State's Ban on Uranium Mining Upheld by U.S. Supreme Court

Route Fifty: A federal atomic energy law does not override Virginia’s state ban on uranium mining, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 on Monday, with half of the justices in the majority taking a skeptical stance on judicial inquiries into the motivations state legislators have for passing laws.

Virginia Uranium, Inc. v. Warren pitted companies that want to mine a massive deposit of uranium beneath the ground in Pittsylvania County, near Virginia’s southern border, against the state. Virginia lawmakers first approved a ban on uranium mining in 1982.

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