Uranium Mining in Virginia Scientific, Technical, Environmental, Human Health and Safety, and Regulatory Aspects of Uranium Mining and Processing in Virginia (2012) / Chapter Skim
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2 Virginia Physical and Social Context
2 Virginia Physical and Social Context
Pages 35-53
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From page 35... ...
• Virginia is subject to extreme natural events, including relatively large precipitation events and earthquakes. Although very difficult to accurately forecast, the risks and hazards associated with extreme natural events would need to be taken into account when evaluating any particular site's suitability for uranium mining and processing operations.
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From page 36... ...
-- the Appalachian Plateau, Valley and Ridge, Blue Ridge Mountains, Piedmont, and Coastal Plain. This physiographic zonation closely follows the overall geology, shown in Figure 2.2.
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From page 37... ...
ago with Proterozoic rocks in the Blue Ridge and Western Piedmont provinces, through four successive episodes of mountain building (orogenic cycles) : the Grenville Orogeny at about 1.1 Ga, the Taconic Orogeny at about 0.45 Ga, the Acadian Orogeny at about 0.38 Ga, and finally the Alleghenian Orogeny at about 0.32 Ga.
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From page 38... ...
. The metamorphic grade of the rocks increases from west to east -- the Western Piedmont has low- to medium-grade metasedimentary rocks, the Central Piedmont has low- to high-grade metasedimentary and metavolcanic rocks, and the Eastern Piedmont has mostly high- to very high-grade metasedimentary and metavolcanic rocks (VA DMME, 2008)
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From page 39... ...
The entire Appalachian Coal region produces approximately onethird of the nation's coal,6 although only a small portion of the coalfield lies within Virginia's borders. There are also smaller, lower-quality coalfields in the Valley and Ridge and Piedmont provinces.7 The Appalachian Plateau region produces high-quality, bituminous coal, and is also responsible for most of the oil and gas produced in the state.8 Gas production is concentrated in the northern Appalachian Plateau and includes both conventional gas and coal-bed methane.9 Virginia mineral resources cover a broad spectrum -- sand, gravel, and stone; heavy mineral sands (rutile/titanium, ilmenite, zircon, leucoxene)
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From page 40... ...
Clay minerals, shale, and slate are mined in western and central Virginia, including the Piedmont province; shale is mined in the Danville Triassic Basin in Pittsylvania County. Industrial lime is mined mainly in the Valley and Ridge region (Gilmer et al., 2005)
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From page 41... ...
Appalachian Plateau 105-125 13 Valley and Ridge 76-114 4-14 Blue Ridge 100-130 10-16 Piedmont 114-140 14-18 Coastal Plain 110 13-14 NOTE: Average rainfall data such as these do not reflect whether the rainfall occurs steadily through the year, or is more concentrated in larger rainfall events. SOURCE: Data from McNab and Avers (1994)
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From page 42... ...
. Land Cover Almost 62 percent of the Commonwealth of Virginia is covered in forest, equaling 15.72 million acres of forestland.15 The Coastal Plain region is dominated by loblolly pine and hardwood (McNab and Avers, 1994)
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From page 43... ...
. The Coastal Plain, Blue Ridge, and Valley and Ridge provinces are crucial as stopover habitat for migratory birds, because of their locations along the East Coast and in the middle of the Appalachians, respectively (Hill, 1984)
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From page 44... ...
, intermediate peak discharges associated with the Piedmont and Valley and Ridge regions, followed by the lowest values for the Coastal Plain (Table 2.4)
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From page 45... ...
The Coastal Plain aquifer hosts unconsolidated to semi-consolidated sedimentary rocks; the Pied mont and Blue Ridge aquifer is in crystalline rock, the Valley and Ridge aquifer hosts folded consolidated sedimentary rocks, and the Appalachian Plateau aquifer is in consolidated sedimentary rocks. In addition, there can be important differences at the local scale within each region.
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From page 46... ...
46 URANIUM MINING IN VIRGINIA Commerical Irriga on 3% 5% Other Mining 0% 1% Agriculture 9% Public Water Supply 37% Manufacturing 45% FIGURE 2.3 Average groundwater use in Virginia by category, 2003-2007. "Manufactur Average "Manufacturing" includes operations such as paper mills, food processors, drug companies, furniture, and concrete companies; "public water supply" includes municipal and private water purveyors; "agriculture" includes operations such as commodity farms, fish farms, and hatcheries; "irrigation" withdrawals are used to promote growth in crops such as tobacco, corn, soybeans, turf grass, and ornamental nursery products; "commercial" operations include golf courses, local and federal installations, hotels, and laundromats; and "mining" includes operations such as sand, rock, and coal companies.
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From page 47... ...
The high permeability and water storage in the Coastal Plain have led to heavy usage, which places the aquifer system, particularly the unconfined upper aquifer, at high risk for degraded water quality. Aquifers in the Coastal Plain historically have shown high yield and have been able to support much of the area's water demand.
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From page 48... ...
The Fall Line -- the arbitrary western boundary of the Coastal Plain at the transition to steeper topography -- effectively contained early European settlement to coastal area, because easy boat access was barred to the west. It also sepa rated the Algonquian-speaking tribes of the Coastal Plain from the Siouan- and Iroquoian-speaking tribes in the Piedmont region to the west.
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From page 49... ...
. To illustrate the contrasts between the northern Piedmont and the southern Piedmont, two counties -- Culpeper County and Pittsylvania County -- are described briefly below.
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From page 50... ...
Census Bureau, Culpeper County (http://quickfacts.census.gov/ qfd/states/51/51047.html; accessed 11 August 2011) , Pittsylvania County (http://quickfacts.census.
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, and are due to end in 2014. In addition to federal tobacco subsidies, Pittsylvania County and the city of Danville received grants from the Virginia Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Commission to promote economic growth and education in tobaccodependent regions (VTICRC, 2010)
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From page 52... ...
Each of the five physiographic provinces -- the Appalachian Plateau, Valley and Ridge, Blue Ridge Mountains, Piedmont, and Coastal Plain -- has distinct geological, climatic, ecological, agricultural, and cultural characteristics, as do subregions within each province. To protect Virginia's valued resources, a detailed assessment of both the potential site and its surrounding area (including natural, historical, and social characteristics)
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From page 53... ...
53 VIRGINIA PHYSICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT earthquake in 2011. Although very difficult to accurately forecast, the risks and hazards associated with extreme natural events would need to be taken into account when evaluating any particular site's suitability for uranium mining and processing operations.
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