Media releases
Mirarr safety fears remain despite Ranger visit
Publish Date: 12th December 2013
Traditional owners in Kakadu National Park still fear for the health of their country after a
technical team visited the Ranger Uranium Mine today, following a series of pollution spills
and safety breaches.
The Mirarr Traditional Owners - who do not feel safe to enter the mine area following
Saturday’s tank collapse – requested a technical officer from the Gundjeihmi Aboriginal
Corporation (GAC) visit the site on their behalf this morning.
GAC acting Chief Executive Officer David Vadiveloo said: “ERA is telling the public that the
area is safe but our officer reports that they are still conducting radiation testing in the area
and there is still toxic slurry lying exposed, outside the containment area.”
“The Mirarr are worried sick about the safety of people, the land and the future of this
World Heritage listed park – meanwhile ERA is worrying about getting roads cleared and
getting this aging and incident-riddled mine-site, back to processing without an independent
assessment being done,” Mr Vadiveloo said.
“There has been no independent testing, so we are all left relying on the mining company’s
testing to confirm the area is safe. We want a presence on the taskforce and an
independent audit of plant and facility," said Mr Vadiveloo.
A taskforce involving government regulators has been appointed but GAC was not invited to
participate.
The GAC has written to the Federal Minister for Industry, Ian MacFarlane welcoming the
current halt to processing at Ranger and requesting a seat on the taskforce.
Mirarr Senior Traditional Owner Yvonne Margarula will make a statement in coming days.