Processing & Milling Sites
Sites where mined uranium is milled and/or otherwise processed for use in nuclear weapons and other nuclear facilities.
Total sites since 1942
- 46 Sites
At a glance
Once extracted from mines, uranium ore is transported to a milling and processing facility to be turned into powdered uranium oxide concentrate, known as yellowcake. This involves crushing the ore, then extracting the uranium through chemical leaching. The yellowcake can then be transported to a uranium enrichment facility for additional processing until it becomes usable for nuclear weapons. Milling and leaching leave behind a massive amount of radioactive and toxic waste, mostly in two forms: tailings (solid waste) and raffinates (liquid waste).
Why you should care
Like uranium miners, workers at milling and processing sites were recklessly exposed to dangerous radioactive material and other toxins without protection from the government. This injustice spurred advocacy that led to the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA), which Congress passed in 1990, and expanded in 2000 and 2025.
