Antinuclear

Community survey shows strong local opposition to Federal nuclear waste dump at Barndioota, South Australia

 Flinders Local Action Group ( FLAG )               Community Survey Results           Do You Want a National Radioactive Waste Management   Facility established at Wallerberdina Station / Barndioota ?      December 2016      

A survey of residents living within a 50km radius of the proposed National Radioactive Waste Management Facility of Barndioota, and the remainder of the Flinders Ranges  Council Area, South Australia……….

Conclusion FLAG employed two separate survey methodologies to gauge community support for the proposed waste facility.

The first opportunistically sampled interested &/or concerned community members attending the Quorn Town Hall Meeting of 21st September 2016 and the Quorn Agricultural Show on 25th September 2016. Respondents elected to fill out a questionnaire at the FLAG booth.

Whilst there is a possibility of some response bias the method does offer a measure of community support or opposition to the development.

The second mail out/postal survey represents a more systematic attempt to survey the entire towns of Quorn, Hawker and Craddock.  Although there is still the possibility of some response bias (as in any survey), these methods provide an improved estimate of regional community sentiment.

Both surveys indicate considerable community opposition to the waste facility and when taken together demonstrate that Department of Industry, Innovation & Science does not have the majority community support it requires.

In both surveys, a clear majority voted “no” to the establishment of a National Radioactive Waste Management Facility in the area, with 92% voting against it in Survey 1 and 79% in Survey 2.

In the Hawker/Cradock region, which is closer to the proposed site, the support for the proposal was slightly higher, presumably due to the perceived economic benefits.  Further away in Quorn, support for the proposal was lower, as the benefits would be minimal and outweighed by loss to other industries such as tourism.

Both surveys indicate majority disapproval for the proposal.

February 4, 2017 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | Federal nuclear waste dump, opposition to nuclear, South Australia