Supervising Scientist Annual Report 2003 - 2004

Supervising Scientist, Darwin, 2004
ISBN 0 642 24391 3
ISSN 0 158-4030

List of tables

Table 2.1 - Ranger production activity for 2003-04
Table 2.2 - Ranger production activity for 1999-2000 to 2003-04
Table 2.3 - Observations from the 2004 Ranger Environmental Audit
Table 2.4 - Ranger Minesite Technical Committee meetings
Table 2.5 - Ranger Authorisation Changes/Approvals
Table 2.6 - Summary of SSD Magela Creek water quality measurements upstream and downstream of Ranger since the 2001-02 wet season
Table 2.7 - Summary of SSD Gulungul Creek water quality measurements upstream and downstream of Ranger since the 2001-02 wet season
Table 2.8 Creekside snail egg count results at magela downstream location for test #1 in relation to water quality data
Table 2.9 Relative abundance of the four most common fish species observed in channel billabongs over time, in relation to between-billabong dissimilarity measures
Table 2.10 Observation from the 2004 Jabiluka Environmental Audit
Table 2.11 Jabiluka Authorisation Changes/Approvals
Table 2.12 Summary of SSD Ngarradj water quality measurements upstream and downstream of Jabiluka since the 1998-99 wet season
Table 2.13 Nabarlek Minesite Technical Committee meetings
Table 2.14 Nabarlek Authorisation Changes/Approvals
Table 3.1 Comparison of DGT measured bioavailable concentrations1 (µg/l) with site-specific trigger values and national water quality guideline (WQG) defaults
Table 3.2 Percentage area of the surveyed and individual areas at Nabarlek exceeding given radon exhalation fluxes
Table 6.1 - Overseas Events 2003-04
Table 7.1 - Staffing numbers and locations (at 30 June 2004)
Table 7.2 - Summary of Cost of Outputs
Table 7.3 - Animal Experimentation Ethics Approvals

List of figures

Figure 1.1 Alligator Rivers Region
Figure 2.1 - Ranger mine site
Figure 2.2 - Ranger uranium production as a proportion of Australian total
Figure 2.3 - Drainage works on the Ranger southern stockpile
Figure 2.4 - Effective doses to designated and non-designated ERA employees over the past five years
Figure 2.5A - Uranium concentrations in Magela Creek since the 2000-01 wet season
Figure 2.5B - Uranium concentrations in Magela Creek for the 2003-04 wet season
Figure 2.6 - Uranium concentrations in Gulungul Creek since the 2000-01 wet season
Figure2.7A & 2.7B - Creekside monitoring results for: A. freshwater snail egg production, and B. larval black-banded rainbowfish survival, for wet seasons between 1992 and 2004
Figure 2.8 - Paired upstream-downstream dissimilarity values calculated for community structure of macroinvertebrate families in several streams in the vicinity of the Ranger uranium mine for the period 1988 to 2003
Figure 2.9 - Ordination plots of macroinvertebrate communities sampled from sites in several streams in the vicinity of the Ranger uranium mine for the period 1988 to 2003
Figure 2.10 - Paired control-exposed dissimilarity values calculated for community structure of fish in Mudginberri and Sandy billabongs in the vicinity of the Ranger uranium mine over time
Figure 2.11 - Ordination plots of fish communities sampled from two channel billabongs in the vicinity of the Ranger uranium mine for the period 1994 to 2003
Figure 2.12 Relative abundance of fish in different billabongs with different forms of exposure to contaminants from Ranger uranium mine, 1994-2004
Figure 2.13 Ordination plots of fish communities in shallow billabongs near Ranger uranium mine with different potential exposure to contamination from mine wastes, for 1994 to 2004
Figure 2.14 Airborne radon progeny and long lived alpha activity concentrations for Jabiru and Jabiru East
Figure 2.15 View of the Jabiluka Interim Water Management Pond after LTC&M site works
Figure 2.16 Uranium concentrations in Ngarradj since the 1998-99 wet season
Figure 2.17 Paired upstream-downstream dissimilarity values calculated over four wet seasons for community structure of macroinvertebrate families in several streams near the Jabiluka minesite
Figure 2.18 Paired upstream-downstream dissimilarity values calculated for fish community structure in four streams near the Jabiluka minesite over the past several wet seasons
Figure 2.19 Radon decay products and long lived alpha activity concentrations measured at Mudginberri Four Gates Rd radon station and on top of Jabiluka Hill
Figure 2.20 Cameco Australia Pty Ltd drilling rig, King River exploration campaign - June 2004
Figure 3.1 - Comparison of open grassland-shrubland dominated communities on the Nabarlek minesite with surrounding natural eucalyptus savanna woodland, September 2003
Figure 3.2 Multivariate statistical model: Ordination of plant-soil relationships across all sample transects on Nabarlek minesite and surrounding natural reference sites, September 2003
Figure 3.3 Event mud loads for 2003-04 at sites upstream and downstream of Jabiluka plotted against the fitted mud transport models
Figure 3.4 Para grass infestation on the Magela floodplain
Figure 3.5 Region of the worst para grass infestation on the Magela floodplain
Figure 3.6 Risk estimation of uranium in Magela Creek by comparison of concentrations of uranium in Magela Creek upstream and downstream of Ranger with the toxicity of uranium to five local aquatic species
Figure 3.7 Schematic diagram of a DGT sampler and arrangement of triplicates in the custom-designed holder deployed at each sampling site
Figure 3.8 Staff from eriss and Queensland University of Technology measuring radon exhalation from the ore stockpiles on Ranger mine
Figure 4.1 ARRTC members and stakeholders during Nabarlek site visit - September 2003
Figure 6.1 Dr Max Finlayson meets HRH Prince Charles at the 'Waterbirds around the world' conference in Edinburgh

Supervising Scientist Division

Supervising Scientist Annual Report 2003 - 2004

List of tables

List of figures

Contents