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Salazar to shelter 1M acres from mining

WASHINGTON, July 20 (UPI) -- Nearly 1 million acres near the Grand Canyon will be ineligible for new uranium mining claims for two years, U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said Monday.

"I am calling a two-year 'time-out' from all new mining claims in the Arizona Strip near the Grand Canyon because we have a responsibility to ensure we are developing our nation's resources in a way that protects local communities, treasured landscapes and our watersheds," Salazar said in a news release.

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During the two-year moratorium, the Interior Department will collect data and evaluate whether the land should be withdrawn from new mining claims for an additional 20 years, the secretary said.

The lands, which contain significant uranium deposits, include 633,547 acres managed by Interior's Bureau of Land Management and 360,002 acres managed by the U.S. Forest Service. The acreage is within part of the Grand Canyon watershed next to Grand Canyon National Park in northern Arizona and contain significant environmental and cultural resources, the Interior Department said.

A notice published in Monday's Federal Register initiated a 90-day public comment period on the proposed withdrawal and segregation. The Federal Land Policy and Management Act permits lands proposed for withdrawal to be segregated immediately for up to two years while a decision on the withdrawal is being made, the department said.

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