Uranium company will not be fined for violations that led to toxic leaks

Cameco Resources, the Casper-based operator of a uranium mines in Converse and Campbell counties, will not be fined for violations that ended with two toxic sludge leaks.

The spills, one in August 2015 and a second the following March, occurred while Cameco was transporting waste from uranium mining at its facility north of Glenrock to a disposal site in Utah. The company that received the waste noticed leaking containers and notified federal regulators.

After an investigation of the incidents and Cameco’s transportation program, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission identified nine violations, including lack of appropriate testing, documentation of hazardous materials and training that led the company to use improper containers to transport barium sulfate sludge.

Given the seriousness of some of the violations, the company could have faced a $35,000 fine, but federal regulators will waive those fees, in accordance with their rules of enforcement, because Cameco is correcting the source of the problem, according to an NRC letter to Cameco on June 29.

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