DANVILLE, Va. (AP) – With a trial scheduled for December, Virginia’s ban on uranium mining was the focus of arguments at a hearing before a federal judge in Danville.
Lawyers for Virginia Uranium Inc. argued Friday that the state is overreaching by attempting to regulate the mining of the radioactive ore in Pittsylvania County.
But attorneys for the state defended a 1980s-vintage ban on uranium mining, according to the Register & Bee (http://bit.ly/1kzCuIv).
Virginia Uranium wants the ban lifted so it can mine and mill a rich deposit of uranium.
The company appealed to the General Assembly to lift the ban but made little headway.
The company has said uranium mining would create hundreds of jobs and give an economic boost to the state’s tobacco-growing region. The proposal has faced opposition from environmental groups.
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