Stand up for Your Rights

(From the Danville Register and Bee 10/06/2007)

To the editor:If the citizens of Pittsylvania County believe uraniummining would be in their best interest, they would dowell to think again. The current proposal to mine theuranium deposit at Coles Hill near Sheva would notresult in a large influx of jobs for PittsylvaniaCounty. It would not be of any great benefit to anyonein Pittsylvania County other than the property ownersand shareholders.
After a few years, when the uranium ore has been minedout and a few are enjoying their money, the rest ofthe citizens of the county who are not so fortunatewill be left holding the proverbial bag. Because forevery ton of raw uranium ore taken from the ground,only 4 pounds of useable material can be extracted,leaving 1,996 pounds of highly radioactive waste(tailings) from each ton of ore.
That toxic waste will become the heritage ofPittsylvania County. Ours will no longer be a proudagricultural heritage as we now have, but a heritageof unusable, poisonous wastelands, which will remainpoisonous and unusable forever. Not to mention theexponentially higher rates of lung cancer and otherillnesses associated with the mining and processing ofuranium. The taxpayers of Pittsylvania County will beforced to pay for the monitoring and maintenance ofthat waste for their lifetimes - as well as those oftheir children and grandchildren.
The truth is that any sort of uranium mining andprocessing is extremely hazardous to people livingnearby. Uranium has never been mined in an area thathas the topography, climate, geology or the populationdensity of Pittsylvania County, which means that thepeople of the county would end up as guinea pigs foran industry that has a long and deplorable history ofdisregard for safety and virtually no regard for theenvironment.
In one recent letter, the author boasted that new andimproved methods of uranium extraction have beendeveloped in the past 25 years. But he did not mentionwhat those methods are.
The county supervisors are now up for re-election. Iurge everyone to call their supervisor and ask what heor she knows about this issue, other than what theyhave been told by the corporate mining interests, whocan paint a very rosy picture of uranium mining. Askyour supervisor what they really know about thedangers involved in mining and processing uranium. Letthem know that if they truly have the best interest ofthe citizens of Pittsylvania County in their hearts,they will say no to uranium mining in their county.And remind them that they are up for re-election.Likewise, if the citizens of Pittsylvania County careabout their homes, their families and the future ofthe county for their children and grandchildren, theywould do well to educate themselves about the miningand processing of uranium. This is an issue whoseoutcome will determine the fate of the county for alltime to come.
Pittsylvania County does not need uranium mining. Ourheritage is not one of poisoning the Earth and eachother for the monetary gain of a few people. Let's notmake it our heritage by allowing this flawed idea togo forward without at least educating ourselves andour government representatives about the hazardsassociated with uranium mining. The folks who stand tomake huge profits from this venture will always tellyou that nothing bad can happen. Don't believe them.Educate yourself before you decide what you want tohappen to your country. Citizen input is crucial tothis issue. Let your voice be heard. Stand up for yourright to have clean water and clean air.
That is the bottom line with uranium mining.

JESSE P. ANDREWS
Halifax