I read two articles today about uranium mining in Arizona - one talking about mining companies as investments, the other about the environmental fears over mining.
A story on Uranium Investing News says Denison Mines is expected to produce 209 tonnes of uranium from its northern Arizona mines in 2011 (only the Arizona #1 mine is producing, the others are waiting on permits). They also say BLM had received 276,000 public comments on the draft EIS to shut down exploration and mining for 20 years, a much higher number than we've heard.
Meanwhile, Cronkite News Service distributed a lengthy story on the northern Arizona withdrawal, focusing on concerns by mining opponents. There are non-subtle clues as to the tone of the story in the title of "radioactive mining" in the video clip and the use of breathing masks around mining operations.