Uranium moratorium deadline looming http://www.thelabradorian.ca/News/2011-01-24/article-2165821/Uranium-moratorium-deadline-looming/1
Published on January 24th, 2011
Mining company looks at future plans for Labrador Nothing is set in stone just yet, but at a community meeting on January 18, Aurora Energy expressed its hopes to begin work in the near future on a proposed Uranium mine.
The uranium deposits, and proposed mine, are located in the Central Mineral belt, 40 kilometres from Postville, Labrador.
Aurora?s director of engineering, Steve Cole, vice president of environment, John Roberts, manager of environmental affairs Lela Evans and Ches Andersen, Aurora?s vice president of Labrador Affairs each made presentations at the public meeting before questions were invited from the small audience.
Mr. Andersen began the presentations, explaining the basics of the project. The construction period, which would begin after an environmental assessment was completed, would last for three years. The mining of uranium would take place over a period of 17 years followed by a decommissioning of the mine site.
The proposed port where the miners would get their supplies is three kilometres from the community of Postville.
The uranium would not leave from this port; it would instead travel by road through North West River and up the Trans Labrador Highway to its final destinations in Canada or the U.S.
Mr. Roberts said some residents of Upper Lake Melville were originally concerned about the transportation of the yellow cake but were relieved to learn that the radioactive substance is transported in sealed barrels in an enclosed truck.
To relieve fears of spillage, Mr. Cole explained that there has never been a rollover in the transportation of Uranium in Canada and barrels have never been reported to leave the trucks, even in the case of an accident.
Another concern addressed by the panel was that of contaminated dust, which Mr. Roberts said would be controlled with the use of water on the roads and exhaust systems in the working environment.
One audience member expressed concern over the ethics of producing uranium and the potential for its use in nuclear weapons.
Mr. Cole explained that the uranium is tracked to its final destination and would not be sold to anyone for such purposes.
Ms. Evans explained some of the environmental work that has been carried out thus far. The company has carried out the studies required by all major mining programs before any work takes place. These baseline studies took place between 2005 and 2010 and consisted of a study of water quality, wildlife, air quality, weather, fish habitat, plants, traditional knowledge and ecological land classifications.
The purpose of these studies is to assess potential environmental impacts of the mining and to attempt to minimize damage.
The studies found no plant or animal species at risk in the area but two different species of birds listed with the province. They are the Great Cheeked Thrush which as listed as a ?vulnerable? species and the Rusty Blackbird which are considered a ?species of conservation concern.?
Some traplines were determined to be in the area of the potential mine site.
The areas air, water and land were determined to be free of contamination.
The two uranium-mining projects, at Michelin and Jacques Lake, are expected to go into environmental assessment stages once, and if, the uranium moratorium put in place by the Nunatsiavut government is lifted.
The moratorium comes up for review this spring.
In the case that the moratorium is lifted, the company will submit their proposal, which would in turn trigger the beginning of the environmental assessment.
Over the past three years, Aurora has carried out some exploratory drilling to determine the deposits of uranium in the area. They have estimated that there is 137 million pounds of uranium at the chosen sites.
Once the project is in its environmental assessment stages, the exploratory drilling can continue, allowing the company to better verify these estimates.
Aurora was sold from Frontier, a U.S. company, to Paladin, an Australian company, last month. The new company is the seventh largest uranium producer in the world.
The local staff for the Michelin and Jacques Lake projects has remained unchanged since the deal was announced.
More information on the company the studies or the proposed mine can be found at www.aurora-energy.ca.
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