Assessment of undiscovered sandstone-hosted uranium resources in the Texas Coastal Plain, 2015

Mihalasky, Mark J.; Hall, Susan M.; Hammarstrom, Jane M.; Tureck, Kathleen R.; Hannon, Mark T.; Breit, George N.; Zielinski, Robert A.; Elliott, Brent A.

doi:10.3133/fs20153069

Cited by 6 publications

(25 citation statements)

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“…Sandstone-hosted U deposits are the most prolific U-producing deposits in the United States [13]. There are four main types of sandstone-hosted deposits (basal, tabular, roll front, and tectonolithologic [15]) with roll front and tabular being the two most important classes of these deposits in terms of U.S. uranium production.…”

Section: Deposit Typementioning

confidence: 99%

“…A recently completed U resource assessment of the region estimated a potential undiscovered resource mean of 99,790 metric tons (220 million pounds) of recoverable U oxide (U 3 O 8 ), distributed among three delineated permissive tracts north and south of the San Marcos Arch (Figure 1; [13]). Permissive tracts are regions that are permissive for the occurrence of deposits, as guided by analysis of known deposits and a descriptive mineral deposit model [13]. Other estimates have indicated undiscovered resources of up to about 680 million metric tons (1.5 billion pounds) U 3 O 8 in the STU region [18].…”

Section: Deposit Typementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Other estimates have indicated undiscovered resources of up to about 680 million metric tons (1.5 billion pounds) U 3 O 8 in the STU region [18]. S. Geological Survey's recent assessment of undiscovered uranium resources in South Texas [13]; and location of Figure 3 inset. Modified from [16].…”

Section: Deposit Typementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Geology from [19]. Houston and Rio Grande embayments; the San Marcos arch; three permissive tracts of the U.S. Geological Survey's recent assessment of undiscovered uranium resources in South Texas [13]; and location of Figure 3 inset. Modified from [16].…”

Section: Deposit Typementioning

confidence: 99%

“…There may be a role for GEMs in sustainable mining practices and mine life-cycle models (e.g., [9,10]), but, again, no exact niche or format for GEMs in this realm has been identified, perhaps representing an opportunity for an evolution of GEMs beyond the scope of this paper. Herein, we present a descriptive GEM for the South Texas uranium (STU) region as part of the geoenvironmental assessment of these deposits [11,12], and as a complement to the USGS resource assessment of these deposits [13]. In this paper, a GEM is defined as a descriptive model that combines the characteristics of the deposit type-derived from literature review and a published oredeposit model-with the geographic, climatic, and regulatory framework existing where the ore deposits occur, to identify the potential environmental effects associated with mining the deposits.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Geoenvironmental Model for Roll-Type Uranium Deposits in the Texas Gulf Coast

et al. 2022

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Geoenvironmental models were formulated by the U.S. Geological Survey in the 1990s to describe potential environmental effects of extracting different types of ore deposits in different geologic and climatic regions. This paper presents a geoenvironmental model for roll-front (roll-type) uranium deposits in the Texas Coastal Plain. The model reviews descriptive and quantitative information derived from environmental studies and existing databases to depict existing conditions and potential environmental concerns associated with mining this deposit type. This geoenvironmental model describes how features of the deposits including host rock; ore and gangue mineralogy; geologic, hydrologic, and climatic settings; and mining methods (legacy open-pit and in situ recovery [ISR]) influence potential environmental effects from mining. Element concentrations in soil and water are compared to regulatory thresholds to depict ambient surface water and groundwater conditions. Although most open-pit operations in this region have been reclaimed, concerns remain about groundwater quality at three of the four former mills that supported former open-pit mines and are undergoing closure activities. The primary environmental concerns with ISR mining are (1) radon gas at active ISR operations, (2) radiation or contaminant leakage during production and transport of ISR resin or yellowcake, (3) uranium excursions into groundwater surrounding active ISR operations, and (4) contamination of groundwater after ISR mining. Although existing regulations attempt to address these concerns, some problems remain. Researchers suggest that reactive transport modeling and a better understanding of geology, stratigraphy, and geochemistry of ISR production areas could minimize excursions into surrounding aquifers and improve results of groundwater restoration.

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Section: Deposit Typementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Deposit Typementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Deposit Typementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Deposit Typementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Geoenvironmental Model for Roll-Type Uranium Deposits in the Texas Gulf Coast

et al. 2022

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Social legacy and geoheritage significance of the largely overlooked Catahoula Volcanic Ash of South Texas

González

Hinthorne

Skowronek

et al. 2023

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The Oligocene-Miocene Catahoula Formation occurs along the length of the Gulf of Mexico coastal plain from the Rio Grande to the state of Mississippi. In Starr County, in south Texas, the formation is typified by the 20-meter-thick Catahoula Volcanic Ash, interpreted to represent a single caldera eruption. The massive ash fall is the main source of the uranium that has been mined in South Texas since the late 1950's. It is also the origin of massive amounts of petrified wood, which was used in prehistory for making projectile points and continues to be used for landscaping. Diagenetic alteration of the volcanic ash produced the distinctive El Sauz Chert, which was used by native Americans for 10,000 years to make projectile points. More recently, the Catahoula Volcanic Ash was used as pozzolanic aggregate with Portland cement for the construction of Falcon Dam. The outcrop of the Catahoula Volcanic Ash in Starr County is the centerpiece of a geoheritage initiative, titled Ancient Landscapes of South Texas at the Nexus of Natural and Cultural History , whose goal is to connect the earth and social sciences to educate residents, students and visitors in how the region's geology has played a significant role in its social history.

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A Methodology to Assess the Historical Environmental Footprint of In-Situ Recovery (ISR) of Uranium: A Demonstration in the Goliad Sand in the Texas Coastal Plain, USA

et al. 2022

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In-situ recovery (ISR) has been the only technique used to extract uranium from sandstone-hosted uranium deposits in the Pliocene Goliad Sand in the Texas Coastal Plain. Water plays a crucial role throughout the ISR lifecycle of production and groundwater restoration yet neither the water use nor other environmental footprints have been well documented. The goal of this study is to examine historical records for all six ISR operations completed in the Goliad Sand to identify and quantify parameters that indicate the surface and aquifer disturbances, water use, and radon emissions. Overall, the average mine area was 0.00023 ± 0.00006 acres per pound (ac/lb) U3O8. The average mine pore volume was 48.9 ± 50 gal/lb U3O8 with a minimum affected aquifer volume of 0.51 ± 0.08 cubic feet per pound (cu ft/lb) U3O8. An average of 258 ± 40 gallons (gal) of fluid were disposed per pound (lb) U3O8, with an average of 169 ± 26 gal/lb U3O8 attributed to restoration and 89 ± 36 gal/lb U3O8 attributed to the uranium production phase. The average radon emitted was 1.06 × 10−3 ± 7.4 × 10−4 curies per pound (Ci/lb) U3O8. Goodness-of-fit (R2) values are ≥0.79 for linear regressions of the amount of uranium produced versus mine area, mine pore volumes, mine aquifer volumes, water pumped, and total water disposed. The R2 value for radon emitted was 0.68. However, the water disposed only during the uranium production phase is more strongly correlated to the number of production days (R2 = 0.96) than to uranium production (R2 = 0.84), whereas the volume of water disposed during restoration is more strongly correlated to the “pore volume” (R2 = 0.97) than to uranium production (R2 = 0.90). Pore volume is an industry term used to describe the amount of fluid circulated through the aquifer during the uranium production period and stipulated in bond agreements in order to satisfy groundwater restoration requirements. Models constructed in this study can be used to estimate probable water use and the extent of surface and aquifer disturbances associated with ISR-amenable undiscovered uranium resources in the Goliad Sand. The historical perspective offered by the data compiled and correlations may prove useful to both industry and regulators.

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Assessment of undiscovered sandstone-hosted uranium resources in the Texas Coastal Plain, 2015

Cited by 6 publications

References 0 publications

Geoenvironmental Model for Roll-Type Uranium Deposits in the Texas Gulf Coast

Geoenvironmental Model for Roll-Type Uranium Deposits in the Texas Gulf Coast

Social legacy and geoheritage significance of the largely overlooked Catahoula Volcanic Ash of South Texas

A Methodology to Assess the Historical Environmental Footprint of In-Situ Recovery (ISR) of Uranium: A Demonstration in the Goliad Sand in the Texas Coastal Plain, USA

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