The Pigeon Mine is in the Arizona Strip (the area of Arizona north of the Colorado River), approximately 17 miles south of Fredonia and 6 miles east of Kanab Creek, in Coconino County. It was mined from 1985 to 1990 and produced approximately 439,400 tons of ore which yielded 5,700,000 pounds of uranium oxide1. Milling was not done on site; all ore was shipped to a mill near Blanding, Utah2. The mine was reclaimed after it closed in 19903.
USGS continues (2019) to sample Pigeon spring, near the mine, for temporal variation, and published results of assessment of elevated uranium concentrations in Pigeon spring in 2017 (click "view activity" under "Water" below for more detail).
USGS recently (2020) published results of geochemical and mineralogical analysis of ore samples collected from the Pigeon mine during the mid-1980s when the mine was operating (click "view activity" under "Geology" below for more detail).
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Click on image for a larger version.
Base map images are the intellectual property of Esri and are used herein under license. Copyright © 2016 Esri and its licensors. All rights reserved.
Uranium in Spring Water North of Grand Canyon Likely Not Related to Nearby Mining Activity
Uranium levels in Pigeon Spring, just north of the Grand Canyon, are likely due to a natural source of uranium and not related to the nearby former Pigeon Mine
Activities listed below are scientific research studies occurring at this site. Studies within the Grand Canyon region are grouped by theme and each theme has specific tasks (referenced by task number).
The View Activity button below each task will open a separate window with detailed activity information.
Sources:
1 Ross, D.A., and Moreton, Christopher, 2012, Technical report on the EZ1 and EZ2 breccia pipes, Arizona Strip district, U.S.A.: NI 43-101 Report prepared by Roscoe Postle Associates Inc. for Energy Fuels Inc., 92 p.
2 Alpine, Andrea E., ed., 2010, Hydrological, geological, and biological site characterization of breccia pipe uranium deposits in northern Arizona: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2010—5025, 353 p., 1 pl., scale 1:375,000
3 Otton, J.K., and Van Gosen, B.S., 2010, Uranium resource availability in breccia pipes in northern Arizona, Chapter A in Alpine, A.E., ed., Hydrological, geological, and biological site characterization of breccia pipe uranium deposits in northern Arizona: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2010-5025, p. 23-41
