Testing NM residents for uranium exposure

"An assessment of human exposure to uranium has been launched by the New Mexico Department of Health with 101 local volunteers participating in exposure testing...The agency's Environmental Health Epidemiology Bureau is attempting to characterize this potential exposure because current scientific literature suggests a relationship between uranium exposure via ingestion and kidney function. The kidneys are most sensitive to the mineral, but the victim may also experience diminished bone growth and osteoporosis after prolonged exposure. There is also growing concern about the negative effects of uranium on the nervous system." see the June 21 Cibola Beacon story.

Whistleblower claims uranium workers exposed to unsafe radiation levels

A company whistleblower claims that mining giant BHP Billiton is risking the lives of employees at Olympic Dam mine in South Australia. Of particular concern is the radioisotope, polonium-210 which is leathal in very small doses, as small as the weight of a butterfly wing scale. Polonium-210 was used to murder Alexader Litvinenko, a Soviet intelligence operative, in 2006. Workers at Olympic Dam are exposed to polonium-210 because it is a decay product of uranium. The full story is in the June 4 issue of The Independent Weekly.