In depth look at plan for Ranger 3 Deeps Underground Mine- submission from Environment Centre Northern Territory
A case in Submission to Ranger 3 Deeps Project underground uranium mine referral
Energy Resources of Australia Ltd/Mining/at existing Ranger uranium mine in Alligator
Rivers Region/NT/Ranger 3 Deeps Underground Mine
Reference Number: 2013/6722
31 January 2013
Prepared by
Stuart Blanch, Director, Environment Centre NT, Darwin, coordinator@ecnt.org / 0448 887 303.
The Environment Centre NT welcomes the opportunity to provide comment on the referral.
We make the following comments:
1. The Ranger 3 Deeps Project is proposed by Energy Resources of Australia (ERA) to be built inside
the World Heritage listed Kakadu National Park and surrounding internationally recognised
Ramsar wetlands of the Alligators Rivers Region. By its very nature is is a highly risky project over
the long term, given the need to manage radioactive contamination for thousands of years. The
Ranger Uranium Mine has already created very substantial long term waste management issues
over the past three decades of operation, and remains a highly controversial project in the eyes
of many Territorians and Australians.
The proposed mine is a nuclear action under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity
Conservation Act (Cth) (EPBCA). However it also poses a risk to various other Matters of National
Environmental Significance including 14 threatened species, 20 migratory species and a National
Heritage Place. ERA’s view that only one MNES, namely nuclear actions, are likely to be impacted
is fanciful and disingenuous (p81). Clearly the existing water management issues caused by three
decades of mining, let alone an even larger process water inventory, pose a significant risk to
downstream Ramsar wetlands and World Heritage values should there be an uncontrolled
discharge into Magela Creek or ongoing lateral spread of the groundwater plume underneath the
tailings dam.
Full EIS’s are regularly conducted under the EPBCA for mines that entail much less risk to species,
places and values which are legally recognised under federal environmental law and attract
protection under international agreements.
2. Underground mining at Ranger has never been subject to an EIS, and was not addressed in the
“For now, at least, uranium is dead. Its killer was cold, hard economics”
Virginia Uranium’s Strangely Short Half-Life, Bacon’s Rebellion, February 1, 2013 by Peter Galuszka “…….Back in 2007, uranium prices were about $140 a pound. That touched off a renewed effort to mine the Coles Hill Farm tract in Pittsylvania County, one of the country’s largest uranium deposits.
As both sides of the argument poured money into lobbyists’ pockets, something happened that was beyond their control. Uranium prices set by global demand started dropping. By 2010, they had plummeted to about $70 a pound because of the global economic slowdown. After the Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan in March 2011, they fell to the mid-$40-a-pound level, where they are now.
What that means for uranium mining in Virginia can be explained with simple arithmetic. According to Brett Arends of the Wall Street Journal, “The industry needs prices to be at $75 to $80 a pound for future mine production to be profitable.” In other words, for Virginia Uranium’s project to work, prices would likely need to rebound by about $30 a pound. I have noted this in a previous blog.
The bad news for uranium continues. According to another article in this morning’s Wall Street Journal, U.S. utilities are starting to shut down or consider dropping some of their nuclear power stations because of unexpectedly cheap natural gas. Richmond-based Dominion Resources has announced it is shutting down its Kewaunee nuclear plant in Wisconsin this summer, even though it has 20 years left on its operating license.
Dominion says it is cheaper for it to meet its sales contracts with other utilities by buying electricity on the open market. Presumably that means electricity created by gas. Industry analysts believe that other nuclear utilities that might consider shutting down or have already idled some of their nuclear operations are Exelon Corp., Entergy Corp., Edison International and Duke Energy Corp.
The invasion of natural gas also means tough times for the future of nuclear power, which just a couple of years ago seemed on the verge of a rebound. According to the Journal, fixed costs for a power stations run $15,000 per megawatt for a modern gas plant, $30,000 for a coal plant and $90,000 for a nuclear plant. The newspaper notes that nukes also have extra costs because they need more security guards and have more demanding maintenance and spent fuel storage issues. It is hard to recover the higher costs because regulators who set electricity rates in some states require utilities to go with the cheapest fuel possible……
For now, at least, uranium is dead. Its killer was cold, hard economics. http://www.baconsrebellion.com/2013/02/the-unusually-short-half-life-of-virginia-uranium.html
Julian Assange – a force to be reckoned with in Australia’s 2013 Senate election?
Julian Assange to run for Australian Senate seat
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/national/julian-assange-to-run-for-australian-senate-seat/story-fncynkc6-1226565414301
30 Jan 13, JULIAN Assange will run for a Senate seat in the 2013
federal election and his mum reckons he’ll be awesome.
Christine Assange has confirmed her son’s candidacy, after WikiLeaks
tweeted the news.
“He will be awesome,” she said.
“In the House of Representatives we get to choose between US lackey
party number one and US lackey party number two – between the major
parties.
“So it will be great to `Assange’ the Senate for some Aussie oversight.”
Queensland-born Assange, who founded the secret-leaking website
WikiLeaks, announced his Senate ambition last December from Ecuador’s
London embassy. Continue reading
Assange remains in legal limbo as Sweden not keen to press charges against hm
With Assange in Diplomatic Limbo, Sweden in No Rush to Press Rape Charges , 01 February 2013 By Alissa Bohling, Truthout | News Analysis With Julian Assange remaining in diplomatic limbo in London, Sweden refuses his offer for an interview, leading some to suspect they are not anxious to pursue allegations of rape that have been lodged against him……
In an October 2012 letter to US Attorney General Eric Holder, they asked the Department of Justice to give its word that Assange will not be extradited, subject to indefinite detention or prosecution under the Espionage Act for the activities of WikiLeaks, but with no response, he and his Swedish accusers remain in legal limbo, calling into question whether Assange’s civil liberties and the women’s right to take their accusations through the criminal justice process can both be upheld.
Government Tactic of Smearing Whistleblowers Continue reading
UK’s new nuclear problem – can’t build more reactors until radioactive disposal problem is solved
Much of the UK’s high level nuclear waste is stored above ground at SellafieldNo other community had come forward as a potential site, and no other community looks likely to. And given West Cumbria’s nuclear history it always seemed the best bet.
The government also has to find a solution. It will be harder to justify new nuclear power stations if the country can’t find a long term way of dealing with its existing waste problem.
Is it all over for Cumbrian nuclear waste store plans, BBC News 1 Feb 13, The long term plan could have seen nuclear waste buried underground in Cumbria For the second time in 14 years the hunt for a long-term solution to Britain’s nuclear waste stockpile seems to have foundered in Cumbria.
In 1999 Cumbria County Council rejected plans for a rock laboratory that could have paved the way for an underground nuclear waste store. And now the same council has again withdrawn as a potential site for a repository. Cumbria’s decision The majority of the council’s executive decided the county wasn’t suitable. The government has also said it accepts Cumbria’s decision and will look elsewhere.
So is it all over? Continue reading
USA’s nuclear waste dilemma – 70,000 tons in 79 temporary locations
Report: US will have to bury 70,000 tons of nuclear waste. 
http://dailycaller.com/2013/02/01/report-u-s-will-have-to-bury-70000-tons-of-nuclear-waste/ A report by a government research lab found that the U.S. will have to bury nearly 70,000 tons of nuclear waste after the Obama administration cut funding for the Yucca Mountain repository in 2011, reports the Moscow-based news service RT.
A 2012 report by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, which does research for the Department of Energy, said that “about 68,450 [metric tons] or about 98 percent of the total current inventory by mass, can proceed to permanent disposal without the need to ensure retrievability for reuse or research purposes. The report also found that the rest of the nuclear waste can be used for research on fuel reprocessing and storage.
The Oak Ridge report also notes that the stock of spent nuclear fuel being held at 79 temporary locations in 34 US states “is massive, diverse, dispersed, and increasing.” Continue reading
Queensland: Campbell Newman’s election campaign heavily funded by mining industry
Miners, developers pile in to fund Newman’s LNP campaign, Crikey,
ANDREW CROOK | FEB 01, 2013
Big political donors ditched Anna Bligh’s failing government and put
their money behind Campbell Newman’s bid for the Queensland
premiership, data from the AEC reveals.
Corporate donors — dominated by resources giants — piled huge amounts
of cash into the coffers of the Queensland Liberal-National Party in
the lead-up to last year’s state election, official Australian
Electoral Commission data released this morning reveals….(subscribers
only) http://www.crikey.com.au/2013/02/01/miners-developers-pile-in-to-fund-newmans-lnp-campaign/
Criminal gangs helped run Japan’s nukes, now they cash in on cleaning up radioactive wastes
Asahi: Gangsters cashing in on Fukushima disaster — Involved in “disposal of waste” http://enenews.com/asahi-gangsters-cashing-fukushima-disaster-involved-disposal-waste
Title: Gangster illegally hired workers for decontamination projects
Source: AJW by The Asahi Shimbun
Author: KENJI OGATA
Date: January 31, 2013
Criminal organizations are cashing in on the disaster that shook Japan nearly two years ago by sinking their claws into all aspects of recovery operations to skim off handsome profits.
Police have just turned up an instance of a gang member brazenly providing laborers to help clean up contaminated areas in Fukushima Prefecture, and pocketing part of their wages. […]
“The recovery operations involve a lot of money, so they are a godsend for gangs that have trouble making money due to a police crackdown on gang activities,” a gang insider said.
The man said these groups have been involved in the demolition of buildings and the disposal of waste in devastated areas. […]
See also: Police make arrest over cleanup workers at Fukushima Daiichi — Crime syndicate “allegedly participated in containment work for the damaged facilities”
In USA a uranium minng company rose and fell dramatically
Virginia Uranium’s Strangely Short Half-Life, Bacon’s Rebellion, February 1, 2013 by Peter Galuszka After years building up to a critical mass, Virginia’s uranium controversy never quite reached fission. State Sen. John Watkins, a Republican and uranium backer from Powhatan, pulled the plug on his pro-mining bill Thursday as it faced certain death at a Senate committee. There are a couple of other legislative efforts out there, but it probably safe to say that the state’s now 31-year-old ban on mining uranium stays….
Virginia Uranium, which wants to develop the 119 million pound deposit near Chatham, had given thousands of dollars in donations, trips and gifts to many legislators. Anti-mining advocates, including the cities of Norfolk and Virginia Beach who feared for their drinking water sources, hired their own advocacy muscle. Ordinary folks down in the gently rolling hills of Pittsylvania County organized a strikingly tightly-disciplined and effective anti-mining campaign.
At the end of the day, however, the real reason uranium failed lurks behind the scenes far from the polished floors of the State Capitol.
The fact is that the dynamics of energy pricing are undergoing a huge change in this country. A flood of natural gas, some from controversial “fracking” drilling methods, is making other forms of electricity generation, notably nuclear, financially less attractive. …..
This all made Virginia Uranium’s proposal look shakier than ever, despite all of the hullaballoo, battling op-ed pieces in newspapers and expenses-paid trips to Paris and Canada organized by the firm. http://www.baconsrebellion.com/2013/02/the-unusually-short-half-life-of-virginia-uranium.html
Big loss for Australian uranium company ERA
Australia uranium miner ERA books steep 2012 loss http://www.marketwatch.com/story/australia-uranium-miner-era-books-steep-2012-loss-2013-01-31 By Ross Kelly SYDNEY–-Energy Resource of Australia Ltd. said Thursday annual losses deepened to 218.8 million Australian dollars (US$227.4 million) due to weak uranium prices, a high Australian dollar and the cost of rehabilitating a recently-depleted mine bordering Kakadu National Park.
The company, which counts Rio Tinto Ltd. as its largest shareholder, said the net loss for the year to Dec.31 compared to a A$153.6 hole in 2011.
ERA stopped mining at its only producing pit, Ranger, in November and will process stockpiled ore while it decides whether to build a new underground mine there. The company produced 3,710 metric tons of uranium oxide in 2012 and forecast production sourced from stockpiles in 2013 of between 2,700 and 3,300 tons.
ERA also announced that its chairman, David Klinger, would retire next month and be replaced by current non-executive director Peter McMahon.
Tony Abbott’s Tea Party proposals in full swing
Abbott confirms his tea party connections http://reneweconomy.com.au/2013/5-things-we-learned-this-week-about-tea-party-politics-22437 REneweconomy, Giles Parkinson, 1 Feb 13, We’ve been casting Tony Abbott in the role of Tea Party conservative for months now, fretting that he might somehow take offence. Not at all. The Opposition leader proudly told the Canberra press gallery in his stump speech on Thursday that he had hosted not one, not two, but 33 local morning teas with voters over the past year or so. And, by golly, he conceded, climate change is real and man may even be making a contribution towards it, which is why he is proposing something sensibly practical that the CWA would be proud of – organize a series working bee to pick up litter, build boardwalks, and plant trees. There will probably even be a BBQ.
Abbott did, of course, promise to repeal the carbon tax, saying his previous support for the measure was in the context of other countries doing the same. He insisted no other country is going “anywhere near” carbon taxes or trading schemes – apparently never having never heard of carbon taxes and ETS’s and pilot programs implemented and planned throughout the 27 states of Europe, Scandinavia, New Zealand, South Korea, China, California, a bunch of other American states and Canadian provinces, South Africa and Mexico. Not to mention Kazakhstan. And where did we find such subversive information? Well, Google would have done the trick, but most of it is contained in his own Direct Action policy. Here it is on page 9.
In Virginia, USA Uranium mining proposal is abandoned
“This is not just environmentalists,” Jaffe said. “This is small business owners in Southside, it’s farmers, it’s parents of small children, it’s community leaders, it’s physicians — all these disparate voices coming together.”
Environmentalists were joined in their opposition by local grass-root organizers, Virginia’s largest farm lobby, the state’s medical society, municipal and church groups, the NAACP and others
Uranium mining proposal abandoned in Virginia Bloomberg, By Steve Szkotak on January 31, 2013 RICHMOND, Va. (AP)— A proposal to mine uranium in Virginia was abruptly abandoned Thursday in the Legislature, and supporters scrambled to appeal directly to the governor to salvage what would be the first full-scale mining operation of the radioactive ore on the East Coast.
Unable to deliver the votes in the General Assembly, Sen. John Watkins withdrew his legislation to establish state regulations for uranium mining in Southside Virginia, a rural area along the North Carolina state line and home to the largest known deposit of the radioactive ore in the U.S. Continue reading
Local Area Land Councils throughout New South Wales protest against (NSWALC) mining decisions
Ryan’s defence of mining plan dismissed by angry protesters National Indigenous Times, 1 Feb 13, An angry mob of First Nations people representing Local Area Land Councils throughout New South Wales delivered the New South Wales Aboriginal Land Council (NSWALC) a blunt message at a protest rally last Friday – “Consult us before mining in our Country”.
And New South Wales Aboriginal Land Council Chairman, Stephen Ryan was delivered a warning by Gomeroi leader Alf...(subscription only) http://www.nit.com.au/news/2426-ryans-defence-of-mining-plan-dismissed-by-angry-protesters.html
Despite government incentives, Cumbria (UK) rejects nuclear waste dump
Cumbria sticks it to the nuclear dump lobby – despite all the carrots on offer Guardian UK, Terry Macalister, 31 Jan 13, Council’s decision to turn down the hosting of huge underground nuclear waste depository is a body blow for government Cumbria county council’s decision to “dump the dump” by voting against a nuclear waste repository close to the Lake District has drilled a nasty great hole in the middle of the government’s wider nuclear strategy.
Ministers had made clear that part of the agreement with the public over a new generation of atomic power stations would involve finding a safe and permanent home for the high-level waste created by the old ones.
Cumbria’s decision is a body blow for government because though it may not necessarily have been the most geologically suitable spot, it certainly was the most politically suitable.
The “energy coast”, as the region calls itself, is home to Sellafield, formerly Windscale, the largest nuclear complex in Europe with more than 5,000 well-paid jobs, as well as the nuclear submarine-building base at Barrow-in-Furness.
Even a secretarial job there can pay £10 an hour, and to win votes in the local constituency you need to pin your nuclear colour – yellow – to the mast, as the MP for Copeland, Jamie Reed, and his predecessor, “Neutron Jack” Cunningham, have done.
The Unite union, representing many Sellafield workers, can also be relied upon to bang the nuclear drum on a national level, and was quick to condemn the county council’s decision on Wednesday.
The government had dangled all kinds of carrots in front of Cumbria’s local and regional councils, including the prospect that up to 1,000 jobs could be created from the proposed £12bn underground project. It made some headway when Copeland and Allerdale councils voted in favour of further dialogue, but that was not enough without the county council.
Now, if an area steeped in a nuclear culture is not prepared to countenance a waste dump, then who will?…… Continue reading
Storage systems for home renewable energy – necessary in a weather emergency
there are ways solar households can keep the lights on during a blackout event. Some choose to incorporate a small deep cycle battery based off grid solar power system for emergency supply; but the Next Big Thing is the fully integrated home energy storage system.
Australia’s Storms Build Buzz For Home Energy Storage http://www.energymatters.com.au/index.php?main_page=news_article&article_id=3569 1 Feb 13, Recent and more frequent fierce weather in Australia would be making some Aussie households think more about acquiring a home energy storage system.
ABC News reported more than 230,000 homes were without power on Monday after at least 2,000 transmission wires were blown down in high winds; another nasty effect associated with ex-tropical cyclone Oswald. These ‘once-in-X-years’ severe weather events seem to be occurring more frequently.
Whether it’s torrential rain, howling winds, lightning strikes, baking temperatures or even just human error; electricity infrastructure can be severely affected for extended periods.
For those with grid connect solar power systems; while saving a bundle on power bills under normal conditions, when a blackout occurs solar households are often in the same boat as their non-solar neighbours – powerless. Continue reading
1 This month
of the week – Disrupting War & Militarism in Oceania. Active solidarity. Radical practice.
Antinuclear 