From The Pueblo Chieftain (Tracy Harmon):
[Fremont County Commissioners] voted 2-1 to allow Australia-based Black Range Minerals’ request to expand exploration on an additional 2,220 acres of property known as the Hansen Deposit, which is believed to be the largest uranium deposit in the district…
In passing the resolution, commissioners also put into place 34 conditions the company must abide by to continue exploration. Commissioner Mike Stiehl cast the one dissenting vote, saying the commission has, “Gone beyond the conditions crafted the first time around and I think done a better job of protecting our water.”
Black Range Explorations Manager Ben Vallerine asked the commission to consider changing one of the conditions from twice-a-year water well monitoring to once a year. “We would like some degree of flexibility in that,” Vallerine said.
“We didn’t agree with that and wanted twice-a-year monitoring because of the wet and dry times,” Stiehl said.
Vallerine also requested the proposed water sampling take place twice a year on wells within a half-mile of exploration areas and only once a year for wells outside of the half-mile range. Again, the commission denied that request. “The applicant continually is resistant to monitoring and I am not able to understand why they are resistant,” Stiehl said.
