The state’s peak environment group, the Nature Conservation Council of NSW, has strongly condemned
Premier O'Farrell's decision to overturn a 26‐year ban on uranium exploration in NSW.
“The O’Farrell government’s uranium exploration proposal leaves our local communities and our
environment exposed to serious pollution risks and a persistent legacy of toxic waste,” Chief Executive
Officer Pepe Clarke said today.
“Uranium mining consumes enormous volumes of water, contaminates groundwater and leaves behind a
legacy of radioactive mine waste, placing workers, local communities and the environment at risk.
“Less than one year after the tragic nuclear accident at Fukushima in Japan, it is incomprehensible that the O'Farrell government is planning to overturn a 26‐year ban on this dangerous, polluting industry.
“Uranium mines in South Australia and the Northern Territory have a well documented history of leaks,
safety breaches and failed rehabilitation.
“Recent revelations about heavy metal contamination from coal seam gas exploration in the Pilliga forest
raise very real questions about the State government's capacity to manage toxic risk from the uranium
industry.
“The State government's insatiable appetite for mining royalties must not come at the expense of our
health, water resources and the environment,” Mr Clarke said.
Front page image: Mad House Photography
