Leave uranium in the ground, says Indian visitor to Roxby Downs

“Please leave the uranium underground” , Roxby Downs Sun  April 4, 2013,  Indian national Bhargavi Dilipkumar has a message for BHP Billiton; to leave uranium underground for it has done more than enough damage to the environment.

Bhargavi visited Roxby Downs this week with Friends of the Earth Australia to receive a first hand experience of what uranium mining was all about and be the voice of India protesting the uranium trade between the two countries.

She said she had been part of the people’s movement that is strongly opposing the building of an atomic power plant to be built at the southern part of India.

Bhargavi is an anti nuclear activitist from India who strongly believes that BHP Billiton should shelve its uranium export program and be responsible for the safety of the environment and million of lives back home.

She visited the Olympic Dam mine and tried to persuade BHP Billiton management to have a heart for the people of India who will suffer long term consequences if the atomic power plant was allowed to go ahead.

“Please leave the uranium underground,” she said.

“Don’t mine it because its destroying lives.”

Similar sentiments were expressed by German nationals Danda Petter and Miriam Ribbeck who had been part of a nation-wide protest to stop the construction of a nuclear plant at Freiburg.

They said the consequences of having a nuclear plant would definitely affect both Germany and France.

Vietnamese national Hai Levan said having seen the damage caused in Japan he would “fight to the death” to stop the building of a nuclear energy plant in South Central Vietnam.

“We can’t continue chopping down trees because it will cause flooding and harm our environment,” he said .http://www.roxbydownssun.com.au/story/1408776/please-leave-the-uranium-underground/?cs=1503

Downsizing of BHP Billiton’s Roxby Downs project

BHP Billiton Shrinks Project Team for Olympic Dam Mine, WSJ, BY ROBB M. STEWART, August 29, 2012,  MELBOURNE—BHP Billiton Ltd. is reducing the size of the project team working on scaled-back plans to expand its Olympic Dam copper and uranium mine in South Australia, with roughly 140 employees facing transfer or lay off.

Melbourne-based BHP, the world’s largest mining company by market value, last week cut or deferred billions of dollars in proposed investments and said it wouldn’t approve any new major project until at least the middle of next year as costs continue to soar and commodity prices slump. The highest-profile casualty of the clamp down on spending was its US$30 billion Olympic Dam project, and …subscribers only http://online.wsj.com/article SB10000872396390444506004577618130532297156.html

South Australian Parliament makes BHP Billiton above the law, with Roxby Downs Indenture Act

29/11/2011 The Roxby Downs Indenture Bill today passed the South Australian Upper House. It has now passed both houses of Parliament, enshrining in law an agreement that over-rides some 21 South Australian laws, including state legislation covering radiation protection.

“Since the negotiation of the Indenture Agreement, it has been clear that the parliamentary process would simply be a rubber stamp. For example, in the Parliamentary Select Committee hearing, the opposition had the chance to question BHP for an hour, and the nature of their investigations were along the lines of concerns for the caravans that may be inconvenienced if a road was closed, never mind the tailings dams that are designed to leak,” said Nectaria Calan from Friends of the Earth Adelaide.

“Neither Labor not Liberal have shown any inclination to critically scrutinise the implications of the project, with the government bending over backwards to accommodate the mining giant. BHP wanted to recognise a historical version of the Aboriginal Heritage Act  that was repealed over 20 years ago – they got it. They wanted a mining lease that spans 70 years, despite the fact that their Environmental Impact Statement only covers 40 years – they got it. They wanted the right to be granted the expanded mining lease, covering nearly 50, 000 ha as freehold, free of charge – they got it. They wanted royalties capped for 45 years – they got it,” said Ms. Calan.

The scope of the Indenture Agreement extends far beyond the 40 years covered in the Environmental Impact Statement.

“It’s a strange state of affairs to have an Environmental Impact Statement that only covers 40 years, a mining lease granted for 70 years, and an indenture agreement that creates the right for future mining leases that will not expire until the last of the extended mining leases have expired. The intention appears to be to avoid any further Parliamentary scrutiny at all cost,” continued Ms. Calan.

Australian Greens have serious questions on Olympic Dam uranium mine exxpansion

Greens put forward 100 amendments to gridlock mine’s $525 million, by:Sarah Martin, The Advertiser,   November 09, 2011  Greens MLC Mark Parnell said his minority party was “not going to be cut short and stopped from asking the questions that need to be asked”, …. BHP says the revised Indenture Act needs to pass Parliament before the end of the year to trigger spending on preparatory work for the mine…. the Bill’s passage could be delayed until Parliament resumes in February next year…..

WHAT THE GREENS WANT TO KNOW

• 1. ROYALITIES

  Why did the Government lock in a royalty regime for 45 years, and why is it based exclusively on old-style production-based royalties, rather than one that captures a fair share of mining profits?

  2. ECONOMIC RETURN

  How good an economic deal did SA receive when BHP CEO Marius Kloppers is claiming to his shareholders that the Olympic Dam Expansion will be low cost and highly profitable?

  3. PROCESSING IN SA RATHER THAN CHINA

  How many South Australian jobs will be lost by not requiring BHP to process our ore here in South Australia rather than exporting it to China?

  4. EXEMPTION FROM SA LAWS

  Why is BHP exempt from over 20 South Australian laws that every other mining company in SA has to comply with?

  5. NO URANIUM OPTION

  Why wasnt a No Uranium Roxby Expansion considered when we know it is not only technically feasible, it would also mean less water and energy use and more jobs as the processing would be done here in SA, rather than in China?

  6. GREAT ARTESIAN BASIN

  Why isn’t there a plan to wean BHP off using 42ML/day of ancient water from the Great Artesian Basin, when they plan double that volume in excess capacity (80ML/day) from their desalination plant?

  7. DESALINATION PLANT & CUTTLEFISH RISK

  Why is the Government prepared to risk the breeding grounds of the Giant Australian Cuttlefish by not requiring the company to build in a different location?

  8. RADIOACTIVE LEAKAGE FROM TAILINGS DAM

  How can the Government claim that they have met their public commitment for the expansion to meet worlds best environmental practice when only 4 per cent of the tailings dams will be lined and the dams are designed to leak up to 8 million litres of toxic radioactive waste liquid/day?

  9. RESPONSIBILITY POST MINE CLOSURE

  Who will ultimately be responsible to manage the open pit, tailings dams and rock waste pile for the 10,000 years after the operations cease that the radioactive risk remains: the company or SA taxpayers, and how much will that management cost?

  10. GREENHOUSE POLLUTION & RENEWABLE ENERGY

  Why isn’t the company committing to any investment in cleaner energy to meet their whopping 650 MW electricity demand beyond the 57MW commitment for powering the desal plant (less than 10 per cent of total demand) to reduce their enormous increase in the states greenhouse pollution of 12-15 per cent?

 

BHP Billiton’s huge new uranium mine – a poor deal for South Australians

Roxby Spin vs Reality as Libs Roll-over:       

1)        EPA not fully independent

2)        No guarantee of extra processing on site
Greens Leader Mark Parnell has accused the Liberals of ducking responsibility over the Roxby approval Bill, as more details emerge that undermine confidence in the deal signed between the Government and BHP Billiton.  “The Liberals claim they could have got a better deal.  Well, they still can,” said Greens Parliamentary Leader Mark Parnell.

“It is not too late for the Parliament of South Australia to insist on a much better deal for our State.  We can and should amend the legislation to ratify the Roxby expansion currently before Parliament.  “To roll over and pass the Roxby Indenture Bill unchanged will miss a once in a generation opportunity to get this right,” he said.

The call comes as more gaps emerge in the Government’s claims over the Roxby expansion.  “The Government claims the EPA will be fully independent.  Yet with this Indenture the EPA will still be operating with one hand tied behind its back,” said Mr Parnell.

“Also the Government has talked up the potential to double processing on site at Roxby Downs to 350,000 tonnes of refined copper.  Yet this is not a condition in the approval and there is nothing to stop BHP Billiton ignoring that commitment in the future and export all the ore from the expansion and jobs to China. “And this is on top of locking in a ridiculously low royalty rate for the next 45 years.

“The closer we look, the more concerned we are at the very poor deal the State Government has signed on behalf of all South Australians,” he said.

SUBMISSION TO THE SELECT COMMITTEE Re: Roxby Downs (Indenture Ratification) (Amendment of Indenture) Amendment Bill 2011

SUBMISSION TO THE SELECT COMMITTEE. NECTARIA CALAN, Friends of the Earth Adelaidc  /- Conservation Council of SA
Level 1, 157 Franklin Street, Adelaide SA 5000 Contact: blackwallaby@gmail.com, 26 October 2011

Re: Roxby Downs (Indenture Ratification) (Amendment of Indenture) Amendment Bill 2011

I ask the Committee to revisit the issue of consultation, in regards to the approval of the Olympic Dam
expansion as set out in Clause 11(3) which ratifies and approves the amendments to the Indenture.

There has not been a genuine process of consultation with either the Kokatha or Arabunna peoples, Native
Title claimants or otherwise, or the wider Australian public, both in regards to the establishment of the
Olympic Dam mine by Western Mining Corporation and the process leading to the recent approval of the
Olympic Dam expansion.

Expanded uranium mine at Roxby Downs opposed by Aborigines and conservationists

Conservation and Aboriginal groups upset about BHP mine expansion, ABC Rural News, By Kendall Jackson, 11/10/2011  One of the world’s most significant mine expansions is another step closer to construction in South Australia, but there’s still plenty of opposition to it………..the environmental approval has locals fearing the expansion, especially the construction of a desalination plant in upper Spencer Gulf.

Whyalla diver Tony Bramley fears any change in salinity levels in the gulf could be fatal to the giant Australian cuttlefish, which aggregate in the area to breed each year.

“We just don’t know too much about what happens underwater,” he said.
“Even though this area is more studied than anywhere else in the state, we’ve got to the point now where we realise just how much we don’t know.”

A spokesman for the Arabunna people says the environmental approval is a sad day for Aboriginal people in the region.

Aboriginal elder Kevin Buzzacott says the site holds historical significance and the Aboriginal community has been left out of the consultation process.
“We don’t want that big great gaping hole in the desert, we just don’t want it,” he said.

“We never wanted Olympic Dam in the first place because it’s a sacred site and we’re trying to protect our areas.”
The Conservation Council in South Australia is concerned the company hasn’t done enough to reduce its carbon footprint, with the expansion of the Olympic Dam mine.

The council says the project will increase the state’s energy demand by about 40 per cent.
Julia Winefield, from the council, says BHP Billiton has only committed to less than 7 per cent of the expanded mine using renewable energy.

“We think for a company that has recorded $23 billion worth of profits in the last financial year they can probably afford to do a bit better than that,” she said. “We think they have a moral and social responsibility to do a lot better than that.”

Why swon’t the South Australian government release its ‘Assessment Report” om Olympic dam uranium mine expansion?

Release ‘secret’  Roxby report, 22 Sept 11, The Greens have called for the immediate release of a hidden report that captures the views of State Government agencies on the Olympic Dam
Mega-expansion. Called the ‘Assessment Report’, it is a compulsory step in the approval process for a major development.  It summarises the responses by various government agencies to the proponent’s Supplementary Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and is supposed to be released before the Government announces its approval of a project. However, for recent controversial projects the Rann Government has chosen to only release the Report after they have announced their decision. ”The only reason the Government is choosing not to release the Assessment Report now is to avoid scrutiny,” said SA Greens Parliamentary leader Mark

Parnell.
“The Government is holding back the Report’s release for political reasons – keeping the SA community in the dark. This means that the public doesn’t get a chance to respond.  It also allows the Government to dodge tricky questions as the media and others tend to focus on the approval decision, rather than what Government agencies actually think.

“The Rann Government has form in releasing the Assessment Report only after they announce their decision on a project.  They did it for Buckland Park and they did it for the Port Stanvac desal plant. ”For a project as important as the Olympic Dam expansion, the Government should be giving the SA community more opportunities to be involved in the
final decision, not less.  ”For example, the Assessment Report will be able to tell us what
Government agencies like SARDI really think about the proposed desalination plant at Pt Lowly.

“The Greens call on the State Government to immediately release the Assessment Report, well before they announce their decision on the OlympicDam Expansion.

BHP Billiton, uranium mining, and South Australia’s unjust Roxby Downs Indenture Act

he Indenture Act trumps all other SA legislation…..Over to you, Mr Rann − repealing the indefensible legal privileges in the current Indenture Act would be a good way to end your tenure as SA Premier.

Above the law: Olympic Dam’s legal privileges, Jim Green and Gavin Mudd, 27 Aug 11 Premier Mike Rann has done us a favour by insisting on concluding negotiations with BHP Billiton over the SA Roxby Downs Indenture Act before leaving office. It is by no means clear that the outcome will be
improved with Mr Rann’s involvement, but he has at least drawn attention to this remarkable legislation.

The Indenture Act governs the operations of the Olympic Dam copper/uranium mine. The legislation was controversial when it was enacted in 1982 and it is all the more inappropriate as the basis for the planned expansion of
the mine.

The Act provides BHP Billiton with the legal authority to override important state legislation including the Aboriginal Heritage Act 1988,
the Environmental Protection Act 1993, the Freedom of Information Act
1991, the Natural Resources Act 2004 (including water management issues),
the Development Act 1993 and the Mining Act 1971.

BHP Billiton above the law in South Australia

exemptions from the Environmental Protection Act (1993) are of particular concern. The exclusion of this Act means that the Olympic Dam mine is not subject to the same environmental regulatory framework as other industrial projects in South Australia, and the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA), which administers the Act, is excluded from its monitoring role. BHP’s environmental performance is instead the responsibility of the Minister for Mineral Resources Development, who, based on BHP’s own reports, has full discretion to approve or reject programmes for the management and rehabilitation of the environment, without any obligation to consult with other agencies. Given the Ministers role in promoting mining in SA, this arguably amounts to a conflict of interest.

Re: ROXBY DOWNS INDENTURE ACT

Dear

The Roxby Downs Indenture Act is currently the subject of negotiations between the SA Government and BHB Billiton, owner of the Olympic Dam copper/uranium mine. We expect that in the near future amendments will beintroduced into parliament extending the operation of the Act to the proposed Olympic Dam expansion.

Friends of the Earth is concerned that indefensible legal privileges in the Indenture Act will be retained in the context of the proposed mine expansion, including exemptions and overrides from the SA Aboriginal Heritage Act1988, the Environmental Protection Act 1993, the Freedom of Information Act 1991, and the Natural Resources Act 2004.

There has as yet been no indication from the SA Government or BHP Billiton that it accepts that these legal exemptions are indefensible and must be repealed. Nor has there been an acknowledgement from the SA Government that the Indenture Act undermines the binding Labor Party commitment to apply the “strictest environmental standards” to uranium mining.

In this regard, exemptions from the Environmental Protection Act (1993) are of particular concern. The exclusion of this Act means that the Olympic Dam mine is not subject to the same environmental regulatory framework as other industrial projects in South Australia, and the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA), which administers the Act, is excluded from its monitoring role. BHP’s environmental performance is instead the responsibility of the Minister for Mineral Resources Development, who, based on BHP’s own reports, has full discretion to approve or reject programmes for the management and rehabilitation of the environment, without any obligation to consult with other agencies. Given the Ministers role in promoting mining in SA, this arguably amounts to a conflict of interest.

Uranium mines pose the greatest environmental risk of all industrial projects, in that where environmental harm occurs, the effects may last tens of thousands of years. This consideration, accompanied by the scale of theproposed expansion, which has the potential for much greater environmental risk than the existing operation, makes legal accountability even more important. Noting the Legislative Council’s concern regarding the waste management practices of the proposed expansion, recorded in the motion passed on the 29th July 2011

 

“[calling] on the State Government to ensure that all waste management practices for the proposed Olympic Dam Expansion, including the management of surplus ore and tailings, meet or exceed world’s best practice,” I refer you to chapter 12 of the Draft and Supplementary Environmental Impact Statements for the expansion. Sections 12.4.2 and 12.6.2 of the Draft EIS in particular acknowledge that seepage from the Tailings Storage Facility will affect groundwater quality. Notably, the groundwater is predicted to contain elevated levels of Uranium (p. 366 Draft EIS, p. 283 Supplementary EIS), further highlighting the importance of independent environmental monitoring and a rigorous environmental regulatory framework. Rather than burying the tailings in the pit after the mines closure, BHP propose to allow them to continue seeping into the aquifer, acknowledging that the impactmay last up to 10,000 years.

Friends of the Earth asks you to use your voice as an SA Parliamentarian to ensure that the legal exemptions and overrides contained in the Roxby Downs Indenture Act are repealed, and that they are not extended to apply to the proposed expansion, allowing BHP Billiton to be subject to the same laws as other corporations operating in SA.

A summary of the problems with the Indenture Act is overleaf along with references to more detailed literature.

I would be pleased to discuss these issues with you or to provide further information.

Yours sincerely,

 

Nectaria Calan

Anti-nuclear campaigner

Friends of the Earth Adelaide

0432 388 665

blackwallaby@gmail.com