in the Monument Valley, White Canyon, Green River Desert, Big Indian Wash, and San Rafael Swell areas of Arizona and Utah, and the Todilto limestone of the Zuni and Lucero Uplift between Albuquerque and Gallup, N. Mex. Vanadium producing ores of the Entrada formation near Rifle, Placerville, and Rico, Colo., have also produced byproduct uranium.

Off the Colorado Plateau, the following contain uranium mineralization: The Wasatch formation in the Powder River Basin and Red Desert areas; the Wind River formation on the western slopes of the Gas Hill anticline; the Brown's Park formation of Carbon County; and Pre-Cambrian rocks near Lusk, all in Wyoming. The Wasatch and Pre-Cambrian rocks on the Plateau have yielded some production. The Lakota and Fall River formations, in the area in South Dakota and Wyoming surrounding the Black Hills, have been a source of production for several years.

The Lehigh Coal and Navigation Co. in Eastern Pennsylvania recently announced plans for the production of uranium from a small ore body the company has developed near Mauch Chunk. This will be the first uranium production in the eastern part of the United States.

The Marysvale district of Utah is still the only important source of uranium production from primary vein-type deposits, although deposits of this type also occur throughout the Rocky Mountain area. Active exploration and development are proceeding in several regions, notably the Boulder Batholith of Montana, the Colorado Front Range of Colorado and several isolated points in Arizona, Nevada, and California.

Ore Processing

The discovery and development of several large ore bodies has created a need for additional ore processing facilites on the Colorado Plateau. Ore reserves are now at an alltime high and ore production is expected to exceed the present level of output during the next few years. Ground was broken in January by Kerr-McGee Oil Industries, Inc., for a new ore-processing mill at Shiprock, N. Mex., to treat ores produced in the nearby Lukachukai and Carrizo Mountain areas. The completion of this mill, expected late this year, will bring to 9 the number of mills currently in operation on the Colorado Plateau. Construction by the Anaconda Copper Mining Co. of an additional milling unit to treat sandstone-type ores produced in the Grants, N. Mex., area commenced in May. The existing plant at Bluewater, N. Mex., for limestone-type ores was completed by Anaconda last September and now is in full operation.

Additional new mills are planned to treat the ores of the Big Indian Wash district in the vicinity of Moab, the ore from the Jo Dandy ore body near Bedrock, Colo., and to treat the White Canyon ores at Hite, Utah. Construction of these mills is expected to commence this year. Expansion of existing facilities is being considered by Vanadium Corp. of America, by Climax Uranium Co., and by Vitro Uranium Co. The Commission also plans to expand its Monticello, Utah, mill to treat the various types of ore mined in that region.

The AEC, in May, established a provisional uranium ore-buying station at Moab, Utah, to provide a market for ores produced in the Big Indian Wash area, while a new crushing and automatic sampling plant, to be completed later this year, is under construction. This will also build up a stockpile of ore for the projected mill at Moab. Construction was also commenced, in June, on an ore-buying station, to be completed in August, in White Canyon, 15 miles east of Hite, Utah, to encourage ore production in that area. The stations will be operated for the Commission by the American Smelting and Refining Co., which operates the Commission's ore-buying depots at Monticello and Marysvale, Utah, Shiprock, N. Mex., and Edgemont, S. Dak. Improved equipment was installed at the Edgemont station to accommodate the handling of railroad shipments from distant points in Wyoming and from other areas.

Uranium From Phosphate

In April and May the third and fourth plants for byproduct recovery of uranium from Florida phosphate rock were completed by the International Minerals and Chemical Corp. at Bartow, Fla., and by the Virginia-Carolina Chemical Corp. at Nichols, Fla. These plants will begin continuous production shortly. The Commission is negotiating with several other phosphate chemical firms for the construction of additional facilities for this purpose.

Uranium Leases

On January 29, the Commission issued Domestic Uranium Program Circular 7, providing for the issuance of uranium mining leases on certain public lands covered by oil and gas leases issued under mineral leasing laws. Such lands are not open to mineral entry under the mining laws. The circular is designed to encourage private companies and individuals to develop and produce uranium bearing ores from these public lands. A large amount of land in the Western United States, where active uranium prospecting is taking place, is covered by such leases. Public Law 250, 83d Congress, signed by the Presi

dent on August 12, 1953, provided means for validating mining locations staked subsequent to July 31, 1939, and prior to January 1, 1953, for uranium on lands covered by oil and gas leases. This statute did not, however, provide for validation of mining locations for uranium on such lands after January 1, 1953. Circular 7 establishes a means for the uranium prospector to produce uranium found on these lands. The leasing program is administered by the Commission's Grand Junction Operations Office.

Land Withdrawals

The Department of the Interior announced early this year that over 105,000 acres of public land in Colorado and Utah, previously withdrawn from public entry for AEC use, had been restored to the public domain. The lands were returned by the Commission because no significant uranium deposits were found there. From time to time the Commission has requested the withdrawal from public entry of lands that are not being actively explored by private interests, which it believes are favorable to uranium exploration and which it wishes to explore. Lands found to contain uranium are leased by AEC for mining as Government-controlled land.

Leases on Government-Controlled Lands

A program for granting leases on uranium-bearing Governmentcontrolled lands has been sponsored by the Commission for several years. The Grand Junction Operations Office of AEC maintains an active file of applicants for leases. As lands become available for leasing, the qualifications of each applicant are considered by a committee of AEC mining engineers and the best qualified applicant is selected as the lessee. To date 41 such leases have been issued. The production from these leases constitutes an important source of ore.

Bonus Program

Under the terms of the Commission's Domestic Uranium Program Circular 6, providing for the payment of a bonus for the production of the initial 10,000 pounds of U3O, (uranium oxide) contained in ores produced from certain eligible uranium mines on the Colorado Plateau, over $3,600,000 has been paid out in bonus awards. These awards ranged from $15,000 to $35,000. Payments have been made to 379 certified mining properties, and some 64 properties have received full benefits under the circular.

FOREIGN PRODUCTION

Production of uranium by various foreign sources continued to increase during early 1954 with newer suppliers becoming more important.

Belgian Congo

The Shinkolobwe mine in the Belgian Congo remained an important source of uranium for the atomic energy program.

Canada

Canada continued to be the center of intensive widespread prospecting activity. Production and deliveries of uranium from the Eldorado mine on Great Bear Lake in the Northwest Territory were according to schedule. This mine operated by the Eldorado Mining and Refining Co., a Crown company-has been a steady source of uranium for the atomic energy program. Eldorado's Ace mill in the Lake Athabaska region of Saskatchewan was in continuous production. A substantial expansion program is planned for completion late this year. Arrangements have been made for treating ore from neighboring mines as well as from Eldorado's properties. Exploration and development activity at a number of other properties in the area may produce additional important discoveries. Gunnar Mines, Ltd., continued developing its deposit in the Lake Athabaska area and planned the construction of a large mill on its property.

Favorable results were obtained from extensive exploration underway in the Blind River area of Ontario. Ore occurs in a conglomerate bed at the base of the Mississagi quartizite, and more than 70 miles of outcrop are being explored by a number of companies. Pronto Uranium Mines, Ltd., is developing a large ore body in this formation near Blind River, and is considering plans for a treatment plant. Algom Uranium Co. is proceeding with development of two promising properties, the Quirke Lake and the Nordic, on other sections of the uranium bearing conglomerate to the north of the Pronto properties.

South Africa

Uranium receipts from South Africa reached important proportions since the start of production in October 1952. The sixth plant to recover uranium on the Witwatersrand, was placed in operation by Randfontein Estates Gold Mining Co. in February. Several addi

tional new plants are scheduled for completion and initial production later this year.

Australia

In South Australia construction of the Port Pirie ore concentrator to treat ore from Radium Hill is expected to be completed late in 1954. Another uranium deposit in this region at Myponga in the Adelaide Hills, 35 miles south of Adelaide, is being explored. At Rum Jungle in the Northern Territory, the White's and Dyson deposits were being developed, and the processing mill under construction is scheduled for completion late this fall. In preparation for the opening of the mill, ore is being produced from both properties and stockpiled by Territory Enterprises Proprietary, Ltd.

DOMESTIC EXPLORATION

During early 1954 exploration activity by the Commission, other Government agencies, and by private mining firms and individuals stood at an alltime high on the Colorado Plateau and elsewhere in the United States.

Drilling

AEC, and the U. S. Geological Survey and Bureau of Mines on behalf of the Commission, drilled approximately 500,000 feet. Drilling by private interests was estimated at an additional 500,000 feet. Government drilling is largely exploratory and investigative, establishing the presence of uranium ore bodies.

Airborne Radioactivity Surveying

Airborne radioactivity surveying was expanded by Government and private exploration groups. This method is used in prospecting broad areas for radioactive deposits. Necessary steps in perfecting this means of prospecting were: the development of highly sensitive scintillation detection equipment; adoption of radar altimeters to correct radioactivity measurements for variations in altitude due to topographic change; and establishment of systematic surveying techniques.

The AEC has already conducted surveys in parts of Arizona, California, Colorado, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming.