Australia has had an active involvement in the nuclear industry since its inception in the late 40s to early 50s. In the 50s, it was primarily through government owned but privately operated uranium mines (eg - Rum Jungle among others) and also with British nuclear weapons tests at the Monte Bello Islands (WA), and at Emu Fields and Maralinga (SA) on traditional Aboriginal lands. The CRA-RTZ multinational mining group also began their worldwide uranium fiefdom at Mary Kathleen.
Despite the confident assertions of nuclear advocates, long-term growth of the nuclear industry failed to occur as predicted, and with the ban on the testing of nuclear weapons in the atmosphere imposed under the 1963 partial test-ban treaty, the demand for uranium fell sharply (the superpowers also realised they had abundant uranium anyway for their weapons programs). As a result, by 1971, all Australian mines had ceased operations having only exported some 7,300 tonnes of uranium oxide. However, the devastating environmental impacts of operations at South Alligator, Port Pirie and Rum Jungle were only just coming to public attention.
By the mid 1970's, major new uranium deposits had been proved at Ranger, Koongarra, Jabiluka and Nabarlek, all in the Northern Territory. With the discovery of the huge copper-uranium-gold-silver deposit at Olympic Dam (Roxby Downs) in South Australia in 1975, as well as a number of smaller uranium deposits in remote areas of Western Australia and South Australia, our country had become a major player in the global uranium market. The battle had well and truly begun to dig up and export our uranium.
These new discoveries came at a time when the prospects for the world's nuclear power industry were made to look bright, and so uranium mining had been hailed as a great boost to Australia balance of payments. Headlines boasted of enormous and completely unrealistic employment opportunities and wealth.
To allay militant community opposition to new uranium mines, nuclear power and especially deep concerns over nuclear weapons, a wide ranging federal inquiry into all aspects of the nuclear industry was undertaken in the mid-70s, later to become known as the Fox Inquiry or Ranger Uranium Inquiry. By the late 70s, after it had completed over 2 years of public hearings, submissions, investigation and so on, it gave conditional approval for sequential development of the Ranger, Jabiluka and Nabarlek uranium mines to proceed, despite Ranger and Jabiluka being within the area proposed for the world heritage Kakadu National Park and Nabarlek being within the Arnhem Land Aboriginal Reserve. It very strongly advised against a third mine in Kakadu at Koongarra.
In 1983, the Labour party was swept convincingly to power with an anti-uranium mining policy. However, within 6 hours of coming to power they compromised and immediately bought in the infamous "Three Named Uranium Mines" policy, restricting uranium mining across Australia to Ranger and Nabarlek in the Northern Territory and the new mining venture at Roxby Downs in South Australia. The policy was notionally intended to phase out uranium mining in the longer term after the closure of the current mines. All other proposals for further uranium mines were shelved, including Jabiluka, Yeelirrie (which had a pilot plant conducting feasability studies in preparation for a major mining development), Honeymoon and Beverley.
As the Nabarlek deposit was small in comparison to the Roxby Downs and Ranger deposits, the ore was mined out in less than a year and processing finished in 1988, creating effectively a Two Named Mines policy. There were repeated attempts by the industry and from some factions within the Labour party to change the Three Mines policy, but these motions were never successful due to the support in the community for the limiting policy. The new Labour policy is to oppose the development of any further uranium mines when they attain government - only operational mines will continue. That is, a 'No New Mines' policy, in effect.
The Three Mines Policy, despite being criticized as illogical, was to shape the (lack of!) development of Australia's uranium industry for the next 13 years, until the Howard coalition government rose to power in early 1996. The Howard government's first environmental policy statement was to relinquish the infamous Three Mines policy and allow any proposal to be judged on its merit. Okay, to be blunt - the new government will approve any mine, any time, any where, at any cost to the environment, Aboriginal peoples and taxpayers of Australia.
By 1997, only Ranger and Olympic Dam (Roxby Downs) are actually producing, and though there is an active debate about opening up more mines, the debate revolves round whether there is actually any room on the market for extra capacity (given the plutonium and enriched uranium from weapons programs and potential new uranium mines in Saskatchewan Canada), not the significant problems associated with the world's most toxic and problematic industry. The Beverley acid in situ leach uranium mine, after going receiving approvals in early 1999, finally began producing in late 2000.
Both Ranger and Olympic Dam are expanding their operations, with Olympic Dam recently releasing a new Expansion EIS for levels of production higher than those approved in the original 1982 EIS. The Expansion EIS received scathing attack from environment groups across Australia for failing to address the guidelines and being nothing more than a cynical public relations exercise. Typical of most EIS's these days.
Another little known fact is that the Australian government owns and operates, through the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO), its own nuclear facility at Lucas Heights in what is now the outer southern suburbs of Sydney. It is a small research size reactor and was built in the late 50s. There have been repeated attempts to upgrade the facility, but successive governments have refused all proposals due to intense community pressure. No state or federal government has ever allowed the construction of full-scale nuclear power reactors on Australian soil.
Currently there are three active proposals before the government for new uranium mines :
Beverley - a medium sized deposit north-west of Lake Frome, South Australia, promulgated by Heathgate Resources/General Atomics. The first acid leach mine in Australia and the western world. The majority of the Adnyamathanha community are opposed to this mine. The EIS process was rushed through from June 1998, with final government approval enthusiastically given in early 1999, with commercial production finally beginning in late 2000. Honeymoon - a conglomerate of small deposits south-east of the Lake Frome area of South Australia - also to use acid leach mining, promulgated by Southern Cross Resources. The Draft EIS is expected sometime in early 2000 (but don't lose any sleep over waiting). Jabiluka - within Kakadu National Park in the Northern Territory, promulgated by ERA. Final approvals were in place by late-1998, including a revised milling alternative for Jabiluka. A blockade was in place throughout the 1998 Dry Season. The Mirrar have successfully forced ERA to abandon their preferred milling at Ranger until 2005, and with the recent corporate takeover of North Ltd by Rio Tinto, the Jabiluka project is now in highly uncertain and risky territory. The senior traditional owners of the Jabiluka area are firmly opposed to the new mining development. Indeed Aboriginal groups right across Australia are united in their opposition to new uranium mines on their traditional lands. A meeting of Aboriginal and Environment groups in November 1997 in Alice Springs saw a formal alliance developed to pool resources to fight this campaign, and (if necessary) prepare for blockades. This has continued the previous Alliance Against Uranium from April 1997.
There have also been suggestions of further uranium mines at :
Kintyre - this was an active proposed mine until late 1998. Formerly within the Rudall River National Park in north-eastern Western Australia, Canning Resources (aka Rio Tinto) have slowed the development of this project for the short term due to lower uranium prices and placed the project on a "care-and-maintenance" basis. Valhalla - a moderate sized uranium resource near Mt Isa in Queensland. Owned as an exploration Joint Venture between Summit Resources NL and Resolute Ltd. Currently all work is stalled due to Queensland Labour government policy opposing new uranium mines. Manyingee - Since Paladin Resources, a WA company, purchased the Manyingee (and Oobagooma) projects in July 1998, they have been actively re-evaluating the deposit and earlier exploration and field trials with a view to development of an acid in situ leach mine sometime in the next 2-3 years. Koongarra - the third uranium mining lease within Kakadu National Park, owned by French multinational uranium miner Cogema. Sen. Robert Hill has refused to rule out a possible mine despite the explicit recommendations of the Fox Inquiry against this mine. Although due to the pressure from UNESCO on their assessment of the Jabiluka project, the deposit may be incorporated into Kakadu and mining permanently stopped. Yeelirrie - another WMC-owned uranium deposit located 500 km north of Kalgoorlie in Western Australia. The trial mine was abandoned in 1983 with the introduction of the "Three Mines" policy. In July 1997, WMC admitted that it had left the trial exposed to the general public for more than 10 years, and uranium ore had even been taken and used for road building in the area. Angela - a small uranium deposit only 25 km out of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory. Application to mine was apparently sent to the government in March 1997. Present owner Black Range Minerals (formerly Uranium Australia) says they currently have no active plans, although they are still evaluating the deposit as a possible In-Situ Leach (ISL) mine. A new research reactor at Lucas Heights has finally been agreed to by the government, with the (farcical) Environmental Impact Statement process and Parliamentary Public Works Committee giving full approval. After all, an economically rationalist government has to approve its own ideological projects no matter what the true costs are. However, the Sutherland Shire Council is now taking a strong stand opposing the reactor, joining key community groups in the area to prevent the stop the new research reactor and force the government into more appropriate funding of public projects.
Finally, after being so quiet on the nuclear waste front for many years, Australia has been besieged by proposals for radioactive waste dumps. First of all, the government announced a dump somewhere in northern SA for "low-level" wastes - furphy, its for medium to high-level wastes from Lucas Heights. After vigourous public education in 1999, the government is stuck with an unwanted dump it knows is for nothing, since the higher level radioactive wastes have now been politically banned in SA.
A more insidious proposal reared its ugly head in late 1998, thanks to a leaked promo video obtained by Friends of the Earth. An American company called Pangea Resources Ltd was exposed for its plan to build and operate a high-level nuclear waste dump in Australia, accepting all manner of international nuclear waste. Their plan has been quickly and doggedly rejected by all governments of Australia, forcing people to wake up to Australia's role in facilitating the toxic nasties of the nuclear industry. But don't get too relieved, Pangea are still hanging around trying to work out how on earth they can still dump waste in WA - despite complete community and political opposition.
Who knows what else those boys in Canberra are up to. A broad cross-section of the Australian community have already shown their clear and unequivocal opposition to uranium mining. Surveys, rally's, letters to newspapers, submissions to bureaucratic processes (such as the Senate Inquiry, the new Jabiluka EIS, the Olympic Dam Expansion Project EIS) have all shown continued deep concern at the environmental performance of the uranium industry, especially when the need for safer and more sustainable energies provide for a much more rational and economically prosperous future for our children's needs and people everywhere.
The Battle is Now ON!
Page last updated January 4, 2001.
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