A mine in western Victoria is set to produce a commercial quantity of uranium for the first time in Victoria’s history, despite a state ban on uranium mining.

Astron Corporation’s Donald Rare Earth and Minerals Sands project, approximately 75 kilometers north of Horsham, was approved by the Victorian Government in 2008.

This year the company received a $183 million funding injection from US uranium giant Energy Fuels, which it said would allow it to start production in 2026.

The company will produce a rare earth concentrate, which will be shipped to the United States and refined by Energy Fuels in Utah to produce rare earths and uranium.

The uranium will be sold to US nuclear power plants to produce electricity, according to a memorandum of understanding signed between the two companies last year.

Friends of the Earth national anti-nuclear campaigner Jim Green said there was a “loophole” in Victorian legislation that allowed companies to extract uranium as a by-product of mining. other minerals.

Dr Green said this created a “series of problems” around legality, economics and logistics.

“I’m really quite shocked by this proposal, I didn’t see it coming,” he said.

“This is a concern and could certainly lead to other similar proposals.”

Uranium is a naturally occurring substance in the earth’s crust and can be found in everyday foods such as potatoes and nuts.

It has radioactive properties that power nuclear reactors to produce electricity and produce isotopes used in medicine and defense.

Astron Corporation said that although Energy Fuels was a uranium producer, the company’s interest was in the minerals produced from the mine and “no value” would be assigned to the uranium.

Energy Fuels said in a statement to shareholders that the rare earth concentrate is expected to contain approximately 20 to 45 tonnes of low-cost uranium per year.

The nuclear industry banned since 1983

There are three operating uranium mines in Australia, according to Geoscience Australia.

There are none in Victoria, where the activity has been banned since the introduction of legislation banning nuclear power in 1983.

Victoria banned uranium mining to “protect the health, welfare and safety of the public” and limit “environmental deterioration” caused by radioactive substances and nuclear activities, according to the law on nuclear activities.

A parliamentary inquiry report examining Victoria’s nuclear ban laws, tabled in 2020, found groups or individuals proposing changes to government policy had not presented sufficient arguments to convince the committee.

“All benefits are speculative in nature and do not exceed the identified and proven risks,” the report said.

If it comes to fruition, Astron Corporation’s plan to sell rare earth concentrate to Energy Fuels for processing into uranium and other minerals would be the first example of an Australian rare earth mine producing a commercial quantity of uranium .

The ABC understands that Australia’s two existing rare earth mines, Lynas Corporation’s Mount Weld project and Northern Minerals’ Browns Range project, both in Western Australia, do not produce uranium.

But as the world looks to move away from fossil fuels, more companies could move into research, with company Australian Rare Earth announcing in September it would explore for uranium in South Australia.

Changing the fabric of a rural community

The Wimmera region in western Victoria is known as the state’s wheat belt due to its large production of cereals and pulses, producing more than 800,000 tonnes. on average per year.

A total of 428 square kilometers of land are under the ownership of Astron Corporation. mining permit and the first phase of the mine, whose construction is expected to begin in 2025, covers 28 square kilometers.

Ryan Milgate farms 3 kilometers from the mine site and said he was skeptical about the long-term benefits and rehabilitation of the area.

“I have kids who want to be farmers and I want them to have the opportunities I had,” he said.

“If you had told me 30 years ago there would be a uranium mine right at the end of our road, we would have laughed.”

Radiation Consulting Australia director Daniel Emes, who consulted Astron on the project, said the ore from this mining project would be “below the threshold” of what is considered radioactive under current regulations.

“As far as the risk of this project is concerned, the radioactivity present in the ore is about 10 times greater than what would be expected in your backyard (or) your child’s sandbox,” he said. -he declared.

But he said that changed when the substance turned into a concentrate.

“In the heavy mineral concentrate, the concentration exceeds this threshold for what is considered radioactive,” Mr Emes said.

Processing of these minerals would be carried out in confined sheds and bagged into containers before being transported from the site, he explained.

Farmer Mr Milgate said grain growers in the area were concerned about possible contamination of crops.

“All indications are that there are no community concerns about the radiation levels involved in mining. We certainly hope they get it right,” he said.

Astron Corporation said it would operate under “rigorous” domestic legislation and comply with “strict” United States laws.

“The concentrations of uranium and thorium in the ore will be significantly (approximately 10 times) lower than the limits specified by law,” they said in a statement.

The company said the rare earths would be transported “probably by truck” to the Port of Adelaide.

The ABC asked Victorian Energy Minister Lily D’Ambrosio what checks and balances the Victorian government had in place to ensure the safety of residents near the Donald Mineral Sands Mine and along the transport route.

Ms. D’Ambrosio did not answer that question, but said Victoria had “among the strictest environmental laws in the country”.

“(The regulator) now has stronger powers and is more active in the oversight it exercises and the approval considerations it gives to every proposal that comes before it,” Ms D’Ambrosio said.

Regulatory issues

Anti-nuclear campaigner Dr Green said he was concerned about the regulation of the nuclear industry.

“I have concerns about safeguards and weapons proliferation,” he said.

In a statement, an Energy Fuels spokesperson said there were strict regulations to ensure the material was not used for weapons.

“All of our uranium is sold to U.S. nuclear utilities for carbon-free nuclear power generation in the United States,” the spokesperson said.

Dr. Green said he was also very concerned about the White Mesa Mill site in Utah where the uranium would be processed.

“There is a long history of controversy and it is the subject of regular protests from the Ute Mountain Tribe, the local indigenous population,” he said.

“They have received notices of non-compliance from state and federal regulators (and) concerns about underground aquifer pollution.”

The Ute Mountain Ute Tribe and the United States Center for Disease Control (CDC) are undertaking a study of the health impacts of this site, with results expected next year.

Energy Fuels said last year that a CDC agency released a study that found local indigenous people’s drinking water and air quality were unlikely to be affected by the plant.

“It should also be noted that approximately half of our employees at the plant (approximately 35 to 40 people) are indigenous,” said the Energy Fuels spokesperson.