A federal appeals court has revived a challenge to a company's right to mine uranium near the Grand Canyon.
An Obama-era decision prohibits new mining claims on roughly 1,562-square miles outside the park through 2032. But it doesn't keep uranium companies with grandfathered claims from developing them.
Because of that part of the decision, the Forest Service decided that a mining company has the right to mine near the South Rim of the canyon.
Environmental groups and the Havasupai Tribe challenged the Forest Service's determination in a lawsuit. The U.S. District Court in Arizona originally ruled the tribe and conservation groups had no standing in the case and the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals agreed.
However, another federal appeals court reversed that decision. It said the tribe and the groups' claims need to be decided on merit.