N.L. aboriginals seek more information on uranium mine

Aboriginal groups living near a proposed uranium mine site in northern Labrador say they want more information about how the development will affect their communities.

Aurora Energy Resources said it found about 26.3 million kilograms of uranium near Postville and hopes to begin construction of a mine by 2010, but Innu and Inuit groups near the site said they think the process will take much longer.

The uranium deposits lie within land that is owned by Labrador Inuit.

Terry Rice, town manager in Makkovik, near where the mine will be located, said a land use plan for that area has yet to be worked out and the mine will have to come after that agreement is reached.

He thinks the company's plan to begin construction in three years is too optimistic.

"Everybody knows that the Nunatsiavut governmenthas been working on a land use plan, which isn't expected to be completed for another two years," Rice told CBC News.

The Nunatsiavut government is a governing and negotiating body for the Inuit.

Innu Nation President Daniel Ashini said the Innu need to be included in Aurora development plans, too, because the company is planning to build a service road to the mine that he said will go through Innu land.

"There should be a task force set up, provided the funding comes from the company to allow people to have the information so they can make a meaningful decision on what the impact will be from the road and the mine," Ashini said.

Aurora Energy has said it will spend $9 million in 2007 to study the feasibility of a mine. That study will outline how the company plans to harvest the uranium and dispose of the mine waste.

Rice said the study will help people in the region decide if they support a mine.

"It gives us a better idea of how they are going to dispose of the tailings, which has been our biggest concern," Rice said.

In April, the Nunatsiavut government hosted public meetings in Makkovik and Postville to hear from people who were concerned about the proposed mine.

At the time, officials with Aurora Energy Resources told the CBC that if it does build a mine in Labrador, health and safety would be a priority.