CRA hunts for uranium
By Bill Mason
BRISBANE — Mining giant CRA is prospecting near the Century Zinc deposit in north-west Queensland, opening the possibility of the first uranium mine in the state since the closure of the Mary Kathleen mine near Mt Isa in 1982.
The company has been negotiating with elders from the Waanyi tribe and other Aboriginal groups in the area. The Waanyi people have recently agreed, after a long struggle, to $90 million compensation for the Century Zinc project on their land.
The Westmoreland pastoral lease, on which the uranium hunt is to proceed, is subject to a native title claim by the Traditional Waanyi Elders Aboriginal Corporation.
Wilderness Society spokesperson Kevin Parker, currently on a national anti-uranium campaign tour, said on May 20 that Australia is on the verge of a massive expansion of uranium mining. Up to 18 sites are being explored, of which four show promise. These are Jabiluka in the NT; Kintyre, which was excised from the Rudall River National Park in WA; and two in SA, Beverley and Honeymoon, which are at the environmental impact assessment stage.