Uranium mining in Australia

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Ranger uranium mine 3

A uranium mining in Australia was first held in 1906th After 1944, the demand for uranium for the construction of nuclear weapons caused a first wave of reservoir exploration , followed by a second wave in the late 1960s, driven by the demand for uranium for the generation of electrical energy in nuclear power plants . Since 2002, known deposits have been explored in the expectation that the global demand for uranium will continue to rise, as global warming means that some countries are building or planning new nuclear power plants because of their low carbon dioxide emissions . According to the state of knowledge from 2010, around 31 percent of the world's known uranium deposits are in Australia. Australia is the third largest uranium exporter.

Consequences of uranium mining include contamination of the immediate biosphere through the escape of radioactive radon , dust from spoil heaps or dried sludge. These can lead to diseases and changes in hereditary disposition, which particularly affects the native people of Australia ( Aborigines ) who live in remote areas . Furthermore, many uranium deposits are located in areas that are of cultural importance for the Aborigines. In some cases, Aborigines have prevented uranium mining on their land through their Native Title .

Since the late 1960s, uranium mining and export have been the main areas of political disputes between the various governments of Australia and groupings of the anti-nuclear movement in Australia , which accuse the nuclear industry of destroying the environment and the Aboriginal dream-time land as well as contributing to the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction . This debate resulted in a partial political paradigm shift in both the Australian federal and state governments and limited the mining and export of uranium. In recent years, the discussion has focused primarily on controversial uranium exports to China, Russia and India, as well as on the controversial expansion of production to more than three or four uranium mines in Australia. Despite a lack of planning security, mining and exploration companies are continuing their exploration of deposits.

Due to falling raw material prices for uranium, active uranium mining was closed and another mine restricted mining. This means that since 2013 no longer four, but three mines have been extracting uranium in Australia.

history

Uranium mine at Mount Gee in the early 1920s
Uranium mining on Radium Hill (1954)
Open uranium mining at the Mary Kathleen uranium mine
Several uranium ore bodies (Redtree and Huarabagoo) are located on the Redtree Dolerite Vein (broken line) in Westmoreland

Uranium deposits in Australia have been known since the 1890s. In 1906, uranium was mined for the first time at Radium Hill in South Australia and processed into bromides and uranium from 1911 to 1915 in Hunters Hill , now a suburb of Sydney . Radium was used for medical examinations. Uranium ore was also mined at Mount Painter , in the vicinity of Mount Gee in South Australia. From 1944, an extensive exploration of uranium deposits was started at the request of the governments of the USA and Great Britain , with the discovery of uranium deposits being promoted by tax incentives from the federal government of Australia from 1948 onwards.

A uranium deposit was discovered in the Rum Jungle in the Northern Territory in 1949 and mining by the government began in 1954. Other deposits were discovered on the South Alligator River in the Northern Territory in 1953, at Mary Kathleen and in 1954 and Westmoreland in Queensland in 1956. In 1954, the uranium mine on Radium Hill reopened and mining in other uranium deposits began in the late 1950s.

The Port Pirie uranium processing complex began operations in August 1955, processing uranium from Radium Hill and Wild Dog Hill near Myponga , south of Adelaide . The £ 1,800,000 complex was operated by the government of South Australia supplying Great Britain and the United States of America. The complex closed in February 1962.

Around 1964, the first uranium production in Australia was terminated because the uranium supplies were exhausted and the contracts were fulfilled. Export sales during the first phase were 7,730 tonnes of uranium for US and UK nuclear weapons production . Further sales were made to nuclear power plants overseas.

A second wave of prospecting occurred in the late 1960s when nuclear energy was used to generate electrical energy. 60 uranium deposits were discovered at the time, including that of the Ranger uranium mine in 1969, Nabarlek uranium mine , Koongarra in 1970 and Jabiluka in 1971.

The first government-commissioned investigation into the effects of uranium mining was the 1976 Ranger Uranium Environmental Inquiry , also known as the Fox Report , which sought to answer the question of whether Australia should mine and export uranium. The uranium mining was then stopped because the Australian government took over 42 percent of the shares in Ranger Uranium Mines Pty Ltd , although the investigation was not yet completed. In 1979 the government of Australia sold these shares in order not to impede uranium mining at the Ranger uranium mine. At the same time, the Energy Resources of Australia Ltd group acquired this mine and began mining in 1981. This organization later took over Ranger Uranium Mines Pty .

The Nabarlek uranium mine mined uranium for four months in 1979. The grinding of the extracted uranium ore took place in 1980, during which 10,858 t of uranium oxides were produced, which were sold to civil nuclear power plants in Japan , Finland and France .

When the Mary Kathleen uranium mine closed in 1982, the first recultivation of a uranium mine took place, which was completed in 1985. The same method was used at the Rum Jungle uranium mine in the 1980s.

The Olympic Dam uranium mine at Roxby Downs commenced uranium mining by Western Mining Corporation in 1988. It is a large underground mine that mainly mines copper and extracts uranium, gold and silver as by-products . The Western Mining Corp. was 2005 BHP Billiton acquired.

Since 2002 there has been an increased increase in the exploration of deposits, which is mainly carried out by smaller companies that have known deposits in their focus.

Uranium deposits

Known minable uranium deposits worldwide
as of 2009
country metric tons Share of world deposits
in percent
Australia 1,673,000 31 percent
Kazakhstan 651,000 12 percent
Canada 485,000 9 percent
Commonwealth of Independent States 480,000 9 percent
South Africa 295,000 5.5 percent
Namibia 284,000 5 percent
Brazil 279,000 5 percent
Niger 272,000 5 percent
United States 207,000 4 percent
other 778,000
World as a whole 5,404,000

Worldwide deposits

The volume of the world's known uranium deposits is estimated at around 5,469,000 t, 31 percent (1,673,000 t) of which are in Australia, 12 percent (615,000 t) in Kazakhstan and 9 percent in Canada. There are further uranium deposits in Russia , South Africa , USA , Brazil and Namibia . Canada is the world's largest supplier of uranium, followed by Kazakhstan and Australia. The other occurrences are spread across other countries. Australia exported 50,235 tons of uranium oxides through 2008, valued at AUD $ 2.9 billion.

Deposits in Australia

In 2009, Australian uranium deposits were valued in excess of $ 300 billion. An increase in the price of uranium seems likely as several countries intend to operate more nuclear power plants for alternative energy generation due to global warming and dwindling fossil fuels . According to forecasts by the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics in 2009, a 38 percent increase in export volume and a price increase for uranium of 86 percent by 2014 can be expected.

Uranium mining in Australia first started in 1906 at Radium Hill and later, in the 1930s, at Mount Painter in South Australia . The extracted uranium ore was used to produce radium for medical purposes and several hundred kilograms of uranium .

About 89 percent of Australia's uranium resources occur in two main geological developments.

Of these, about 70 percent are from the period of the Proterozoic and are located in deposits in haematitic granite - breccias at Olympic Dam in South Australia. This deposit is the largest known uranium deposit on earth. The proportion of U 3 O 8 in this variant is around 0.05 percent.

The ore deposits at Prominent Hill and Mount Gee in the Mount Painter region of Geological Curnamona Province are in the same area where uranium is a by-product of copper and gold mining. A further 19 percent of these deposits are located in Proterozoic discordance deposits, which are bound to the erosion areas between the crystalline basement and overlying metamorphic sediments , mainly in the area of ​​the Alligator River in the Northern Territory (Ranger, Jabiluka, Koongarra). The proportion of U 3 O 8 here is between 0.1 and 1.8 percent.

Uranium deposits in Tertiary sandstone account for about 4.4 percent of the total, mainly in Frome Embayment, South Australia (Beverley, Honeymoon) and around Westmoreland, Queensland. The proportion of U 3 O 8 is> 0.1 percent.

3.5 percent of Australia's uranium reserves are in near-surface calcrete deposits , most of which are in Yeelirrie, Western Australia .

The remaining camps are mainly caused by metasomatosis and volcanic activity .

The following essential uranium deposits are known in detail (as of November 2010):

Uranium mines and deposits in Australia (May 2009)

Red pog.svg Active mine
Green pog.svg Deposit / possible future mine location
Orange pog.svg Closed mines

Crosshair.png city
  • Angela, Northern Territory
  • Ben Lomond, Queensland
  • Beverley, South Australia (under dismantling)
  • Bigrlyi, Northern Territory
  • Billeroo West, South Australia
  • Crocker Well, South Australia
  • Curnamona, South Australia
  • Dawson-Hinkler Well, Western Australia
  • Double 8, Western Australia
  • Four Mile, South Australia (development approved and stopped in 2009)
  • Honeymoon, South Australia (development and test dismantling approved)
  • Jabiluka, Northern Territory (under mining)
  • Kintyre, Western Australia
  • Koongarra, Northern Territory
  • Lake Maitland , Western Australia
  • Lake Way & Centipede, Western Australia
  • Manyingee, Western Australia
  • Maureen, Queensland
  • Mount Fitch, Northern Territory
  • Mount Gee, South Australia
  • Mulga Rock, Western Australia
  • Mullaquana, South Australia
  • Napperby, Northern Territory
  • Nolan's Bore, Northern Territory
  • Olympic Dam, South Australia
  • Oobagooma, Western Australia
  • Prominent Hill, South Australia
  • Ranger Jungle, Northern Territory (under construction)
  • Skal, Andersons, Bikini, Watta, Queensland
  • Thatcher Soak, Western Australia
  • Valhalla, Queensland
  • Westmoreland, Queensland
  • Yeelirrie, Western Australia (development approved)

Uranium mines in the process of mining (2010)

In 2010, a total of 6958 t uranium oxide was produced in Australia, of which in the three active mines: 3793 t Ranger Jungle , 2747 t Olympic Dam and 418 t Beverley .

Closed uranium mines

The following uranium mines in Australia were operated and then closed:

Economy

Production and export
status 2010
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010
Production
(tons of U 3 O 8 )
 8937 9119 8083 8930 10592 11217 8954 10145 9941 9413 6958
Production
(tons of U)
 7578 7733 6854 7572 8982 9512 7593 8603 8430 7982 5900
Export
(tons of U 3 O 8 )
 8757 9239 7637 9612 9648 12360 8660 10232 9663 9706
Export
(tons of U)
 7426 7834 6476 8151 8181 10481 7344 8676 8194 8230
Export
(A $ Million FOB )
 426 463 363 398 411 573 529 881 749 1116
Export value
(U 3 O 8 , A $ / kg)
 48.65 50.09 47.57 41.41 42.58 46.36 61.06 86.11 77.54 114.9

Besides its importance in nuclear medicine and nuclear material science , uranium is used as an energy source for nuclear power plants. In February 2009, 436 nuclear power plants with a total capacity of 372 gigawatts of electrical energy were in operation in 30 countries . Furthermore, 43 plants are under construction and another 108 are in the planning stage; 266 reactors were proposed for planning by government organizations.

In Australia there is no nuclear power plant and no concrete plans for it. The Jervis Bay nuclear power plant should be built from 1970 about 200 km from Sydney . It was designed for a capacity of 500 megawatts as well as a pilot project for the construction of further plants. Despite feasibility studies, the award of contracts and the start of concreting work, the Australian government did not pursue the project from 1971 onwards.

Australia operated the research reactor High Flux Australian Reactor (HIFAR for short) from 1958 to 2006 and has operated the Open Pool Australian Lightwater Reactor (OPAL for short) in Lucas Heights , a suburb of Sydney , since 2007 .

Australian uranium is sold solely for the purpose of generating electrical energy and for nuclear research only in countries that have signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. The Australian uranium export takes place exclusively under the strict safety conditions of the International Atomic Energy Agency .

In 2006 a group of scientists led by the eponymous nuclear physicist and entrepreneur Ziggy Switkowski produced the Switkowski Report . This report recommended that Australia, with its uranium reserves, which account for 23 percent of world production, is well positioned to meet growing market needs. The annual added value was given at 1.8 billion AUD. With a view to the expected doubling of the Australian demand for electricity by 2050, the expected substantial retrofitting or replacement of two thirds of the existing fossil fuel power plants, the expected additional construction of new power plants and the obligations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the commission identified generation nuclear energy including final disposal as a viable route for Australia that could be implemented within 10 years (by 2016).

After reviewing the report by independent specialist colleagues, they determined that the shortage of qualified personnel had been underestimated in the targeted 10 years for implementation, and that a start was therefore more likely only in 15 years (from 2021).

politics

General

Main article: → Three Mine Policy

Uranium mining in Australia is highly political, especially for the Australian Labor Party (ALP), for both federal and state governments, as project development often involves a series of investigations and the issuance of mining and export licenses.

The biennial ALP National Conference in 1982 led to a heated debate on nuclear policy. At the 1984 conference, the newly elected ALP under Bob Hawke developed a three-mine policy. This policy meant the continued operation of the three mines that were active at the time: Ranger uranium mine, Nabarlek uranium mine and Olympic Dam and a moratorium against the opening of further uranium mines. After the uranium deposits in the Nabarlek uranium mine were exhausted, the Beverley uranium mine became the third recognized uranium mine to take its place.

This policy was abandoned after the 1996 national elections, won by the Conservative coalition under John Howard of the Liberal Party .

When the ALP won the national election of 2007 with Kevin Rudd , there was a political paradigm shift , as the ALP national conference decided to approve further uranium mines. In 2009 the Australian government allowed a fourth Australian uranium mine to open in July 2009, the Four Mile Uranium Mine in South Australia, ending a 25 year policy. Federal Minister Martin Ferguson then stated that the expansion of uranium production was inevitable.

The federal government of Australia is legally in a position to end the mining by withdrawing the mining permit, even against the stated will of the respective states. The currently ruling ALP takes the position that decided to open a fourth uranium mine at its national conference. Prime Minister Julia Gillard signed a contract with Russia in November 2011 that provides for the continued supply of uranium, subject to the abolition of the reservation from three states, whereby the use of Australian uranium for nuclear weapons production is contractually excluded. The federal states of Australia currently operate the following policy:

  • South Australia (ALP): supports uranium mining
  • Western Australia (coalition of the Liberal Party / National Party of Australia ): supports uranium mining
  • Queensland (ALP): is against uranium mining
  • Northern Territory: Uranium mining controlled by the Australian federal government

The ban on mining uranium in Western Australia was lifted in 2008 by the government there.

At its national conference in February 2011, Australia's largest industrial union, the Australian Workers' Union , decided that it would campaign for the lifting of the legal ban on uranium mining in Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland.

The conservative opposition under Tony Abbott is in favor of uranium mining and export. The Australian Workers' Union (AWU) advocates a departure from the three-mine policy and in February 2011 called for the restricted uranium production in Queensland, Victoria and New South Wales to be suspended.

The Australian Greens strictly oppose any expansion of the uranium and nuclear industries.

In 2013 the honeymoon uranium mine and parts of the Beverley uranium mine were closed due to falling raw material prices. There are thus three uranium mines in active mining in 2014.

environmental issues

According to the environmental organization Australian Conservation Foundation, securing the radiating spoil heaps and sludge left behind during uranium mining, as well as the enormous water and energy consumption of the mines, are unsolved problems. The surrounding area is being contaminated and a noticeable number of workers and residents of the mines are suffering from respiratory diseases.

Critical voices complain about Australia's lack of responsibility for radioactive waste that arises in the countries supplied by the production of nuclear energy with uranium from Australia. Australia has ideal geological conditions for storing nuclear waste.

Aboriginal

Test mining field of the honeymoon uranium mine through solution mining

In the remote areas of Australia, many of the indigenous people (Aborigines) are particularly affected by the consequences of uranium mining due to their way of life as hunters and gatherers, because they partly feed on bush food , i.e. from the plants and animals of their country, and extract from below other drinking water from billabongs . The rock waste that arises from uranium ore extraction in open-cast mining and that is dumped on spoil heaps still contains around 80 percent of the original radiation and so - as is the case with uranium extraction with chemicals - the air, water and soil can be contaminated. The noble gas radon, which escapes during mining, and the radioactively contaminated dust from the spoil heaps are released into the atmosphere. The threats to the biosphere can lead to lung cancer, other diseases and massive changes in genetic makeup.

A parliamentary report from 1997 described the "devastating effects of uranium extraction" to date. He pointed to the acidic wastewater from the rum jungle mining, which had been discharged into the Finnis River in Litchfield National Park and "destroyed all plant and animal life over a section of the river of about 10 km". The report went on to say that "the history of uranium mining in Australia and its impact on the Aborigines is deplorable." Mining in the past, for example in the rum jungle mine, has damaged the surrounding areas to such an extent that the traditional owners are no longer able to use them. Other mines, such as the Ranger Mine, were forced on the traditional owners against their will. In the case of the Olympic Dam uranium mine , too, there would have been deep concern about the ruthless damage to sacred sites and the lack of sensitivity to Aboriginal culture.

Uranium mining in remote parts of Australia can therefore lead to disputes with Aborigines, who often hold the native title of these areas and see them as important for their culture. Examples for this are:

  • The Wongatha tribe in Western Australia rejected uranium mining in their area in 2010.
  • The Council of Kupa Piti Kungka Tjuta Aboriginal Leaders of the Arabana and Kokatha tribes in South Australia expressed concern in 1999 about the lasting effects of the rubble at the Olympic Dam Mine in South Australia. In autumn 2009, the operator of the Four Mile uranium mine declared the end of the project because no agreement had been reached with the Aborigines who have the Native Title in this area. Representatives of the Adnyamathanha tribe had resisted the desecration and destruction of some of their important holy places.
  • After years of protests, the operators of the Jabiluka mine in the Northern Territory declared in 2002 that they would refrain from continuing the project without the consent of the local Aboriginal tribe of the Mirarr clan. The Mirarr spoke out against expanding the Ranger Jungle Mine in 2010 as long as the operating company did not change its environmental practices.
  • Jeffrey Lee , the sole member of the Djok Clan and thus the highest-ranking administrator of the Koongarra uranium deposit, decided in 2007 that uranium mining would never be allowed in this ecologically sensitive area and that he advocated incorporating the area into the surrounding Kakadu National Park.
  • Well-known opponents and activists against uranium mining in Australia in the ranks or in the vicinity of the Aborigines are for example Kevin Buzzacott , Jacqui Katona , Yvonne Margarula and Jillian Marsh .

Currently (2011), according to the Australian Nuclear Free Alliance, the Aboriginal communities are facing a wave of uranium deposit explorations, planned construction of new uranium mines and new nuclear waste storage facilities .

Not all indigenous groups in Australia oppose mining uranium. The representative of the Mardu tribe , the Western Desert Lands Aboriginal Corp , has approved the development of its 130,000 km² area in Western Australia by at least two companies.

Export countries

Export of U 3 O 8 to country
in 2008
country metric tons
European Union 3308
Japan 2464
United States 3689
Taiwan 447
China 313
South Korea 214
Canada 249
other 23

In 2008 Australia exported uranium to the following countries: Belgium, Germany, Finland, France, Great Britain, Spain, Sweden (all EU), China, Japan, Canada, South Korea and Taiwan. From 2010 uranium was also supplied to the Commonwealth of Independent States (Russia).

Controversial uranium exports

A survey conducted in 2005 found that 56 percent of the 1,200 Australians questioned question the effectiveness of the International Atomic Energy Agency's safeguard system . Two-thirds of the Australian population refused to sell uranium to states with nuclear weapons in 2010.

China

In April 2006, the Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer and his Chinese colleague Li Zhaoxing signed several agreements on the supply of uranium ore, which is intended exclusively for the production of fuel elements for nuclear power plants and is intended to ensure the long-term operation of Chinese nuclear power plants. The agreements contained guarantees that the Australian uranium exported to the People's Republic of China would only be used for peaceful purposes.

The agreements were harshly criticized by the Australian Conservation Foundation , which feared that uranium ore could be diverted to China's military nuclear program. The Australian Greens also criticized that the Australian uranium would either directly or indirectly serve to support the Chinese nuclear weapons program. Alexander Downer stated: "China has a nuclear weapons program, whether we like it or not." The agreements on the uranium supplies would have no impact on China's military nuclear program. The United States, too, viewed Australia's willingness to supply uranium to China with skepticism and saw open questions about China's economic and military ambitions.

In 2006, China covered 62 percent of its electricity needs from coal-fired power plants. According to estimates from 2003, China's uranium requirements for use in nuclear power plants will be 3960 to 5760 tons / year in 2020, other estimates from 2006 are already 8000 tons / year by 2020. It is expected that China will need a third of this uranium from Australia, with a volume of AUD 250 million annually based on 2006 prices. Forecasts for Chinese nuclear energy production this year are around 70 gigawatts. There are plans to double and triple this capacity. Other sources say that by 2020, at best, 5 percent of China's energy needs can be generated by nuclear power, compared to 1 percent in 2006. From a 2006 perspective, China is expected to build up to 50 new nuclear power plants in the next 20 years.

The question of the final disposal of the estimated 3900 tons of nuclear waste (2010) remains unsolved in China.

Russia

In 1990 there was an agreement between the countries according to which Australian uranium could only be processed in Russia for third countries.

Australian Prime Minister John Howard and Russian President Vladimir Putin signed an agreement on the supply of uranium to Russia during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting in Sydney in September 2007 . The Labor Opposition at the time feared a military use of the uranium or its resale to third countries such as Iran , although the agreement excluded these possibilities.

After the Caucasus War in 2008 and the associated threats of a Russian nuclear strike against Poland , critical voices rose again in Australia.

In September 2008, following an investigation, the Federal Parliament Treaties Committee recommended that no deliveries be made to Russia unless a distinction was made between civilian and military nuclear facilities there. The committee warned that Russia could use Australian uranium for military purposes. Voices from the Liberal Party accused the committee of “extreme anti-nuclear interpretations”.

It was also criticized that the International Atomic Energy Agency had not carried out any more inspections in Russia since 2001 and the Australian Conservation Foundation warned that a separation of civil and military use could not be verified.

In March 2009, high-ranking Russian parliamentarians urged Australia to clear the way for exports to Russia in order to meet the growing demand for nuclear energy there.

On the sidelines of the G20 summit in South Korea in November 2010, Labor Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Russian President Dmitri Medvedev exchanged the instruments of ratification of the nuclear cooperation agreement between the two countries. The Australian Conservation Foundation noted that the federal government's decision to sell uranium to Russia would put the interests of a controversial (uranium) industry before Australian national interests and global responsibility.

In 2010 the Australian Greens took the view that the argument against selling uranium to Russia was “undeniable”. Russia would have a key role in Iran's nuclear program , and there had been no inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency since 2001.

In 2007, Putin announced the construction of 30 new nuclear power plants over the next two decades. Russia plans to commission eleven new reactors with a capacity of 10 gigawatts of electricity by 2020.

India

India is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty . The warring nuclear powers India and Pakistan face each other in the Kashmir conflict . A safeguard agreement exists between the USA and India that regulates the export of uranium and nuclear technology and the associated international inspections.

The government under John Howard campaigned for a change in foreign policy with the aim of allowing the export of Yellowcake on the basis of the US safeguard agreement. The United States supported this plan. However, this process was suspended under the government of Kevin Rudd that followed in 2007, although some of his ministers had spoken out in favor of uranium exports to India on various occasions.

2008, raised the Nuclear Suppliers Group countries ( Nuclear Suppliers Group ) after 34 years in Vienna, the export ban on India.

In 2008, Australian Trade Minister Simon Crean ruled out a change of policy without India joining the Non-Proliferation Treaty . In talks about uranium exports to India at a meeting between Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd and his Indian counterpart SM Krishna in January 2011, Rudd stated that the Australian government “would not relax its rules on uranium exports to India”.

The Australian Minister for Resources and Energy Martin Ferguson called in February 2011 on the ALP to "modernize" its policy on uranium exports to India. He does not demand a move away from the ban on uranium exports to countries that are not among the signatories of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, but rather the understanding that India “deserves special consideration”. A bilateral safeguard agreement with India similar to the existing agreement with China is a prerequisite for this. According to a US diplomatic cable published via WikiLeaks , Ferguson told US embassy staff that despite the current export ban, he saw opportunities for a "nuclear fuel deal" with India in the next three to five years.

India has the third largest greenhouse gas emissions in the world, and forecasts predict it will double by 2031. The country has some catching up to do in terms of providing reliable energy sources for its 1.1 billion inhabitants. The existing 19 nuclear power plants (2011) contribute only 4 percent to the total electricity generated in India. In the next 25 years, with the construction of new nuclear power plants, the generation of nuclear power is expected to double.

Development after the Fukushima nuclear disaster

In the first week of the Fukushima nuclear disaster in March 2011, Australian uranium mining companies went out of trading with price losses of 30 percent. The losses were worth over a billion Australian dollars.

Ziggy Switkowski, the former head of the National Atomic Energy Agency, said that the crisis of confidence would pass. Paladin Energy's board spokesman , John Borshoff, said he was confident that this incident would "not affect uranium production or the world's nuclear future." Australian Uranium Association CEO Michael Angwin stated that "while the stock market reaction was predictable, uranium would still be needed to operate the 502 nuclear reactors currently in operation or under construction." The association noted that "if the Australian uranium industry is allowed to reach its full potential, it could expand exports from around 10,000 tons in 2007 to 37,000 tons by 2030."

Government spokesmen as well as spokesmen for Energy Resources of Australia and BHP Billiton responded evasively when asked whether the uranium used in Fukushima came from Australia. The Australian Conservation Foundation stated that the operating company of the power plant, Tōkyō Denryoku (TEPCO) , had bought and used Australian uranium.

Web links

  • wise-uranium.org , Australia's Uranium Deposits and Potential Mines , Current data on Australia's uranium deposits in English, February 2011
  • wise-uranium.org , New Uranium Mining Projects - Australia , data material on political events of uranium mining in Australia in English, February 2011
  • australianminesatlas.gov.au , Australian atlas of minerals resources, mines & processing centers: Uranium , in English
  • Senate: Parliament of Australia Contemporary Mining and Milling of Uranium in Australia. Uranium Mining in Australia: The first Phase , in English

Video material

  • youtube.com , Deutsche Welle , Global 3000: How Australia is Benefiting From Its Uranium , March 10, 2009, with pictures from the Olympic Dam Mine, accessed on February 25, 2011
  • youtube.com , Australian Conservation Foundation: Nuclear Free: Uranium mining unsafe, unnecessary, unwanted. , August 5, 2009, accessed February 25, 2011
  • youtube.com , Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) , Living Black, Karla Grant: NT Government Wants to Start Mining Uranium in Alice Springs , October 13, 2008, accessed February 25, 2011

Remarks

  1. ↑ The information on Australia's share of the world's uranium reserves fluctuates, with 38 percent cited in the 2006 Switkowski Report .
  2. ↑ Tracheal and lung cancer accounted for 5.0 percent of deaths among indigenous residents in 2007, compared with 5.6 percent in the non-indigenous population. Fifty percent of Aboriginal people (52 percent in remote areas) were classified as tobacco smokers in 2004-05. → healthinfonet.ecu.edu.au , Australian Indigenous Health Info Net: Review of cancer among Indigenous peoples , last updated: August 11, 2009, in English.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m world-nuclear.org , World Nuclear Association: Australia's Uranium and Nuclear Power Prospects , February 2011, in English, accessed on February 18, 2011
  2. ↑ radiumhill.org.au ( Memento from June 12, 2009 in the Internet Archive ), Radium Hill (South Australia) - A Modern Ghost Town In An Ancient Landscape , 2006, in English
  3. ↑ pir.sa.gov.au , Government of South Australia Primary Industries and Resources, PIRSA Minerals: Uranium deposits in Australia , March 23, 2009, in English, accessed February 18, 2011
  4. ↑ sea-us.org.au ( Memento of May 8, 1999 in the Internet Archive ), Port Pirie Uranium Treatment Complex, SA , December 26, 1997, in English, accessed on February 18, 2011
  5. ↑ aph.gov.au , Parliament of Australia, Senate: Regulating the Ranger, Jabiluka, Beverly and Honeymoon uranium mines , Appendix 7: Timeline of Uranium Mining in Australia , October 14, 2003, in English, accessed February 18, 2011
  6. ↑ Pirsa Mineral . Geological Prince , accessed February 22, 2011
  7. ↑ ga.gov.au , Australian Government, Geoscience Australia: Why Australia has so much uranium , December 2005, in English, accessed February 18, 2011
  8. ↑ tu-clausthal.de ( Memento from December 29, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) (PDF; 2.3 MB), Clausthal University of Technology , Bernd Lehmann: Uran-Lagerstätten , 2008, accessed on February 18, 2011
  9. ↑ world-nuclear.org , Australia's Uranium Deposits and Potential Mines , February 2011, in English, accessed on February 18, 2011
  10. ↑ bbs.keyhole.com , Google Earth : Keyhole Map of Uranium Deposits , accessed February 18, 2011
  11. ↑ world-nuclear.org , Australia's Uranium Mines , February 2011, in English, accessed February 18, 2011
  12. ↑ world-nuclear.org , Former Australian Uranium Mines , April 2006, in English, accessed on February 18, 2011
  13. ↑ a b abareconomics.com ( Memento of October 13, 2009 in the Internet Archive ), Australian Government, Michael Lampard: Australian Commodities - Uranium Outlook to 2013-14 , in English, accessed on February 18, 2011
  14. ↑ geokommission.de ( Memento of October 17, 2009 in the Internet Archive ), Geokommission: Nukleare Brennstoffe , accessed on February 18, 2011
  15. ↑ ladydenman.asn.au ( Memento from February 19, 2011 in the Internet Archive ), Lady Denman Heritage Complex: Grand Visions , in English, accessed on February 18, 2011
  16. ↑ https://www.tai.org.au/sites/default/files/Nuclear%20siting%2040_8.pdf
  17. ↑ ansto.gov.au ( Memento from February 12, 2018 in the Internet Archive ), Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organization: OPAL Reactor , in English, accessed on February 11, 2018
  18. ↑ abc.net.au ( Memento of April 13, 2011 in the Internet Archive ), Australian Broadcasting Corporation , Ziggy Switkowski: Nuclear power a practical option for Australia , November 21, 2006, in English, accessed on February 23, 2011
  19. ↑ abc.net.au ( Memento of January 27, 2007 in the Internet Archive ), Australian Broadcasting Corporation: Switkowski report 'underestimates' nuclear challenges , December 12, 2006, in English, accessed on February 23, 2011
  20. ^ A b science.org.au , Australian Academy of Science: Prospect or suspect - uranium mining in Australia , September 2002, in English, accessed February 18, 2011
  21. ↑ The good oil: Peter Garrett knows his job by Peter Van Onselen on The Australian , July 18, 2009, in English
  22. ↑ abc.net.au , Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Paul Robinson, Maria Hatzakis: Qld uranium mining 'inevitable' , July 21, 2009, in English, accessed February 18, 2011
  23. ↑ news.smh.com.au , Sydney Morning Herald , Paul Osborne: Russian uranium deal job creator: Gillard , November 11, 2010, in English, accessed February 18, 2011
  24. ↑ abc.net.au , Australian Broadcasting Corporation: Mine objections 'short-sighted' , July 15, 2009, in English, accessed February 18, 2011
  25. ↑ watoday.com.au , WA Today: Barnett lifts WA uranium ban , November 17, 2008, in English, accessed February 18, 2011
  26. ↑ abc.net.au , Australian Broadcasting Corporation: Bligh rules out Qld uranium mining , July 23, 2009, in English, accessed February 18, 2011
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  32. ↑ theage.com.au , The Age , Lindsay Murdoch: Polluted water leaking into Kakadu from uranium mine , March 13, 2009, in English, accessed February 18, 2011
  33. ^ Taz.de , TAZ , Felix Werdermann: Eco-activist Sweeney on uranium mining: "The Castor begins in Australia" , September 5, 2010, accessed on February 18, 2011
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  35. ↑ uni-giessen.de , Justus Liebig University Giessen , UniGrün - The green university group at JLU, Lea Gleixner: Sacred Land, Poisoned People. On the consequences of nuclear power using the example of Australia , September 4, 2010, accessed on February 18, 2011
  36. ↑ guardian.co.uk , The Guardian , Jessie Boylan: Australia's aboriginal communities clamor against uranium mining , August 9, 2010, in English, accessed February 24, 2011
  37. ↑ a b galdu.org ( Memento of April 20, 2011 in the Internet Archive ), Galdu Research Center for the Rights of Indigenous People, Magne Ove Varsi: Enough of Uranium Mining, Say Aboriginal Communities , August 10, 2010, in English, Retrieved February 18, 2011
  38. ↑ upi.com , United Press International : Uranium mining in Australia opposed , August 9, 2010, in English, accessed on February 24, 2011
  39. ↑ wise-uranium.org , quoted from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, ABC News: Protesters block entrance to Olympic Dam , September 14, 1999 in English, accessed February 24, 2011
  40. ↑ miningweekly.com , Mining Weekly, Esmarie Swanepoel: South Australia's Four Mile uranium project delayed , September 23, 2009, in English, accessed February 18, 2011
  41. ↑ abc.net.au , Australian Broadcastin Corporation, ABC News: "Significant problems" with uranium mine approval , July 14, 2009, in English, accessed February 24, 2011
  42. ↑ wise-uranium.org , Jabiluka Uranium Mining Project (Northern Territory, Australia) , 2007 in English, accessed 18 February 2011
  43. ↑ wise-uranium.org , The Age: Traditional Owners of Ranger uranium mine site alarmed by new spills into Kakadu National Park, call into question mine expansion project , May 24, 2010, in English, accessed February 24, 2010
  44. ↑ smh.com.au , Sydney Morning Herald: Sole survivor sitting on a $ 5b fortune , July 14, 2007, in English, accessed February 24, 2011
  45. ↑ news.bbc.co.uk , BBC , Phil Mercer: Aborigines count cost of mine , May 25, 2004, in English, accessed February 18, 2011
  46. ↑ news.bbc.co.uk , BBC: Anti-uranium demos in Australia , April 5, 1998, in English
  47. ↑ greenleft.org.au ( January 28, 2016 memento in the Internet Archive ), Green Left Weekly, Jennifer Thompson: Anti-nuke protests , July 16, 1997, in English, accessed February 18, 2011
  48. ↑ anfa.org.au , website of the Australian Nuclear Free Alliance , in English, accessed on February 18, 2011
  49. ↑ smh.com.au , Sydney Moring Herald, Jim Green: Can Russia be trusted with our uranium? , March 22, 2010, in English, accessed February 20, 2011
  50. ↑ dfat.gov.au , Australian Government, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Australia-China Nuclear Material Transfer Agreement and Nuclear Cooperation Agreement , November 2007, in English, accessed on February 18, 2011
  51. ↑ a b spiegel.de , Der Spiegel : Atomic agreement - Australia supplies China with uranium , April 3, 2006, accessed on February 18, 2011
  52. ↑ armscontrolwonk.com ( Memento of December 14, 2011 in the Internet Archive ), Jeffrey: Australia, China and Uranium , April 5, 2006, in English, accessed on February 18, 2011
  53. ↑ rp-online.de , Rheinische Post : Australia checks uranium exports to China , September 4, 2006, accessed on February 18, 2011
  54. ↑ theaustralian.com.au , The Australian, Sarah-Jane Tasker: Rio Tinto seeks more Chinese uranium clients , May 4, 2009, in English, accessed February 18, 2011
  55. ↑ world-nuclear-news.org , Australia set to supply Russia with uranium , November 11, 2010, in English, accessed February 20, 2011
  56. ↑ a b spiegel.de , Der Spiegel : Controversial Deal - Australia supplies Russia with uranium , September 7, 2007, accessed on February 19
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  58. ↑ aph.gov.au , Federal Parliament Treaties Committee: Agreement with the Russian Federation on cooperation in the use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes , 2008, in English, accessed on February 19, 2011
  59. ↑ abc.net.au , Australian Broadcasting Corporation: MPs recommend delay on Russian uranium deal , September 18, 2008, in English, accessed February 19
  60. ↑ antinuclear.net , Australian govt disregards expert committee, in selling uranium to Russia. The Federal Government's decision to sell uranium to Russia flies in the face of the recommendations of a parliamentary committee and fuels global nuclear insecurity. Australian Conservation Foundation statement by David Noonan and David Sweeney dated November 12, 2010, in English, accessed February 20, 2011
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  65. ↑ a b https://books.google.de/books?id=fiXtCwAAQBAJ&lpg=PA203&ots=xxf07HF1Zk&dq=Martin%20Ferguson%20india%20february%202011&hl=de&pg=PA203#v=onepage&q=Martin20320%20Fergia = false
  66. ↑ abc.net.au , Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Jeff Waters: Rudd resists India's push for uranium deal , January 20, 2011, in English, accessed February 18, 2011
  67. ↑ theaustralian.com.au , The Australian: Lift ban uranium sales to India , February 11, 2011, in English, accessed on 18 February 2011
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  71. ↑ a b focus.de , Focus : Despite disaster: Uranium industry facing a rosy future , March 16, 2011, accessed on March 19, 2011
  72. ↑ smh.com.au , Sydney Morning Herald, Mark Davis: Australian miners coy on fuel sales , March 18, 2011, in English, accessed March 18, 2011
  73. ↑ heraldsun.com.au , Herald Sun: Fukushima crisis shows nuke danger, warns Australian Conservation Foundation , March 13, 2011, in English, accessed March 18, 2011