Uranium discussion heats up in Va.

By Rex Bowman

Published: January 7, 2009

Members of a state commission preparing to oversee a study of uranium mining in Pittsylvania County were urged by area residents last night to make sure the study fully addresses the health effects related to mining the nuclear fuel.

Residents also vowed to fight any legislative attempt to use the study to overturn a 27-year-old statewide moratorium on uranium mining.

"This subject is near and dear to our hearts -- it affects our loved ones, our land, our water," said Jack Dunavant, chairman of Southside Concerned Citizens, at Chatham High School before a crowd of about 450, most of whom were opposed to uranium mining. "If Richmond tries to shove this down our throat, we will fight to the bitter end, till the last man falls."

A few others asked members of the Virginia Commission on Coal and Energy's Uranium Mining Subcommittee to make sure the study takes into account the economic benefits of uranium mining.

Up to $10 billion worth of uranium may lie beneath the Pittsylvania soil -- potentially the nation's largest deposit -- and a group of landowners has formed the mining company Virginia Uranium Inc. in hopes of mining the ore. Proponents say developing the ore into nuclear fuel will help break the nation's dependence on oil.

But many residents fear that mining the area's rich uranium deposit could contaminate the water. They also worry that wind will blow debris from a mining operation and contaminate the air and damage crops.

Environmental and health concerns prompted Virginia to impose a moratorium on uranium mining in 1982. But the Virginia Commission on Coal and Energy opened the door to removing the moratorium when it agreed last year to study the issue.

The Uranium Mining Subcommittee hopes to enlist the help of the National Academy of Sciences to conduct the study, which could take 18 months to two years to complete. The subcommittee called last night's public hearing in Chatham to gather residents' advice on what should be considered in the study.

Walter Coles Jr., whose father owns a controlling interest in Virginia Uranium, told committee members the study should be thorough but should not be used to close the door on mining uranium.

"What are the risks if this project is not allowed to go forward? We're dependent on foreigners for 90 percent of our uranium requirements," Coles said.

Others suggested the study look at the impact of a uranium mine on property values, economic development, and agriculture.

"In the event that there is seepage into the groundwater, how is it going to be cleaned up?" asked Terry Andrews of Halifax County, who said she lives 15 miles downstream from the proposed mine site. "How are we going to get the water back to the way it was?"

Pittsylvania resident Andrew Lester suggested that the committee listen to the advice of mining opponents to help them make the right decision: "If it's the wrong one, you'll be damned by history, and you don't want that."

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