Trump Fast-Tracks Utah Uranium Mine, But Industry Revival May Wait For Higher Prices

MOAB, UT – OCTOBER 07: The UMTRA Project, a U.S. Department of Energy’s remedial operation to remove radioactive uranium tailings from a former mining site is viewed on October 7, 2023 near Moab, Utah. The contaminated dirt is scooped up and loaded onto rail for a trip to a safer disposal site in Crescent Junction, Utah. The mine is located about .5 miles from the entrance to Arches National Park, but also on the banks of the Colorado River. (Photo by George Rose/Getty Images)

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — The U.S. uranium mining industry is looking to a revival under President Donald Trump. Environmental reviews of mining operations would normally take months or even years. But after Trump declared a “national energy emergency,” it took just 11 days for the U.S. Bureau of Land Management to approve the Velvet-Wood uranium mine’s plan for resuming operations in the red-rock desert south of Moab, Utah. More fast approvals could be coming. But U.S. uranium mining has a long way to go to offset imports. About 98% of the uranium used in U.S. power plants currently is imported.