Antinuclear

Ill-considered, unconstructive and divisive Nuclear Royal Commission

To date, the Royal Commission has failed to credibly inform or engage the public on these key issues.

This International Nuclear waste agenda appears premised on interim but open ended storage as a pecuniary interest to irrevocably bring nuclear waste to SA without a capacity to dispose of it.

Further, this Commission is failing to address key nuclear waste siting issues and related transport routes and the question of which South Australian port is to be targeted to bring in nuclear wastes.

The Commission fails to address the fact that the north and west of SA is targeted for International Nuclear waste dumping and the country of traditional owners is at the forefront of this agenda.

Overview by David Noonan on the SA Premier’s Nuclear Royal Commission 05 July 2015

Dear Commissioner Kevin Scarce

Proposed Nuclear actions before this State Commission are National issues affecting the rights and interests of all Australians, are illegal actions under State and/or Federal law, and lack social license.

This overview presents over-arching reality tests and public interest questions for the Commission.

To be credible, this Royal Commission should investigate and report on core public interest issues:

“The Democratic and Legal Rights and the Civil and Human Rights, including to Health and to Environmental Protection, to Sustainability and to Intergenerational Equity, and to Free, Prior and Informed Consent and Non-Imposition of Nuclear actions, that are at stake and are subject to proposed Nuclear actions before this Commission.”

The evidence of State & Federal laws should be central to an evidence-based Commission of Inquiry.

An onus of proof is clearly on proponents trying to overturn these legislative protections in SA.

Political leadership in the public interest by Premiers from both major political parties in South Australia have prohibited International and National nuclear waste storage and disposal in our State under the Nuclear Waste Storage Facility (Prohibition) Act 2000.

Liberal Premier John Olsen provided key legislative protections for the health, safety and welfare of the people of SA, and the environment in which they live, from an array of nuclear wastes in 2000.

Labor Premier Mike Rann strengthened these legislative protections in 2003 and successfully prevented undemocratic Federal imposition of National nuclear waste risks and impacts in SA.

The Objects of this important Act provide critical tests for this Nuclear Commission:

“The objects of this Act are to protect the health, safety and welfare of the people of South Australia and to protect the environment in which they live by prohibiting the establishment of certain nuclear waste storage facilities in this State.”

 

Protecting the health, safety and welfare of the people of South Australia and the environment in which they live should be over-riding determinants of this Commission’s Inquiry work and Findings.

For good evidence-based reason (that has not significantly changed since 2000): the import, transport, storage and disposal of any wastes derived from nuclear reactors, from uranium enrichment plants, or from the conditioning and reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel, are prohibited in our State.

To date, the Royal Commission has failed to credibly inform or engage the public on these key issues.

Information Papers provide only passing reference to ‘prohibitions’ and meetings held at Universities and elsewhere fail to even mention the state of the law on the array of proposed nuclear actions.

In practice, moves toward International Nuclear waste storage, spent nuclear fuel reprocessing, or uranium enrichment, or nuclear reactors would require bipartisan political support and formal approval at both National and State levels. Support for highly toxic Nuclear wastes are not forthcoming.

The draft 2015 ALP National Platform presents policy commitments for the 2016 Federal election:

“Labor remains strongly opposed to the importation and storage of nuclear waste in Australia that is sourced from overseas”;

And:     “Labor will: prohibit the establishment of…all other stages of the nuclear fuel cycle”.

The Parliament of Australia has prohibited nuclear power reactors, uranium enrichment and fuel fabrication, and spent nuclear fuel reprocessing under multiple key legislative powers, in the:

Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Act 1998

Section 10 Prohibition on certain nuclear installations;

 

AND     Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC)

Section 140A No approval for certain nuclear installations.

 

Nuclear reactors, uranium enrichment and spent fuel reprocessing are against the law in Australia, fail a number of contemporary reality tests, and are outside of SA’s jurisdiction.

Nuclear actions are “Matters of National Environmental Significance” under the EPBC Act. The ALP and Australian Greens are committed to retain these Decision powers at the Federal level.

 

International Nuclear waste storage or disposal would require a range of Federal Approvals, including under the Customs Act, the EPBC Act, and Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Act.

 

International Nuclear wastes were made illegal in WA (1999), SA (2000), NT (2004) and Qld (2007).

 

This SA Premier’s Nuclear Commission is arguably an International Nuclear waste storage agenda.

 

However, International experience demonstrates High Level Nuclear Waste Deep Geological Disposal entails multi-decade national proposals and extensive studies and site Safety cases.

 

This International Nuclear waste agenda appears premised on interim but open ended storage as a pecuniary interest to irrevocably bring nuclear waste to SA without a capacity to dispose of it.

 

Further, this Commission is failing to address key nuclear waste siting issues and related transport routes and the question of which South Australian port is to be targeted to bring in nuclear wastes.

 

The Commission fails to address the fact that the north and west of SA is targeted for International Nuclear waste dumping and the country of traditional owners is at the forefront of this agenda.

 

Nuclear waste agenda’s impact disproportionately and unfairly on Indigenous People’s rights and interests, threaten their human rights and cultural rights, and fail to provide Free, Prior and Informed Consent proclaimed by the UNGA in 2007 as a right and a standard of achievement to be pursued.

The conduct of this Commission, and the narrow Terms of Reference, risk a promotional exercise for Nuclear Industry vested interests and in effect target custodian’s country for nuclear waste dumping.

In my opinion this is an ill-considered, unconstructive and divisive Royal Commission into Nuclear actions and an array of highly toxic nuclear wastes that pose unique and unprecedented long term risks and significant unacceptable impacts that run contrary to the public interest.

I have relevant experience on environment protection issues over some 20 years as a campaigner with national and state environment NGO’s, including a successful campaign to prevent the Federal government’s undemocratic attempt to impose National nuclear wastes onto SA over 1998-2004.

Yours sincerely

David J Noonan B.Sc., M.Env.St.

Environment Campaigner

July 17, 2015 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | NUCLEAR ROYAL COMMISSION 2016