CCAMU - The Community Coalition Against Mining Uranium

The figure at the left is a map produced by the Geological Survey of Canada showing the Ottawa, Montreal, Kingston area. This type of map is used by mining exploration companies to locate concentrations of uranium deposits and to decide where to conduct their exploration and drilling. These companies typically are not concerned about exploring near populated areas.

It is apparent from the Geological Surveys map that the entire Ottawa/Kingston area has numerous uranium deposits. These are well-known low-grade deposits located in rural areas of Frontenac and Lanark, which were explored in the 1950s, 60s and 70s. Historical assay results show that uranium concentrations in this area are 200 times lower than ore from northern Saskatchewan, where all of Canada’s uranium is currently mined.

But, driven by Ontario’s mining-friendly laws and website advertising, mining exploration companies are back in the Ottawa/Kingston area. They are also in Bancroft, Haliburton and likely elsewhere in cottage country as well. Neither Crown land or private property are protected from this!

For those who are unfortunate enough not to own the mineral rights on their property, Ontario’s mining legislation allows companies to legally stake claims and explore for minerals without the owner’s permission. Worse, Ontario’s Crown land is fully open to mining, even in areas where there are unresolved native land claims and in areas where other much more benign land uses are strictly prohibited (eg, campgrounds). Even if you do own your mineral rights, under certain conditions, Ontario can order your property expropriated to allow mineral exploration to proceed.

With only 24 hours notice, exploration companies can trench and drill using heavy equipment, and can remove up to 1000 tons of material. At this exploration stage, there are absolutely no government controls, inspections or environmental assessment.

The majority of Ontario`s mining legislation is 150 years old and is long overdue for a major overhaul.

We all know that serious health and environmental damage has already been documented in Elliott Lake, northern Saskatchewan and other uranium mining centers in the world. This is not speculation … it is a fact.

To illustrate the devastating effect of breathing in radioactive particles, the picture at the right shows “tracks in lung tissue made over a 48-hour period by alpha rays emitted from a radioactive particle of plutonium lodged in the lung tissue of an ape (the particle itself is invisible). In living lung tissue, if one of the cells adjacent to the particle is damaged in a certain way, it can become a cancer cell later on, spreading rapidly through the lung, causing almost certain death.” [Ref: Dr. Gordon Edwards, www.ccnr.org.]

When uranium deposits are disturbed by exploration, mining extraction or processing, uranium and its “daughter” products are released through radioactive decay processes. These products include thorium, polonium, radium, radon gas and others. Each of these daughter products is more deadly than the uranium itself. A miniscule amount of polonium, for example, causes a very unpleasant death experienced in the UK by an ex KGB agent last year. These decay products are normally released extremely slowly over tens of thousands of years, but disturbing uranium deposits causes the decay to occur immediately.
Focusing on radon gas, Dr. Gordon Edwards, an internationally recognized expert on nuclear issues, states: “mining uranium releases large amounts of radioactive radon gas, which is much heavier than air. In eastern Ontario, the radon gas will follow the path of the prevailing winds, from west to east, depositing solid radioactive fallout (mainly radioactive lead and polonium) on a wide swath of land from Sharbot Lake to the City of Ottawa and beyond. Such radioactive deposits, entering into the food chain, will pose a gradually accumulating health risk to the population – especially children.”

“The chart above lists all of the decay products of radon gas (radon-222) in their order of appearance. They are called the "radon progeny" (formerly "radon daughters"). Each radioactive element on the list gives off either alpha radiation or beta radiation -- and sometimes gamma radiation too -- thereby transforming itself into the next element on the list. Lead-206, the last element on the list, is not radioactive. It does not decay, and therefore has no half-life. When radon gas is allowed to build up in an enclosed space, such as a mineshaft or basement, the radioactive hazard increases enormously because of the build-up of radon progeny. Conversely, when radon gas migrates through the atmosphere, the solid radon progeny are deposited on the soil and water below, entering into the food chain and hence the bodies of birds, animals, fish and insects.” [Ref: Dr. Gordon Edwards, www.ccnr.org.]

Mining “Best Practises” are not Safe

Mining companies contend that “best practices” have improved since Elliott Lake in the 70s. We disagree!

In 2003 and 2006, Cameco in northern Saskatchewan, which is one of the world’s largest uranium producers (and touted as a model of modern mining practices), suffered three major flood-related spills, in spite of best practices. In July 2007, the president of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission said: “her organization has lost faith in Cameco management following the flooding at Cigar Lake [uranium] mine”. We all know that Linda Keene was subsequently removed from her position by the politicians when she spoke up once too often about the risks associated with the nuclear industry.

In Frontenac/Lanark, mining and processing of uranium ore is of special concern since a tailings pond failure or accidental spill could cause toxins to flow into the Mississippi River watershed, thereby impacting tens of thousands of people in villages, towns and cities downstream. A sufficiently large spill could affect Ottawa.

The exploration and drilling process itself has risks. Drill holes become “wells” which should be filled to prevent upflow of contaminated water into the watershed. Drilling can also affect the stability of underground water aquifers that supply clean drinking water to wells in our area. Radioactive ore contained in overburden removed during exploration and mining can create health risks to workers and to humans living downwind from low-level radioactive waste piles. Radioactive slurry from diamond drilling and diamond saw cutting of bulk samples can wash into sensitive wetland ecosystems and cause damage to fish and wildlife habitat.

There are hundreds of cases where mining companies have walked away from exploration sites, mines or processing facilities leaving a mess for the province to clean up. In December 2005, the Ontario Auditor General identified, out of 5600 abandoned mine sites in Ontario, 4000 are “potentially hazardous to public health and safety”, and at least 250 “might pose an environmental risk due to the potential for the leaching of minerals and other contaminants from mine tailings”. The Deloro site (east of Marmora just north of Hwy 7) is one of the worst in Ontario. Over 20 acres have been seriously contaminated by arsenic from gold processing and radioactive tailings from uranium processing. The Moira River is polluted. To date, we understand that the Province has spent over $25M on cleanup and still has no idea how to complete the cleanup.

The picture above shows the tailings wall at Elliott Lake. “This wall of radioactive sand, 10 metres high, holds back a veritable lake of similar material left over from the defunct Stanrock uranium mining operation. There are 130 million tonnes of this stuff in the Elliot Lake area; it will remain dangerously radioactive for hundreds of thousands of years. The mining companies are seeking permission from the Canadian government to flood the tailings and then to abandon them.” [Dr. Gordon Edwards, www.ccnr.org ]

The Ontario Workplace Safety and Insurance Act states: “primary cancers of the trachea, bronchus and lung among workers previously employed in uranium mining in Ontario are recognized as occupational diseases under the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act. They are both characteristic of uranium mining and result from exposure to ionizing radiation relating to the uranium mining industry”.

Health Canada states that “[radon gas] is the number one cause of lung cancer after smoking”. Other by-products of uranium mining are just as deadly.

In 2005, the US National Academy of Sciences released results of a study reporting: “there is no safe level of exposure to radiation—that even very low doses can cause cancer. Risks from low dose radiation are greater than previously thought.”

Radioactive contamination from uranium mining/processing could seriously pollute the Mississippi watershed and impact the source water supply of villages, towns and cities downstream. Allowing this deadly activity to occur in Ontario rural cottage country is pure insanity!

Negative Impact on Municipal Official Plans and Traditional Rural Land Uses

Many eastern Ontario mayors and their Councils, farmers and many rural businesses are very concerned about the significant detrimental effects of uranium mining on traditional businesses and land uses, including tourism, agriculture, fishing, hunting and seasonal cottage activities. These existing businesses represent hundreds of millions of revenue, which is threatened by uranium speculators.

Uranium mining, with its reputation for creating serious health and environmental problems in areas surrounding mine sites, represents a significant “wet blanket” over existing land-use priorities in municipal Official Plans. As a consequence, 23 Ontario Councils have passed resolutions to petition the province for a moratorium against uranium exploration and mining in Ontario`s rural cottage country.

To date, the McGuinty government has not responded to any of these petitions!

Ontario does not need Ontario`s Uranium

Currently, Premier McGuinty’s position is that he cannot agree to a moratorium against uranium mining in eastern Ontario because the province and the federal government are committed to nuclear power to meet the demands of Ontario’s energy forecasts. This position is based on incorrect and inaccurate information that has led to an invalid conclusion. Currently, all of Canada’s uranium is mined in northern Saskatchewan, where uranium concentrations are typically over 20% (compared to 0.1% in Ontario cottage country). Most of Canada’s uranium production (~85%) is exported to other countries. Furthermore, there are uranium stockpiles and additional reserves in northern Saskatchewan and the NWT that can be tapped to cover any shortfalls. So, it is NOT necessary to allow uranium mining in Ontario to support the government’s nuclear power program!

Uranium is a Special Case!

The majority of Ontario’s mining legislation was enacted 150 years ago, and is completely silent about the hazards of uranium and its “daughter” products. In the mining legislation, uranium is treated like any mineral, eg, aggregates. This is clearly a major legislative deficiency that will potentially put Ontario citizens at risk. Uranium is clearly a special case and urgent amendments need to be made to the legislation. Due to its extensive experience with health and environmental risks from uranium mining, the province of Saskatchewan (which mines and exports the majority of Canada’s uranium production out of the country) has already incorporated special environmental requirements to its mining legislation for uranium. As a minimum, we suggest that Ontario consider adding similar provisions.

Protect Ontario Cottage Country

The vast areas of forests, wetlands, lakes and rivers in cottage country in Haliburton, Bancroft, Frontenac and Lanark Counties should not be targets for uranium speculators. Instead, the natural beauty of the area needs to be preserved as a wildlife habitat. The vibrant tourist and cottage economy of these areas far outweigh any value from mineral exploration.

The Ontario government has a duty to protect us against documented health and environmental risks from uranium exploration and mining. The Premier’s web site says: “One of the greatest responsibilities you and I share is to ensure that future generations enjoy our natural environment”. We challenge the Premier to prove that these are not just empty words. We challenge Ontario to protect cottage country against uranium contamination.

The Community Coalition Against Mining Uranium, www.CCAMU.ca, along with scores of Ontario organizations, First Nations communities, thousands of residents and 23 Ontario municipal Councils are calling for an immediate suspension of uranium exploration and mining pending a proper study of its environmental, social and economic impacts.

We demand that the Ontario Government protect its citizens against the clear and present danger of uranium mining by implementing a suspension of uranium exploration in Ontario`s rural cottage country … now!

To ignore this issue would be irresponsible!