Rulison 1989362 224030149 2008-07-07T00:23:46Z Lightbot 7178666 Units/dates/other '''Project Rulison''', named after the rural community of [[Rulison, Colorado]], was a 43-[[kiloton]]<!-- a recent news report says 43 kt --> [[nuclear test]] project in the [[United States]] on [[September 10]], [[1969]], about 8 miles SE of the town of Grand Valley, Colorado (now named [[Parachute, Colorado]]) near western [[Colorado]]'s [[Grand Valley (Colorado)|Grand Valley]] in [[Garfield County, Colorado|Garfield County]]. The U. S. Dept. of Energy lists its location as 39 21' 21.6"N 107 56' 56.4"W. It was part of the [[Operation Mandrel]] weapons test series as well as the [[Operation Plowshare]] project which explored uses of nuclear explosions. The peaceful aim of Project Rulison was to determine if [[natural gas]] could be easily liberated from underground regions. After the test, the natural gas that was extracted was determined to be too [[radioactivity|radioactive]] to be sold commercially. The surface of the site began to be cleaned up by the [[United States Department of Energy|Department of Energy]] in the 1970s, and was completed in 1998. A [[buffer zone]] put in place by the state of Colorado still exists around the area. A January 2005 report by the DOE stated that radioactivity levels were normal at the surface and in [[groundwater]], though a later report due in 2007 is expected to more fully explore if there is subsurface contamination and whether or not radioactivity is still spreading outward from the blast site itself. The [[Houston, Texas]]-based company [[Presco]] is seeking to drill for natural gas within the buffer zone as of June 2005, putting in as many as four wells. The company had initially received approval to drill one well, but the county dropped its support when more extensive plans were revealed. The only other nuclear test to take place in Colorado, 1973's [[Rio Blanco (nuclear test)|Project Rio Blanco]] ([[39 47' 34.8"N 108 22' 04.8"W]]), also had similar aims. ==External links== *[http://www.nv.doe.gov/library/publications/Environmental/DOENV_950.pdf Rulison Site Environmental Management End State Vision] &ndash; January 2005 DOE report ([[Portable Document Format|PDF]]) ==References== [[Category:American nuclear explosive tests]]