SPECIAL REPORT | ASIA’S URANIUM LEGACY
Central Asia’s uranium legacy
Former Soviet Union uranium mining sites across the Central Asia
represent a significant risk. A IAEA-backed programme was established in 2012 to support remediation. What progress has been made?
By Judith Perera
CENTRAL ASIA WAS A KEY source of uranium for the former Soviet Union. Uranium was mined there for over 50 years and uranium ore was also imported from other countries for processing. Most of the mines were closed by 1995 but very little remediation has been done and large mining and tailing dumps remain. The collapse of the Soviet Union in the 1990s saw the creation of separate independent states. This resulted in many former uranium mining and milling facilities, as well as associated waste (dumps and tailings) being abandoned. Most uranium legacy sites (ULSs) are located in Central Asia where, from the mid-1940s to the 1990s, uranium mining and processing were prevalent. As planning for end-of-life management was not common at the time, the sites were left with residues of radioactive and toxic contaminants. These pose ongoing threats to the people in the region, as do abandoned mines and processing infrastructure. Some ULSs are in seismically active areas and near
to regional waterways, and all ULSs pose risks for the population and the environment. These include physical hazards to people and animals, elevated exposure to radioactive and toxic material of communities living in proximity to a ULS, negative impact on public health
and socio-economic well-being, as well as potential for transboundary contamination. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) says the
release of radioactive and toxic contaminants is inevitable if the sites in Central Asia remain unremediated. Because Central Asian member states generally do not have the means to address this challenge, several international initiatives have been launched to support remediation in the region.
An IAEA initiative The IAEA Coordination Group for Uranium Legacy Sites (CGULS) was formed in 2012 to help coordinate national and multilateral remediation activities. Through CGULS, IAEA supports a network of national and international organisations and institutions concerned with the safe remediation and management of residues at these ULSs.
The CGULS project facilitates the application of IAEA
safety standards and international good practices in remediation projects conducted in Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Ukraine. CGULS comprises the IAEA, the European Commission (EC), the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS – with activities
Above: Legacy mines located near mountain water courses could affect both animals and the population 32 | November 2023 |
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