"The most serious health hazard associated with uranium mining is lung cancer due to inhaling uranium decay products" – Institute for Energy and Environmental Research, 2005
Health issues and social impacts remain another important factor when analyzing the effect of the nuclear fuel cycle. Radiation poisoning in both the mines and waste removal process links directly to the rise of cancer in uranium rich regions and causes a negative sentiment when discussing nuclear energy capacity. Uranium mill tailings contain radioactive materials and heavy metals (e.g., manganese and molybdenum) which can leach into groundwater (Institute for Energy and Environmental Research, 2005). Near tailings piles, water samples have indicated levels of some contaminants at hundreds of times the government’s acceptable level for drinking water (Institute for Energy and Environmental Research, 2005).
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"Mining and milling operations in the U.S. have disproportionately affected indigenous populations around the globe. For example, nearly one third of all mill tailings from abandoned mill operations are on lands of the Navajo nation alone" (Institute for Energy and Environmental Research, 2005).
Further, most civilian and many military reactors require uranium that has a higher proportion of uranium-235 than present in nature. The process used to increase the amount of uranium-235 relative to uranium-238 is known as uranium enrichment. U.S. civilian power plants typically use 3 to 5 percent uranium-235 (Institute for Energy and Environmental Research, 2005). A major hazard in both the uranium conversion and enrichment processes comes from the handling of uranium hexafluoride, which is chemically toxic as well as radioactive. Moreover, it reacts readily with moisture, releasing highly toxic hydrofluoric acid. Conversion and enrichment facilities have had a number of accidents involving uranium hexafluoride (Institute for Energy and Environmental Research, 2005).
These health impacts, in culmination with environmental concerns, contribute to an overall poor social health for regions subjected to uranium mining and refinement.Although health impacts may not contribute directly to greenhouse gases and climate change, the overall well-being of land and human health should be considered in conjunction with the justice of extraction locations.
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