Residents oppose lifting Va. ban on uranium mining

North Carolina residents who oppose a measure in the Virginia's legislature to lift a ban against mining uranium spoke out at North Carolina's legislative building Tuesday about the potential dangers of lifting the ban.

They're concerned waste could get into the water and flow downstream to North Carolina, polluting the water supply.

"This is something that will be bad for our entire region," Leslie James, a Vance County resident, said. "This is something that is not worth the greed of a few. It's just not."

Virginia Uranium, Inc., a private company lobbying for the ban to be lifted, says that, with modern procedures, uranium can be mined safely and that it’s being done all over the world.

Opponents are asking North Carolina residents and lawmakers to get involved. Some elected officials have already said they oppose lifting the ban.