...In an editorial published Monday in the Sydney Morning Herald, Sweeney called uranium mining "one of Australia's most contested and contaminated industrial activities" and pointed to its role in Japan's Fukushima nuclear plant disaster.
"Australian uranium directly fueled the Fukushima nuclear crisis," Sweeney wrote.
"It has been confirmed that it was a load of radioactive rocks from Kakadu and northern South Australia that were inside the Japanese reactor complex when it failed in March 2011. These rocks are now the source of radioactive fallout across Japan and beyond," he stated.
Background Story
Radioactive spill in Kakadu stirs rage
It began as a 10-centimetre tear in a leach tank at Ranger uranium mine, in Kakadu National Park. Within an hour it turned into what some are calling one of the worst radioactive accidents in Australia's history.
''It's a massive failure,'' said Justin O'Brien, chief executive of the Gundjeihmi Aboriginal Corporation, which represents the local Mirarr people. ''It's hillbilly mining, and it's not good enough.''
About 12.30am on Saturday morning, mine staff noticed liquid squirting from a crack in Leach Tank 1, a large above-ground tank containing more than 1.4 million litres of highly acidic radioactive slurry. Using a crane, they attempted to cover the crack with a steel plate, before noticing a second hole.
All personnel were then evacuated, shortly after which the tank burst, spilling more than 1 million litres of mud, water, sulphuric acid and radioactive liquid. Such was the force and volume of the spill that the crane was damaged and pushed back a metre. It is understood the radioactive liquid then flowed outside the ''bunded area'', or nearby containment banks, onto grassed areas and into the mine's stormwater and drainage system.
The mine's operator, Energy Resources Australia, said no one was hurt, and that ''multiple containment systems'' prevented the spill having any impact on the Kakadu National Park. ''All water monitoring points have reported normal readings,'' the company said.
But locals are not so sure. ''They can claim that the stormwater system is not connected to the environment,'' Mr O'Brien said. ''But they need to demonstrate that to us beyond reasonable doubt, because we have lost trust.''
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