Until now, mining-company information filed with the state, such as size and general location, was confidential. The second law tightens controls on in-situ uranium mining. It will require companies to do baseline water-quality studies and restore the aquifer to that level or one set by the state Department of Public Health and Environment. A new fee structure also was set up so that the state can hire consultants to review in-situ mining plans. "These applications and technologies are so nontraditional and complex, we wanted to make sure they are thoroughly reviewed," said Cattany. Colorado's rules will set "a standard of restoration that is higher than historical restoration," said Richard Clement Jr., Powertech's chief executive. "Hopefully, the rules will relieve some of the concerns people have had," Clement said... More Coyote Gulch coverage here. "2008 pres" 6:20:27 PM

© Copyright 2009 John Orr. Last update: 3/15/09; 2:34:44 PM.