The Navajo Nation and Energy Fuels Inc., the owner of the White Mesa Mill in Blanding, have reached an agreement for the future transport of uranium ore across the reservation into Utah.

The Navajo Nation lacks uranium-specific emergency plans as multiple agencies struggle to coordinate response for nuclear shipments.

After six months of negotiations, an agreement is in place. Uranium ore hauling will resume before the end of February, according to Curtis Moore, Energy Fuel's senior vice president for

A Navajo Nation official said the agreement with the company, which began the transports over objections by the tribe and local governments last year, was in in the tribe's "best interest" instead of a legal battle.

Shipments of uranium ore from a revived mining operation just south of the Grand Canyon are expected to resume in February after the Navajo Nation reached a settlement with the mining company, clearing the way for trucks to transport the ore across the largest Native American reservation in the U.

Colorado-based Energy Fuels will enhance some of its safety standards for shipping uranium from its mine near Grand Canyon National Park through the Navajo Nation, to its processing plant in southern Utah.