20 October 2010 – Marathon’s Exploration Licence was due for renewal
Marathon Resources Exploration Licence covers 90sq km and lies in the heart of the 600 sq km Arkaroola Wilderness Sanctuary.
The renewal date of their Exploration Licence was 20 October, but this is now past and no decision has come from the Government about when, or if, Marathon will be allowed to renew high impact exploration (drill rigs returning, tracks being opened, or re-opened etc). However, the Minister did announce the company would be allowed to continue with low impact exploration until such time as a decision is made.
Seeking a Balance has been shelved:
On Saturday 23 October it was announced in the Adelaide Advertiser newspaper that the document Seeking a Balance sent out for a short period of public consultation (27 October 2009) until Christmas last year, then extended to the end of January 2010 had finally been ‘shelved’ (see attached article) the previous day, almost a year after its release.
The Minister for Mineral Resource Development, Mr Paul Holloway is quoted as saying Seeking a Balance, ‘went out for consultation…. and several from both sides came back saying their didn’t like the way we addressed the issue, so the Government accepted that, and said in that case we will frame a new response and we are in the throes of doing that’.
What of the over 80% of submissions against mining at Arkaroola?
We find it interesting that despite 82% of the 450 public responses being in favour of the protection of Arkaroola from mining (including the SA Museum, and a number of prominent International and Australian geologists and ecologists) that the Minister appears to have been told that this represented only ‘several’ opinions.
Click here to read the Advertiser article
The Minister has separately advised that the decision about Marathon’s licence will be made after the Mining Act Amendments have been passed by Parliament, and these are due for discussion again in the Lower House on 28 October 2010.
We need your help now:
We therefore only have a short time left to make the Government aware that mining and conservation cannot co-exist in the Arkaroola Wilderness Sanctuary, and we are asking if you could assist by emailing both the SA Premier, Mr Rann and the Leader of the Opposition, Ms Isobel Redmond and asking them to do everything in their power to stop Marathon Resources being reissued with an exploration licence.
Marathon’s poor track record of eco-vandalism:
This company has a shocking record of environmental vandalism, illegally burying 23000 bags (40 tonnes) of low level radioactive drill cuttings at Mt Gee in the centre of Arkaroola, and 20 x 200 litre drums of similar material in the Yudnamutana Gorge only a few kilometres to the north. This resulted in the company being branded ‘cowboys’ by the Premier, and their exploration licence being suspended.
South Australia is a State very rich in uranium. Why risk destruction in these magnificent but fragile Arkaroola granite mountains for short term monetary gain when there is so much uranium lying nearby under the flat almost featureless plains where extraction is straightforward, simply sucking the uranium out of boreholes and rehabilitation is simple?
5 Million Litres of Water Daily!
Marathon advised the Federal Department of Environment and Water that it would require an average of FIVE MILLION LITRES OF WATER PER DAY for the mining and processing of uranium at Mt Gee in Arkaroola. This is a ridiculous waste of such a precious commodity in this dry drought prone region.
Leopards do not change their spots! We do not believe that Marathon Resources should be allowed back to do high impact exploration such as drilling, much less be allowed to mine.
But it isn’t just Marathon, we don’t believe mining should be permitted within the ranges by anyone. We hope you will feel the same, and write or email the Premier, and Leader of the Opposition. Click here for contact details.
Thank you
Marg and Doug Sprigg
Arkaroola