nuclear-news

A fraudulent choice between a healthy community and uranium jobs

The source of the real fraud against Southside : uranium mining  Piedmont Residents in Defense of the Environment Mary Rafferty , February 27, 2011 The real “fraud” in the ongoing debate over lifting Virginia’s uranium mining ban is the false choice posited between healthy communities on the one hand and energy independence and jobs on the other.

The truth is in order to rebuild our local economy, Southside Virginia must embrace clean and healthy solutions for job creation in a way that strengthens our community for this and future generations. We don’t have to choose between a vibrant economy and a healthy environment.

We can rebuild our economy by creating jobs in the energy solutions of today not the disasters of yesterday.

In order to set the record straight, here are a few plain facts about the economic and health consequences of uranium mining in Southside Virginia.

» Uranium mining would harm our health: Uranium mining could put the health of Southside Virginia citizens in significant danger.

Thousands of people in communities out West, where mining and milling operations are currently conducted, are struggling with cancer and diabetes due to their prolonged exposure to uranium mill tailings waste. And while independent researchers continue to determine the full effects exposure to uranium waste has on human health, studies have linked exposure to uranium tailings waste to increased rates of cancer, kidney failure, leukemia and diabetes.

» Uranium mining and milling would endanger our water: Virginia’s wet climate makes the proposed site at Coles Hill a risky experiment. Uranium mining and milling sites are typically operated in dry sparsely populated areas. But in Southside Virginia, severe weather events and flooding can overwhelm uranium operations, flushing uranium mill tailing waste into the bordering Bannister River (which flows into the Dan River) as well as local groundwater…….http://prideva.blogspot.com.au/2014/08/the-source-of-real-fraud-against.html

August 14, 2014 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | general