VaNews Monday, December 3, 2012
A service of the nonpartisan Virginia Public Access Project
compiled by Sue Lindsey
compiled by Sue Lindsey
STATE GOVERNMENT
SIDES SPLIT ON VALUE OF URANIUM-MINING REPORT
By REX SPRINGSTONRichmond Times-Dispatch
The two sides in Virginia’s uranium-mining debate differ on the value of a report Gov. Bob McDonnell released Friday. The $1.2 million, 104-page report of McDonnell’s uranium-mining study group lays out ways to regulate mining, but it makes no recommendations on whether Virginia’s 30-year ban on mining uranium should be lifted.
VIRGINIA URANIUM-MINING GUIDELINES PROPOSED
By ERRIN HAINESWashington Post
The Virginia group tasked with proposing guidelines for how the country’s largest known uranium deposit should be safely mined if lawmakers lift a permitting ban said in its report to legislators Friday that there are many steps to go before uranium mining would be a reality in the state. The Uranium Working Group, made up of staff from Virginia’s Department of Health, Department of Environmental Quality, and Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy, studied the issue for nearly a year and held several public meetings. Its report explores what a regulatory framework could look like if the General Assembly were to lift a 30-year moratorium on uranium-mining permits — in place until regulations are established.
REPORT: VA. URANIUM REGULATION COULD COST $5M A YEAR
By JULIAN WALKER AND SCOTT HARPERVirginian-Pilot
If the ban on uranium mining is overturned in Virginia next year, the state would have to create a new regulatory program and hire as many as 30 people to run it, according to a report released Friday. Prepared by the Uranium Working Group, a collection of mostly government experts assembled by Gov. Bob McDonnell, the report says program costs could approach $5 million annually.
URANIUM COMPANY SEES VICTORY; OPPONENTS SAY REPORT DOESN’T ADDRESS ISSUES
By MARY BETH JACKSONDanville Register & Bee (Modified Pay Wall)
Virginia Uranium Inc. is taking Friday’s release of the Uranium Working Group’s report as a victory. The report creates a draft regulatory framework in case Virginia’s moratorium on uranium mining is lifted. The 125-page report examines the regulatory structure that would be required to oversee uranium mining, various public health issues and the long-term storage of radioactive-laced rock that would be stored on site for generations.
WORKING GROUP OUTLINES URANIUM OVERSIGHT
By MICHAEL SLUSSRoanoke Times
A working group created by Gov. Bob McDonnell has outlined a proposed regulatory program for uranium mining in a report that could help the General Assembly decide whether to lift a state moratorium on the activity. The issue is set to be one of the more significant of next year's legislative session.
URANIUM PANEL DIGS INTO TECHNICAL MINING ISSUES
Associated Press
A multi-agency group studying the possibility of uranium mining in Virginia issued a highly technical report Friday to guide the General Assembly if it decides to end the state’s 30-year ban on the mining of the radioactive ore. The report does not make a recommendation on whether the General Assembly should end the mining ban.
FEDERAL BUDGET CUTS WOULD FORCE VA. TO SLASH
ECONOMY/BUSINESS
VIRGINIA AMONG 3 STATES TO AUCTION WIND FARM LEASES
By SCOTT HARPERVirginian-Pilot
Virginia, Massachusetts and Rhode Island will be the first three states to sell leases for the right to develop offshore wind farms, U.S. government officials said Friday. The leases will be auctioned online, probably in the first half of 2013, according to the U.S. Department of the Interior, the federal agency overseeing the sales.
By STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS
Richmond Times-Dispatch
The federal government plans to sell leases for wind farms off the coasts of Virginia and two other states, marking the first time it has sold competitive leases for wind energy on the outer continental shelf. Richmond-based Dominion Virginia Power continues to be interested in getting a lease for an area about 27 miles off the southern part of the state.
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