Major water utilities in Nevada, Arizona and California have urged the federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to weigh carefully the potential risks of contamination of the Colorado River from expanded uranium mining in the Grand Canyon area. The federal agency has responsibility for deciding whether to allow new mining activity or to ban additional mining in up to 1 million acres for 20 years. Noting that the the Colorado is the primary water source for more than 26 million people, the utilities urged BLM officials to analyze the "worst-case scenario" for potential contamination by radioactive uranium and whether expanded mining might increase the river's salinity.
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