Governor seeks more study on uranium mining

Credit: BOB BROWN/TIMES-DISPATCH
Del. R. Lee Ware Jr., R-Powhatan, chairman of the state's uranium panel, said the governor's action will allow officials to make an informed decision.

Gov. Bob McDonnell asked the General Assembly on Thursday to retain Virginia's uranium mining ban — at least for another year — so state experts can study a proposed mine site in Pittsylvania County.

Legislators were expected this session to consider lifting Virginia's 30-year mining ban, but little momentum emerged for the change. The governor's action appears to push that decision back to 2013.

"Before we make any decisions about whether or not to proceed down the path to development, we must be certain that uranium mining can be conducted safely and responsibly," McDonnell said in a statement.

Next year is also when Virginians vote for a new governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general and all 100 House members. That could add an extra layer of politics to any uranium decisions.

McDonnell said a December report by the National Academy of Sciences was "broadly helpful" in laying out the risks and benefits of uranium mining in Virginia.

But more detailed information is needed on the Pittsylvania site, about 145 miles southwest of Richmond, he said. A "working group" from state agencies will study the site and create draft regulations for mining, reporting back by Dec. 1.

Virginia Uranium Inc. wants to mine and mill the radioactive metal from what it says is a 119 million-pound deposit in Pittsylvania. The cache is believed to be the largest undeveloped uranium deposit in the U.S.

The uranium would go outside Virginia to be processed into fuel for nuclear power plants.

Virginia Uranium says the plant would be a modern operation employing more than 300 people and posing little risk to the community.

But environmentalists and some Southside community leaders say the mine could cause air and water pollution, possibly tainting streams leading to the water supply of more than 1 million people in Hampton Roads.

Patrick Wales, project manager for Virginia Uranium, called McDonnell's move "an important step toward establishing a regulatory framework that will enable our company to build and operate the safest uranium mine in the world right here in Virginia."

Some environmentalists portrayed the move as a side step around the lack of support for mining.

"It is unprecedented to undercut the legislature and move forward with uranium regulations without the General Assembly having acted," said Lisa Guthrie, executive director of the Virginia League of Conservation Voters.

No lawmaker had submitted legislation by Thursday afternoon to lift the ban. Today is the deadline for legislators to introduce bills.

The governor did not mention uranium mining Jan. 11 in his State of the Commonwealth address.

Members of McDonnell's study group have not yet been named. They will be technical experts from the state's health, mining and environmental quality agencies.

McDonnell noted that he got a letter Wednesday from a bipartisan group of legislators — the uranium panel of the state Coal and Energy Commission — asking that he delay action on mining until the site is studied.

Del. R. Lee Ware Jr., R-Powhatan and chairman of the uranium panel, praised McDonnell's move. "I think it will give us the information for an informed decision" on mining.

Efforts to promote mining seemed to get tougher after the National Academy of Sciences report said Virginia faced "steep hurdles" in protecting people and the environment. But the report also said modern mining methods could reduce risks.