Virginians Agree We Must Keep The Ban

October 31, 2011

This morning, the Virginia NAACP unanimously passed a resolution opposing lifting Virginia's 30-year ban on uranium mining. The Virginia NAACP joins a growing list of 70 organizations and localities that support keeping the ban.

The Progressive Point: Foreign-backed corporations are pushing to eliminate the protections we need to keep our families safe. Uranium mining in Virginia threatens our drinking water, human health, farmland, and property values. Powerful corporate interests are lining politicians' pockets trying to eliminate common sense safeguards that protect our water and health. Virginians have seen what happens when powerful special interests prevail over the people. We must Keep The Ban.

Get the Facts:

Virginia Uranium has spent close to half a million dollars on lobbyists, campaign contributions, and trips for politicians while seeking to lift Virginia's ban on uranium mining. (VPAP)

Health Risks of Radioactive and Toxic Waste: If the ban were lifted, processed uranium would be shipped out of state. Left behind for centuries would be huge volumes of radioactive and toxic waste, disposed near farmlands and local waterways. The Coles Hill Site alone would generate at least 28 million tons of waste. Exposure to uranium waste has been linked to increases in leukemia, kidney disease and other severe health problems.

Downstream Drinking Water Impacts: Virginia's wet weather makes uranium production a risky experiment. Uranium mining in the United States has primarily occurred in dry, sparsely populated regions of the arid Southwest. Severe weather events - like Tropical Storm Gaston, which dumped 14 inches of rain on Richmond - could overwhelm uranium operations.  A recent study predicts a spill at the first proposed mining site could contaminate drinking water for up to two years for Virginia Beach and other Virginia and North Carolina communities.

Uranium has been found statewide: The uranium industry held leases throughout the state in the 1980s, including Occoquan River and Rappahannock River watersheds. If the ban is lifted, numerous communities could be at risk.

Tweet it: Corporate interests don't care about protecting Virginia's families. We must fight back and #keeptheban http://bit.ly/s5iFkg via @ProgressVA

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