Comments: Why is the State of Va pushing uranium mining since the NAS Study proves uranium mining cannot be done safely in Virginia? I believe the Virginia's governor has his mind set on mining from day one just for the purpose of greed and gave the jobs to other departments like DEQ (please read their emails below): "McDonnell cast the mining, if done safely, as a benefit to the state in jobs and tax income. "It will be a tremendous number of jobs, tax revenues and opportunities to support the nuclear industry," he said. "So if it can be done safely then I'm all for it, if it can't then we're going to have to take another course." So was the gov of VA course the whole time was to write regulations for the uranium mining and waste millions more dollars because the NAS study did not come out the way the uranium mining group thought??!!! Tell the governor to stop wasting taxpayers monies on writing regulations for the uranium mining industry and to enact a Permanent Uranium Mining Ban because radiation kills, pure and simple!
Subject: RE: Consulting Services to study uranium mining and milling in Virginia relevant to potential regulations for air, water, and waste impactsDate: Tue, 28 Feb 2012 08:29:00 -0500
State procurement rules prohibit making the procurement meetings public. The Agency Procurement and Surplus Property Manual states in paragraph 3.17.d:
�Bids and proposal records shall be open to the public only after award.�
These rules are designed to ensure that the Commonwealth gets the best possible value and to ensure that the selection process cannot be challenge by firms that are not awarded the contract.
Thank you for your comments.
From: " (DEQ)"
Subject: FW: Consulting Services to study uranium mining and milling in Virginia relevant to potential regulations for air, water, and waste impactsDate: Mon, 27 Feb 2012 14:54:07 -0500
We do not know how much the consulting will costs. As a practice we do notput a cost figure out in advance, since there is a good chance that the proposals will all come in at that amount. We will take great care to ensure that the Commonwealth gets good value. Once the contract is awarded that information will be made public. Inaddition, presentations and updates will be made on a routine basis at public meetings of the Uranium Subcommittee of the Coal and Energy Commission, with an opportunity for public comment.
By Julian Walker
The Virginian-Pilot
February 28, 2012
RICHMOND
Virginia is moving ahead with further study of uranium mining as Gov. Bob McDonnell called for last month when he asked lawmakers to put off lifting a long-standing mining moratorium.
The state Department of Environmental Quality issued a solicitation Feb. 17 for "consulting services to study uranium mining and milling in Virginia relevant to potential regulations for air, water, and waste impacts."
A state official said the solicitation is being revised. It's unclear how much will be spent on the consultant.
"We are still assessing how much may be needed," said Taylor Thornley, a spokeswoman for McDonnell.
"Most of the costs will be absorbed within the state agencies involved," she said, adding that Virginia hopes to rely on existing personnel or hire someone to assist with the assessment.
Any additional cost will likely be covered with state economic contingency funds, she added.
Lisa Guthrie, executive director of the Virginia League of Conservation Voters, which also wants to keep the ban, questioned the timing and cost of the move.
She suggested that study-related fees could run into the millions at a time when Virginia finds itself in a bitter budget battle.
She said she asked several legislators to offer budget amendments prohibiting any state funding for the advancement of uranium mining, but none was offered in the House.
The uranium debate was shaping up to be a dominant issue in the General Assembly this winter when McDonnell asked legislators "not to take any action this session to allow us time to further evaluate the law and science concerning the mining of uranium, so that the legislature can make well-informed policy decisions in the future."
He asked for a study of the Coles Hill site in Pittsylvania County, which is thought to hold one of the largest uranium deposits in North America.
The naturally occurring radioactive properties in the ore and its waste, known as tailings, worry environmentalists and local leaders because they remain radioactive for hundreds of years.
They fear that waste could contaminate Lake Gaston, which supplies drinking water for Virginia Beach, Chesapeake and Norfolk, among other locales.
Julian Walker, 804-697-1564, julian.walker@pilotonline.com
http://hamptonroads.com/2012/02/state-seeks-proposals-study-uranium-mining
