“All that Glitters is not Gold” is an informative and disturbing 6-minute video that looks at the Olympic Dam in Australia, the site of the world’s largest known uranium deposit.
Currently, BHP Billiton wants the federal and state government to approve a plan to bring 40 million tonnes of the radioactive ore to the surface every year for the next 50-100 years.
As relayed in the film, and in a press release for a related film, more than 80% of the radiation that will be brought up from deep within the earth will remain at the surface of the mine–but not before being “pulverized into fine dust size particles and dumped there, ready to blow in the wind or weep into the water,” says Australian Conservation Foundation campaigner Dave Sweeney.
The tailings, which will contain radioactive thorium, polonium, bismuth, radium and radioactive lead–could easily blow to the densely populated cities of Sydney, Melbourne or Adelaide; each of which are within 1300 kilometers of the the mine site.
Definitely read the above-mentioned press release for more information. And see here for what you can do