Wednesday 21^st February 2001

The State Government’s support for the opening of the Beverley uranium mine in the far north of South Australia is steeped in hypocrisy, say the Australian Democrats.

"The Olsen Government has legislated against the location of a high level nuclear waste dump in South Australia but it encourages the mining and export of the raw material of nuclear waste," says Sandra Kanck, Democrats Deputy Leader.

"It’s like complaining about fatalities from road accidents and selling dodgy car tyres on the side.

"South Australia should be limiting its involvement in the nuclear fuel cycle – not adding to the stock pile of nuclear waste that will remain toxic for the next 250,000 years.

"The State Government’s support for the opening of the Beverley uranium mine has weakened our ability to resist the location of a nuclear waste dump in South Australia.

"Heathgate Resources attempts to portray the in-situ mining technique as benign rivals the duplicity of the State Government.

"It’s claim that it merely removes an impurity – naturally occurring uranium – ranks as one of the great snow jobs.

"In fact the uranium is extracted by pumping sulphuric acid into the aquifer and the untreated waste from that process is then pumped back into the aquifer. The hitherto harmless uranium is then converted into a product that has a highly toxic after life of 250,000 years.

"All this for a few pennies in royalties and 70 jobs."

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION: Sandra Kanck

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