The Impacts of Uranium Mining

From 1944 to 1986 hundreds of uranium and milling operations extracted an estimated 400 million tons of uranium ore from Diné (Navajo) lands. These mining and processing operations have left a legacy of potential exposures to uranium waste from abandoned mines, mills, homes and other structures built with mining waste, which impacts drinking water, livestock and humans.
As a heavy metal, uranium primarily damages the kidneys and urinary system. While there have been many studies of environmental and occupational exposure to uranium and associated renal effects in adults, there have been very few studies of other adverse health effects. In 2010 the University of New Mexico partnered with the Navajo Area Indian Health Service and Navajo Division of Health to evaluate the association between environmental contaminants and reproductive birth outcomes.
This investigation is called the Navajo Birth Cohort Study and will follow children for 7 years from birth to early childhood. Chemical exposure, stress, sleep, diet and their effects on the children’s physical, cognitive and emotional development will be studied.
These images show JC with her younger sister Gracie, who is a NBCS participant.