Environment Minister Melissa Price reportedly gave the OK to a uranium mining project in WA just a day before Prime Minister Scott Morrison called the federal election.
Not only was the mine signed off on in the shadow of an impending election, the Morrison government chose not to publicly announce the confirmation – instead uploading approval docs the day before ANZAC Day.
It was only in October last year that Price told the Kalgoorlie Miner she wouldn’t approve the mine until it had gone through a legal challenge in the WA supreme court. Back then, she said it would be the “prudent” thing to do.
Canadian company Cameco is behind the Yeelirrie Uranium mine project, which would be located about 500kms north of Kalgoorlie in WA.
While the mine has now received federal approval, which Price says comes with 32 strict conditions, it still needs formalised approval from WA’s state government.
The 2017 Liberal Barnett WA government approved the mine weeks before losing the last election and the matter has been going through the state’s supreme court ever since as members of the Tjiwari traditional owners attempt to block its development.
If Melissa Price’s name is ringing bells in your head it’s probably because she also controversially approved the Adani mine groundwater management plans that were labeled “not suitable” by government scientists.
In March, Price defended that approval with a similar tactic, saying Adani had agreed to conditions that would boost warning systems and repeat modelling within two years of coal first being extracted.
At the time, the Australian Conservation Foundation said Australians should be “deeply sceptical about the process” that led to the decision.
