Antinuclear

The message was relayed to a management team based at the Olympic Dam mine this week by a 30 member anti-nuclear resistance movement group, the Friends of the Earth (Australia) which had been touring all of the uranium mines in South Australia.

The group, which is represented by various nationalities from India, Vietnam, Europe and Australia shared its concerns to the BHP Billiton management team and requested it to discontinue selling uranium to safeguard the environment and its population.

A particular case of interest which the group highlighted was the Fukushima disaster in Japan, which the group said was plagued by safety breaches, scandals, cover-ups and inadequate regulations.

Group leader and national nuclear campaigner Doctor Jim Green said the educational trip also gave the group the chance to see the uranium deposits at  Olympic Dam and other uranium mines in South Australia. He said BHP Billiton had maintained that the selling of uranium had received the approval of the federal government.

“We are asking [BHP] to stop selling it and take some responsibilities,” he said. He said the group’s request to also visit the tailing dams had been turned down. Dr Green said the trip also provided the members the opportunity to talk to the indigenous landowners about the effect of uranium mining and what it could do to the environment.

The group’s next stop will the uranium mine in Beverly South, Australia.