Lake Way
Encyclopedia
Lake Way is a dry lake
approximately 15 km south of Wiluna
, in the Mid West region of Western Australia
. It also gives its name to a nearby cattle station
, the Lake Way Station.
The lake, dry except during exceptional floods such as occurred in 1900
, 1942, 1963, repeatedly from 1992 to 2001 and in 2006, runs roughly parallel to the Leinster
-Wiluna road, which is part of the Goldfields Highway
.
The lake is the site of one of the most advanced uranium mining projects in Western Australia, the Centipede–Lake Way project, which is pursued by Toro Energy and scheduled for production by 2013. It is scheduled to become the state's second uranium mine, after the Lake Maitland uranium project, which has a proposed start-of-production date of 2012. A third project in line is the Yeelirrie uranium project
, which BHP Billiton
hopes to bring online by 2014. All three are located within 100 km of Wiluna.
, was mined from 2005 to 2007, but the pit only contained low grade ore of approximately 1.75 g/t. After initial high expectations and reported grades of up to 25 g/t, the operation was a disappointment, with less-then-expected production. The open pit was also the site of a fatal mining accident in July 2005.
Agincourt Resources, the owner of the mine at the time, spun off its uranium exploration by forming Nova Energy in April 2005. After the takeover of Agincourt through Oxiana Limited
, Nova Energy became part of Toro Energy in August 2007.
, which saw the Australian Labor Party
replaced in government by the Liberal Party of Australia
. Two uranium mining projects in the state are expected to begin production by 2012-13, the 750 tonne U3O8 Lake Maitland project, located at Lake Maitland
, pursued by Mega Uranium, and the 680 tonnes U3O8 Centipede–Lake Way project undertaken by Toro Energy.
The uranium mining projects in Western Australia have attracted opposition from organisations
like the Anti-Nuclear Alliance of Western Australia, which have attempted to put a hold on them before they reach active mining stage.
Uranium mining at Lake Way is not a new project but dates back to 1978, when it was first proposed by the Wyoming Mineral Corporation and Delhi International Oil. In 1982, the Australian Government granted Delhi International permission to develop the mine, but the project was suspended in the following year. Mining would have been carried out in the form of small open pits, spread over nine square kilometres.
Current mining activities at Lake Way are scheduled to be carried out at two locations, at the Lake Way deposit at the northern end of the lake and the Centipede deposit on the southwestern side of the lake. Toro plans to extract the uranium oxide through a heap leach process, with an annual production of 700 tonnes and a mine life of 10 years.
In February 2010, Toro received advice from the Western Australian Minister for Environment, Donna Faragher
, that the government had dismissed an appeal against the level of environmental assessment protocols for the Wiluna project. Previous to that, the government granted approval for a resource evaluation test pit at Lake Way, with the trial also receiving approval from the native title holders. Following this, in May 2010, Toro carried out an eight-week operation of a test pit.
Western Australian MP Robin Chapple
queried why radioactive uranium oxide and ore was still lying around unburied and unfenced at Lake Way in 2010, after an earlier question on the same subject had been raised in 2000. The Department of Mines and Petroleum
confirmed the material as naturally occurring uranium-bearing rock through laboratory testing.
Dry lake
Dry lakes are ephemeral lakebeds, or a remnant of an endorheic lake. Such flats consist of fine-grained sediments infused with alkali salts. Dry lakes are also referred to as alkali flats, sabkhas, playas or mud flats...
approximately 15 km south of Wiluna
Wiluna, Western Australia
Wiluna is a complex town in the Mid West region of Western Australia. It is situated on the edge of the Western Desert at the gateway to the Canning Stock Route and Gunbarrel Highway. It is the service centre of the local area for the local Aboriginal people, the pastoral industry, mining, and...
, in the Mid West region of Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
. It also gives its name to a nearby cattle station
Cattle station
Cattle station is an Australian term for a large farm , whose main activity is the rearing of cattle. In Australia, the owner of a cattle station is called a grazier...
, the Lake Way Station.
The lake, dry except during exceptional floods such as occurred in 1900
1900 Western Australian floods
The 1900 Western Australian floods were a series of flooding events from March to May of 1900 that affected large areas of Western Australia, primarily in the Pilbara and Gascoyne regions, though it extended to cover most of the state except the more humid Kimberley and Southwest regions.The...
, 1942, 1963, repeatedly from 1992 to 2001 and in 2006, runs roughly parallel to the Leinster
Leinster, Western Australia
Leinster is a town in the northern goldfields area of Western Australia. The town is located 4 km east of the Goldfields Highway, in the Shire of Leonora Local Government Area, northeast of the state capital, Perth...
-Wiluna road, which is part of the Goldfields Highway
Goldfields Highway
Goldfields Highway is a generally northwest-southeast highway in central Western Australia which links the Great Northern Highway at Meekatharra with Coolgardie-Esperance Highway south of Kalgoorlie...
.
The lake is the site of one of the most advanced uranium mining projects in Western Australia, the Centipede–Lake Way project, which is pursued by Toro Energy and scheduled for production by 2013. It is scheduled to become the state's second uranium mine, after the Lake Maitland uranium project, which has a proposed start-of-production date of 2012. A third project in line is the Yeelirrie uranium project
Yeelirrie uranium project
The Yeelirrie uranium project is a proposed uranium mining project, located approximately 70 km south west of Wiluna, in the Mid West region of Western Australia....
, which BHP Billiton
BHP Billiton
BHP Billiton is a global mining, oil and gas company headquartered in Melbourne, Australia and with a major management office in London, United Kingdom...
hopes to bring online by 2014. All three are located within 100 km of Wiluna.
Gold
The lake has been the site of an open-pit gold mining operation, which was part of the Wiluna Gold Mine. The Williamson pit, located within the lake and accessed through a causewayCauseway
In modern usage, a causeway is a road or railway elevated, usually across a broad body of water or wetland.- Etymology :When first used, the word appeared in a form such as “causey way” making clear its derivation from the earlier form “causey”. This word seems to have come from the same source by...
, was mined from 2005 to 2007, but the pit only contained low grade ore of approximately 1.75 g/t. After initial high expectations and reported grades of up to 25 g/t, the operation was a disappointment, with less-then-expected production. The open pit was also the site of a fatal mining accident in July 2005.
Agincourt Resources, the owner of the mine at the time, spun off its uranium exploration by forming Nova Energy in April 2005. After the takeover of Agincourt through Oxiana Limited
Oxiana Limited
Oxiana Limited was an Australia-based copper and gold miner and exploration company. The company's operations were located in Laos, Australia, Cyprus and the Philippines...
, Nova Energy became part of Toro Energy in August 2007.
Uranium mining project
The six-year Western Australian ban on uranium mining was lifted in 2008, after the 2008 state electionsWestern Australian state election, 2008
A general election was held in the state of Western Australia on Saturday 6 September 2008 to elect 59 members to the Legislative Assembly and 36 members to the Legislative Council...
, which saw the Australian Labor Party
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
replaced in government by the Liberal Party of Australia
Liberal Party of Australia
The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...
. Two uranium mining projects in the state are expected to begin production by 2012-13, the 750 tonne U3O8 Lake Maitland project, located at Lake Maitland
Lake Maitland
Lake Maitland is a dry lake approximately 100 km south east of Wiluna, in the Mid West region of Western Australia.The lake is the site of one of the most advanced uranium mining projects in Western Australia, the Lake Maitland project, which is pursued by Canadian company Mega Uranium and...
, pursued by Mega Uranium, and the 680 tonnes U3O8 Centipede–Lake Way project undertaken by Toro Energy.
The uranium mining projects in Western Australia have attracted opposition from organisations
Anti-nuclear movement in Australia
Nuclear testing, uranium mining and export, and nuclear energy have often been the subject of public debate in Australia, and the anti-nuclear movement in Australia has a long history...
like the Anti-Nuclear Alliance of Western Australia, which have attempted to put a hold on them before they reach active mining stage.
Uranium mining at Lake Way is not a new project but dates back to 1978, when it was first proposed by the Wyoming Mineral Corporation and Delhi International Oil. In 1982, the Australian Government granted Delhi International permission to develop the mine, but the project was suspended in the following year. Mining would have been carried out in the form of small open pits, spread over nine square kilometres.
Current mining activities at Lake Way are scheduled to be carried out at two locations, at the Lake Way deposit at the northern end of the lake and the Centipede deposit on the southwestern side of the lake. Toro plans to extract the uranium oxide through a heap leach process, with an annual production of 700 tonnes and a mine life of 10 years.
In February 2010, Toro received advice from the Western Australian Minister for Environment, Donna Faragher
Donna Faragher
Donna Evelyn Mary Faragher is an Australian politician. She has been a Liberal member of the Western Australian Legislative Council since 2005, representing the region of East Metropolitan....
, that the government had dismissed an appeal against the level of environmental assessment protocols for the Wiluna project. Previous to that, the government granted approval for a resource evaluation test pit at Lake Way, with the trial also receiving approval from the native title holders. Following this, in May 2010, Toro carried out an eight-week operation of a test pit.
Western Australian MP Robin Chapple
Robin Chapple
Robin Chapple is a Greens politician serving in the Western Australian Legislative Council. From 2001 to 2005 Chapple represented the Mining and Pastoral Region...
queried why radioactive uranium oxide and ore was still lying around unburied and unfenced at Lake Way in 2010, after an earlier question on the same subject had been raised in 2000. The Department of Mines and Petroleum
Department of Mines and Petroleum
The Department of Mines and Petroleum is a department of the Government of Western Australia. The department was formed on 1 January 2009, out of the former Department of Industry and Resources and Department of Consumer and Employment Protection, which were split into three new departments, the...
confirmed the material as naturally occurring uranium-bearing rock through laboratory testing.
External links
- Names Search Results - Lake Way Geoscience AustraliaGeoscience AustraliaGeoscience Australia is an agency of the Australian federal government. It carries out geoscientific research.On a user pays basis it produces geospatial products such as topographic maps and satellite imagery.-History:...
website - MINEDEX website Database of the Department of Mines and PetroleumDepartment of Mines and PetroleumThe Department of Mines and Petroleum is a department of the Government of Western Australia. The department was formed on 1 January 2009, out of the former Department of Industry and Resources and Department of Consumer and Employment Protection, which were split into three new departments, the...
- Toro Energy website