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November 13, 2024
Location: SB 145
Time: 12:00 pm
Presenter: Mark Harvey
Spatial Statistical Analysis of Survey Data from a Former Uranium Mine in Texas
Abstract:
A former in-situ recovery uranium mine in Texas was decommissioned following restricted authorizations from the State. However, the license was revoked in 2003 due to payment negligence related to regulatory decommissioning compliance leading to a legal dispute between the State of Texas and the licensee. In the interim, a State of Texas agency contracted a survey and remediation of the site to address potential environmental concerns. The purpose of this study was to use spatial statistics techniques to predict the locations of any remaining radioactive hotspots at the site that exceed regulatory limits. The results of the analysis indicate a significant reduction in the number of residual radioactive hotspots following the remediation activities. However, the study also identified targeted locations where further soil remediation may be necessary to ensure the site’s safety for unrestricted use. This comprehensive spatial analysis has provided valuable information to inform the state regulatory decision-making process regarding the future of this former in-situ leach uranium mine site. The findings support efforts to ensure the safe and sustainable reuse of such sites.
Dr. Mark C. Harvey received a B.S. degree in physics from Virginia State University (Petersburg, VA). He completed his graduate studies in physics at Hampton University (Hampton, VA) where he earned his M.S. in physics and Ph.D. in experimental nuclear physics. Dr. Harvey’s doctoral research experiment in medium energy nuclear physics was carried out at the National Institute for Nuclear and High Energy Physics in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. After earning his doctoral degree, Dr. Harvey became a postdoctoral research assistant in the PHENIX collaboration at the Brookhaven National Laboratory (Upton, NY) in relativistic heavy ion collision physics. After completing his postdoc at Brookhaven, Dr. Harvey taught introductory physics courses for one year at the Rochester Institute of Technology (Rochester, NY), before returning to research as a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center (Houston, TX). Currently, he is a professor of physics in the Department of Physics at Texas Southern University.
Light lunch will be served.
