Uranium waste is relatively weak, but it is still radioactive and therefore toxic. That is why scientist always look for ways to neutralize that is clean up the uranium once it combines with water, whether it is from natural ore deposits that leach into groundwater, the spent uranium fuel from nuclear facilities or the remains from uranium mining. The half life of uranium is very long: 4.47 billion years for uranium 238 and 704 million years for uranium 235.

That’s why nuclear waste can be present for a long , long time. Also, it is costly to keep leftover uranium. Unfortunately, uranium a heavy metal that has the highest atomic weight among the naturally occurring elements forms a stable bond with the two oxygen atoms of water. This very strong uranyl ion combination, which dissolves easily in water, makes it very hard to separate uranium from the water.