Cluff Lake mine
Encyclopedia
Cluff Lake mine, located about 700 km (435 mi) from Saskatoon
, Saskatchewan
at the northern terminus of Saskatchewan Highway 955
, is owned and operated by AREVA Resources Canada, formerly COGEMA Resources. The mine ceased uranium
production at the end of 2002 when the ore reserves were depleted. It was originally scheduled to shut down in 2000, but higher ore grades and operational ingenuity by employees and contractors allowed production to continue for an additional two years. Total production during the mine's 22-year operating life was over 62 million pounds of yellowcake
.
The Cluff Lake decommissioning project is the final chapter in the mine's history. The plan involves two years of active decommissioning, followed by several years of onsite monitoring and then long-term monitoring. When decommissioning is complete, the site is expected to have no significant adverse effects on the environment in the short or long-term.
Saskatoon
Saskatoon is a city in central Saskatchewan, Canada, on the South Saskatchewan River. Residents of the city of Saskatoon are called Saskatonians. The city is surrounded by the Rural Municipality of Corman Park No. 344....
, Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....
at the northern terminus of Saskatchewan Highway 955
Saskatchewan Highway 955
Highway 955 is a highway in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It runs from Highway 155 near La Loche to Cluff Lake Mine. The highway is approximately 245 km long and is entirely unpaved. The highway carries the name Semchuk Trail...
, is owned and operated by AREVA Resources Canada, formerly COGEMA Resources. The mine ceased uranium
Uranium
Uranium is a silvery-white metallic chemical element in the actinide series of the periodic table, with atomic number 92. It is assigned the chemical symbol U. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons...
production at the end of 2002 when the ore reserves were depleted. It was originally scheduled to shut down in 2000, but higher ore grades and operational ingenuity by employees and contractors allowed production to continue for an additional two years. Total production during the mine's 22-year operating life was over 62 million pounds of yellowcake
Yellowcake
Yellowcake is a kind of uranium concentrate powder obtained from leach solutions, in an intermediate step in the processing of uranium ores. Yellowcake concentrates are prepared by various extraction and refining methods, depending on the types of ores...
.
The Cluff Lake decommissioning project is the final chapter in the mine's history. The plan involves two years of active decommissioning, followed by several years of onsite monitoring and then long-term monitoring. When decommissioning is complete, the site is expected to have no significant adverse effects on the environment in the short or long-term.