Australian government may delay its draconian Nuclear Waste Dump law
Please note – statement from Aboriginal traditional landowners can be read here – Document.pdf
It remains unclear whether or not the National Radioactive Waste Management laws will be introduced this week by Dave Sweeney, 24 March 11, some in Labor indicate that other pressing legislation coupled with increased community sensitivity to matters nuclear post Fukushima mean it is better to defer the legislation at this time, however all indications 
are that Minister Ferguson (at right) is keen to see it advanced.
Muckaty Traditional Owners Dianne Stokes and Mark Chungaloo have been in Canberra talking strongly against the dump –
Some other developments today have seen a growing number of voices join the chorus against the dump laws and plan. A group of leading medical organisations issued a call for Labor to defer the legislation pending further consultation and the federal court determination This call was echoed in a media statement by the leading aid and development organisation Oxfam
New problems of salt, smoke, and cooling failure at Japanese nuclear plant
It is likely to be an even bigger problem when the water inside the reactor is much more radioactive than usual and is under extremely high pressure, as it has been in all three reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi plant
New Problems Arise at Japanese Nuclear Plant, NYTimes.comBy KEITH BRADSHER March 23, 2011 “……..nuclear engineers say some of the most difficult and dangerous tasks are still ahead — and time is not necessarily on the side of the repair teams. Continue reading
Fukushima nuclear plant a success, and Australia should take in nuclear wastes, says Miranda Devine
Australia’s nuclear lobby is in full marketing mode, as the Japanese nuclear crisis deepens, and the world rethinks nuclear power. Australia has a pack of nuclear spindoctors. Hard to name them all. But , (in my spin doctors picture below ) how could I have left out Miranda Devine – who is excelling them all in her nuclear marketing hype? – Christina Macpherson
Nuclear energy was set its toughest test on the northeast coast of Japan, and it passed….Australia, of all places, should be at the vanguard of atomic energy and research….Australia becoming the world’s primary nuclear storage facility, since we can cheaply and safely store nuclear waste
How nuclear passed its toughest test Miranda Devine The Daily Telegraph March 24, 2011 FUKUSHIMA is the world’s best advertisement for nuclear energy Continue reading
Enthusiasm for nuclear power waning in USA
U.S. public support for more nuclear power slips, Reuters, By Christopher Doering WASHINGTON Mar 22, 2011 Obama last week ordered a comprehensive review of the safety of U.S. nuclear power facilities, Continue reading
Antinuclear cry from the heart of Australia’s heartland
As for the business of the Australian Federal Government paying off an indigenous group to dump radioactive material on their land (Muckaty Station near Tennant Creek in the Northern Territory)…it’s such an appallingly low act…If nothing else, read your insurance policies. Do they specifically rule out claims against personal or property damage that is nuclear-accident related? Why?No insurance company or underwriters will touch it with a mile-long pole, because the potential cost of a nuclear disaster is unimaginably high….
Nuclear power stations and nuclear waste dumps in outback Australia, Fiona Lake Australian Photographs, 24 march 11, Where should nuclear power stations and nuclear waste dumps be located, in Australia? In the heart of our largest city, Sydney. Oh but what if there is an accident? Well if there is any, any, chance of an accident – then we must not have a nuclear power station or nuclear waste dump in Australia at all. Continue reading
25 countries shut their embassies in Tokyo while nuclear emergency continues
Nuclear fears shut 25 embassies in Tokyo Herald Sun, March 23, 2011 THE nuclear emergency following the earthquake and tsunami in Japan has led 25 embassies to temporarily shut their doors in Tokyo, Foreign Minister Takeaki Matsumoto said today.As of yesterday; “eight of them had transferred their functions outside Tokyo or Japan”, Matsumoto told AFP by email……Nearly two weeks after the double disaster ravaged the country’s Pacific coast on March 11, workers were battling to avert catastrophe at a crippled nuclear power plant, located 250 kilometres northeast of Tokyo.
The foreign ministry’s press division said the following countries had closed their doors: Angola, Bahrain, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Croatia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Finland, Germany, Ghana, Guatemala, Kenya, Kosovo, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Malawi, Mauritania, Mozambique, Namibia, Nepal, Nigeria, Panama and Switzerland. Nuclear fears shut 25 embassies in Tokyo | Herald Sun
South Australian Premier rules out nuclear power and uranium enrichment
No enrichment or nuclear plant on my watch: Rann , ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation), 23 March 11, Premier Mike Rann has used State Parliament to hose down the possibility of uranium enrichment or nuclear power plants in South Australia.Mineral Resources Minister Tom Koutsantonis and Olympic Dam Minister Kevin Foley broke with ALP policy this week when they made public comments in support of an expansion of the industry.Mr Rann told Parliament no companies had expressed an interest in building a nuclear power plant in SA.He made clear again his support for ALP policy on nuclear issues……..No enrichment or nuclear plant on my watch: Rann – ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
Scrap new Australian nuclear waste legislation, says Oxfam
“As a signatory to the Declaration, Australia has committed to obtaining the free, prior, and informed consent of Indigenous peoples before adopting laws and policies which may affect them. Oxfam said it believes the government should reinstate the present Aboriginal Land Rights Act consultative and decision making processes for determining radioactive waste disposal sites.
Nuclear waste law must wait until Muckaty landowners’ objections heard in Court, says Oxfam International Business Times, March 22, 2011 The Gillard government should not try to pass legislation that would allow a national radioactive waste dump on Muckaty Land Trust in the Northern Territory before the Federal Court case opposing it lodged by some traditional owners of the Land Trust is heard, Oxfam Australia said today. Continue reading
But who guards the guardians of nuclear safety?
This is the situation not only in Japan but in Canada, the United States and other countries, …. “There are few independent nuclear experts in the world. Everyone either works in the industry or used to and are now regulators,”
Who controls nuclear control agencies? Japan’s earthquake caused a nuclear crisis which could be repeated in other countries .. Al Jazeera Stephen Leahy 23 Mar 2011 Regulatory problemsJapan’s environmental activists have long complained about the inadequacy in government regulation and a culture within the industry’s management of covering up mistakes.The problem is that nuclear power companies like TEPCO and the government regulators are “essentially one and the same,” Continue reading
Despite uranium lobby’s hype, future market is in doubt
“Australians will note also that the Fukushima disaster is prompting India to review its own nuclear safety. Following the crisis in Japan, and in the glare of the Indian media, the intended expansion of India’s nuclear footprint may well slow or even stall,”
Australia weighs nuclear push after Japan crisis Reuters By Rob Taylor, CANBERRA Mar 22, 2011 “……….Those conditions could add even more complexity, and potentially costs, to bilateral nuclear safeguards agreements focused previously on the spread of nuclear weapons.
“Australians will note also that the Fukushima disaster is prompting India to review its own nuclear safety. Following the crisis in Japan, and in the glare of the Indian media, the intended expansion of India’s nuclear footprint may well slow or even stall,” Medcalf said. Continue reading
Italy halts nuclear power plans
Italy Puts Nuclear Plans on Hold for a Year Voice of America, 23 March, Italy has declared a one-year moratorium on plans to re-establish a nuclear power industry, in response to a Japanese nuclear crisis that has raised concerns across Europe about the safety of the technology.
The Italian Cabinet approved the moratorium Wednesday, halting any decision-making and research into suitable locations for nuclear plants….. Switzerland reacted to the Japanese nuclear crisis by suspending the approval process for three nuclear plants. Italy Puts Nuclear Plans on Hold for a Year | Europe | English
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