The two company tenements (and a couple of others) sit on a "strict nature reserve" (IUCN Category 1a), which is the highest category for protection and conservation. It's the "Queen Victoria Spring Nature Reserve". It's legislated and I understand it would need parliamentary approval to amend legislation to even allow exploration.
That's on top of the WA U ban.
The application tenement has been in since 2014 - that probably tells you all you need to know. Couple of other companies have applications in the Nature Reserve too, with many others having come and gone.
