On March 11 we commemorated 14 years since the terrible nuclear disaster in Fukushima. The impacts of this event are felt to this day with tens of thousands of people still displaced and tens of thousands of tonnes of contaminated liquid being routinely dumped in the Pacific.
Japan is a rich, technically sophisticated and modern country with high safety standards., In these ways it is comparable to Australia – except that unlike Australia Japan has decades of nuclear experience. If the Coalition’s nuclear power proposal were to go ahead, the risk of a nuclear accident is always present. It is simply not worth the risk.
The interactive map at nuclearplume.au uses a directo overlay of the Fukushima radiation plume, based on research originally peer reviewed and published by the European Geosciences Union. It shows the deposition of radioactive caesium-137 from the Fukushima disaster as of July 2011. The darker the shading, the higher the level of radioactive contamination and the higher the radiation exposures for people in those areas. At distances far from the Fukushima plant, radiation exposures were low but even low radiation doses can cause negative health impacts including fatal cancers and cardiovascular disease.
In 1985, President Ronald Reagan and Soviet General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev cautioned the world “a nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought”. Decades later, we’re closer to nuclear Armageddon than ever before, and investigative journalist Annie Jacobsen paints a devastating picture of exactly what that would look like.
Guest: Annie Jacobsen – investigative journalist and New York Times bestselling author. She also writes and produces TV, including Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan. Her latest book is Nuclear War: A Scenario.
We need a proper transcript of this – Ferguson made a great point (11m25s) that Bill Gates said we should take advantage of our bountiful wind and solar potential. (Plus there are so many things that O’Brien said that I want to add to my “wacky nuclear predictions” file.) – Ferguson: I asked Bill Gates on this program whether Australia should get involved with nuclear energy – this was his answer – “Australia doesn’t need to get engaged on this, Australia should aggressively take advantage of Australia’s natural endowment to do solar and wind, that’s clear cut and beneficial to Australia”
Greg Phillips In the interview, Ted O’Brien employs logical fallacies to support the Coalition’s position on nuclear energy:
O’Brien appeals to the authority of experts and government agencies, such as ANSTO [Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation], to support his argument for nuclear energy.
O’Brien presents a false dichotomy by framing the energy debate as a choice between nuclear energy and renewables, suggesting that nuclear is necessary due to the perceived failure of renewable energy targets.
O’Brien engages in ad hominem attacks by criticising the Labor Party’s energy policies and accusing them of lacking transparency and effectiveness, rather than directly addressing the interviewer’s concerns about nuclear energy.
O’Brien misrepresents the interviewer’s arguments by suggesting that they are arguing against the attractiveness of nuclear energy to investors, rather than questioning its feasibility and cost-effectiveness in the Australian context.
O’Brien selectively then cites examples of successful nuclear energy projects in other countries, such as Canada and the United States, while ignoring instances of cost overruns and delays in countries like the United Kingdom and France.
These logical fallacies detract from the soundness of O’Brien’s arguments and undermine the credibility of the Federal Coalition’s stance on nuclear energy.
The history and development of the nuclear industry is shrouded in secrecy and contradictions. And its future is throwing up more questions than answers.
A scientist, a historian and a poet consider the economic, scientific and social realities of nuclear technology.
They discuss how the lessons from the past might shape an uncertain future, and the possible consequences of playing God.
Australian Government Corrupt Connections – Fossil Fuels , https://tasmaniantimes.com/2020/09/corrupt-connections-fossil-fuels/Our democracy has been hijacked by the fossil fuel industry. Australians need to know about government links with the coal, oil & gas industry.Please share this so more people are aware. WE need an ICAC now!
For more information we recommend watching “Dirty Power” (15 min) which documents many of the fossil fuel links to government detailed in this thread. Australian Government Corrupt Connections – Fossil Fuels
I was at lunch the other day and out came the familiar theme – Australia should go nuclear to de-carbonise the economy.
Well, a just-released report from the NSW Parliament’s State Development Committee should put an end to such talk – it is just too expensive and problematic.
The report, detailed in Channel 9 media, found the cost of the two reactors being built in the US is now thought to be between $20.4 billion and $22.6 billion for each reactor.
In the UK the cost of two reactors being build has jumped seven-fold to $25.9 billion each.
And those being built in France and Finland are now costed at upwards of $17.7 billion each.
Cost over-runs and delays mean that big nuclear power plants are only going to be built where there are massive government subsidies.
And this is even before factoring in the cost of the odd Fukushima or Chernobyl.
This morning on social media the pro-nuclear trolls were out in force – people are living happily now at Chernobyl one said.
Well I vsisited Chernobyl 18 months ago and there is nothing normal about it.
Maintaining the remains of the reactors at Chernobyl consumes 10 per cent of Ukraine’s admittedly modest GDP, and the long term effects of radiation continue to be felt.
This is why nuclear proponents now talk about snazzy new small reactors which are going to be the next big thing.
The same story is unfolding in small reactor construction as large – cost over-runs, very few small reactors actually under construction, and the need for massive, yes there’s that word again, government subsidies.
We already know what the answer to our carbon crisis is – renewables. Wind and solar plus storage is already cheaper and getting cheaper every day.
By Phillip Adams on Late Night Live n a revised edition of his book ‘The Most Dangerous Man in the World’, Investigative reporter Andrew Fowler reports on a tangled tale regarding the negotiations between Julian Assange and the US Department of Justice, to strike a deal with the incoming Trump Administration. At that time, Wikileaks was in a strong bargaining position with its Vault 7 CIA disclosures, but a lack of trust and mounting pressure from various sources saw Assange decide to publish the CIA secrets.
Two TV programs revisit Australia’s nuclear history at Maralinga, In Daily, 9 June 20,Two new ABC television programs – both about the mid-century British nuclear testing at Maralinga in South Australia – approach tricky territory in very different ways, writes Mick Broderick.Over successive Sunday nights, the ABC has premiered two important television programs recounting the history of nuclear testing in Australia – the documentary Maralinga Tjuratjaand a six-drama seriesOperation Buffalo. Both explore the ramifications of the Anglo-Australian nuclear venture conducted at Maralinga during the cold war – but in very different ways.
Interest in exploring Australia’s atomic history has lingered long after the 1980s Royal Commission into the British nuclear tests in regional South Australia between 1953 and 1963. The new programs seek to add to our understanding of the traumatic and bizarre nature of this time.
The Nuclear Futurescommunity arts project facilitated a number of Australian and international collaborative art undertakings during 2014-16.
A major travelling exhibition, Black Mist Burnt Country(2016-19), toured galleries and museums across Australia showcasing Indigenous and non-Indigenous artworks featuring our nuclear history.
By contrast, Australian film and television drama has made rare ventures into the domain, most notably with Michael Pattinson’s Ground Zero(1987). Clearly, there is still more to say about the events at Maralinga and the other test sites.
Maralinga Tjarutja: listening to Indigenous voices
The Indigenous elders interviewed for the documentary reveal a perspective of deep time and an understanding of place that generates respect for the sacredness of both.
Importantly, the documentary foregrounds a genuine hunger for knowledge and “truth” alongside the desire to reconcile two at times conflicting narratives, black and white.
It reveals the uncertainty that some Maralinga lands remain problematic for habitation, especially for traditional cooking. Elders, children and grandchildren describe the sadness and loss still affecting them, tinged with a hope for the future through the regeneration of the bush overseen by local Oak Valley rangers.
The profound and often tragic legacy of British nuclear testing in Australia will continue to have a long cultural and environmental half-life impacting flora, fauna and families for many generations to come. With people gagged by the UK Official Secrets Act and missing, inconclusive or disputed findings about the impacts from exposure to radiation, intergenerational trauma will linger due to uncertainty and anxiety.
Operation Buffalo: new fiction, bad history
The introductory credits for the new six-part ABC series Operation Buffalo declares it “a work of historical fiction”, a point immediately qualified with the proviso “but a lot of the really bad history actually happened”.
Viewers expecting a serious docu-drama forensically recounting the major controversies surrounding the British atomic tests in Australia will be disappointed……..
The narrative economy dictated by a historical drama format often results in the conflation of characters and events, as evident in the 2019 HBO series Chernobyl. So, what obligation if any do the series creators have to accurately present these events?
In the weeks to come, Operation Buffalo will likely touch on matters still raw in the national psyche. They include Britain’s unilateral abandonment of major military and scientific joint-ventures in Australia, secret human radiation experiments, the mistreatment of Indigenous populations and service personnel, and the compounded denials and deceit over the contamination of the Maralinga lands. The scattergun approach may yet find its target.
Maralinga Tjarutja premieres on ABC, South Australian Film Corporation 29 April 2020 ABC has today announced that the inspiring SAFC supported documentary Maralinga Tjarutja will premiere on Sunday 24 May at 7.40pm on ABC and iview.Maralinga Tjarutja shines a spotlight on the people who have lived on their lands for over 60,000 years. While it’s a story of deep tragedy, it also celebrates their incredible resilience.
Many Australians would be unaware that the Maralinga Tjarutja land in regional South Australia was the location for the British Nuclear Test Program between 1953 and 1963. The Maralinga Tjarutja people have fought for the clean-up of contamination, for compensation and in 2009, for the handback of the Maralinga Village and test sites. They have gone on to rebuild traditional communities into vibrant, creative cultural communities that will ensure Maralinga Tjarutja custodianship of their lands into the future.
Jeremy LeBois, the Chair of the Maralinga Tjarutja Trust says “This documentary is important to the Maralinga people because it gives us a voice to tell the real story of what really happened to the people who walked, lived and hunted on this land for thousands of years.”
Writer and director Larissa Behrendt says “This is an extraordinary story and it is a privilege to bring it to the screen. The red earthed country that stretches under blue skies provides a cinematic backdrop to the story of a community that has rebuilt itself to be vibrant, strong and proud of its culture. It is a story that deserves to be told through the voices and art of the people who lived it.”
The Bomb Lobby, ABC Radio The History Listen 29 Oct 19 There was a time when Australia seriously considered having ‘the bomb’. For two decades a small but powerful group of politicians and bureaucrats lobbied for Australia to have nuclear weapons. They became known as the ‘Bomb Lobby and by the late 1960s they had their wish. As the Cold War deepened, the Australian Government took the first steps down the path a nuclear weapons program. ….
In the eyes of the Bomb Lobby, Australia was at its most vulnerable just as communist states in the region were considering atomic weaponry. The red tide of communism was spreading through South East Asia and before long, if not checked, could be on Australia’s doorstep armed with atomic weapons. Add to that their argument that Australia could no longer rely on her traditional allies and you have a heady mix of fear and fission.
Next year, May 2020, we’re celebrating the 10th birthday of the International Uranium Film Festival in Rio de Janeiro.
These filmmakers and producers have already agreed to come to Rio 2020: Peter Kaufmann (Australia), Kim Mavromatis (Australia), Laura Pires (Brazil), Angelo Lima (Brazil), Miguel Silveira (USA/Brazil), Cris Uberman (France), Marcus Schwenzel (Germany), Rainer Ludwigs (Germany), Michael von Hohenberg (Germany), Peter Anthony (Denmark), Michael Madson (Denmark), Lise Autogena (Denmark), Masako Sakata (Japan), Maurizio Torrealta (Italy), Alessandro Tesei (Italy), Amudhan R.P. (India), Tamotsu Matsubara (Japan), Tamiyoshi Tachibana (Japan), Tineke Van Veen (Netherlands), Mafalda Gameiro (Portugal), James Ramsay Cameron (Scotland), José Herrera Plaza (Spain), Marko Kattilakoski (Sweden), Edgar Hagen (Switzerland),Tetyana Chernyavska (Ukraine), Brittany Prater (USA), Ian Thomas Ash (Japan/USA).
Rio’s 10th International Uranium Film Festival is scheduled for May 21st to 31st. Do not miss it!
Kakadu uranium protest documentary Dirt Cheap unearthed by Northern Territory Library, ABC News By Matt Garrick 18 Sept 19 The rediscovery of an old VHS tape, left forgotten on the shelves of the Northern Territory Library, has unearthed a tense and important piece of Australian history.
Key points:
The 1980 documentary Dirt Cheap showcased the Mirarr people’s fight against uranium mining
The Northern Territory Library recently hunted down the only digital copy of the documentary so it could be shown at a film festival
Filmmaker Ned Lander says the movie created a stir at the time of its release
The rare copy of the nearly 40-year-old documentary Dirt Cheap, which details the early pushback against uranium mining in Kakadu National Park, was practically unwatchable due to its age……..
The film documented the concerns of the Mirarr people during what was a tense period of negotiation in the lead-up to the 1979 Ranger Uranium Mining Agreement.
It also showcased the pressures and broken promises the traditional owners faced. “It was very, very apparent to us that people were not ready to sign the agreement in relation to mining, and this was being done under pressure.
Mirarr resistance inspires protests around nation
Against the push of government and business interests, the Mirarr stood resolute in their bid to protect their land.
“As a child growing up I saw the struggle of my family, including my grandfather — they [had] been struggling,” traditional owner Jimmy Nabanardi-Mudjandi said.
I’m really proud of them, but it’s sad because they’re not here to see what the new future of Jabiru’s gonna be.”
The resistance from the Mirarr had a flow-on effect around the nation.
Banner-waving protesters took to the streets in Melbourne and Sydney in great numbers, scenes which Dirt Cheap captures in vivid detail.
“Mirarr people got major support from around Australia, from around the whole nation,” Mr Nabanardi-Mudjandi said.
Next stage of uranium mining looms
In the decades since the film’s release, uranium has been mined at Kakadu, but the Ranger mine is now expected to wind up in 2021.
Mr Nabanardi-Mudjandi said it was vital the land was protected during its rehabilitation.
“We are watching them, what they’re doing,” he said.
NITV is inviting all Australians to hear stories of our nation’s shared history from an Indigenous perspective.
Come and explore what 26 January means to Indigenous people, through a curated slate of distinctive programming.
Collectively housed under our #AlwaysWillBe special programming, stories of strength, resilience and survival, from across the country are coming to Channel 34.
Songlines (Season 2) – Daily, 7pm
Songlines Season Two brings a collection of six documentaries from some of Australia’s greatest and oldest storytellers. Each documentary presents an Indigenous Songline story.
Community and elders share their rich accounts of dreaming, serving as a reminder of the ancient roots of our country and the enduring power of its original people.
Songlines presents a chance to understand and celebrate our rare and precious heritage.
Songlines airs 7pm, daily from Sunday, 20 January until Friday, 25 January on NITV (Ch. 34). And will be repeated throughout the day, Saturday, 26 January…………
Connection to Country – Monday 21 January 11.35pm
Connection to Country follows the Indigenous people of the Western Australian Pilbara’s battle to preserve Australia’s 50,000-year-old cultural heritage from the ravages of a booming mining industry.
The Pilbara region sits in the Burrup Peninsula (or Murujuga) and is host to the largest concentration of rock art in the world, dating back over 50,000 years.
Connection to Country will repeat on Saturday 26 January at 10am on NITV (Ch.34)
Wik Vs Queensland – Tuesday 22 January, 8.30pm
In 1996 The High Court of Australia granted native title co-existence rights to the Wik Peoples of Cape York. The “Wik Decision” should have been a catalyst for positive change, but instead sparked a national, cultural and political fallout.
With unique access to never-before screened footage of a young Noel Pearson and Marcia Langton, this uncompromising feature documentary forensically explores the racism, fearmongering and political maneuvering that occurred in the lead up to the case, and its aftermath.
Told from the very personal Wik Peoples’ perspective, Wik vs Queensland causes us to question who we are as a nation today.
Another Country – Tuesday 22 January, 10pm
Narrated by David Gulpilil, Another Country is about his home Ramingining, a remote Indigenous community in North-East Arnhem Land.
But, in many ways, as the title suggests, it is ‘another country’. This award-winning 2006 film looks at Indigenous life before the arrival of white settlers.
This groundbreaking piece of cinema was the first film shot only in an Indigenous Australian language.
Occupation: Native – Thursday 24 January, 7.30pm
Filmmaker Trisha Morton-Thomas dishes up a fresh look at our colonial past. Exploring everything they never taught you at school, but should have.
It’s Australian history, but not like you have you ever seen or heard before. Trisha decides it’s time to go looking for answers, and along with actor Steven Oliver and several historians the film is a satirical recount of our untold
history. Occupation: Native will repeat on Saturday 26 January, 8.30pm on NITV (Ch. 34).
Antinuclear 