Accepted Manuscript
Uranium Mining and First Peoples: The nuclear renaissance confronts historicallegacies
Geordan Graetz
PII: S0959-6526(14)00287-X
DOI: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2014.03.055
Reference: JCLP 4162
To appear in: Journal of Cleaner Production
Received Date: 31 July 2013
Revised Date: 13 March 2014
Accepted Date: 18 March 2014
Please cite this article as: Graetz G, Uranium Mining and First Peoples: The nuclear renaissanceconfronts historical legacies, Journal of Cleaner Production (2014), doi: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2014.03.055.
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Uranium Mining and First Peoples: The nuclear renaissance confronts historical legacies Geordan Graetz1 1Centre for Social Responsibility in Mining, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia 1Corresponding author e-mail: [email protected] Phone: +61 7 3346 4005 Fax: +61 7 3346 4045 Centre for Social Responsibility in Mining Sustainable Minerals Institute Sir James Foots Building (47A), Staff House Road The University of Queensland Brisbane QLD 4072 Australia
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[9,024 words inclusive of abstract, keywords, references and tables] Uranium Mining and First Peoples: The nuclear renaissance confronts historical legacies
Abstract: Forecasts of an increase in nuclear electricity generation would require a commensurate increase in the mining of uranium; however, there are a number of impediments to its successful extraction. These include government regulation, bans on uranium mining and exploration, and environmental, waste management and nuclear proliferation concerns. While literature on these issues exists, less is known about the effects of community opposition to uranium developments, particularly from First Peoples. This area of study is important for uranium companies, as 70 per cent of uranium deposits are located on the traditional lands of First Peoples. Crucially, the history and legacy of relationships between First Peoples and uranium companies would suggest that opposition by host communities could disrupt future uranium production. This paper explores these issues and reviews the experiences of First Peoples and uranium companies in Australia, Canada, the United States and several African states. It argues that if companies were to prioritise more respectful engagement with host communities, social and business risks may be reduced and more mutually beneficial development outcomes may be achieved. Keywords: First Peoples; mining; nuclear renaissance; rights; risk; uranium
1. Introduction
In the context of sustainability issues in the global supply of energy, this paper draws
particular attention to the social dimensions associated with the mining of uranium, a major
source of electrical energy when used as fuel in nuclear power plants. As global demand for
energy increases, observers of the nuclear power industry have discussed the possibility of a
nuclear renaissance (for example, Squassoni, 2008; Sovacool, 2010; Guidolin and Guseo,
2012). While there are numerous demand-side constraints that may call into question the
viability of such a renaissance (Way, 2013), it is clear from current projections (IAEA, 2012)
that nuclear power will continue to be a feature of energy supply and that uranium mining
must expand to meet the increased demand for nuclear fuel. However, there also are supply-
side impediments that may disrupt the expansion of the uranium industry, including access to
uranium deposits, opposition by political leaders and domestic constituencies to uranium
developments and the nuclear fuel cycle more broadly, and opposition by First Peoples to
uranium projects on traditional lands. The paper explores this latter constraint, focusing on the
history, continuing legacy and current status of relationships between uranium companies and
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First Peoples globally. This is important, first, because approximately 70 per cent of global
uranium deposits are located on the traditional lands of First Peoples (Dowie, 2009), and,
second, because First Peoples’ opposition to uranium mining often is greater than it is for
other commodities, due to heightened perceptions of social and environmental risks and
concerns about the nuclear fuel cycle. Third, such opposition can escalate from the local to
the national or international level, drawing in other actors and stakeholders, potentially
occasioning political and business risks for mining companies. Fourth, given that the right of
First Peoples to control access to their lands increasingly is being recognised both in
international and domestic law and jurisprudence (Graetz and Franks, 2013), failure to
understand and address First Peoples’ opposition to uranium developments could affect the
development of new uranium projects and, thus, the supply of nuclear fuel.
This paper is organised in to six sections. The present section describes the aims and
context of the work, while the following section briefly examines the possibility of a nuclear
renaissance. The third section discusses major issues affecting uranium production globally.
In the fourth section, relationships between First Peoples and uranium companies are
reviewed, with examples principally drawn from Australia and Canada; reference also is
made to noteworthy examples from the United States and Africa. The fifth section discusses
recent advancements in industry engagement with First Peoples in Australia and Canada. The
examples demonstrate that relationships between uranium companies and First Peoples may
be improved, and business risks reduced, through more respectful engagement with, and
attention to the concerns of, host communities, particularly those concerns that pertain to
unwanted social impacts and the maximisation of benefits. The final section presents
concluding observations and proposes that future work focus on the incorporation of human
rights instruments into corporate decision-making mechanisms and on elaborating theory on
the interface between social risk and business risk.
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2. A nuclear renaissance?
Since the 11 March 2011 earthquake and tsunami that triggered the meltdown of three
of Tokyo Electric Power Company’s four Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power reactors, the
long-standing debate on the future of the nuclear power industry has gained new life. Critics
have raised concerns about the construction of new nuclear power plants (Lovins, 2011;
Green, 2011; Sovacool, 2011), while the political leaders of Australia, Belgium, Israel, Japan,
Mexico, The Philippines, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan and Venezuela either have
commissioned reviews of their states’ existing nuclear programs or have announced that they
will refrain from pursuing a nuclear power future (Sun, 2011; Taylor, 2011; Pons, 2011;
Rodriguez, 2011). In addition, Chancellor Angela Merkel reinstated Germany’s previously
abandoned commitment to phase out its nuclear power program by 2022 (Breidthardt, 2011),
and Italy held a referendum in which citizens overwhelmingly voted to preserve their
country’s non-nuclear status (Ministero Dell’Interno, 2011).
Notwithstanding questions about the safety of nuclear technologies, participants in the
nuclear power industry remain optimistic about the role that the technology can play both in
meeting rising global demand for energy and responding to climate change and energy
security challenges (WNA, 2012; Jamard, n.d.). Moreover, expressing confidence in the
future safety and viability of the technology, the leaders of China, India, Turkey, USA and
Vietnam have reaffirmed their commitments to their existing or planned nuclear power
programs (RFE, 2011; Manthorpe, 2012; Lichtblau, 2011). There are now more than 70
reactors in various stages of construction worldwide (NEI, 2014); China is overseeing the
bulk of this development, with 29 reactors currently under construction, while India plans to
increase the share of nuclear power to 25 per cent of its electricity market from the present
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level of three per cent by 2050 (Srivastava, 2011). Russia and South Korea also have sizeable
expansion plans (NEI, 2014).
While it is questionable whether this wave of development can be labelled a nuclear
renaissance considering the shift in many governments’ positions on the technology since
Fukushima (Joskow and Parsons, 2012), what is more certain is that current and planned
reactors will rely on a stable and necessarily growing supply of nuclear fuel. However, there
are significant supply-side constraints, which may disrupt uranium production.
3. Global issues in uranium production
The importance of supply side constraints cannot be overstated in view of the current
production deficit. In 2012, global uranium production totalled 58,394 tU (68,864 t uranium
oxide – U3O8), meeting approximately 86 per cent of reactor fuel needs (WNA, 2013). The
remaining 14 per cent was drawn from decommissioned nuclear weapons, commercial
stockpiles, recycled plutonium and reprocessed used fuel (WNA, 2012a). While these figures
represent a marked decrease on the previous two years’ production deficit—in 2010, uranium
production (53,671 tU) met only 78 per cent of global reactor fuel needs—stockpiles are
being depleted. Demand is expected to grow to 72,680 tU in 2015 (WNA, 2013), and the
Nuclear Energy Agency and the International Atomic Energy Agency forecast that “world
annual reactor-related uranium requirements are projected to rise to between 97 645 tU and
136 385 tU by 2035” (OECD 2012, p. 12).
Uranium currently is mined in 19 countries (Table 1). Six new mines are forecast to
commence production in the period 2013 to 2015; these will be located in Australia, Canada,
Finland, Namibia, Niger and Russia (WNA, 2013). In 2012, the top eight uranium-producing
companies in descending order were KazAtomProm, Areva, Cameco, ARMZ - Uranium One,
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Rio Tinto, BHP Billiton, Paladin and Navoi, which together accounted for 82 per cent of
global uranium production (WNA, 2013).
[Insert Table 1 here]
The uranium industry has staked its future on the responses of national governments to
climate change, declining energy security, population growth, diminishing fossil fuel
resources and the inadequacy of many renewable technologies to deliver reliable and cost-
effective base-load electricity supply. The industry contends that nuclear power represents a
viable solution to such challenges, and maintains that uranium is a proven, safe, cost-effective
and emissions-free source of energy (WNA, 2012b). However, against this optimism, Smil
(2010, p. 105), points to several key hurdles that may slow the uptake of nuclear power,
saying:
[T]he combined challenges of the industry’s public acceptance, long-term fuel availability, permanent waste storage, and nuclear weapons proliferation do not make any early vigorous and widespread renaissance very likely.
This goes to the heart of public concerns about the risks to individuals and
communities from uranium developments, which arguably are greater than those posed by the
extraction and processing of other commodities (Wallace and Smiles, 2007). Chief concerns
include possible exposure to the carcinogenic gas, radon; disposal of toxic waste; safe and
secure transportation of uranium oxide and other radioactive materials; and surface and
groundwater contamination, affecting both human and environmental health (Brugge and
Goble, 2002; Conde and Kallis, 2012). Furthermore, disasters at the Three Mile Island,
Chernobyl and Fukushima nuclear power plants have contributed to perceptions that the
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nuclear and—by extension—uranium industries are unsafe and morally questionable (ACF,
2012).
While it is important to draw a distinction between the uranium industry (mining and
exploration activity) and end use services in the nuclear industry (for example, nuclear
electricity generation, medical imaging, isotopic food preservation and weapons fabrication),
attitudes toward risks associated with these end use services can—and do—influence
perceptions of risk at the mining and exploration stages. This is evident in critiques of the
uranium industry, which are symbolic of the often emotive political debates that focus on the
commodity, and which draw in a range of political actors, such as non-governmental
environmental organisations and anti-nuclear groups. The conflation of the uranium and
nuclear industries arguably has helped to foster community perceptions of heightened risk at
the mining stage. These perceptions can trigger potential business risks for uranium
companies, which may arise in the form of political opposition to proposed developments,
reputational risk, withdrawal of government support for projects due to electoral concerns,
and denial or withdrawal of the social licence to operate.
Government regulation and political barriers can hinder growth in the uranium sector.
Regulatory impediments include: international and national supervisory agency requirements
governing the use, beneficiation and export of uranium; environmental governance regimes;
national mining laws; and the outcomes of statutory social and/or environmental impact
assessments, which may result in restrictions being placed on uranium projects or aspects
thereof (for example, mine design and location in order to protect cultural heritage sites). In
contrast, political impediments primarily stem from the machinations of electoral politics, as
two recent Australian cases exemplify. In the first, the former Northern Territory Labor
government withdrew its support in 2010 for Cameco Australia and Paladin’s Angela and
Pamela proposed joint venture projects on the outskirts of the Territory’s second largest city,
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Alice Springs, in order to appease crossbenchers who opposed the development and thus
maintain the Government’s parliamentary majority. In the second, the South Australian
government banned mining in that State’s privately-owned and uranium-rich Arkaroola
Wilderness Sanctuary through the enactment of the Arkaroola Protection Act 2012 (SA)
(Austl.), ostensibly to prevent one company, Marathon Resources, from developing its Mt
Gee uranium tenement, which lay within the boundaries of the Sanctuary (ABC News, 2011).
Other noteworthy political impediments include party platforms, such as the
Australian Labor Party’s former ‘Three Mines Policy’ (Clarke, 2011) and, until recently, its
ban on the sale of uranium to India (Packham 2011), as well as jurisdictional bans on uranium
mining and exploration activity, for example, in New South Wales (only exploration is
permitted), Queensland (until 2012), Western Australia (until 2008) and the Navajo Nation
(discussed below). Civil society, activist and Green party opposition to the nuclear fuel cycle;
‘not in my back yard’ (NIMBY) sentiment; and opposition by some First Peoples to uranium
exploration and mining activity on traditional lands also are key issues (Graetz and Manning,
2011).
This last point has emerged as a crucial barrier to the extraction of uranium, as the
majority of uranium developments in leading uranium producing countries (excluding
Kazakhstan) occur on or adjacent the lands of First Peoples. First Nations’ rights to control
access to these lands, such as the right of free, prior and informed consent, and to receive
benefits in return for access, increasingly are being recognised in domestic and international
law (Graetz and Franks, 2013; O’Faircheallaigh, 2013). However, industry participants have
been criticised for being slow to recognise these rights, and in the past have been accused of
rights violations (Katona, 2001; Marsh, 2010).
4. The uranium industry and First Peoples
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In their 2011 study, Graetz and Manning established that opposition by First Peoples
to uranium projects is an under-theorised, yet consequential, subject of inquiry, and that such
opposition represented a critical, though not insurmountable, impediment to the future
prosperity and longevity of the uranium industry in Australia. This paper elaborates on Graetz
and Manning’s finding, and suggests that First Peoples’ experiences of social risks—defined
here as potential unwanted social impacts that either are experienced or perceived (Graetz and
Franks, 2013)—provides the grounds for such opposition, which, in turn, can transmute into
business risks for uranium companies. Understanding social risk, then, is key to (1)
minimising business risks and (2) to addressing future barriers to nuclear fuel supply.
In this section and the next, relationships between First Peoples and uranium
industries in Australia, Canada, the United States and Africa are examined. Discussion on
Australia and Canada is prioritised for the reason that these states at once are home to some of
the world’s largest uranium deposits, have sizable and historically significant First Peoples on
whose traditional lands uranium deposits are located, and domiciled uranium mining
companies are some of the world’s largest producers of processed uranium. Major global
uranium developments and details about the operator of each site and the affected First Nation
are provided in Table 2.
[Insert Table 2 here]
4.1 Australia
Australia is estimated to have 31 per cent of the world’s recoverable uranium, but
supplies only 11 per cent of the global market (WNA, 2013a). Four mines currently are
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operating: Olympic Dam, Ranger1, Beverley and Honeymoon; with Four Mile expected to
commence production in the near future. Uranium exploration and mining activity is
permitted in the Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia,
while exploration alone has been allowed in New South Wales since 2012 (Swanepoel, 2012).
The industry is relatively small when compared with other commodity/export sectors. For
example, in 2010-2011, coal, iron ore and concentrates, and natural gas exports were valued
at AUD$43.9 billion, AUD$58.4 billion and AUD$10.3 billion respectively, while uranium
exports—6,950 tonnes U3O8—had a value of AUD$610 million (WNA, 2013a). However,
this was expected to rise to 14,000 tonnes ($1.7 billion) by 2014, and the industry has forecast
that, if barriers to its expansion were removed, exports could reach 37,000 tonnes per year by
2030, contributing an additional $17.4 billion to Australia’s gross domestic product (DIE,
2008). These forecasts—especially for 2014—may be overly optimistic, given the latest
available production figures (see Table 1, above). However, this would not be the first time
that the industry has overestimated the economic potential of uranium mining for Australia, as
documented by Leaver (2011).
As Table 2 makes clear, most uranium developments in Australia are on or adjacent
First Peoples’ traditional lands. Perhaps as a result of this proximity, Traditional Owners’
views of uranium mining principally have been negative, with the relationship between
uranium companies and Australia’s First Peoples historically characterised by conflict and
mistrust. Poor corporate community relations processes, inaccurate reporting of the social and
environmental risks of uranium mining and the nuclear industry, campaigns by, and alliances
with, anti-nuclear activists, and a general lack of understanding about the industry and its
processes also have contributed to this perception (Graetz and Manning, 2011).
1 At the time of writing (January 2014), processing of stockpiled ore at Ranger mine had been suspended due to an operational incident. It is unclear if and when regulators will allow the mine to resume operations. Following the incident, the Traditional Owners expressed concerns about the mine’s procedures and management, and also criticised regulatory oversight and independence (ABC News, 2013).
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However, two particular events stand out in shaping First Peoples’ perceptions of the
uranium industry and in both the affected First Nation has suffered long-lasting social
impacts. First, between 1955 and 1963, the Australian government permitted Britain to
conduct nuclear tests at Maralinga in outback South Australia. The government facilitated the
forced relocation of the Maralinga-Tjarutja from their lands—though it is believed that not
all were successfully removed—at great social cost to the community’s members (Cane,
2002). Those who were removed suffered from lost access to their traditional homelands,
among other negative social impacts, while those who remained were exposed to large doses
of radiation (McClelland, 1985). While the Spinifex People, as they colloquially are known,
were allowed to return to their ancestral lands in the late 1980s, the social and environmental
impacts have not been forgotten. Indeed, the 2008 Indigenous play, Ngapartji Ngapartji,
confronted this history, by “address[ing] issues of isolation, cultural dislocation, alienation
and survival. It [also made reference to] the impacts – physical, psychological and emotional
– of the testing on past and current generations of Spinifex people” (Grehan, 2010, p. 40), and
tied the Maralinga-Tjarutja experience to “the bombing of Hiroshima and the Cold War-led
nuclear arms race of the 1950s and 1960s” (Varney, 2011, p. 212), pointing to First Peoples’
concerns about the nuclear fuel cycle more broadly.
The industry’s reputation was further eroded as a result of the findings of the
Australian government’s Ranger Uranium Environmental Inquiry (Fox, 1977), which
recommended that the then proposed Ranger uranium mine in the Northern Territory be
allowed to proceed despite opposition by some of the region’s Traditional Owners, including
the Mirarr , the recognised Traditional Owners of the land on which the mine was to be
constructed. Particularly alienating was the fact that the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern
Territory) Act 1976 endows Indigenous Territorians with title over their lands with an
accompanying right to veto proposed developments. However, the Ranger Project Area was
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“exempted from this provision under sub-section 40(6)” of the Act (GAC, n.d.) by agreement
between the Commonwealth government and the then newly formed Northern Land Council;
as a consequence, the Mirarr were prevented from vetoing the mine.
The Mirarr claim (Katona, 2001; Margarula, 2005) that they have experienced severe
negative social and cultural impacts as a consequence of the Ranger mine, and the
community’s campaign against Ranger and the proposed development of the adjacent
Jabiluka uranium deposit in the mid-1990s became a focal point for national and international
anti-uranium and anti-nuclear activism (Hintjens, 2000; Katona, 2001), with attendant
business risks for the developer, Energy Resources of Australia, and its parent companies,
North Limited and, later, Rio Tinto. Foremost among these was the mothballing of the
Jabiluka deposit and the decision to place Jabiluka under a Long-Term Care and Maintenance
Agreement, which was finalised in 2005. The Agreement states that Rio Tinto will not mine
Jabiluka without the free, prior and informed consent of the Mirarr .
In light of the experiences of the Maralinga-Tjarutja and Mirarr , First Australians
have expressed concerns about proposed uranium developments elsewhere in the country. In
Western Australia, BHP Billiton’s plan to mine the Yeelirrie deposit (since acquired by
Cameco Australia) was criticised by Wongatha community members Geoffrey Stokes and
Kade Muir. Stokes disputed the need for uranium mining, saying, “We have sun, we’ve got
wind, we’ve got people. Why should we pollute our country for money?”, while Muir
questioned the inter-generational benefaction of uranium developments: “We don’t want this
product disturbed from the ground. We don’t want to bequeath a legacy for future generations
of a toxic environment” (Boylan, 2010). Similarly, South Australian Adnyamathanha
Traditional Owner Enice Marsh has been strident in her opposition to the Beverley uranium
mine and its subsequent expansion, as well as to the proposed expansion of Olympic Dam,
where uranium is extracted as a by-product at the predominantly copper-gold mine. Marsh
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says: “We regard any disturbance of these sites as a threat to our health, our environment, our
culture and our heritage. It’s totally at odds with our beliefs and values. This dangerous
substance should be left in the ground” (Webb, 1999). Moreover, in the Northern Territory,
the plan by joint venture partners Cameco Australia and Paladin to develop the Angela and
Pamela deposits was opposed by some members of the Arrernte, as well as by local and
national environmental activists and tourism operators. Concerns centred on the potential for
contamination of the potable water supply of Alice Springs, reduced air quality, erosion of
traditional culture and threats to the eco-tourism industry (Clarke, 2009). As noted above, the
Northern Territory government withdrew its support for the joint venture project in response
to this opposition, rendering the development defunct.
4.2 Canada
Canada is one of the world’s largest producers of uranium, and is home to
approximately ten per cent of global uranium reserves. Production principally has been
concentrated in the province of Saskatchewan, but in recent years exploration activity has
surged in other provinces, notably, Nunavut and the Northwest Territories. As with Australia,
the majority of uranium developments in Canada have been located on, or adjacent to,
traditional tribal lands. It is noteworthy that Canadian legislation recognising the rights of its
First Nations has matured over a number of years, with the Supreme Court ruling in 1973
that: “Canada’s indigenous people have an ownership interest in the lands that they and their
ancestors have traditionally occupied, and the resources that they have traditionally used”
(Anderson et al., 2006, pp. 49-50). Moreover, as Anderson et al. (2006, p. 49) write:
Over the last 25 years of the 20th century, grudgingly and in fits and starts, the policy of the Canadian federal government has shifted from contesting indigenous claims to land, resources, and some form of ‘nationhood’, to negotiation. Accompanying this shift to negotiation there has been another
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fundamental change. Increasingly, the national government has come to view the settlement of Aboriginal claims less as a cost and more as a vehicle for improving Aboriginal socioeconomic circumstances, a view long held by the indigenous people.
However, uranium companies have faced significant opposition by First Peoples to the
development of new mines in parts of Canada. Indeed, as Kneen (2011) states:
It was uranium exploration, and its impacts on the li[f]e-giving caribou herds, that helped start the whole land claims process for Inuit in what eventually became Nunavut. In Baker Lake, a proposed uranium mine called “Kiggavik” became the centre of controversy in the late 1980s and it was withdrawn from the environmental assessment process in 1990 after the community voted 90 per cent against uranium mining.
Areva subsequently assumed ownership of Kiggavik and, in 2007, the company
commenced a feasibility study and environmental assessment of the site. While the Nunavut
government reluctantly supports the development of the uranium industry in the province,
citing the need for revenue and employment opportunities for citizens (Government of
Nunavut Uranium Policy Statement, 2012), the majority of Baker Lake Inuit still are opposed
to uranium mining (Bernauer, 2011). While this opposition, too, has softened, with some
community members coming to see opportunities for jobs and greater prosperity, as well as
expressing faith in the regulatory system to monitor social and environmental impacts
(Kneen, 2011), other Inuit are concerned about the impacts on the local social economy
(Bernauer, 2011). Areva has launched a concerted public relations effort in the community in
a bid to counter community unease about the project.
Another Nunavut First Nation, the Dené, also experienced negative social impacts as a
consequence of radium and uranium mining on their ancestral lands between 1934 and 1962.
The community now faces the prospect of new uranium mines, to which they have expressed
opposition. As Tufts (2010) documents, the Dené have raised concerns about the impacts of
past direct dumping of mine waste in to Great Bear Lake, the continuing effects of radiation
exposure on mine workers and community members, impacts on food production, caribou
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herds and water quality, and the possibility of a loss of spiritual and cultural connection. As
with the Kiggavik project, and notwithstanding community resistance, the government of
Nunavut has indicated that it supports uranium mining in the region in order to supply fuel for
nuclear power plants (Tufts, 2010).
4.3 The United States
Uranium mining has been a feature of industrial activity in the United States (US) for
many decades, and the industry’s impacts on First Peoples have been pronounced. The
Navajo simultaneously were the short-term beneficiaries and long-term victims of the
uranium boom that centred on the Navajo Nation reserve and the Colorado Plateau, which
spans parts of Utah, Arizona and New Mexico (Brugge and Goble, 2002). While many
Navajo men sought and gained employment in the uranium mines, for many of the Navajo
workers, their exposure to radioactive materials resulted in their contracting lung cancer.
Samet et al. (1984) found that of the 32 Navajo men in their control study (which took
account of smoking rates) who contracted lung cancer between 1969 and 1981, 23 had
worked in uranium mines. Navajo also have experienced higher incidences of thyroid disease,
birth defects and other cancers (Mayo, 2010); aquifers have been contaminated, and there are
significant lasting social and environmental impacts from abandoned mines (Brown and
Lambert, 2010).
The Navajo Nation’s experiences of social impacts as a consequence of community
proximity to, and employment at, uranium mines has turned the Nation and its allies in civil
society and Congress against the uranium industry, and has resulted in numerous legal actions
(Brugge and Goble, 2002). In a crucial development, in April 2005, then Navajo Nation
President Joe Shirley Jnr. signed the Diné Natural Resources Protection Act of 2005, “which
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prohibits all uranium mining within Navajo Indian country, thereby foreclosing an estimated
twenty-five percent of the recoverable uranium within the United States” (Cooley, 2005-2006,
p. 393). (The percentage share of uranium reserves on tribal lands in the United States is in
the vicinity of 60 per cent; Johansen, 1997). The purpose of the Act “is to ensure that no
further damage to the culture, society, and economy of the Navajo Nation occurs because of
uranium mining within the Navajo Nation” (Diné Natural Resources Protection Act of 2005).
As Cooley (2005-2006) notes, this represents a considerable assertion of Navajo sovereignty,
and it has regulatory, human rights and business risk implications, both internal and external
to the United States.
4.4 Africa
Africa represents the new “frontier” (Conde and Kallis, 2012, p. 597) for the uranium
industry, with the continent’s share of global uranium production standing at 18 per cent
(Dasnois, 2012). There are significant ore deposits in Namibia, where uranium is mined at
Rio Tinto’s Rössing mine and Paladin’s Langer Heinrich mine, and Niger, where the Société
des Mines de l’Air and the Compagnie Miniere d’Akouta mine the Arlit/Arlette, Tamou,
Tagora and Artois, and Akouta, Akola and Afasto/Ebba deposits, respectively. Uranium also
is mined at the Kayelekera mine in Malawi and is obtained as a by-product of gold mining at
the Ezulwini mine and Vaal River Area Mines in South Africa. There are substantial deposits
associated with other minerals, such as phosphate and copper, in other African states,
including Algeria, Botswana, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo,
Morocco and Tanzania.
While the terms ‘Indigenous’ or ‘First Nations’ seldom are adopted by, or applied to,
Africa’s Tribal Peoples, uranium companies have faced, and are likely to continue to face,
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similar challenges in their engagement with African host communities to those that they
experience with First Peoples in other uranium-rich regions. For example, in 2002, the
Botswanan government evicted more than 600 San Bushmen from their tribal lands in the
Central Kalahari Game Reserve in a move that some argue was made to pave the way for
uranium mining and the extraction of other commodities (Survival International, 2009). The
San fought their eviction in the High Court and in 2006 won the right to return to their
homelands (Survival International, 2009). Notwithstanding the Bushmen’s opposition, 16
uranium exploration licences have been granted over the reserve. The San have been
supported in their campaign against mining by several international civil society
organisations, including Survival International. The involvement of such an organisation and
the clear community opposition to uranium mining could result in business risks for uranium
companies, particularly with regard to reputational risk and operational stoppage time arising
from protest campaigns.
In another case, the Topnaar, an Indigenous Nama ethnic group in central Namibia,
have voiced concerns about the proposal by Australian miner, Reptile Uranium, to develop
the company’s Aussinanis tenement. Concerns centre on the location of the mine and its
potential effects on grazing areas and wildlife, and dust and noise pollution (Conde and
Kallis, 2012). Members also have reported community fragmentation, due to concerns about
payments that the company has made to the Chief of the community. There has been notable
community opposition to uranium mining in South Africa (Scheele, 2011), Tanzania (Nzwili,
2012), Zambia (SAIEA, 2011), and to the Kayelekera mine in Malawi (Hajat, 2008).
5. Community engagement with First Peoples: a brief review of developments in
Australia and Canada
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Notwithstanding the opposition that the uranium industry has faced from First Peoples
around the world, in Australia, a détente of sorts has emerged between key industry and
national Indigenous leaders. There are several reasons for this. First, during the last decade,
the industry has come to understand the need to engage better with First Peoples. This
realisation did not come easily; indeed, it has been described as “a kicking and screaming
approach” by Australian Uranium Association (AUA) board member and prominent
Indigenous leader, Warren Mundine (Graetz and Manning, 2011). Industry and national
Indigenous leaders hope that this understanding will lead to strengthened relationships and
improved avenues for dialogue and negotiation between stakeholders.
Second, the prevailing sustainable development paradigm means that the industry
must abide by different rules with regard to corporate social performance. For example,
businesses are expected by industry associations, civil society organisations, host
communities, concerned members of the public and governments to: voluntarily disclose their
social and environmental performance (Jenkins and Yakovleva, 2006) in line with
organisations such as the Global Reporting Initiative; meet stakeholder demands; respect
human rights; and meet legal and regulatory requirements. While there are some industry
participants who are moved to play by these rules out of genuine concern and respect for First
Peoples’ rights and well-being, the shift in corporate attitudes largely comes down to the fact
that there is a good business case to be made for changing industry practice. Industry leaders
understand that First Peoples may be more willing to grant access to their lands if companies
engage with host communities on a more equal footing. At the same time, some First Peoples
have identified opportunities to improve community development outcomes if they negotiate
with developers to grant access to their traditional lands (Pearson, 2007; AUA, 2009). Among
these benefits, revenue sharing, employment opportunities, local procurement contracts,
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community development, skills training, and other forms of social and human capacity
building figure prominently.
In an effort to improve its outreach to Australia’s First Peoples, in 2009, the AUA
launched a Dialogue Group with Indigenous leaders to assist in the formulation of the
industry’s strategy to contribute to the economic development of Australia’s First Peoples
(AUA, 2009). One outcome has been the establishment of a plan to set percentage targets for
employment of First Peoples at uranium developments (Morgan, 2012). The AUA also has
established a scholarship fund for Indigenous tertiary students who are enrolled in mine
engineering and other industry-related degree programs (AUA, n.d.). These small steps
forward demonstrate the industry’s growing recognition that business risks can be reduced,
and opportunities enhanced, if companies attend to the social risk and rights concerns of host
communities.
Three cases are illustrative of the dividends that can accrue to companies that
prioritise respectful engagement with First Peoples. First, with regard to Marathon Resources’
proposal to develop its Mt Gee tenement in the Arkaroola Wilderness Sanctuary,
Adnyamathanha Traditional Lands Association (ATLA) chairperson, Vince Coulthard (2010),
stated:
It saddens me to say that we get far more respect from mining companies in [consultation] than we do from the State Government. The mining companies understand they have to negotiate with us, the Traditional Owners, to get access to the land and to complete work area clearances…. The reality is the only stakeholder who [has] shown us respect in this whole situation is Marathon Resources, they have shown us the respect that is rightfully ours.
In 2011, the Native Title holders, through the ATLA, voted in favour of mining on
their traditional lands, and expressed support for the Mt Gee project (Gage, 2011). In
legislating to ban mining within the boundaries of the Sanctuary, arguably the Native Title
holders were denied free, prior and informed consent with regard to the use of, and provision
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of access to, their lands. It also is noteworthy that Mr. Coulthard supported Heathgate
Resources’ plan to develop the Beverley uranium mine (now operational), which is located on
Adnyamathanha traditional lands.
Second, in October 2012, the Western Desert Lands Aboriginal Corporation
(WDLAC) and Cameco Australia signed a memorandum of understanding in which the
company secured the community’s support for its proposal to mine the Kintyre deposit,
located on Martu lands in northern Western Australia. Cameco also has secured an
Indigenous Land Use Agreement with the Martu. Upon signing the memorandum, WDLAC
chairman Teddy Biljabu said: “The Kintyre Agreement opens the door to a range of business,
employment and cultural initiatives which ensure Martu have a strong stake in the future of
the development” (Cameco and WDLAC, 2012). Cameco Australia’s managing director,
Brian Reilly, commented: “We’ve developed a strong relationship with the Martu leadership
and are pleased that the community supports this agreement” (Cameco and WDLAC, 2012).
Finally, in Canada, there are examples of First Peoples, such as those situated in the
Athabasca Basin, coming to accept the uranium industry, and, further, welcoming the benefits
that have accrued to their communities. Through their development arm, the Athabasca Basin
Development Limited Partnership, Athabasca Basin First Nations provide a range of services
to uranium (and other mining) companies in the region. Similarly, some uranium companies
operating in the Basin have come to see the benefits of successful engagement with First
Peoples. For example, Cameco believes that “partnerships with aboriginal communities
anchor support for its existing operations and facilitate the prospects of expansion and new
mine development” (Sloan and Hill, 1995, p. 35). Moreover, the Athabasca Working Group
(AWG), comprising Cameco, Areva, and six of seven Athabasca communities, was founded
in 1993 with the aim of signing an Impact Management Agreement. The AWG reached an
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agreement in 2001, which governs employment, training, business relationships,
environmental protection and benefits to the Basin communities (AWG, 2011).
6. Conclusion and future developments
While consensus has not been reached on whether we are witnessing a new nuclear
renaissance, it is clear from current projections that uranium production is likely to expand to
meet rising global demand for nuclear fuel. However, this paper suggests that the uranium
industry will continue to face opposition by First Peoples to the development of uranium
deposits in a number of jurisdictions around the world. The central thesis is that such
opposition may affect future uranium supply, and thus the nuclear power industry. The
examples from Australia, Canada, the United States and Africa demonstrate that opposition
by First Peoples to uranium mining can draw in multiple actors, with local campaigns quickly
transmuting into national or international debates. Moreover, the Australian and Navajo
Nation cases established that such opposition also can translate into regulatory and political
constraints on the number of new mines being permitted.
This paper has documented First Peoples’ principally negative encounters with
uranium developments, and has suggested that this history has shaped successive generations’
perceptions of the uranium industry and their opposition to new developments. However, the
paper also notes that evidence for improving relationships can be found in the Australian
uranium industry’s outreach to communities through initiatives such as the Dialogue Group,
the setting of Indigenous employment targets and the establishment of scholarship programs
for Indigenous tertiary students, as well as in Canada’s Athabasca Basin, where uranium
companies and First Nations have developed relationships based on engagement, but more
importantly, the provision of Indigenous-operated services to the mining industry.
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Notwithstanding this progress, the uranium industry has a long way to go with regard
to incorporating best practice community relations processes into corporate decision-making
mechanisms. The practise of community engagement with First Peoples, community relations
more broadly, and the use of social impact assessments (SIA) to identify unwanted social
impacts from developments and opportunities for their mitigation, require reform if they truly
are to realise their potential. Several practitioners (Vanclay and Esteves, 2011; Esteves et al.,
2012) have pointed to the theoretical and practical deficiencies in SIA that arguably hinder the
achievement of successful development outcomes and relationship building between First
Peoples and businesses. For example, O’Faircheallaigh (2011, p. 140) contends that, due to a
“history of dispossession and economic and political marginalization,” as well as past
negative experiences of SIA, First Nations are wary of “state-initiated or state-controlled
regulatory processes including impact assessment.” Indeed, in the case of the Ranger and
Olympic Dam developments, inadequate attention to the rights of the affected First Peoples
and their social risk concerns has resulted in reports of negative social impacts, as well as
reputational damage to the developers and regulatory agencies (Katona, 2001; The Flinders
News, 2009; cf. Garrett, 2008).
While there is not scope in this paper to address these issues in sufficient detail, it
should be noted that a debate on the future of SIA, possible alternative avenues for
engagement, and the incorporation of human and Indigenous rights considerations into
corporate policy has commenced. One possible pathway forward that has been advanced in
the literature is the process of human rights impact assessment (HRIA) (Harrison, 2011;
Bakker et al., 2009; de Beco, 2009; NomoGaia, 2012). It is proposed that future work in this
area focus on the strengths and weaknesses of SIA and HRIA, as well as the development and
application of Indigenous rights instruments and the subsequent incorporation of human rights
considerations into corporate decision-making processes. First Peoples increasingly are
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cognisant of their rights, and the promulgation of Indigenous rights instruments over the last
two decades has enhanced their bargaining position vis-à-vis uranium companies. If
companies fail positively to respond to this new paradigm, they will find it increasingly
difficult to gain and maintain the important social licence to operate.
Finally, attention also should be paid to the development of theory on social risk and
business risk, and their interconnections, especially as social risk applies to the extractive
industries. Social risk is relatively under-theorised in the literature on the extractive
industries, with more empirical and theoretical work needing to be performed to demonstrate
its appropriateness as a prism through which to engage First Peoples who are confronted with
uranium developments. The recent thawing in relations between some First Peoples and the
Australian and Canadian uranium industries arguably is attributable to the recognition both of
the rights of First Peoples and the business risk consequences of not getting engagement right.
Acknowledging the importance of this point, AUA Chief Executive Officer, Michael Angwin,
says: “We don’t believe we can develop [our] projects, we don’t believe we can develop our
industry, unless we have very good relationships with indigenous people” (Morgan, 2012).
Acknowledgements
The author would like to thank Daniel Franks, David Brereton, Kathryn Sturman, Peter
Woods and three anonymous reviewers for their comments on drafts of this paper. An earlier
version of this paper was presented at the 32nd Annual Meeting of the International
Association for Impact Assessment 27 May – 1 June 2012, Centro de Congresso da
Alfândega, Porto – Portugal.
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Uranium-Mining-Production/ (accessed 2 February 2014).
World Nuclear Association (WNA). (2013a) Australia’s Uranium. Http://www.world-
nuclear.org/info/Country-Profiles/Countries-A-F/Australia/ (accessed 2 February 2014).
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Tables
Table 1: Uranium Production by Country - 2012 Country Uranium Production - 2012 (t/U) Australia 6,991 Brazil 231 Canada 8,999 China 1,500 Czech Republic 228 France 3 Germany 50 India 385 Kazakhstan 21,317 Malawi 1,101 Namibia 4,495 Niger 4,667 Pakistan 45 Romania 90 Russia 2,872 South Africa 465 Ukraine 960 The United States 1,596 Uzbekistan 2,400 Total 58,394 Data drawn from WNA 2013.
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Table 2: Uranium Mining and Exploration Activity on First Peoples’ Lands Country Site Company Status Indigenous Group(s) Australia Olympic Dam BHP Billiton Operational Barngarla, Kokatha, Kuyani,
Adnyamathanha, Yandruwandha/ Yawarrawarrka, Arabunna
Australia Ranger Energy Resources of Australia (Rio Tinto)
Operational Mirarr
Australia Beverley (incorporating Beverley North)
Heathgate Resources
Operational Adnyamathanha
Australia Honeymoon Uranium One Operational Adnyamathanha
Australia Jabiluka Energy Resources of Australia
Stalled Mirarr
Australia Kintyre Cameco Exploration Martu Australia Angela Cameco-Paladin JV Exploration Central Arrernte Australia Yeelirrie BHP Billiton Exploration Wangai Australia Manyingee Paladin Exploration Ashburton Aboriginal Corporation Australia Ben Lomond Mega Uranium Exploration Malanbara Australia Mt Gee Marathon
Resources Defunct Adnyamathanha
Australia Four Mile Quasar Resources, Alliance Resources
Exploration Adnyamathanha
Australia Wiluna Toro Energy Feasibility Martu Australia Lake Maitland Mega Uranium Exploration Martu, Ngaanyatjarra, Wongi, Yamatji,
Wiluna, Punmu, Jigalong Australia Mulga Rock Energy and
Minerals Australia Exploration Ngaanyatjarra
Australia Valhalla Paladin Exploration Kalkadoon Canada McClean Lake Areva Operational Métis, other First Nations groups Canada Rabbit Lake Cameco Operational Hatchet Lake Denesuline First Nation,
Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation Canada McArthur River Cameco-Areva Operational Athabasca First Nation, Métis groups Canada Cigar Lake Cameco Exploration Athabasca First Nation, Métis groups Canada Dawn Lake Cameco Exploration Athabasca First Nation, Métis groups Canada Millennium Cameco Exploration Athabasca First Nation, Métis groups Canada Shea Creek Areva-UEX Exploration Athabasca First Nation, Métis groups United States
Crow Butte Cameco Operational Oglala Sioux (Pine Ridge Reservation)
United States
Grants Mineral District, New Mexico, encompassing various leases including Church Rock
Miscellaneous Exploration Navajo, Acoma and Laguna Indian Reservations
United States
Willow Creek (Christensen Ranch)
Uranium One Operational Eastern Shoshone, Northern Arapaho
Namibia Aussinanis Reptile Uranium Exploration Topnaar (Nama) Niger Arlit (SOMAÏR) Areva Operational Tuareg Niger Akouta (COMINAK) Areva Operational Tuareg Niger Imouraren Areva Commissioned Tuareg
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Highlights of the paper: Uranium Mining and First Peoples: The nuclear renaissance confronts historical legacies
• The nuclear power industry requires augmenting fuel supply in the coming decades
• Reactor fuel supply will be impeded if uranium production cannot expand • A consequential barrier to uranium production is opposition by First Peoples
to new mines • The uranium industry suffers from the historical legacy of poor community
relations • The industry should place greater emphasis on community engagement with
First Peoples
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