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Uranium Mining in Southern Virginia

Uranium Mining in Southern Virginia. ...And Potential Negative Affects on Our Waterways Isabella Martin. The Conflict. Uranium Mining Moratorium – in place for 30 years Virginia Uranium, Inc. wants to mine Coles Hill deposit, Pittsylvania Co., VA

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Uranium Mining in Southern Virginia

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  1. Uranium Mining in Southern Virginia ...And Potential Negative Affects on Our Waterways Isabella Martin

  2. The Conflict • Uranium Mining Moratorium – in place for 30 years • Virginia Uranium, Inc. wants to mine Coles Hill deposit, Pittsylvania Co., VA • Possible negative health/environmental effects, water contamination • Debate over lifting the ban

  3. Economic Benefits • “$5.0 billion in net accumulated economic revenue for Virginia firms” • “more than 1,000 jobs annually (direct, indirect, and induced)” Pittsylvania VA

  4. UndergroundMining

  5. Open Pit mining

  6. Why is Virginia different? • Out west, drier, but in VA, PET < Precipitation • Extreme weather events – storms, floods, hurricanes • No previous uranium mining

  7. Effects on waterways • “1,000 gallons per minute during start-up and 270 gpm thereafter” • “29 million tons total of mill tailings waste” • Mine is upstream from water sources • Thorium, radium – radioactive for 1,000s of years –water contamination = bone cancer • Weather events, earthquakes, human error compromise waste containment

  8. Health Effects • Exposure to uranium = cancer and respiratory diseases • Radium  Radon= difficult to contain = bone, liver, lung and breast cancer • Birth defects (New Mexico) • Silica dust and diesel exhaust = lung cancer

  9. Conclusion • NAS says could be dangerous • Ban was kept in place for 2012 • Continued debate, anti-uranium mining activists • Keeptheban.org • Could degrade water quality, contamination = possible cancer • Water = relatively abundant in VA, needs to be protected

  10. Sources • Slides 6 and 8 https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:ikEQDneBXDQJ:www.vbgov.com/government/departments/public-utilities/Documents/16.Uranium_Moratorium-Kay_Slaughter_Aug27.ppt+uranium+moratorium&hl=en&gl=us&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESil3yNrVtw6Qhvaxd-C5EJv9YaBQt8t9Us8EPpp3g3X2e7zqnxQbrs-iMjZ2YAN-wezZeYvRRuaOS8hasePRpet5W_NE7nfSvfaKFIlJPfX2oEzW6V8Dmlu50xrA1tQJIkKzEGe&sig=AHIEtbSwPLCl69BDx69M3IRfX-w0BqdTGQ • http://keeptheban.org/?page_id=26 • http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/51/51143.html • http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=13266 • http://www.chmuraecon.com/file_dl.aspx?name=~/pdfs/Uranium.pdf&id=4ab83f28-5134-4f84-9bcf-eb04626ff314 • http://www.ec.gc.ca/lcpe-cepa/default.asp?lang=En&n=CBE3CD59-1&offset=4&toc=show • http://gentleseas.blogspot.com/2008/11/australias-odd-nuclear-policies-towards.html • http://keeptheban.org/?page_id=18

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