Antinuclear

Australian news, and some related international items

We shouldn’t be the world’s nuclear dump, says Councillor Lynton Vomow

We shouldn’t be the world’s nuclear dump, Adelaide Hills Herald News. By Councillor Lynton Vomow, Lobethal 23 Sep 16,  You may have recently had a say at one of the Nuclear Waste Dump forums being held around the state. My biggest concern, however, being the prevention of an ship radiationaccident at sea and the loss of highly radioactive nuclear waste into the ocean, was not  satisfactorily explained .

Indeed the attendant basically said that we could not guarantee against such a disastrous event, it could be impossible to retrieve every container of waste and modelling is showing it wouldn’t actually be that bad!  Fish and all creatures of the ocean for hundreds of miles around the lost radioactive waste material would be devastatingly affected.

Did you know that medium or high level (depending on whether it’s France or Australia describing it) nuclear rubbish was brought to Australia, in December just last year, in  a rust bucket that had failed three safety inspections in five years?

Can you imagine what could happen if we were to receive dozens of shipments? Can we be guaranteed the waste will make it here safely, every single time?

Some are saying that low level waste is non hazardous, so then why not store it near its source i.e Sydney, and save the fuel costs of transporting it?

Basically a low level waste dump would be coming here to soften us up for a high level dump.

There is a need to have safe repositories for the waste, somewhere, but it will have to be near its usage location.

Countries ought to be looking at phasing out nuclear power so that there is as little waste as possible.

How long does nuclear waste last anyway? Can you imagine two hundred years? Ten times that then takes us back to the birth of Christ. Ten times all of that now takes us back to just before the last ice age, 20,000 years ago.   Then ten times 20,000 years? 200,000 years. That’s when only about half of the atoms in high level nuclear waste will have decayed to less harmful atoms. It is going to be a long wait for this deadly waste to become harmless, to care for our generation’s nuclear waste.

Timeline-human-&-radioactive

Are we going to be beggars or choosers? We are not so desperate that we have to take the world’s most toxic waste and prevent it from damaging anything for hundreds of thousands of years.

South Australia continues to have huge potential for growing the renewable energy industry instead.

The risk to the world’s environment of transporting high level nuclear waste across the oceans to to the furthest point on the planet, ie, South Australia, just doesn’t make sense.

And people, (including of course the Adnyamathanha Indigenous people of the Flinders Ranges) do not want it.

September 24, 2016 Posted by | Opposition to nuclear, South Australia, wastes | Leave a comment

Pine Gap endangers Australia – a likely target for nuclear missiles

Map-Aust-Target1Pine Gap: Secretive spy base’s role in drone strikes putting Australia in danger, expert warns http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-09-23/pine-gaps-actions-could-endanger-australian-security/7872190?section=environment  The World Today  By Brendan Trembath  An expert on Pine Gap has raised concerns about the spy base’s role in supporting drone attacks on suspected terrorists overseas.

Officially called The Joint Defence Facility Pine Gap, the site is jointly run by the Australian and United States governments and is one of Australia’s most secret sites. The facility has been in operation since 1970 and is located half-an-hour’s drive south-west of Alice Springs.

Professor Richard Tanter, from the University of Melbourne, says Pine Gap contributes targeting data to American drone operations, including assassinations. “One of Pine Gap’s two key functions is as a control station and a downlink station for signal intelligence satellites 36,000 kilometres up in space,” he said. “They are picking up a very wide array of radio transmissions, including cell phones, satellite phones and so forth. “And that provides the data, both the contents and the geolocation data for targets of interest through the United States military.”

He said Pine Gap was also used for counter-terrorism and wider intelligence programs, as the site was able to contribute data “pretty directly — for example into drone targeting operations.”

Professor Tanter acknowledged that those type of programs were part of the alliance between the US and Australia, and Australia’s interest in the global fight against terrorism

But he said the question was whether it could be considered a good idea on a political level, seeing the potential for creating “further terrorism” if a strike were to go wrong.

“At a legal and moral level do we really want to be involved in operations which are frankly illegal under international law. In countries where we’re not at war, such as Pakistan or Somalia or Yemen, these are simply assassinations.”

“We won’t like it very much when it’s done back to us I suspect.”

Base also a likely target for nuclear missiles Professor Tanter said the site continued to be a “pretty high priority nuclear missile target” in the event of a major conflict between the United States and Russia or China.

“It would be, as they say in the military, a lucrative target of many benefits,” Professor Tanter said . “Secondly it is itself involved in nuclear war planning. I think that’s a totally awful thing for us to contemplate — you can’t use nuclear weapons except in a fairly genocidal way.”The Defence Department said that “the facility makes an important contribution to national security.”

A spokesperson said: “It provides intelligence on priorities such as terrorism, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and foreign military capability and weapons developments. “It also supports monitoring of compliance with arms control and disarmament agreements, and provides ballistic missile early warning information.”

September 24, 2016 Posted by | AUSTRALIA - NATIONAL, Northern Territory, safety, weapons and war | 1 Comment

Adelaide Advertiser readers not all taken in by Premier Weatherill’s dishonest spiel about nuclear waste

BubbleBurst-1Some comments on Weatherill’s article .( Jay Weatherill: South Australia can learn valuable lessons from nuclear waste facility at Eurajoki, Finland)
James, 23 Sept 16   We will certainly need to be right on top of our game to beat out all those other places fighting to become the world’s nuclear lavatory, right Jay? 
Perhaps, if this is the best idea we have to ‘save’ our economy then we may as well turn the lights off now and hopefully save a few native species in the process.  It doesn’t matter how it’s dressed up, whether it’s made of plastic, porcelain or gold, it’s still a toilet.

Chad, 23 Sept 16    No mention of the massive cost blow-outs the Finns have experienced, then? The Finns do not need to transport it through rough seas and huge distances over remote roads, our transport risks are huge. The vast majority of the waste in fact comes from 800 metres up the road, at the Olkiluoto Nuke plant. Sweden is firmly against the dump, just 90km from it’s own coastline. The Swedish Royal Institute of Technology just released a report suggesting the privately sourced copper capsules are not actually corrosion-proof. Oh, and the Finnish dump will only be able to accept waste for 100 years! Then they’ll need billions of euros for a new hole.
It is not a good legacy to leave behind, Jay. 100,000 years is a long time for something to go wrong and you’ll be remembered for it, if it does.
Sanity, 23 Sept 16

 @Michael well, actually the Fins haven’t. Not any radioactive waste at all. But they hope too! Probably some time next decade, unless things go wrong. But they are c̶e̶r̶t̶a̶i̶n̶ c̶o̶n̶f̶i̶d̶e̶n̶t̶ hopeful that it will be fine, that is why they want to sell it to us. Not for money, because it has cost them so much more than they expected and taken so much longer. No for altruistic reasons, sortof.
Of course they don’t trust it for foreign high level waste – I mean you never know what might be in there! No, only Finland’s waste! And they have tight laws about not importing anyone else’s waste.

Finland currently have two different types of operating reactors and the different fuel rods mean canisters are different for the two types of reactors they have. It also means that they drill different depth holes.

But Australia won’t be so lucky if SA imports high level waste from different countries because there will be all sorts of different reactors with many, many different fuel rod length and array dimensions. Lucky eh?

Well, that is if we stick to Finland’s quality KBS-3V system, and not try to sacrifice safety for price by using cheap steel and concrete vessels. When has safety ever been sacrificed for cost in SA?  n̶R̶A̶H̶, R̶a̶i̶l̶ ̶u̶p̶g̶r̶a̶d̶e̶, s̶o̶u̶t̶h̶ ̶r̶o̶a̶d̶ ̶s̶u̶p̶e̶r̶w̶a̶y̶, a̶m̶b̶u̶l̶a̶n̶c̶e̶ ̶r̶a̶m̶p̶i̶n̶g̶…..

Pfffft! mere details, it only has to work without failure for 100,000 years!, http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/opinion/jay-weatherill-south-australia-can-learn-valuable-lessons-from-nuclear-waste-facility-at-eurajoki-finland/news-story/b8e2250210f4f2a3b0c6a60d9a8037d5

September 23, 2016 Posted by | media, politics, South Australia, wastes | Leave a comment

Premier Jay Weatherill’s not really honest pro nuclear article

Weatherill glow23 Sept 16 In today’s Advertiser, Jay Weatherill writes about the Finland nuclear waste project.( Jay Weatherill: South Australia can learn valuable lessons from nuclear waste facility at Eurajoki, Finland)

Weatherill’s article completely ignores the negative side of the project –  over time, over budget, possibly too small even for Finland’s requirements. Meanwhile he spouts deceptive nonsense about it being so similar to the South Australian plan. He implies that it is already functioning, which is not true. He praises the supposed “transparency” and “community consultation”, which is also incorrect. (See When haste makes risky waste: Public involvement in radioactive and nuclear waste management in Sweden and Finland  http://bellona.org/news/nuclear-issues/radioactive-waste-and-spent-nuclear-fuel/2016-08-21710)

 

 

September 23, 2016 Posted by | politics, secrets and lies, South Australia, wastes | Leave a comment

Maralinga: art exhibition raises the question- what has changed in pro nuclear activities?

see-this.wayArt exhibition to mark 60th anniversary of nuclear testing in Maralinga asks what has changed ABC Central Victoria  By Larissa Romensky , 22 Sept 16,  A national touring exhibition of artwork marks 60 years after the British government exploded an atomic bomb in South Australia’s outback.

On September 27, 1956 the British government conducted its first atomic test at Maralinga.

In total, seven nuclear bomb blasts were detonated between 1956 and 1967 in the southern part of the Great Victoria Desert in South Australia followed by more than 600 “minor tests”.

These were not the first nuclear tests to be conducted in Australia, but the term Maralinga, an Aboriginal word for thunder, became the name associated with this chapter in Australian history.

Black Mist Burnt Country, is a national touring exhibition that revisits the events and its location through the work of more than 30 Indigenous and non-Indigenous artists.

Curator JD Mittman said the title refers to the “mysterious” black mist that hovered over the country after the first test at Emu Field in South Australia in 1953 that “badly” affected Aboriginal families at Wallatinna.

“[Yankunytjatjara man] Yami Lester testified that people got very sick, some died, and he lost his eyesight,” Mr Mittman said.

Burnt country was in reference to the enormous heat generated by an atomic bomb blast, 1,000 times hotter than the sun.

“The blast melts the ground to glass, also called Trinitide, after the Trinity test ," he said.

Inspired by Jonathan Kumintjarra Brown

Jonathan Kumintjara Brown was a member of the stolen generation and later in life connected with his family in South Australia and found out about the atomic testing of his traditional land.

Mr Mittman said the exhibition was originally inspired by the artist's work entitled Marilinga before the atomic test.

"The question that came to mind immediately was: if there's a work that depicts the country before the atomic tests then surely there must be work that is also about the period after or during the tests," he said.

The work in the exhibition spans seven decades from across the globe from the first atomic test in Hiroshima to the present day, from both private and public collections........http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-09-21/exhibition-to-mark-60th-anniversary-of-nuclear-testing/7865192

September 23, 2016 Posted by | aboriginal issues, AUSTRALIA - NATIONAL, culture | Leave a comment

Premier Weatherill accompanied to Finland by pro nuclear advocates

nuke-spruikersSmDan Monceaux‎ to Nuclear Fuel Cycle Watch South Australia, 22 Sept 16 On his current delegation to Finland, Premier Weatherill has been accompanied by Bill Muirhead (Agent-General for South Australia), Madeleine Richardson (CE of CARA) and John Mansfield (chair of the Nuclear Fuel Cycle Consultation and Response Agency (CARA) advisory board).

Muirhead is an advertising man with a political bend who has been busy promoting SA as a destination for defence and mining investment since his appointment as Agent-General in 2007.

September 23, 2016 Posted by | politics, South Australia, wastes | Leave a comment

Some timely comments on theSouth Australian govt’s “Your Say” nuclear site

text-your-sayLeon Ashton 21 Sep 2016

The government has the last say on the decision so as most people before me have said, no matter how many people are against it, the whole nuclear consultation process is a farce. The Know Nuclear displays tell half truths and make nuclear storage sound incredibly safe without adding any of the negatives. For a state which is struggling economically there seems to have been a helluva lot of money already spent in the name of nuclear. I don’t trust the government. We only need to look at the bungled RAH project and our useless desalination project to realize how inept the state government is. If SA becomes the world nuclear dumping ground, it will be the WORST decision an Australian government has ever made.

Steve Charles 20 Sep 2016

The article in today’s Australian demonstrates that the consultation process is a farce. Weatherill decided long ago that he wanted to turn SA into the world’s nuclear waste dump, and the “consultation” that has been going on is all for show. We are all being led by the nose to a conclusion that he wants, and the taxpayer pays for it all. Weatherill should be treated with the contempt he deserves.
It would be a disaster for SA to have a nuclear waste dump here.

Kay Dl 18 Sep 2016

Jay Weatherill will never get consent to go ahead from the South Austrlain public, to consent to a nuclear waste dump in South Australia. We know better despite what the media is reporting about the statistics. He must lose his position as Premier if the rest of the Labour Party has any sense.

Peter Lazic > Kay Dl 18 Sep 2016

I agree, but hot to get him kicked out before he takes the next step down the path of a nuclear waste dump.

Steve Charles > Kay Dl 20 Sep 2016

The decision was made long ago. We are all being led like lambs to the slaughter. Weatherill must be stopped.

Steve Ingham 13 Sep 2016

Looks as though ourgov has lost interest in this discussion board. Ourgov’s rep last commented on 15 Aug. Maybe we are being very dull and boring. Any suggestions on how to spice this board up a bit.

Mary-Ann Lovejoy > Steve Ingham 16 Sep 2016

They were too busy at the Royal Show, handing out pretty “Nuclear” balloons to little children. True! I’ve had several reports from unhappy grandparents and parents, who thought it was an outrageous piece of propaganda on the government’s behalf. Every day, it seems that more people are being made aware, and they are not happy about this proposal.   http://yoursay.sa.gov.au/discussions/nuclear-community-conversation-community-discussion-consent

September 23, 2016 Posted by | politics, South Australia, wastes | Leave a comment

“Your Say” Has Jay Weatherill the right to spend #millions promoting nuclear waste dump?

text-your-sayPeter Lazic 16 Sept 16 What consent does Jay Weatherill have to spend $600 million dollars of taxpayer money to plan a nuclear waste dump, when the proposed dump may never get approved. This and the money spent to date on the Royal Commission, the road show, now TV advertisements, etc, is obscene and immoral

Noel Wauchope > Peter Lazic 16 Sep 2016

Especially as the SA Law says:

13—No public money to be used to encourage or finance construction or
operation of nuclear waste storage facility Nuclear Waste Storage Facility (Prohibition) Act 2000https://www.legislation.sa.gov.au/LZ/C/A/NUCLEAR%20WASTE%20STORAGE%20FACILITY%20(PROHIBITION)%20ACT%202000/CURRENT/2000.68.UN.PDF

and the link http://yoursay.sa.gov.au/discussions/nuclear-community-conversation-community-discussion-consent

September 23, 2016 Posted by | legal, South Australia, wastes | Leave a comment

Portrait of a nuclear whistleblower

Art exhibition to mark 60th anniversary of nuclear testing in Maralinga asks what has changed ABC Central Victoria  By Larissa Romensky , 22 Sept 16 “….Portrait of a whistleblower

One of the exhibiting artists is Castlemaine’s Jessie Boylan who contributed her portrait of whistleblower Avon Hudson in his “room of archives”, surrounded by objects, newspaper articles, documents, and photos related to Maralinga.

“It’s a portrait of a man who has always stood by his convictions,” Boylan said.

In 1960 Mr Hudson was a 23-year-old RAAF leading aircraftman who arrived at Maralinga after the British had stopped testing the A-bombs and started the “minor trials”, which resulted in the scattering of plutonium, uranium and beryllium across the desert.

“He wasn’t aware of the dangers of working on that site and then it wasn’t until later on that he realised all of his mates where dying in their 20s,” Boylan said.

This prompted his disclosure to the media of what he had witnessed, and ultimately providing testimony to the royal commission into British nuclear testing in Australia.

“His life has been dedicated to advocating for nuclear veterans as well as the Anangu people of Maralinga, and becoming an advocate and activist about nuclear issues in Australia,” Boylan said.

Nuclear issue still relevant today

Mr Mittman hoped the exhibition would bring this chapter of Australian history to the attention of the Australian public and remind them that the nuclear issue was still relevant today.

“The country to a large degree is still contaminated; the traditional owners, even though they have been handed back the land, cannot live there,” he said.

“I mean you can pass through there but for generations to come this country has been damaged.”

He said the Australian story was not an isolated story and referenced nuclear testing around the world including Nevada, French testing in the South Pacific, and Russian testing in Kazakhstan to name a few.

With the current discussion around whether South Australia should build a high-level nuclear waste dump he said “the past is very much on people’s minds”.

“The nuclear threat still hasn’t gone away with the end of the Cold War; in fact experts say the situation is more precarious now than it ever has been before,” Mr Mittman said.

Black Mist, Burnt Country opens on September 24 at the National Trust SH Ervin Gallery, NSW and will tour nationally. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-09-21/exhibition-to-mark-60th-anniversary-of-nuclear-testing/7865192

September 23, 2016 Posted by | AUSTRALIA - NATIONAL, culture | Leave a comment

Business Investment in Renewable Energy hit by government cuts to Australian Renewable Energy Agency.

Turnbull destroys renewablesARENA Cuts Impact Renewable Energy Businesses logo-ARENA Business investment in Australia’s renewable energy sector will take a direct hit, with up to $5 billion of private funding at risk, as a result of the federal government’s decision to cut half a billion dollars from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency.    Pro Bono, Wednesday, 21st September 2016 Ellie Cooper, Journalist Future Business Council executive director Tom Quinn said the government’s decision to cut funding to ARENA in the budget savings bill could have run-on effects on matched private-sector funding for renewable energy.

ARENA was saved from a worse fate, with the Coalition originally planning to strip $1.3 billion from the agency. Negotiations with the opposition secured $800 million in funding over the next five years.

But Quinn said the damage to the renewable energy sector would still be significant.

“The cuts to ARENA are shaking business confidence even further in the renewable energy space. This is a boom sector of this century, Australia’s got natural advantages in this space,” Quinn told Pro Bono Australia News.

“But the one thing holding back the industry is policy uncertainty created by hostile government actions.”

He said demand for renewable energy technology was “enormous”, with $329 billion invested globally in the sector last year.

But he said the role of ARENA was critical in launching renewable startups, growing viable businesses, and attracting local and international investment.

“If we’re talking about innovation in any new technology then early stage investment is critical, and that’s really where government comes in. Government has the ability to invest where the private sector can’t, and all too often that’s where Australia has let down its innovators and entrepreneurs,” he said.

“We haven’t got a good track record of backing early-stage innovation, and this is where ARENA was critical…….https://probonoaustralia.com.au/news/2016/09/arena-cuts-impact-renewable-energy-businesses/

September 23, 2016 Posted by | AUSTRALIA - NATIONAL, business, energy, politics | Leave a comment

Would we benefit from a giant nuclear waste dump in SA?  – James Glenday

In an era where short-term populist thinking prevails, South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill is pushing forward a project that is not only ridiculously long-term but has proven to be political dynamite.

So, Mr Weatherill would have to pull off something that has never been done anywhere else, a project even Finland thinks is too hard, one that could prove a major political headache, all to dump hazardous spent radioactive fuel Australia does not even use?

Weatherill glowWhy Jay Weatherill is in Finland to investigate Australia’s nuclear future, ABC News ANALYSIS By Europe correspondent James Glenday In case you missed it, South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill is in western Finland.

Why?

To investigate whether his state should build a high-level international nuclear waste dump to store radioactive uranium deep underground for at least 100,000 years.

The industry aficionados call it a “final repository”, but basically it is a big tomb-like system of tunnels built into solid bedrock where spent fuel rods are encased in steel, copper and clay.

Why should you care?

In an era where outrage is the cheapest commodity and short-term populist thinking prevails, the Premier is pushing forward a project that is not only ridiculously long-term but one that has proven elsewhere to be political dynamite.

A number of scientists believe a dump could be safely built and many economists think it could make South Australia $100 billion.

But it is also important to point out there is no pressing national need for this facility.

Australia does not produce high-level nuclear waste.

So, why is he in Finland?

Somewhat by chance, Finland is leading the world in the construction of a high-level waste facility 420 metres below Olkiluoto Island on the country’s west coast.

The company building it, Posiva, has been working on the idea since the 1970s, but quite reasonably assumed bigger nations like the United States, Britain, France, Sweden or Germany would come up with a solution they could copy.

But community opposition and controversy has killed, crippled or delayed plans for several radioactive dumps.

So, despite a couple of cost blow-outs, Finland has found itself at the front of the line.

And why do the Finns love the idea?

On a national level, opinion is actually mixed.

But around the “final repository”, the tax cuts, welfare increases, community facilities and jobs the nuclear industry has funded got the dump over the line.

Locals near Olkiluoto Island said, because they have benefited from nuclear energy, they also have a responsibility to safely manage the waste.

Currently, it is in a series of pools.

So, why not build an international dump then?

Ah, here is where we hit Finland’s “red line”.

According to Posiva executives, it would be “politically impossible”.

“Finland doesn’t want to become the waste dump of the world,” one said.

It is also against federal law.

Is it not also against Australian law?

Yes, it is.

But putting the politics aside, Posiva thinks it could help South Australia design and construct a high-level facility within 15 to 20 years.

Unsurprisingly, they are keen to try to sell their success to the world…………

OK. Is Jay Weatherill really likely to push on with this project?

He is likely to keep making positive noises, consulting and talking about how the waste facility discussion “must be led by the community”.

But the Labor Premier knows the biggest political threat to its development comes from his own side of politics…….

To realistically get a dump built in Australia, it will require the enthusiastic backing of a local community, industry, the South Australian Government and the Commonwealth for a period of at least 20 years, probably longer.

It is worth remembering proposals for many previous nuclear projects have proved controversial in Australia.

Also, you would have to convince a majority of people it is completely safe.

So, Mr Weatherill would have to pull off something that has never been done anywhere else, a project even Finland thinks is too hard, one that could prove a major political headache, all to dump hazardous spent radioactive fuel Australia does not even use?  http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-09-20/why-jay-weatherill-is-in-finland-to-investigate-nuclear-future/7859812

 

September 21, 2016 Posted by | politics, South Australia, wastes | Leave a comment

Finland companies keen to market their nuclear waste technology to South Australia

nuclear-marketing-crapFinland’s Onkalo nuclear waste disposal facility want to export the technology to South Australia, The Advertiser Daniel Wills, Helsinki, Finland, The Advertiser September 21, 2016 OPERATORS of the world’s most advanced nuclear disposal facility want to export the technology to South Australia and form an alliance to help the state develop its own commercial facility to take waste from around the world.

At a briefing with Premier Jay Weatherill at Finland’s Onkalo nuclear waste disposal facility, Posiva Solutions Oy managing director Mika Pohjonen said his company would be willing to licence intellectual property and engineering solutions to SA if it were to proceed with expanding the local nuclear industry.

Posiva is a joint venture owned by two of Finland’s biggest energy companies — Teollisuuden Voima Oyj and Fortum Power and Heat. It is set to become the first organisation in the world to bury a canister of spent nuclear fuel when they begin inserting them into the bedrock from 2020. Mr Pohjonen said SA could hope to move from site selection to burying canisters within about 15 years, less than half the time taken by Finland, because the Scandinavians had already undertaken the slow work of proving the technology………

The Onkalo disposal site is about 10 times smaller than that conceived by SA’s Nuclear Fuel Cycle Royal Commission.……

Mr Weatherill will by the end of the year declare a formal State Government position to Parliament on expansion of the industry………

“The next major step is a threshold question about whether we maintain our prohibition against a facility for spent fuel or whether we take a step to explore it further.”-  Mr Weatherill said ….

Weatherill nuclear dream

….http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/south-australia/finlands-onkalo-nuclear-waste-disposal-facility-want-to-export-the-technology-to-south-australia/news-story/5b26cc6e0bf9f342bac97fa5ba81c444

September 21, 2016 Posted by | marketing for nuclear, politics, South Australia | Leave a comment

80 % of ABC North and West listeners oppose South Australia’s nuclear waste import plan

text-NoNuclear waste storage proposal draws ire of SA regional community on the ground ABC North and West By Angela Smallacombe, 20 Sept 16,  Plans for a high-level nuclear waste dump being touted by the South Australian Government have found strong opposition at ground level, according to an unofficial ABC poll.

The ABC North and West breakfast program, based in Port Pirie, asked listeners whether they were for, against, or undecided regarding the State Government’s proposal to import nuclear waste from other countries and store it in South Australia.

Eighty per cent of respondents were against the nuclear plans, 15.29 per cent were for the plans, and 4.71 per cent were undecided.

Votes were taken via text messages and phone calls, with 85 responses to 10am, but the “no” responses continued for hours afterwards.

The results came from listeners in the regional area that holds nuclear sites Maralinga, Radium Hill, Roxby Downs and Beverly Uranium Mine.

Listeners were also in areas previously mooted for nuclear waste facilities at Kimba, Woomera and aproperty near Hawker that is still being considered for a federal project to house domestic nuclear waste……..http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-09-21/port-pirie-community-reacts-to-nuclear-waste-dump-proposal/7865200

September 21, 2016 Posted by | Opposition to nuclear, South Australia | Leave a comment

Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) lodges appeal against Federal Court’s approval of giant Adani coal mine

coal CarmichaelMine219 September 2016  “The Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) has lodged an appeal to the Federal Court’s decision which found the approval of Adani’s Carmichael coal mine to be lawful.

“ACF disputes the Environment Minister’s argument in court that the burning of coal from Carmichael mine will not have an impact on global warming and the Great Barrier Reef.

““This is a profound moment in the history of protecting Australia’s environment, as we attempt to stop a coal mine that would create 4.6 billion tonnes of climate pollution if it is allowed to proceed,” said ACF’s President Geoff Cousins.

““Australia’s system of environment laws is broken if it allows the Federal Environment Minister to approve a mega-polluting coal mine – the biggest in Australia’s history – and claim it will have no impact on the global warming and the reef.

““If our environment laws are too weak to actually protect Australia’s unique species and places,they effectively give companies like Adani a licence to kill.

““Be in no doubt, Adani’s Carmichael proposal is massive and will lock in decades of damaging climate pollution if it goes ahead, further wrecking the reef. … “

September 21, 2016 Posted by | AUSTRALIA - NATIONAL, climate change - global warming, legal, Queensland | 1 Comment

Our Sceptical Observer scrutinises the South Australian govt’s Know Nuclear roadshow

superwomanAs of last week there were one million, one hundred and thirty five thousand and seven hundred and eighty one voters on SA roll.
1,135, 781.

Day one of Roadshow coincided with the publication the day before of The Advertiser 24 p “Nuclear Dossier” hugely pro-nuclear using much of the info as used in roadshow and much much more.Token short pieces by Ian Lowe, Craig Wilkins,Mark Parnell. Free Copies of this available in the cafe area of Know Nuclear booth.

Also available,hot-off-press copies of Nuclear Citizens’ Jury “Nothing Report”  from first jury, finalised July 10.  A passer-by informed us that an e-copy of the report had landed in the Inbox of every SA public servant on the day before (Friday).

The previous day, Thursday July 28, a video message and Q&A from CARA (Consultation and Response Agency section of RC process) Director John Whelan ( fresh from 15 years at SANTOS) was beamed into every TAFE campus in the state. $3m
 “Engagement ” strategy at work.
The CEO of CARA is Madeleine Richardson, fresh from the Premier’s Dept.
Both women (democracyCo)organising the details and minute by minute roll out of the Citizens Jury days have similar links. Good story on this by InDaily some time back.

September 19, 2016 Posted by | politics, South Australia, wastes | Leave a comment