Impact of Uranium Mill Tailings on Water Resources in Mailuu Suu, Kyrgyzstan

Residual waste dumps and tailings from previous U-mining activities in Mailuu-Suu represent a potential risk on local water resources. In 2006, a monitoring program has been initiated to determine the contamination status of local water resources, taken as a baseline to assess the impact of coming remediation activities. Field data supplemented by laboratory experiments shed light on uranium mobilization and transport path. The presented findings conclude into simple mitigation measures which have been introduced to local authorities and citizens.