Danville residents supportive of uranium mining with proper safeguards
“We need the jobs!” was the refrain heard from so many festival-goers at this weekend’s Danville Festival in the Park when asked about uranium mining in the region.
One middle-aged Danville resident pointed to a poster with a blown-up headline from the Danville Register & Bee that read “Once an economic engine, danville stalls amid setbacks.” ”More like imploded!” the man said despairingly, shaking his head and exuding the same powerful sense of frustration that was shared by many at this weekend’s festival.
The man and his wife – once happily employed in Danville’s now decaying manufacturing and healthcare economies – have been out of work for more than 16 months and are grappling with a mounting wave of economic distress. ”We’re three months behind on our mortgage and struggle to pay even the smallest bills,” the man lamented. Sadly, the man and his wife are no aberration among Danville-area residents and echoed the stories of hard times told by so many at the Danville festival.
The vast majority of residents we encountered expressed enthusiastic support for the hundreds of jobs and billions in economic development uranium mining promises for the region, so long as the proper safeguards are in place. ”Hey, if the National Academy of Sciences says it’s safe, then we ought to do it,” said one man.
Another common theme heard from many festival-goers was a sense of fatigue and disappointment with the small but vocal minority of close-minded area residents who are unwilling to consider uranium mining even if the National Academy study finds that it can be done safely. ”My guess is they probably have comfortable jobs and aren’t worried about how they’re going to put food on the table,” belted out one man in complete dismay.
Many of the people that stopped by the Virginia Energy Independence Alliance tent at the festival regretted the campaign to misinform and scare area residents about uranium mining. Most expressed an eagerness for the National Academy of Sciences to begin their 18-month study of the health, safety and environmental aspects of the project and were confident the Academy would produce an objective, unbiased analysis. For more information about the study, go to http://dels.nas.edu/global/besr/Uranium.
Many residents also anticipated the launch of the Virginia Coal and Energy Commission’s socioeconomic study to demonstrate the enormous economic benefits for the region. The Commission’s Uranium Mining Subcommittee is holding a hearing at Chatham High School at 6 p.m. on June 22 to hear public comment on the proposed scope of study. Area residents are encouraged to attend to voice their opinions. For more information about the socioeconomic study, go to http://dls.state.va.us/groups/cec/Uranium/meetings.htm.
