Current Campaign: Stop Uranium Mining in the Black Hills
We love the Black Hills region of South Dakota. Anyone in touch with their senses is struck with the majesty and enchanting charm of these hills and prairies. The land and water are precious, and should be cherished and honored. Some, however, see this beauty and only think about what they can take – what is in that water and ground that can be extracted – how much money is it worth?
A foreign-owned (largely Chinese) corporation, Powertech (one of 8 known uranium companies prospecting the region), is posed to start new uranium mining in the Black Hills near Edgemont. Powertech has applied for the first ever in-situ leach (ISL) uranium mining permits in the state of South Dakota.
A little about the proposed process:
ISL uranium mining is a process of pumping a solution through numerous bore holes to dissolve the uranium and other heavy metals, leaching it out of ore-bearing rock. It is then pumped to the surface to be processed. The waste water would then be either pumped back into the ground and/or spray irrigated over roughly 1,000 acres.
Uranium mining is a boom and bust business, prioritizing short-term extraction and exploitation for foreign gain, over the lives of people and resources.
We can live without uranium. We cannot live without clean water.
Black Hills Chapter Members recently toured the proposed ISL mining site.
Find out more about the proposed uranium mining in the Southern Black Hills on the website of our ally Clean Water Alliance: http://dakotarural.org/organize-chapters-committees/chapters/black-hills-chapter/
Take Action!
Sign our petition asking SD Tourism Secretary James Hagen to take a stand against the proposed Dewey Burdock uranium mine in the Southern Black Hills and protect South Dakota’s reputation as a tourist destination. Then please share the petition with your friends.:http://org2.salsalabs.com/o/5706/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=13710
