Antinuclear

Chairman of Mutawintji land council opposes uranium mining in Western New South Wales

NSW prospectors await uranium riches, 21 JAN 2013,  
BILL CODE, SBS“…….There’s no doubt that  talk on uranium
mining in western NSW is still in its very early stages.

But in the area, there are some traditional owners of the land who are
far from convinced of its benefits.

Wilcannia lies on the banks of the Darling River east of Broken Hill.
These days, many traditional owners from Western NSW live here.

One of them is William Bates, a man who fought against uranium mining
in South Australia in the early 1980s.

He’s the chair of Broken Hill’s neighbouring Mutawintji land council.
Because of the nascent stage of development, whether there’s uranium
under that arid piece of NSW taken up by the indigenous-run national
park is not certain, but he is sure the prospectors will come knocking
sooner or later.

‘I’m against it because it’s not safe, mining companies are always
stuffing up’ he says when I pull up in Wilcannia on a scorching
afternoon. ‘They might have an accident.’…

January 22, 2013 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | aboriginal issues, New South Wales, uranium