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solve the uranium. The water is then pumped back to the surface, and the uranium is extracted and sold to nuclear power plants. Powertech officials say the method will not pollute groundwater.
• "It is the most benign form of mineral extraction there is, in my opinion," project manager Mark Hollenbeck said Monday at the state Board of Minerals and Environment hearing in Rapid City. "We're not doing huge, open pits. We're not de-watering the aquifer."
• Thomas Cook, a Nebraska man who says a uranium mine near Chadron has polluted one of his wells, said the health risks are too great.

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