By Charlie Campbell / Sainshand, MongoliaA worker tends to synthetic resin tanks at the Zuuvch-Ovoo uranium mine in the Gobi Desert.he Gobi Desert, once revered by Mongolian poet Dulduityn Danzanravjaa as hiding a cosmic portal to the heavenly kingdom of Shambala, was transformed in the 20th century from spiritual energy center to fossil-fuel hub.
legislation to curb this supply, though experts predict that it will take at least five years of heavy investment for the U.S. to break its Russian uranium dependency.Nanna Heitmann—Magnum Photos for TIME “I’m confident that we will have a successful cooperation with Orano,” Mongolian Prime Minister Oyun-Erdene Luvsannamsrai tells TIME. “But it is important for us to have public acceptance so that the project can be legitimate among the people of Mongolia.”
But it helps that Zuuvch-Ovoo is far from a conventional mine. The uranium deposit lies some two to five miles below the surface and is sandwiched between two thick layers of clay. This distinct geography allows in situ recovery, or ISR, a leaching process during which acidified water is pumped deep to the deposit via narrow, vertical tubes. The acid dissolves the uranium before being retrieved at the surface via a network of outlet pipes.
A herder catches a horse to be sold by the family of Munksuuri Dambadarjaa, whose traditional grazing lands are some of the closest to Zuuvch-Ovoo.Nuclear power and the mining projects necessary to fuel it will always have detractors. However, the Gobi’s increasingly problematic winters have inadvertently served as a propaganda tool. During the harsh season, herders now bring their animals to the plant’s gates to ask if they can shelter inside.
Recent experience also makes mining a contentious topic in domestic Mongolian politics, especially as parliamentary elections approach in June. “Resource development is probably the biggest dilemma that we’re facing as a country,” says Amarjin Nemekhbayar, an adviser to the chairman of the opposition Democratic Party of Mongolia. As commodity prices soared in the early 2000s, Mongolia briefly became the, earning the sobriquet “Mine-golia.