Looking back I don't think any of us knew what we were gettingourselves into when we met on June 5th at the Jabiru caravan park.Its one thing to cycle 5,700 kilometres or to live as a community, orto run a public awareness campaign against uranium, but to combine allthree makes for a highly charged adventure.
It has taken us three months to cycle from Kakadu to Perth as theCycle Against the Nuclear Cycle 2. We've had from 13 to 32 people ofdifferent ages and backgrounds travelling with us - although always amajority of women. We have visited local communities and thetraditional owners of areas where mine sites are proposed where weheld information stalls and listened to local concerns. We have beenoverwhelmed by the support and hospitality of local people and by theresistance they share to any involvement in the nuclear cycle.
Thirty six of the forty three uranium mines proposed for Australiaare in Western Australia, not in remote localities as we are led tobelieve, but in the backyards of active indigenous and whitecommunities. Of major concern to these communities is the potentialcontamination of their ground water should mining proceed in theirregion. They also worry about the future health and safety risks ofdisturbing what has traditionally been treated as "sickness country".It was inspiring to carry messages of solidarity between these smallcommunities who face the common menace of the nuclear threat.
The most empowering, as well as perhaps the hardest aspect of ourjourney, was this direct contact with the land and people who arethreatened by mine sites. While some communities seem well informedand determined to fight a mine proposal, others were shocked to learnof nearby mineral leases. They remain confused about their power todecide the fate of their own land.
Jigalong community is located 200km North East of Newman and is thepotential site of the Pangea waste dump as well as being in closevicinity to the proposed mine at Kintyre. The residents feel excludedfrom the process of deciding whether a mine and/or waste dump shouldproceed in their area. Their views are consistently and convenientlymisrepresented in parliament and by the mainstream media. They askedus to carry a strong message to the wider Australian community thatthere is no such thing as a 'remote' Australia which 'wants' a nuclearindustry.
We consistently asked of ourselves: who exactly is it that wantsthese mines? Certainly not those people that will be forced to livethe environmental and social consequences of uranium mining.
As always we discovered a maze of inter-related political issueslurking beneath the proposals for uranium mining in WA, the health andsocial problems of some indigenous communities as well as disputeswithin our own community.
It has been incredible to closely experience the richness of thelandscape and people in these remote areas. Travelling by bicyclemade us more approachable and interesting to both locals andtravellers, breaking down some of the barriers that might havehampered contact with us. It also helped us to appreciate therealities of life in the region - water was not always available andthere was sometimes long distances on average roads betweenroadhouses. Part of our commitment to cycle came from a desire toactively promote an alternative energy source - cycle power! - as wellas to give us a closer look at the land we were passing through.However travelling by cycle had its problems; headwinds, road traindodging, broken spokes and flat tyres all contributed to long harddays on the road. Our tight schedule meant that we were unable tomake the most of all the opportunities that come our way.
Taking on such a physically and emotionally demanding journey tookits toll as we tried to juggle the many demands on ourselves both asindividuals and as part of a group. In many ways the skills welearned in trying to live and work well together were as valuable asanything we might have learned about uranium issues. After all, we allmust live together on this planet, and just imagine what great thingshumans could achieve if we worked well together.
In the wake of difficult and draining situations it was sometimesbest to just get on our bikes and pedal furiously through thecountryside - soaking up the delicious landscape and trying to remainopen and positive.
We at least had the option to pedal away - the communities wevisited must stay and confront the nuclear threat. Their strength indoing so and the memory of my tyres whirring through wildflowers inthe shadow of the Pilbara escarpment will fuel my future work to stopuranium mining anywhere in Australia.
P.S. Look out for CANC3's next mission: Perth to Sydney - startyour training now!