Letter to Australian and NT News Oct 2 2008

The proposed Uranium exploration license under consideration at Angela deposit 21km from Alice Springs will not in any way benefit our town. The proposed mining lease is located directly over the top of the artesian water supply for the town and there is no alternative water source.

Mining companies from the other side of the globe have been attracted to what is under the ground, not to Alice Springs as a wonderful destination to visit, work and live. They have no interest in preserving our quality of life or our existing industries.

I ask people to seriously consider the unresolved environmental damage caused by uranium mining at several locations in Canada. No amount of spin can cover what has happened there, and the lack of will to fix the problems. Why should they bother when they can come to another location like Alice Springs, and plunder there?

We need to have our water catchment area protected from uranium exploration - which is, after all, uranium mining on a smaller scale. Let's pull together and call for protection of the water catchment area of Alice Springs. It is the lifeblood of Alice and there is no alternative water source.