The Donald Rare Earths and Mineral Sands Project is in the Wimmera region of Victoria, about 300 km north-west of Melbourne.  The Donald Project plans to develop a massive mineral deposit discovered in the 1970s. The Victorian Government approved the Donald Project work plan for construction and operation of the mine in June 2025. In October 2025, the Australian Government awarded the mine "Major Project" status. This was the day after the announcement of the US-AU Critical Minerals framework negotiated by Trump and Albanese to see billions of dollars in financing for projects necessary for producing weapons, electronics and renewables.  This comes at the same time that Environment Minister Murray Watt tabled reforms to the EPBC Act that could see exemptions to push through projects considered to be in the national interest.  

The Donald project is a joint venture between Energy Fuels Inc. in the US and Astron Corporation in Australia.  Astron will produce a Rare Earth Element Concentrate (REEC) on-site and send 100% of this concentrate via the Port of Geelong to Energy Fuels' White Mesa Mill in Utah, USA, for final, specialised processing and refinement into separated oxides.  Whilst Astron are saying they are not mining uranium and it's incidental thus avoiding Victoria's long-standing ban on uranium mining - uranium will be extracted during processing once it reaches the US.

White Mesa Mill is the focus of a community campaign regarding environmental justice and contamination impacts to the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe. Alongside environmental organisations such as the White Mesa Concerned Community Group, they are demanding closure of White Mesa Mill - the only operating conventional uranium mill in the United States, because of the toxic materials that contaminate air, land and water sources, threating aquifers and the San Juan and Colorado Rivers. 

To discuss the implications we are joined by Dr. Jim Green - Friends of the Earth Australia's National Anti-nuclear campaigner and Yolanda Badback a member of the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe.  

Trump/Albo Rare Earth Deal - Albo must announce polluting projects won't be fast tracked

In late October Donald Trump and Anthony Albanese signed the US-AU Critical Minerals Framework: a deal where mining companies can apply for billions of US dollars to finance projects to produce minerals used to make weapons, electronics and renewable energy.

You can sign the Friends of the Earth petition calling for Anthony Albanese to clarify how major projects will be impacted by the US-AU Critical Minerals deal and demanding a guarantee that they will all be subject to regular environmental and social assessment processes.