Australia – Media Release: Uranium mining a black hole for Labor

Uranium mining a black hole for Labor

Media Release – Friday, February 4th, 2011

The Australian Greens have urged Resources Minister Martin Ferguson to abandon his support for uranium mining.

Greens spokesperson for nuclear affairs, Senator for Western Australia Scott Ludlam, said that with or without nuclear power generation in Australia, uranium mining itself was an environmental menace.

“Uranium mines are at risk of seeping radioactive material into underlying groundwater as heavy rainfall can lead to the material escaping from containment sumps. In 2009 a government-appointed scientist confirmed the Ranger uranium mine in Kakadu National Park was leaking 100,000 litres of contaminated water into the ground beneath the park on a daily basis,” he said. “There have been more than 150 leaks, spills, and license breaches at the mine since it opened in 1981.

“In 2002 there was a leak of 62,000 litres of radioactive fluid at Beverley mine followed by a separate leak of 6000 litres of a uranium-bearing brine solution. That same year a leak at Olympic Dam in South Australia released more than 420,000 litres of uranium mining slurry. No uranium mine site in history has been successfully rehabilitated.”

Senator Ludlam said uranium mining is also unsafe for mine workers and for people living near the mines and transport routes.

“Mine workers can develop lung cancer due to internal exposure to alpha radiation and other delayed cancers and genetic effects due to all forms of ionising radiation,” he said. “And if a truck carrying uranium drums crashes, those drums can break apart and release uranium powder into the immediate and surrounding land area. In 2009 a truck headed for the Kakadu National park carrying 17,000 litres of sulphuric acid to be used in mining rolled over and spilled the contaminant.”

Senator Ludlam added that uranium mining also consumed vast amounts of water.

“In 2007 the Roxby Downs mine in South Australia was using 35 million litres of water on a daily basis,” he said.

Senator Ludlam said he was heartened that Minister Ferguson said wind, solar, geothermal, biomass and tidal power should be prioritised before nuclear power generation in Australia, but urged him to recognise that uranium mining itself was an environmental dead end.

Media Contact: Giovanni Torre