Abstract
Uranium is a debatable clean source of energy all over the world. The mining of uranium is controversial mainly because of its associated impacts on environment and human health. The conventional way of exploiting the rock-ores either from the surface mining or, heap leaching or, underground mining, aiming the maximum production to fulfil the soaring demand, has posed the significant environmental, economic and social risks. In this context, the technological advancement in mining practices could significantly reduce some impacts compared to the early strategic period, but certainly yet to be considered as the sustainable one. The inevitable water-intensive extraction process is a serious concern along with the handling of mine tailings, which contain thorium, radium, uranium and polonium and emit radon. Therefore, with emphasis on the direct and indirect impacts of uranium mining and associated environmental and health impacts, some cases have also been discussed in the present chapter.
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Srivastava, R.R., Pathak, P., Perween, M. (2020). Environmental and Health Impact Due to Uranium Mining. In: Gupta, D., Walther, C. (eds) Uranium in Plants and the Environment. Radionuclides and Heavy Metals in the Environment. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-14961-1_3
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