FAQ

ISL mining involves drilling thousands of boreholes and injecting a chemical solution—usually sulfuric acid—directly into the underground water-filled Auob Formation to dissolve uranium. This process occurs directly within our drinking water source. Unlike other mining methods, it is impossible to perfectly contain these toxic solutions, as underground geological faults and fractures as well as high irrigation extraction allow them to leak into clean water zones.

The contaminated mine water can reach uranium concentrations up to 200,000 times higher than the World Health Organization (WHO) safe drinking water guidelines. This water contains radioactive elements and toxic heavy metals like arsenic, cadmium and lead.

No. Data from ISL mines globally, including those in the USA and Australia, show a documented history of leakage and monitoring failures. In the Stampriet Basin, the risk is even higher because massive irrigation pumping (700 cubic meters per hour) creates a "drawdown" effect that can pull contaminated water for many kilometers away from the mine site.

The Czech Republic Case: At the Stráž pod Ralskem site, millions of tons of sulfuric acid and other chemicals were injected into the ground during the Soviet era. This created a massive "contaminant plume" that threatened the North Bohemian Cretaceous Basin, a vital source of drinking water. The government has since spent billions in decades-long "pump and treat" operation to stop the acid from migrating into clean water supplies.

Boreholes that have been drilled directly into an underground uranium orebody, will reflect elevated levels of radioactive substances, whereas boreholes away from orebodies have been indicated as safe to drink – in fact this water has been used by the inhabitants for decades.