Keep the Ban on Uranium Mining

Thanks to widespread citizen support for Virginia’s 30-year moratorium on uranium mining and milling, proponents of uranium mining conceded defeat during the 2013 General Assembly by withdrawing their bills.

However, Sen. John Watkins then called on the governor to direct state agencies to begin developing regulations anyway.

The governor’s spokesperson has said McDonnell is reviewing Watkins request. Keep The Ban urges Gov. McDonnell to respect the legislature’s decision and take no action to further study uranium mining or to draft regulations.

The state and local governments have already spent approximately $3 million on studies and reports related to uranium mining since 2010. The findings have shown a significant threat to drinking water, public health and local economies. In fact, the more we spend studying uranium mining, the more groups decide to support Keep The Ban. A few of the organizations supporting Virginia’s current moratorium are Virginia Municipal League, Virginia Farm Bureau, the Medical Society of Virginia, the Danville Pittsylvania Chamber of Commerce, and the
Halifax County Chamber of Commerce.

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Did you know? Virginia has a 30-year ban on uranium mining.

The uranium industry is making a well-financed push to repeal the ban so they can mine and process uranium, starting in Southside Virginia. Drinking water, human health, farmland, property values, wildlife and tourism across Virginia are at risk.

The Keep the Ban Coalition is a group of local and state organizations working to maintain the existing ban on uranium mining in Virginia. Scores of public interest groups and localities (see the list here) and more than 18,000 citizens have stated their support to the General Assembly for keeping the ban on uranium mining in Virginia.

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