Radioactive Spill At Uranium Mine In Niger

JOHANNESBURG: Greenpeace has received and verified reports that since December 11th, more than 200,000 litres of radioactive sludge from three cracked waste pools has leaked into the environment at the SOMAIR uranium mine in Niger, operated by French energy company AREVA.
Almoustapha Alhacen who carried out an inspection of the spill for NGO Aghir in'Man confirmed to Greenpeace that two hectares have been contaminated by the spill since December 11th.
“This new leakage shows that the bad practices at the AREVA uranium mines in Niger continue to threaten the health and safety of people and the environment”, said Rianne Teule, energy campaigner for Greenpeace Africa. “In contrast to AREVA’s statements claiming their operations comply with international health, safety and environmental standards, this new information shows that AREVA has not sufficiently acted to protect the Nigerien population”. more>>
Courtesy: greenpeace.org