Proposed Uranium Mine and Mill, Coles Hill Virginia: an Assessment of Possible Socioeconomic Impacts
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
January 2012 Proposed Uranium Mine and Mill, Coles Hill Virginia: An Assessment of Possible Socioeconomic Impacts Final Report Prepared for Danville Regional Foundation 512 Bridge St., Suite 100 Danville, VA 24541 Prepared by RTI International 3040 Cornwallis Road Research Triangle Park, NC 27709 RTI Project Number 0212843.000 RTI Project Number 0212843.000 Proposed Uranium Mine and Mill, Coles Hill Virginia: An Assessment of Possible Socioeconomic Impacts Final Report January 2012 Prepared for Danville Regional Foundation 512 Bridge St., Suite 100 Danville, VA 24541 Prepared by Katherine Heller Michael Lowry James Cunningham Jon Poehlman Sara Lawrence Paramita Sinha Timothy Albrecht Kibri Everett Rebecca Munch Justine Allpress Tania Fitzgerald Coleen Northeim Paul Andrews Scott Guthrie Igor Pokryshevskiy Fern Braun Christine Hendren Jennifer Redmon Adrienne Brown Zachary Hendren Genevieve Tindall Sara Casey Shelly Johnson Peyton Williams Sealy Chipley Fekadu Moreda RTI International 3040 Cornwallis Road Research Triangle Park, NC 27709 _________________________________ RTI International is a trade name of Research Triangle Institute. Acknowledgment RTI would like to thank the Danville Regional Foundation, and its President and CEO, Karl Stauber, for the opportunity to conduct this challenging and important study. We would also like to express our deep gratitude to the members of our Community Advisory Panel: Larry Campbell, Danville City Council Laurie Moran, President, Danville Pittsylvania County Chamber of Commerce Jeff Liverman, Director, Danville Science Center Martha Walker, Community Viability Specialist, Virginia Cooperative Extension Service Their insights into the values, aspirations, and concerns of the stakeholders of the study region provided invaluable help in shaping our study. RTI would also like to thank residents of the study region, especially those who participated in stakeholder interviews and focus groups. Final Report iii Table of Contents Chapter Page Acknowledgment .................................................................................................................................... iii 1. Introduction and Approach Overview........................................................................................... 1-1 1.1 Background ......................................................................................................................... 1-1 1.2 Study Scope and Purpose .................................................................................................... 1-1 1.3 Study Framework ................................................................................................................ 1-3 1.3.1 Overall Analytical Framework............................................................................... 1-3 1.3.2 Understanding Interests and Concerns of the Region’s Residents ......................... 1-4 1.4 What Does the Community Care About? ............................................................................ 1-5 1.4.1 Methods for Gathering Stakeholder Concerns and Viewpoints ............................. 1-6 1.4.2 Stakeholder and Community Interests and Concerns ............................................ 1-8 1.4.3 Hierarchy of Study Region’s Objectives ............................................................. 1-11 1.5 Structure of the Report ...................................................................................................... 1-11 2. The Coles Hill Region .................................................................................................................. 2-1 2.1 Background ......................................................................................................................... 2-1 2.2 Stakeholder Perspectives on the Region ............................................................................. 2-2 2.3 Population and Projected Population Growth ..................................................................... 2-5 2.3.1 Projected Population Growth ................................................................................. 2-8 2.3.2 Characteristics of the Study Region Population..................................................... 2-8 2.4 Economic Characteristics .................................................................................................. 2-12 2.4.1 Employment and Occupational Patterns .............................................................. 2-12 2.4.2 Industry and Business Data .................................................................................. 2-14 2.4.3 Employer Revenues ............................................................................................. 2-21 2.4.4 Income and Wages ............................................................................................... 2-22 2.4.5 Agriculture ........................................................................................................... 2-23 2.5 Other Community Characteristics ..................................................................................... 2-23 2.5.1 Housing ................................................................................................................ 2-24 2.5.2 Health Care and Public Safety ............................................................................. 2-25 2.6 Summary ........................................................................................................................... 2-25 2.7 References ......................................................................................................................... 2-27 3. Potential Environmental Releases ................................................................................................. 3-1 3.1 Coles Hill Ore Reserve........................................................................................................ 3-1 3.1.1 Uranium-Related Site Features .............................................................................. 3-2 3.1.2 Chemical Makeup of Ore and Host Rock .............................................................. 3-2 3.2 Uranium Mining .................................................................................................................. 3-4 3.2.1 Conventional Mining Methods .............................................................................. 3-5 3.2.2 Unconventional Mining Methods .......................................................................... 3-7 3.3 Milling ................................................................................................................................. 3-8 Final Report v 3.4 Potential Waste Streams...................................................................................................... 3-8 3.4.1 Solid Wastes........................................................................................................... 3-8 3.4.2 Potential Aqueous Wastes (Water) ...................................................................... 3-12 3.5 Emissions Estimates .......................................................................................................... 3-14 3.5.1 Mine Water .......................................................................................................... 3-14 3.5.2 Process Water....................................................................................................... 3-15 3.5.3 Nonpoint Source Water Discharges ..................................................................... 3-15 3.5.4 Air Emissions ....................................................................................................... 3-16 3.6 Mitigation and Control Options ........................................................................................ 3-20 3.6.1 Marline Study Wastewater Treatment Approach ................................................. 3-20 3.6.2 Air Emission Controls .......................................................................................... 3-22 3.7 Regulations ........................................................................................................................ 3-23 3.7.1 Air Regulations .................................................................................................... 3-23 3.7.2 Tailings ................................................................................................................ 3-23 3.7.3 Pile and Liner Design ........................................................................................... 3-24 3.8 Post-closure Releases ........................................................................................................ 3-24 3.8.1 Uranium Site Decommissioning Overview ......................................................... 3-24 3.8.2 Mill Dismantling .................................................................................................. 3-24 3.8.3 Tailings Impoundments ....................................................................................... 3-24 3.9 References ......................................................................................................................... 3-25 4. Insights from Case Studies ............................................................................................................ 4-1 4.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 4-1 4.1.1 Case Study Methodology ......................................................................................