Key events: Nuclear testings at Maralinga
Backgrounder: Why was Maralinga used for secret nuclear tests?, SBS News 5 Nov 14
“…….Mar 1951 – Australian Government approval sought to use Monte Bello Island for tests
Oct 1952 – First UK Test on 3 October – code named “Hurricane”
Sep 1953 – Minor trials at Emu Field on Australian mainland
Oct 1953 – Next two UK tests, known as “Totem 1 and 2” on 14 and 26 October, at Emu Field
May 1955 – Permanent test site at Maralinga announced
June 1955 – Minor trials start at Maralinga
May 1956 – UK conducts tests “Mosaic 1 and 2” on 16 May and 19 June at Monte Bello
Sep 1956 – “Buffalo” tests at Maralinga (four shots on 27 Sept, and 4, 11 and 21 October. Buffalo 3 was the first UK airdrop test
Sep 1957 – “antler” tests at Maralinga, 3 shots (14 and 25 September and 9 October)
Minor trials continued in short annual campaigns until May 1963
Aug 1967 – The final UK clean up operation at Maralinga completed, (Operation Brumby in May to Aug 67)
July 1984 – Australian Royal Commission (ARC) established
Nov 1985 – Royal Commission Report published Feb 1986 Post ARC Technical Assessment Group (TAG) established with UK membership. Study of options and costs of decontamination and rehabilitation of Emu and Maralinga
March 1989 – TAG reports to Australian Ministers
Dec 1993 – UK Government agrees to pay £20M on an ex gratia basis towards the cost of site rehabilitation
Mar 2003 – Report into the clean up of Maralinga published in Australia. The Australian Science Minister reports to Federal Parliament that the land at Maralinga can be handed back to its traditional owner, the Maralinga Tjarutja.
2009 – Most of the Maralinga-Tjarutja land handed back to indigenous people after rehabilitation work was completed.
5 November 2014 – Full handover of the 1,782 square kilometres of land to the Maralinga Tjarutja people marked by a ceremony.
Source: The National Archives UK http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2014/11/05/backgrounder-why-was-maralinga-used-secret-nuclear-tests
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Antinuclear 
Maralinga is about to be another ‘exemplar’ of more ‘war tourism’: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-11-05/traditional-owners-given-maralinga-unrestricted-access/5865048 – similar to problem with ANZAC ‘commemorations’ where exploitation of war as a ‘commodity’ can diminish the true and disastrous signfigance of events. Perhaps ‘good’ for some traditional owners – but not a ‘good’ thing for humanity generally !
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