--> ABSTRACT: Crow Butte Uranium Deposit, Northwest Nebraska, by Stephen P. Collings and Thor Gjelsteen; #91038 (2010)

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Crow Butte Uranium Deposit, Northwest Nebraska

Stephen P. Collings, Thor Gjelsteen

The Crow Butte uranium deposit is in northwest Nebraska near the town of Crawford and represents the first mineral deposit discovered in Nebraska. The deposit was discovered during the fall of 1980 by the Crow Butte Joint Venture, presently operated by Ferret Exploration Company of Nebraska, Inc. The discovery was made by drilling across oxidation-reduction fronts following regional drilling based on anomalous gamma readings in oil and gas holes. Delineation drilling during 1981 and 1982 indicated over 30 million lb U3O8 with an average grade of over 0.25% U3O8. Additional drilling has extended the Crow Butte mineral trend to the southeast a distance of about 25 mi, and to date over 50 million lb of U3O8 ha e been indicated along this trend.

The Crow Butte deposit is a roll-front deposit within the fluvial Chadron sandstone of Oligocene age. The deposit is contained in the very permeable Chadron sandstone confined between the underlying Cretaceous Pierre Shale and the siltstones and claystones of the overlying upper Chadron and Brule formations.

Following several years of permitting, hearings, and environmental lawsuits, a pilot plant solution mine began operation during July 1986 using a sodium bicarbonate lixiviant with an oxidant of dissolved oxygen. The pilot plant assesses the feasibility of solution mining and evaluates restoration performance. Initial results of the pilot plant are very favorable and indicate the Crow Butte deposit can be developed into a significant commercial operation.

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #91038©1987 AAPG Annual Convention, Los Angeles, California, June 7-10, 1987.