By Felicia Fonseca
The Associated Press
Conservationists and tribes challenging a uranium mine north of the Grand Canyon were rejected by a federal appeals court Monday, but their argument over mining plans that are decades old is expected to resurface as companies look to resume similar operations.
Environmentalists and Native American groups had sued the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, saying the agency relied on an out of date and inadequate environmental analysis in allowing the Arizona 1 Mine to operate.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, however, rejected arguments that a gravel permit and a revised reclamation bond were major federal actions that would trigger new environmental reviews.
The court also ruled that a temporary closure did not make the mine’s 1988 operation plan invalid.
