Mine closure spells end for Northern Territory town

A Northern Territory town could be forced to close down completely due to the closure of a uranium mine.

An agreement states the Ranger mine in Jabiru, the only town in the Kakadu National Park, will not operate past 2021, according to News Corp.

It also means the power, water and sewage services will be cut off and infrastructure completely demolished.

A report commissioned by Rio Tinto’s Energy Resources of Australia shows this could lead to residents leaving the 1100-strong town along with severe job losses, the closure of the airport and a reduction of health and education services.

It also found residents and business owners were already suffering anxiety.

Energy Resources Australia estimates it will cost $507 million to clean up the site, which must be reintegrated into the surrounding World Heritage-listed national park by 2026.

“There is still uncertainty about the future and while there may be a widely held view that Jabiru can have a future beyond 2021, it is not yet known what that might look like, what changes may take place or when,” ERA chief executive Andrea Sutton said.

ERA isn’t developing a plan beyond 2021 either.

Gundjeihmi Aboriginal Corporation, which acts for Mirarr tradtional owners, believes the town should remain open without the operation of the mine and instead focus on becoming a tourism hub and regional services centre.

“You have Australia’s largest national park, indigenous communities living downstream from the mine and a very sensitive ecosystem around it,” chief executive officer Justin O’Brien said.

“We’ve seen a steady erosion of the amenity of the town, and it’s a self-perpetuating down spiral; the more people who leave, the worse it gets, the more people leave.”

Ken Jones, who manages local supermarket Jabiru Foodland said he doesn’t plan on leaving the town and believes the area, which is “more than a just a mine town” won’t be demolished.

“Everybody hopes we will come to an agreement, the town will stay and we live happily ever after,” he said.

“It’s a very close-knit community, it’s very friendly and everybody gets on.

“There’s no real crime and it’s a great place to live. It’s remote but only a couple of hours from Darwin on bitumen.

“It’s the best spot for fishing in Australia.”