Uploaded January 2026 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
Frontline communities near abandoned uranium mines face major challenges in addressing health risks from mine waste. Regulatory hurdles, political dynamics, and internal disagreements complicate decisions about cleanup options offered by the EPA under the UNM (University of New Mexico) METALS Superfund program. Communities typically choose between two approaches: “cap-in-place”, which is cheaper but less durable, or excavation and remote disposal, which is safer long-term but costly and limited by disposal site availability and transport risks.
To support informed decision-making, METALS’s Community Engagement Core (CEC) and Research Translation Core (RTC) teams use infographics and Indigenous art to explain radiation risks and remediation methods. However, with thousands of sites and high cleanup costs, many may never be remediated. This leaves communities with the burden of maintaining knowledge about site locations and risks—adding to the trauma of living near long-contaminated lands.
Frontline communities near abandoned uranium mines face major challenges in addressing health risks from mine waste. Regulatory hurdles, political dynamics, and internal disagreements complicate decisions about cleanup options offered by the EPA under the UNM (University of New Mexico) METALS Superfund program. Communities typically choose between two approaches: “cap-in-place”, which is cheaper but less durable, or excavation and remote disposal, which is safer long-term but costly and limited by disposal site availability and transport risks.
To support informed decision-making, METALS’s Community Engagement Core (CEC) and Research Translation Core (RTC) teams use infographics and Indigenous art to explain radiation risks and remediation methods. However, with thousands of sites and high cleanup costs, many may never be remediated. This leaves communities with the burden of maintaining knowledge about site locations and risks—adding to the trauma of living near long-contaminated lands.
