Antinuclear

Nuclear News , Royal Commission Special This Week

On 15th February Commissioner Kevin Scarce delivered the “tentative findings” of South Australia’s NuclearFuel Cycle Royal Commission.  In short, these were:

• Major recommendation for South Australia to make billions by importing, managing, storing and disposing of nuclear waste.
• Low key support for uranium mining expansion.
• Not supportive (at present) for uranium enrichment, further processing. But at the same time favours nuclear fuel leasing.
• Not supportive of nuclear power, but South Australia should prepare for it anyway, perhaps needed later on.

Mainstream Media responses to the report varied from jubilant in South Australia to pretty much ignored in Australia as whole. Alternative media was a lot more probing and critical e.g: The Conversation,  REneweconomy,  The Australia Institute  The Saturday Paper and my own website

However, the significant thing about mainstream media coverage and the lack thereof, is that there seems to be a sort of “nuclear gentlemens’ agreement” that the whole thing only concerns the State of South Australia, not Australia as a whole.

All sorts of issues in this DO concern the rest of Australia – overturning of National Environment and Radiation Laws, sea, rail and road transport of dangerous radioactive trash and the accompanied security problems, secrecy and surveiilance.

Does Australia really want to be the only nation in the world to invite in the world’s radioactive trash? What about Australia’s reputation as safe and clean?

Will the rest of us have to prop up South Australia, bail it out, when the trash import project all comes financially unstuck, and South Australia is left with the biggst “stranded asset” of all time?

The ‘Tentative Findings’ report is posted at: http://nuclearrc.sa.gov.au/tentative-findings/

The deadline for written submissions responding to the interim report is March 18 (see the Royal Commission website for details).

The final report will be published in May 2016.

February 20, 2016 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | Christina reviews