A few atomic veterans, previously excluded,can now claim compensation
Aussie nuke testing victims receive compo, News.com.au, 22 Nov 11 A HANDFUL of Australian veterans exposed to British nuclear testing in the 1950s and 60s who missed out on compensation will finally get payments and health care. Tonight the Senate passed laws to close loopholes that had inadvertently excluded about 10 victims….. The radiation victims were involved in maintenance, transporting or decontamination of aircraft used in the British nuclear test program….. Read more »
Australia’s Maralinga veterans and Aboriginals paid the price for nuclear bomb testing
Finally they can heal together, Adelaide Now, Bryan Littlely, From:The Advertiser, November 12, 2011 THEY are snapshots from a secret time. An insight into a life in one of the harshest and most secure places in Australia. The men who took these photographs at Maralinga during the series of British nuclear testing and clean-up from 1952 to 1967 carry them proudly. Most also carry another legacy of this land and the controversial atomic testing that went on here.
Cancers and other conditions linked to the radiation, plutonium, burilium-laced lands that were left after the testing has claimed the lives of many of the men who were at Maralinga. In 1985, a survey found that of the 12,500 people involved in the British nuclear testing program in Australia, 11,000 had died. Hundreds of Maralinga-Tjarutja people were also forced from their homeland during the testing.
Few of the veterans remain today but the handful who have gone back to Maralinga for the Remembrance Day reunion have done so with the blessing of the traditional owners, so the two groups of people for
whom Section 400 is so significant can heal together…. Australian Nuclear Veterans Association founder Avon Hudson, the Maralinga whistleblower and advocate for compensation claims for the men, said there were only about 50 members of that association left.
“We’re nearly buggered … most of our members are old buggers like me and we are dropping off the perch,” Mr Hudson, 74, said. ”We can get a bit of healing coming back here. It brings back a lot of sad memories because almost all my mates are dead but it is mixed feelings because I have a lot of good memories, too.”…
“We were sent on to that Taranaki ground zero site to test some stuff… nobody knew it was contaminated,” he said…..
http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/south-australia/finally-they-can-heal-together/story-e6frea83-1226193206591
Still no radiation registering of Northern Territory’s uranium workers
NT URANIUM WORKERS STILL NOT ON NATIONAL REGISTER, GREENS SAY, Safe To Work, By Cole Latimer 20 October 2011 Uranium miners in the Northern Territory are still not on the National Radiation Dose Register, Greens senator Scott Ludlam says. It comes five months after Ludlam originally brought the issue to bear in May, with Ludlam today again quizzing representatives from the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency on this issue.
“In July 2010 the register began collecting data on the radiation doses to which workers had been exposed. There are now over 18,000 workers on the database – covering about five years – but there is no information at all on the radiation workers have been exposed to at the Ranger Mine in the Northern Territory. We revealed this in May, and urged the Territory and Federal authorities to address it. ARPANSA told us today that nothing has changed, and to raise the issue with the office of energy and resources minister Martin Ferguson,” Ludlam said in a recent statement.
“We will write to Northern Territory Chief Minister Paul Henderson to encourage urgent action to fix this problem.” The national register was created as a central database to track radiation dose histories of miners….. Under this new development, information on radiation doses will be sent to a central register, where miners can then access their personal records.
“Excluding work in the Northern Territory is a huge crack in the system, and it was revealed five months ago and NT uranium mine workers are still off the radiation dose radar. The system will only have integrity if all radiation doses are included,” Ludlam says….. http://www.safetowork.com.au/news/nt-uranium-workers-still-not-on-national-register
Nearly 60 years later, a few of Australia’s nuclear veterans will get some government help
British nuclear test compensation victory for RAAF personnel, Adelaide Now, September 22, 2011 A SMALL number of veterans of British nuclear tests conducted in Australia in the 1950s and 1960s will now be entitled to health care and compensation. Veterans Affairs Minister Warren Snowdon said the former RAAF personnel had previously been excluded as their involvement fell outside the currently legislated nuclear test areas or time periods. Mr Snowdon said others could also be eligible.
“The quality of the records from the test period, and the secrecy surrounding the operation, means that it is impossible to rule out the likelihood that new information may come to light which warrants further extension of coverage to additional groups of participants,” he told Federal Parliament.
Mr Snowdon said the Department of Veterans Affairs had received claims from a small number of personnel not currently eligible for compensation and health care from their participation in the British nuclear test program.
He said they were involved in the maintenance, transporting or decontamination of aircraft used in the nuclear test program outside the currently legislated nuclear test areas or time periods.
The maintenance and decontamination of the aircraft – mostly Canberra bombers – took place at Woomera and the Edinburgh air base, near Salisbury. Britain exploded seven atomic bombs in the South Australian outback in 1956-57 but continued the nuclear test program through to May 1963 with a large number of minor trials of items such as nuclear initiators. Nuclear test veterans have long sought a better deal, arguing that their health was affected by radiation exposure.
Debate on the Veterans’ Affairs Legislation Amendment (Participants in British Nuclear Tests) Bill 2011 was adjourned….http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/south-australia/british-nuclear-test-compensation-victory-for-raaf-personnel/story-e6frea83-1226143449967
Australian govt stalls on helping Maralinga veterans – waiting for them all to die?
“Veterans have been knocked back for a Gold Card because the Department argues they were not exposed to harmful amounts of radiation,” Senator Xeophon said….”But we all know that there is a very high rate of cancers, disease and genetic illnesses among those who served at nuclear test sites.”…”[veterans say] the only thing I can assume is that stalling for time is waiting for us all to die and they won’t have to give anybody anything”,”
MAJOR PARTIES CONTINUE TO NEGLECT MARALINGA VETERANS 12 Sept.11, Independent Senator for South Australia, Nick Xenophon, says both the Government and the Coalition should be ashamed that they didn’t support the automatic provision of Gold Cards to Maralinga veterans, nor did they support a review into the expected costs of doing so in Parliament today. ”It’s quite amazing that both the Government and the Opposition have put a blanket ban on this option without even considering it,” Nick said.
Under current legislation, veterans have to prove a direct link between their illness and their service to be eligible for the Repatriation Health Card — For All Conditions (Gold). Read more »
Japanese women in Sydney host holidays for Fukushima children
In Japan they cannot go outside without masks, without worrying about radiation. Even in school at PE time, they have to stay indoors.
“So [here in Sydney] they are so happy to walk around, go to the beach, and be free without radiation.”
Fukushima children swap fear for fun, ABC 702 Sydney, Monique Ross, August 17, 2011 A Japanese woman living in Australia is helping children living in the shadow of the Fukushima nuclear crisis forget the worries plaguing their region – if only for a little while.
Many parents sent their children away from Fukushima in the aftermath of the March disaster and life has also changed for those who remain, with outside play heavily restricted. While watching the continuing crisis unfold from her home in Sydney, Yukiko Hirano decided to form the Sydney Rainbow Stay Project.
The program takes children away from the nuclear fears that hang over their lives in Japan and brings them to Sydney for a home-stay holiday. Read more »
Common sense about ionising radiation and CT scans
breast tissue in women and ‘young’ cells in children are more sensitive to radiation…….Universally, MRIs and ultrasounds – which do not use radiation – are increasingly being used as an alternative to CTs where appropriate.
When you are faced with the prospect of undergoing a CT scan or another sort of imaging, here are some questions to ask and steps to take:
- Ask your referring doctor to outline the risks and benefits, and whether this test will change the way you are treated.
- Ask if there are alternative tests or methods that use less radiation but are as effective.
- Keep a record of the scans you have had and discuss this with your doctor. Avoid unnecessary duplicate tests.
- Tell your doctor if you are pregnant before having a scan.
- Educate yourself by accessing the many very good online resources for more information
- If you are still unsure, seek a second opinion.
CT scans and radiation, ABC by Pamela Wilson, 12 Aug 11, Every year, more CT scans are being ordered in Australia. They provide valuable information to guide medical care, but they come with a dose of radiation. Should we be worried? Read more »
Positive results in Australian tests of radiation free airport scanners
In July, Thruvision’s terahertz-scanning technology was tested at airports in Sydney and Melbourne, Australia, along with millimeter wave scanners from L3. Ron Frye, Thruvision’s Director of International Business Development, reports that the trials ended with positive results, but Australian authorities have not yet made any firm decisions about usage of full body scanners.
Safer full-body scanners? SF Gate, 11 Aug 11, As controversy simmers surrounding the levels of radiation used in full body scanners, a small company based in the United Kingdom has developed a machine that emits no radiation at all. Read more »
Some good news for Australia – avoiding radiation airport scanning?
Now why on Earth did I have to go to an American news service, to find out that the Australian government was doing something sensible about protecting people from ionising radiation? - Christina Macpherson
Australia Tests Radiation Free Body Scanners HUFFINGTON POST 9 Aug 1 1 AOL Travel News:
(at left – scanner – millimeter radio wave type)
Now that the whole “nudie pic” situation has been cleared up, it seems the main concern surrounding airport body scanners is the radiation they emit.
But, at airports in Sydney and Melbourne, Australia, tests were run in July on scanners that emit no radiation, reports the BBC. Instead, the T8000, developed by UK-based ThruVision Systems, uses a “passive” screening technology.
– http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/09/australia-tests-radiation_n_922184.html
Rum Jungle’s uranium mining gives cancer to a whole family
I was very interested to read your article ( http://uranium-news.com/2010/09/04/deplorable-history-of-australias-uranium-mining-impact-on-aboriginals/
regarding the devastation caused by uranium mining. I have a father, uncle and two aunts who all worked at Rum Jungle in the 1960′s. My father and uncle passed away in their 60′s due to lung cancer. My aunt in her 60′s due to breast cancer and my other aunt who is still with us today has also had breast cancer. Surely this cannot be a coincidence and I would like to know if you have any more information with regards to the health impact that the Rum Jungle uranium mine has had on past workers. - Kirsten Johnson kirstjohn@aapt.net.au
Hey Kirsten,
Am starting my quest for information to make a claim on behalf of Judy, Peter, Kevin and my father in law. Cec Dickinson who died of lung cancer 1979 aged 70, and of course myself. will keep you posted,
Love Aunt Janet Janet Dickinson nee Litchfield dickinsonjanet@hotmail.com
Janet Dickinson nee Litchfield,
I am Kirsten Johnson’s aunt, and sister to Judy, Peter and Kevin Litchfield who passed away with cancer. all having worked at Rum Jungle in the 50′s. My father in law also passed away in 1979, aged 70 from lung cancder, he worked at Rum Jungle for 20 years from 1958. I have just recently been diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer which is not connected to my breast cancer. I am starting a program of radium and chemo on Aug 15. I have been told my chances are good. We shall see.
Any other people who have been affected by cancer from Rum Jungle. Janet Dickinson nee Litchfield dickinsonjanet@hotmail.com
Radiation danger in unnecessary CT scans
Warning to avoid needless CT scans, Canberra Times, BY HENRIETTA COOK, 13 Jul, 2011 , A growing number of Australians are receiving unnecessary computerised tomography scans at hospitals and clinics.
Last year there was a 40 per cent increase in the number of diagnostic radiation incidents reported to government authorities, with unnecessary and unplanned CT scans making up the bulk of cases. Sixty diagnostic radiology incidents were reported to the Australian Radiation Incident Register in 2010, up from 43 in 2009. There were 29 incidents where patients were given unnecessary or unplanned CT scans and six reported occasions where patients received CT scans and later found out they were pregnant…..
”CT scans are 100 times more powerful than a conventional X-ray. You have to try and avoid that sort of radiation unless absolutely necessary.”
Dr Deb said many doctors were ordering patients to have CT scans when their conditions could easily be diagnosed with conventional X-ray machines, which emit much lower doses of radiation……http://www.canberratimes.com.au/news/local/news/general/warning-to-avoid-needless-ct-scans/2224657.aspx
Australia’s radiation register about planning for compensation, not about safety
the initiative announced does not improve safety for uranium workers. It collates evidence of harm in preparation for compensation….the classic leap from a pledge of no (or minimal) harm to the reality – a register of harm.
Wrong safety messages from Australia’s resources minister « SafetyAtWorkBlog, Kevin Jones, 13 June 11, IMPROVED SAFETY FOR URANIUM WORKERS” is the headline of a media release from Australia’s Minister for Resources and Energy, Martin Ferguson. The 9 June 2011 statement concerns the positive initiative of new health monitoring for those workers in the uranium mining and milling industries, but it also betrays a perspective that is dominant in the thinking of national policymakers. Read more »
Health dangers of electromagnetic radiation
The first time that cell phones were associated with cancer risk was in 1997, following a study conducted by Michael Repacholi and his colleagues from the Royal Adelaide Hospital in South Australia that showed an increase in the occurrence of lymphoma in mice exposed to cell phone radiation over a long term.
WHO Rings The Alarm Bell On Mobile Phone? RTT News 2 June “………Mobile phones emit electromagnetic radiation in the microwave range.Over the last few years, there has been a growing concern over the possible health hazards of mobile phone radiation. Read more »
Half of Australia’s uranium workers not tested for radiation
Serious exposure to uranium had been discovered including workers showering and drinking radioactive water because of a pipe that was hooked up to the wrong section at an NT mine
Radiation dose register fails Northern Territory, Andrea Hayward May 31, 2011 Sydney Morning Herald Half of Australia’s uranium mine workers have been left off the National Radiation Dose Register, a Senate hearing has heard.
Australian Greens senator Scott Ludlam said it was revealed in Senate estimates that workers at uranium mines in the Northern Territory had not been included on the register. Read more »
Good news on minimising medical radiation for Australian children
The government’s decision to allow GPs to order MRI scans could prove lifesaving for children with cancers who would otherwise lose time waiting for a specialist appointment
GPs get the go-ahead to order less risky scans, Sydney Morning Herald, Amy Corderoy, May 17, 2011 THE federal government will allow GPs to order magnetic resonance imaging scans to stop patients being sent for riskier and less sensitive imaging such as computed tomography scans.
New research shows the number of children undergoing CT scans has grown by 5.1 per cent a year over the past 20 years. Read more »
This month
For international news, go to nuclear-news
Check on the Ugly Australian company, Lynas, in Malaysia http://baddevelopers.nfshost.com/Docs/L.htm
http://www.greenleft.org.au/node/49872 Peter Watts at Global Conference for a Nuclear Power Free World
Aboriginal protest in Canberra. Scroll down page. Video news shows no violence from protestors, only from police http://www.3aw.com.au/blogs/breaking-news-blog/the-referendum-died-today/20120126-1qj4x.html
of the week. http://www.radiationreport.com/effects-of-radiation/nuclear-apologists-play-shoot-the-messenger-on-radiation/
Energy Matters Video News – Episode 56 – February 1, 2012
http://www.energymatters.com.au/index.php?main_page=news_article&article_id=3021
Anti nuclear action below: - more info at Action Australia « Antinuclear and at Event details « Antinuclear
EVENTS
- February 13 Adelaide Fukushima and the Future of Nuclear Power
- February 23 - Adelaide Nicole Foss – a Mentor For Turbulent Times. Nicole Foss speaks on Energy and the Economy http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=FqRGVNUK5x0
LATEST AUDIO & VIDEO ITEMS. arrive – so fast and so good – go to our audiovisual page Audiovisual « Antinuclear for information on these websites
Nuclear power and WATER – theme for February 2012
For Australia especially, Global warming means WATER shortage – drought over wide areas, more evaporation.
Nuclear power and uranium mining are water-intensive
Uranium mining is water intensive. Already outback communities are being hit by water shortage, as water is being extracted from the Great Arterial Basin faster than it is being replenished.
Yet BHP Billiton has open slather, at no cost whatever, to its daily guzzle of 35 million litres, and BHPB plans to extract an additional 120 million litres of publicly-owned artesian water per day, every day, for the next 70 years.)
Out of sight, out of mind
Groundwater is a major resource, but one that has been taken for granted for decades. In the past, groundwater supplies were treated as an infinite resource, and subject to an ‘out of sight, out of mind’ attitude. But that’s changing. There’s now an enormous interest in the way our groundwater resources are measured, managed and utilised. There are also concerns over issues such as over-extraction of water, pollution, wastage, allocation and licensing issues, water pricing and groundwater salinisation.
The water source beneath one-fifth of Australia
The most well-known and important groundwater source in Australia is the Great Artesian Basin, or GAB. This is a vast groundwater source that underlies 22 per cent of Australia – extending beneath the arid and semi-arid regions of Queensland, the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales. It covers about 1.7 million square kilometres, and contains an estimated 8700 million megalitres of water. Not surprisingly, it’s one of the largest artesian water basins in the world……
The sustainable yield of a groundwater source depends on balancing the use or discharge against recharge rates. Normally discharge of groundwater occurs through vegetation, into streams and lakes, or through evaporation into the atmosphere. Sustainable yield cannot simply be determined by a measure of the recharge rate. If water is extracted for human use at the recharge rate, discharge to other areas can be affected…..
Extraction of groundwater can also lead to salinity problems and have a negative impact on native vegetation with roots that tap into groundwater, as well as wetlands, rivers and streams. The full impact of using these aquifers as planned is not known, but is likely to reduce the rate of water flowing to support rivers and wetlands and other groundwater dependent ecosystems…. http://www.science.org.au/nova/100/100key.htm
Garlick said water from the Great Artesian Basin in Central Australia is being depleted to keep residual radioactive dust from uranium mining wet in order to keep it from blowing across the continent. Seven million gallons of water is being extracted from the basin per day to keep the radioactive dust in place, she said.
Despite its profits more than tripling in the last three years, BHP has never paid a cent for the vast amounts of water used by the Olympic Dam copper and uranium mine near Roxby Downs. The mine currently uses approximately 35 million litres of water a day from the Great Artesian Basin. Under the Roxby Downs Indenture Act BHP is not required to pay for this water usage.
The Indenture Act applies specifically to the Olympic Dam mine, and provides for wide-ranging legal exemptions and overrides from environmental and Aboriginal heritage protection laws that apply elsewhere in the state, including the Environmental Protection Act and the Natural Resources Act (which incorporates water management issues).
“The Indenture Act means that the Olympic Dam mine is not subject to the same environmental regulatory framework as other industrial projects in the state,’ explained Nectaria Calan of Friends of the Earth Adelaide. “Additionally, by allowing BHP to take water from the Great Artesian Basin for free, the South Australian government is essentially providing BHP with a massive subsidy,” she continued.
The water intake from the Great Artesian Basin has already had adverse impacts on the unique Mound Springs found near Lake Eyre, which are fed by the underlying Artesian Basin, and are sacred to the Arabunna people, the traditional owners of the area.
As part of the proposed expansion of the Olympic Dam mine, BHP Billiton proposes to increase its water consumption by an additional 200 million litres per day. Water intake from the Great Artesian Basin will increase to up to 42 million litres per day, with the remainder to come from a proposed desalination plant at Point Lowly. This amounts to over 100,000 litres of water per minute.
“The vast water usage of uranium mines is often forgotten in the debate about uranium and nuclear energy. Here we are, in the driest state on the driest continent on earth, host to a mine which needs millions of litres of water each day. Due to the Indenture Act, we are essentially exporting our water overseas for free,” said Ms. Calan. (FOE)
