Lt. gov. announces opposition to uranium mining
Friday - 12/14/2012, 1:27pm ET
By STEVE SZKOTAK
Associated Press
Associated Press
RICHMOND, Va. - Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling announced his opposition Friday to uranium mining and milling in Virginia, citing the potential to slow business and job growth in Southside Virginia and concerns about its environmental impact.The announcement, delivered in Danville with business leaders, is significant because Bolling is Gov. Bob McDonnell's jobs creation chief and proponents of mining have cited its potential to create hundreds of jobs. He also casts the tie-breaking vote in the Virginia Senate. The General Assembly is expected to take up the state's 30-year ban on uranium mining in the 2013 session.
Bolling, a Republican, said he has followed the fierce debate over uranium mining and has "come to the conclusion that the Virginia General Assembly should maintain the ban on uranium mining and milling in Virginia."
"First, I am concerned that removing this ban could have a chilling impact on our efforts to recruit new business, industry and jobs to southern Virginia, and it could also have a harmful impact on numerous existing businesses in the region," Bolling said in prepared remarks provided to The Associated Press. Mining, he said, could undermine efforts to revitalize a Southside economy that has suffered amid the decline of tobacco, furniture manufacturing and textiles
http://www.wtop.com/41/3157329/Lt-gov-announces-opposition-to-uranium-mining-
Proposed uranium mine: Buried treasure or hidden threat to N.C. water?
- McClatchy Newspapers
Bolling, a Republican, said he has followed the fierce debate over uranium mining and has "come to the conclusion that the Virginia General Assembly should maintain the ban on uranium mining and milling in Virginia."
"First, I am concerned that removing this ban could have a chilling impact on our efforts to recruit new business, industry and jobs to southern Virginia, and it could also have a harmful impact on numerous existing businesses in the region," Bolling said in prepared remarks provided to The Associated Press. Mining, he said, could undermine efforts to revitalize a Southside economy that has suffered amid the decline of tobacco, furniture manufacturing and textiles
http://www.wtop.com/41/3157329/Lt-gov-announces-opposition-to-uranium-mining-
Proposed uranium mine: Buried treasure or hidden threat to N.C. water?
- McClatchy Newspapers
CHATHAM, Va. -- Beneath an estate that’s been farmed by the Coles family since just after the Revolutionary War lies the nation’s largest untapped uranium deposit, a potential $10 billion bonanza amid rolling hills, oak trees, pastures and a historic plantation home.
The radioactive treasure in the Blue Ridge foothills is pitting neighbor against neighbor and North Carolinians against Virginians.
North Carolina is only about 20 miles from the proposed uranium mine and residents, public officials and lawmakers there worry that a catastrophic release of radioactive waste could poison Kerr Lake, the drinking water source for more than 118,000 North Carolinians, as well as contaminate the fishing- and recreation-rich Roanoke River as far east as Pamlico Sound. My concern is the catastrophic impact it could have on North Carolina’s water, and it could be major,” said state Rep. Mitch Gillespie, a McDowell County Republican. “This is brand new for North Carolina.” The city of Virginia Beach, which gets water from Lake Gaston, also is raising alarms about risk to its drinking water. Virginia dairy farmers who live near the mine site wonder who’ll want to buy milk that comes from pastures near a massive uranium mine. “It’s going to ruin this area,” said Bill Needy, a 57-year-old Chatham farmer.North Carolina protests Opposition in North Carolina has spread from towns near the potentially affected areas to the state capital. Several dozen towns, counties and economic groups have passed resolutions in opposition, including Henderson, Creedmoor and the Roanoke River Mayors Association]]]But the delegate who represents the area with the proposed mine site, Republican Don Merricks, says there are too many unanswered questions to allow it. Republican Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling, the job creation czar for Virginia’s governor, announced Dec. 14 that he also opposes ending the uranium ban. “If something did go wrong, the impact of that could be catastrophic,” he said. “Environmentally speaking, the risks of proceeding with this operation outweigh the benefit.” http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/12/25/2565848/proposed-uranium-mine-buried-treasure.html
The radioactive treasure in the Blue Ridge foothills is pitting neighbor against neighbor and North Carolinians against Virginians.
North Carolina is only about 20 miles from the proposed uranium mine and residents, public officials and lawmakers there worry that a catastrophic release of radioactive waste could poison Kerr Lake, the drinking water source for more than 118,000 North Carolinians, as well as contaminate the fishing- and recreation-rich Roanoke River as far east as Pamlico Sound. My concern is the catastrophic impact it could have on North Carolina’s water, and it could be major,” said state Rep. Mitch Gillespie, a McDowell County Republican. “This is brand new for North Carolina.” The city of Virginia Beach, which gets water from Lake Gaston, also is raising alarms about risk to its drinking water. Virginia dairy farmers who live near the mine site wonder who’ll want to buy milk that comes from pastures near a massive uranium mine. “It’s going to ruin this area,” said Bill Needy, a 57-year-old Chatham farmer.North Carolina protests Opposition in North Carolina has spread from towns near the potentially affected areas to the state capital. Several dozen towns, counties and economic groups have passed resolutions in opposition, including Henderson, Creedmoor and the Roanoke River Mayors Association]]]But the delegate who represents the area with the proposed mine site, Republican Don Merricks, says there are too many unanswered questions to allow it. Republican Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling, the job creation czar for Virginia’s governor, announced Dec. 14 that he also opposes ending the uranium ban. “If something did go wrong, the impact of that could be catastrophic,” he said. “Environmentally speaking, the risks of proceeding with this operation outweigh the benefit.” http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/12/25/2565848/proposed-uranium-mine-buried-treasure.html
Wednesday, Dec. 26, 2012
NRA panel looks to distribute iodine tablets to households near Japan's nuclear plants
Kyodo
A panel under the Nuclear Regulation Authority agreed in principle Tuesday to distribute iodine tablets to households living close to nuclear power plants.
Herring Opposes Lifting Ban on Uranium Mining
Senator Mark Herring (Loudoun & Fairfax) released the following statement today announcing his opposition to legislation that would lift the ban on uranium mining and milling in Virginia:
“Over the past year, I’ve had the opportunity to meet with interested stakeholders on both sides of the debate over whether to end the ban on uranium mining and milling in Virginia. I have carefully considered their positions, as well as the scientific evidence, and I have concluded that ending the ban on uranium mining and milling is not the right course for our Commonwealth.
http://loudoundemocrats.org/
Feeling The Heat On Uranium Mining In Virginia
Jessie Thomas-Blate, Coordinator, Most Endangered Rivers
December 21, 2012
Uranium mining is a hot topic right now in Virginia. You might remember that American Rivers listed the Roanoke River as one of America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2011 due to a proposed uranium mine. Since that time, the Virginia legislature has been talking about whether or not to lift a 30-year ban on uranium mining in Virginia.
Recently, the Virginia Pilot’s Editorial Board issued a clear and concise summary of recent activity with this issue. Their ultimate conclusion is key— that the local taxpayers will ultimately have to shoulder the burden of maintaining the radioactive waste from this mine in perpetuity. Thirty years or so of mine production is not worth thousands of years of radioactive waste maintenance. The Roanoke Times Editorial Board agrees.
Similarly, the Danville Pittsylvania County Chamber of Commerce recently voiced their opposition to lifting the ban, as did Lieutenant Governor Bill Bolling.
Opposition to the mine has even starting flowing in from across the border, as the
North Carolina General Assembly’s Environmental Review Commission sent a letter to the Governor of Virginia on December 13 outlining its reasons for opposing the lifting of the mining ban.
These entities join the already extensive list of groups who oppose lifting the ban on uranium mining in Virginia.
The Governor’s Uranium Mining Working Group recently reported its findings on regulatory needs associated with potentially lifting the uranium mining ban. The list included basically everything because the state has no regulatory structure in place for this type of industrial development.
Virginia Uranium Inc. will continue to lobby the Virginia General Assembly to end the state's 30-year moratorium on uranium mining. Sen. John Watkins (R-Midlothian) says he will sponsor legislation during the upcoming session to end the ban.
The fight is not over.
http://www.americanrivers.org/newsroom/blog/jblate-20121221-feeling-the-heat-on-uranium-mining-in-virginia.html
Oppose uranium to preserve heritage
To the editor:
On Oct. 31, 2011, the Virginia State Chapter of the NAACP voted to keep the ban on uranium mining in Virginia
Environmental justice is a civil and social issue which affects us all. “Silent Spring” by Rachael Carson, spoke of industrial pollution. Uranium mining is perhaps the worse form in that it is the gift that that keeps on giving thousands of years after mining has finished.
Economic development without regard to the environmental impact has deadly implications. It is our children who are the most at risk to pollution. One drink of water laced with uranium and that child is subject to kidney damage, leukemia, diabetes, cancer and birth defects. Uranium mining has occurred in the United States at 52 sites — and 52 sites to date have groundwater pollution to some degree.
Prosperity is good. I know what it is like to be unemployed and to live in a household of merger means. A good job is a thing of great value. However, a job that brings death to my neighbor it not a job of value. The Lord said when asked by the lawyer what is the greatest commandment and Jesus say to Love the Lord thy God with all they heart and all thy mind. This is the first commandment and the second is like unto it Thy, shall love thy neighbor as thy self.
How does one call himself Christian while endangering the life of another? I ask you to look carefully at the message of those pushing uranium mining. They promise jobs and money and now they are promising money for schools. They tell us they have a liner that will last for 200 years. The tailings left over after uranium mining will be radioactive for more than 70,000 years. Let’s put this in perspective — the pyramids are believed to be less than 6,000 years old — 10 percent of the time these tailings will be radioactive and require attention to prevent them from polluting our groundwater.
Most Virginians have pictures of ancestors going back to the 1800s. These people left us their heritage — let us preserve it for the generations to come and not sale our souls for fool’s gold. Join the fight — call your state Delegate or Senator and tell them you support ban on uranium mining. This is not a black-white issue nor is it a political issue — this is a right to live issue. There is no prosperity in death, except for the undertaker.
NAOMI HODGE-MUSE
Martinsville
http://www.newsadvance.com/go_dan_river/opinion/letters_to_editor/article_7bebef68-4deb-11e2-afa9-001a4bcf6878.html
“Over the past year, I’ve had the opportunity to meet with interested stakeholders on both sides of the debate over whether to end the ban on uranium mining and milling in Virginia. I have carefully considered their positions, as well as the scientific evidence, and I have concluded that ending the ban on uranium mining and milling is not the right course for our Commonwealth.
http://loudoundemocrats.org/
Feeling The Heat On Uranium Mining In Virginia
Jessie Thomas-Blate, Coordinator, Most Endangered Rivers
December 21, 2012
Uranium mining is a hot topic right now in Virginia. You might remember that American Rivers listed the Roanoke River as one of America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2011 due to a proposed uranium mine. Since that time, the Virginia legislature has been talking about whether or not to lift a 30-year ban on uranium mining in Virginia.
Recently, the Virginia Pilot’s Editorial Board issued a clear and concise summary of recent activity with this issue. Their ultimate conclusion is key— that the local taxpayers will ultimately have to shoulder the burden of maintaining the radioactive waste from this mine in perpetuity. Thirty years or so of mine production is not worth thousands of years of radioactive waste maintenance. The Roanoke Times Editorial Board agrees.
Similarly, the Danville Pittsylvania County Chamber of Commerce recently voiced their opposition to lifting the ban, as did Lieutenant Governor Bill Bolling.
Opposition to the mine has even starting flowing in from across the border, as the
North Carolina General Assembly’s Environmental Review Commission sent a letter to the Governor of Virginia on December 13 outlining its reasons for opposing the lifting of the mining ban.
These entities join the already extensive list of groups who oppose lifting the ban on uranium mining in Virginia.
The Governor’s Uranium Mining Working Group recently reported its findings on regulatory needs associated with potentially lifting the uranium mining ban. The list included basically everything because the state has no regulatory structure in place for this type of industrial development.
Virginia Uranium Inc. will continue to lobby the Virginia General Assembly to end the state's 30-year moratorium on uranium mining. Sen. John Watkins (R-Midlothian) says he will sponsor legislation during the upcoming session to end the ban.
The fight is not over.
- If you are a resident of Virginia, tell your legislator that you care too much about the Roanoke River and the water it supplies to thousands of area residents to allow the ban on uranium mining to be lifted! Also, you can sign this petition from Keep The Ban to retain the momentum on this important issue.
http://www.americanrivers.org/newsroom/blog/jblate-20121221-feeling-the-heat-on-uranium-mining-in-virginia.html
Oppose uranium to preserve heritage
To the editor:
On Oct. 31, 2011, the Virginia State Chapter of the NAACP voted to keep the ban on uranium mining in Virginia
Environmental justice is a civil and social issue which affects us all. “Silent Spring” by Rachael Carson, spoke of industrial pollution. Uranium mining is perhaps the worse form in that it is the gift that that keeps on giving thousands of years after mining has finished.
Economic development without regard to the environmental impact has deadly implications. It is our children who are the most at risk to pollution. One drink of water laced with uranium and that child is subject to kidney damage, leukemia, diabetes, cancer and birth defects. Uranium mining has occurred in the United States at 52 sites — and 52 sites to date have groundwater pollution to some degree.
Prosperity is good. I know what it is like to be unemployed and to live in a household of merger means. A good job is a thing of great value. However, a job that brings death to my neighbor it not a job of value. The Lord said when asked by the lawyer what is the greatest commandment and Jesus say to Love the Lord thy God with all they heart and all thy mind. This is the first commandment and the second is like unto it Thy, shall love thy neighbor as thy self.
How does one call himself Christian while endangering the life of another? I ask you to look carefully at the message of those pushing uranium mining. They promise jobs and money and now they are promising money for schools. They tell us they have a liner that will last for 200 years. The tailings left over after uranium mining will be radioactive for more than 70,000 years. Let’s put this in perspective — the pyramids are believed to be less than 6,000 years old — 10 percent of the time these tailings will be radioactive and require attention to prevent them from polluting our groundwater.
Most Virginians have pictures of ancestors going back to the 1800s. These people left us their heritage — let us preserve it for the generations to come and not sale our souls for fool’s gold. Join the fight — call your state Delegate or Senator and tell them you support ban on uranium mining. This is not a black-white issue nor is it a political issue — this is a right to live issue. There is no prosperity in death, except for the undertaker.
NAOMI HODGE-MUSE
Martinsville
http://www.newsadvance.com/go_dan_river/opinion/letters_to_editor/article_7bebef68-4deb-11e2-afa9-001a4bcf6878.html
State Senator, AG Candidate Mark Herring Announces Uranium Mining Oppositionby: lowkell Wed Dec 19, 2012 at 09:05:00 AM EST |
HERRING ANNOUNCES OPPOSITION TO LIFTING BAN ON URANIUM MININGState Senator Mark Herring (Loudoun & Fairfax) released the following statement today announcing his opposition to legislation that would lift the ban on uranium mining and milling in Virginia: "Over the past year, I've had the opportunity to meet with interested stakeholders on both sides of the debate over whether to end the ban on uranium mining and milling in Virginia. I have carefully considered their positions, as well as the scientific evidence, and I have concluded that ending the ban on uranium mining and milling is not the right course for our Commonwealth. Therefore, I will oppose legislation during the upcoming 2013 General Assembly session that would lift the ban. Additionally, I plan to introduce budget language that would prohibit any state funding from being used to promulgate regulations designed to circumvent the ban. The Governor should not be using taxpayer dollars and staff resources to create the regulatory framework for uranium mining, which is currently prohibited by state law. The health and safety of the public, and of the environment, should be of paramount concern when considering issues such as this and I am simply not convinced that uranium mining can be conducted in Southside Virginia in a safe and environmentally responsible way. I take very seriously the concerns raised by citizens, business leaders and local officials in both Southside and Hampton Roads who have expressed to me their fears with regard to the potential for negative public health impacts, particularly water supply contamination. I look forward to working with those same citizens, business leaders and local officials on ways we can improve and expand economic opportunity in Southside and diversify Virginia's portfolio of domestic energy resources." http://www.bluevirginia.us/diary/8356/state-senator-ag-candidate-mark-herring-announces-uranium-mining-opposition Medical professionals sign petition against uranium mining Posted: Thursday, December 20, 2012 7:51 pm
Danville City Councilman Gary Miller, a local cardiologist, has been circulating petitions among local doctors and medical professionals asking them to ask Virginia to keep its moratorium on uranium mining.
Miller told fellow council members Tuesday night that he asked colleagues at two meetings to sign a two-part questionnaire about the moratorium, with the first question asking whether they were against uranium mining and the second asking if they would leave the area if mining were approved.
Miller said he was surprised at how consistent the responses were, with 52 physicians signing that they were against uranium mining. Of those 52, 47 said they “would strongly consider leaving” the region; five said they were too invested in their practices to leave, but would not be happy staying. .
A second sheet was started because other medical professionals — nurses, nurse practitioners, etc. — wanted to sign the petition. Miller said there were about a dozen of them in attendance at the meetings, and they all signed in as being against mining.
Miller said he was afraid the mining operation would seriously impact the region’s ability to attract medical personnel — which would be needed, he said, because increases in the cancer rate could be expected if uranium mining starts in Pittsylvania County.
Miller said he plans to continue collecting signatures and will turn them over to Delegate Danny Marshall for consideration during the next General Assembly session.
Danville City Council did decide unanimously at that meeting to proceed with a formal vote on a resolution asking the General Assembly to keep the moratorium and to not begin writing regulations for uranium mining.
Patrick Wales, spokesperson for Virginia Uranium, said he found some of Miller’s comments during the past two council meetings “egregious distortions.”
Wales also strongly objected to Miller’s assertion that death was inevitable for uranium miners.
“Thirty-five years of strong epidemiological studies show modern uranium miners and millers — especially in Canada — are just as healthy as the rest of the population,” Wales said. “I don’t know what he’s basing [his comments] on, but it’s not science. I can give you studies all day long that show for the last 30 years there have been no negative health effects.”
Wales said processes for mining have changed since the 1940s and 1950s, when there were increased cancer rates and other health issues, but modern mining practices have eliminated those risks.
“To me, in medicine, it’s always risks versus benefits, and I feel the risk outweighs the benefits,” Miller said. “They say the mine will be open for 35 years; they can be right for 34 of those years, and I can be right once, and it’s a disaster. They can promise all they want, but they can’t guarantee 100 percent.”
Thanks for opposing uranium mining
We would like to sincerely thank Ben Davenport, certain members of the Pittsylvania County Board of Supervisors, Virginia Beach, the Virginia tourism industry and many others for their stand on keeping the moratorium on uranium mining. We appreciate their efforts to bring to light the many risks involved in such an operation. How much will it cost to clean up a disaster that is possible? How much will it cost to maintain the radioactive waste ponds that hold the more than 85 percent waste from the mining process, which remains radioactive for thousands of years? The risks far outweigh any possible benefit to the general public, and others surrounding us, as well as any future taxpayer expense. There are safer ways to generate jobs and tax revenue for this county without taking such a chance both in the mining and the need to monitor the waste indefinitely. People also need to realize that if the uranium mining moratorium is lifted, there are other known deposits in the Dry Fork and Brosville communities, as well as many other areas of our state, so these waste ponds could end in their back yard. Why was Virginia Uranium allowed to even test drill before all safety concerns were addressed? We are Patricia Hylton of Chatham; Jennifer Pulliam of Ringgold; Ashley Ross of Dry Fork; Darrel, and Velma Gibson, Jud Jr. and Gladys Buchanan and Roy and Nancy McKenzie of Chatham; Clint and Christie Daniel of Java; Gene Tarpley of Dry Fork; Alfreda Tarpley of Dry Fork; Nancy Aaron of Callands; Susan Stephens of Java; Karen Walden of Callands; Jud Buchanan III and Laura Buchanan of Callands; Jud Buchanan IV, Darrell Buchanan and Robert Brooks Dry Fork; Ricky and Barbara Mays Dry Fork; Elizabeth Sigler of Danville; Melvin Joyce and many others not signed here. PATRICIA HYLTON Chatham http://www.newsadvance.com/go_dan_river/opinion/letters_to_editor/article_97c9783c-4a11-11e2-8f0b-0019bb30f31a.html |
