Groups oppose Colorado uranium mill

MOAB (AP) — Two Utah conservation groups are fighting a proposed uranium mill in western Colorado.

Moab-based groups Red Rock Forests and Living Rivers are challenging the company's application to pump groundwater from the Delores River basin.

The Delores is a 250-mile tributary of the Colorado River that drains into Utah.

Energy Fuels Resources LLC needs the water to process uranium ore. It wants to build the mill a dozen miles west of Naturita, Colo.

The project is under evaluation by the Colorado Department of Health and Environment. It could take the agency 18 months to make a decision.

Red Rock Forests and Living Rivers filed their challenges Tuesday.

Living Rivers conservation director John Weisheit says the Delores River is one of the West's most scenic and a popular river for whitewater rafting.