Tuesday, April 8, 2008 | 7:56 PM NT
CBC News
Labrador's Nunatsiavut government narrowly passed a controversial bill
Tuesday that prohibits uranium mining on Inuit-owned land for three
years.
The moratorium, which passed 8-7, goes into effect immediately and will
stay
in place until March 31, 2011 when it will be revisited, according to a
news
release.
The ban applies to the working, production, mining and development of
uranium in Nunatsiavut, the land settlement area in northern Labrador.
However, the Nunatsiavut government said it will still allow uranium
exploration, and is willing to work with mining companies while the ban
is
in place.
First reading of the bill was passed back in March, but further debate
and
voting was postponed until this week when the assembly met in Hopedale
so
members could have more time to consult their constituents.
After the delay was announced in March, energy companies had warned
that if
the bill passed it would kill the mining industry in the region. More
than
$70 million was spent on exploration in Labrador in 2007.
Shares of Aurora Energy Resources, which explores and develops potential
uranium properties in coastal Labrador, plunged 34 per cent following
the
vote ‹ dropping $1.77 to $3.50.
"We strongly believe that we can demonstrate to the Nunatsiavut
government
that uranium mining can be safely carried out, with the utmost care for
the
integrity of the environment," Aurora CEO Mark O'Dea said in a release.
Lands and Resources Minister William Barbour said after Tuesday's vote
that
the moratorium is not meant to be anti-uranium mining legislation ‹ it's
about being responsible.
It gives the newly-formed government more time to get its own land use
plan
and environmental assessment act in place, he said.
In the news release, Barbour acknowledged that the decision wasn't an
easy
one.
"The majority of those surveyed and consulted told us they are not
comfortable, at this time, with seeing a mine and a mill developed. They
told us they want assurances that the environment will be protected and
there will be no risks associated with a mine and a mill," he said in
the
statement.
