Oh, no, Mabry Mill will be blown up for uranium!
Comment: Yes, Virginia, uranium leases (which has expired) is located all over VA! So if the ban on uranium mining is lifted in VA, the uranium corporations (Canada, France, and Australia) will be blowing up our hills for the poison element! No to U mining and milling! Thanks again, Ms. Maute!
November 9, 2010
Thank you for allowing me to address the Floyd County Board of Supervisors during your November 9, 2010 meeting. My husband and I reside in Pittsylvania County near Danville, Virginia. We visit Floyd County often and have met so many wonderful folks here.
We'd like to spend more time in Floyd County and perhaps retire here in the future.
I have great concern that the Virginia Coal and Energy Commission, Virginia Uranium, Inc. and some members of the General Assembly are laying the groundwork lifting the state ban on uranium mining. Will Floyd County be mined if the ban is lifted?
What can you do:
1. Pass a resolution which strongly states your opposition to lifting the ban on uranium mining and consult with counsel to determine how best to protect Floyd County from uranium mining
2. Contact legislators to demand the ban on uranium mining remain in effect and ask others to do the same.
3. Appoint a citizen committee to gather information and conduct research regarding potential impacts to Floyd County if uranium mining was to occur. Do not depend on others to guide you. Inform yourselves.
I met with Floyd County Administrator Campbell and Supervisor Gardner several weeks ago in order to discuss uranium mining and milling in Virginia. Both were very knowledgeable regarding the situation and I appreciated the opportunity to discuss if and how Floyd County might avoid the negative impacts of uranium mining.
How might Floyd County protect its citizen's health, water supply, livelihoods from uranium mining?
Much attention has been recently focused on the Pittsylvania County Coles Hill Deposit being explored by a company called Virginia Uranium, Inc. Virginia Uranium is extremely politically connected and well funded which adds to concern that the ban will be lifted due to cronyism and corruption.
If the current ban is lifted, Virginia Uranium, Inc. will definitely mine and mill uranium in the region. (Approximately 62,000 acres of uranium leases were in held in Virginia by a company named Marline in the 1980s. VUI is its reincarnate.)
If the current ban on uranium mining is lifted, much of Virginia will be open for exploration and, if profitable, mining...by any number of companies.
It appears uranium is abundant in Virginia. The groundwork for mining is currently being laid out in Richmond. The studies that are being conducted at the request of the Coal and Energy Commission had deadlines before the parameters of the studies had been determined. Rushing the study results benefits the industry which is hopeful that the General Assembly will lift the moratorium as early as the 2012 session. The C&EC studies appear to be a diversion, giving the illusion of study while lobbying for regulations occurs.
Have your citizens had the opportunity to comment on any of these studies or engage in debate regarding the lifting of the current moratorium? Were your citizens informed of a comment period for the National Academy of Science study regarding uranium mining in Virginia?
Is Floyd County going to be considered in the Virginia Socio-economic study? No. If you do not wish to be mined NOW is the time to make it known. You must get your proverbial "ducks in a row".
A news article from 1978 states that uranium leases were sought in Floyd and Patrick Counties by Chevron Resources; a subsidiary of Standard Oil. Those leases would not have been sought if there was no uranium to be mined. Uranium is in areas other than Pittsylvania County. Are these deposits economically viable? Only exploration will tell and exploration has potential negative impacts too.
There is much to lose if uranium mining occurs in or near Floyd County.
*Uranium mineral leases will be sought and obtained. Distrust will occur between neighbors.
*The prospect of exploring these leases will affect existing property values, tourism, area livestock, dairy and poultry farmers, organic farming industry, and wine producers.
*Uranium Exploration and subsequent mining will affect all of the above plus fishing, hunting hiking and recreation.
What is left? Just the mining and milling of uranium.
It would be nice to think (selfishly) that I had a "fall-back plan" of moving to Floyd County if uranium is mined at Coles Hill. However, there's no guarantee that you or I would escape the negative impacts of uranium mining and milling here in Floyd County if the ban on uranium mining is lifted in Virginia.
My supervisors in Pittsylvania County are mute on the issue. Why? I don't know. I can only speculate that the promise of Virginia becoming the "Energy Capital of the East Coast" has blinded them to anything other than making sure that occurs. They appear to listen to no one but Virginia Uranium, Inc., Babcox and Wilcox, Areva, a handful of local investors and the Coal and Energy Commission.
Floyd County is fortunate that you have an interest in securing a safe future and a diverse economy for them. Please join in the effort to keep the ban on uranium mining in Virginia.
In closing I wish to once again encourage you to:
1. Pass a resolution which strongly states your opposition to lifting the ban on uranium mining and consult with counsel to determine how best to protect Floyd County from uranium mining
2. Contact legislators to demand the ban on uranium mining remain in effect and ask others to do the same.
3. Appoint a citizen committee to gather information and conduct research regarding potential impacts to Floyd County if uranium mining was to occur. Do not depend on others to guide you. Inform yourselves.
Karen Maute
