Australia under contract to receive radioactive wastes
Dounreay Radioactive Waste Substitution Consultation 2010, The Scottish Government, 7 Dec 10,
“……….Dounreay’s Historic Contracts & the Current Situation
2.1.6 The contracts entered into by UKAEA contained clauses allowing for the radioactive waste allocated to overseas customers under the reprocessing contracts to be returned to the country of origin:– the “Return of Waste Clauses”. It is Government policy that these clauses be enacted and the radioactive waste sent back to the countries of origin. However to enact these clauses, the NDA is contractually obliged to return the radioactive waste in a form which can be safely transported and stored in accordance with such regulations as may be specified by the relevant competent national authorities.
2.1.7 The countries with radioactive waste at Dounreay which is due to be returned to them are Australia, Belgium, Germany and Italy…….. Dounreay Radioactive Waste Substitution Consultation 2010
Australia too dry for nuclear, but ready for renewables
nuclear power is based on a finite resource and requires enormous amounts of cooling water, limiting possible locations within Australia to our already crowded coastlines. Dry cooling or hybrid systems do exist but are not suited to hot climates such as ours…..
…[Australia should ] be growing a new industry with the potential to generate value for the nation through the export of renewable energy expertise and technology to a carbon-constrained world……
Too late for nuclear – The Drum (Australian Broadcasting Corporation), Vassilios Agelidis 7 Nov 10, ………..the course of events in Australia up till now means that, even if we opted for nuclear tomorrow, it will not be possible any time soon, and the reality is it should not be pursued at all because it’s simply not our best option…… Continue reading
Australia’s State and Federal govts hampering renewable energy
the newly elected Baillieu coalition government in the state of Victoria is making it difficult to gain planning approval for new wind farms,…….
Meanwhile, on Friday climate change minister ( or is it Coal Promotion Minister) Greg Combet announced an end to the Solar Credit Multiplier scheme, which subsidises the installation of rooftop panels.
Australian renewables industry fears fresh roadblocks Proposed buffer zone around new wind farms threatens to stifle expansion, BusinessGreen, by Tom Young, 7 Dec 10, Australia’s nascent renewable industry suffered a series of setbacks over the weekend as state and federal politicians continued to show reticence over support for the sector. Continue reading
Julian Assange upholds a fundamental human right to freedom of information
WikiLeaks has taught us valuable lessons about the suppression and manipulation of information, and how such activities pose a threat to the common good.
Don’t shoot the messenger, award him the Nobel Peace Prize, Eureka Street, Michael Mullins, December 06, 2010 WikiLeaks and its founder Julian Assange are being demonised by what appears to be a slanderous propaganda campaign being waged at the highest levels of governments around the world. Continue reading
Scientists and the ethics of uranium and nuclear weapons
Considering Australia, he argues, is a country with abundant uranium reserves, our scientists should refrain from activities that have the potential to indirectly aid the production of nuclear weapons
The Responsible Sci
entist: A Philosophical Inquiry, Eureka: Ethics Research, Australian Museum, December 2010, WINNER – The Responsible Scientist Setting a Moral Compass for Scientists As atomic bombs fell on Hiroshima and Nagasaki during the final stages of World War II in 1945, the world witnessed the devastation that science could inflict on humankind.Since that moment, countries around the world have been called to account on their nuclear weapons programs. But what responsibility rests on the shoulders of the scientists who make such grand-scale destruction possible? Continue reading
Australia’s Labor and Liberal ‘stuck in last century’ on climate change
former prime minister Kevin Rudd was right when he called climate change ”the greatest moral, economic and environmental challenge of our generation”…….”Our two major political parties are between them the worst combination to get things going,” he said. ”You’ve got Tony Abbott and his neanderthals and Martin Ferguson still stuck in last century.
Politicians blamed for climate ‘gridlock’, Sydney Morning Herald, Paddy ManningDecember 4, 2010 THE businessman Graeme Wood has condemned Australia’s failure to act on climate change, criticising ”scared” politicians for a lack of leadership. Continue reading
Even Australia’s Liberal Party knows that the nuclear waste problem is unsolvable
“My experience with dealing with justlow level radioactive waste from our research reactor tells me it would be impossible to get any sort of consensus in this country around themanagement of the high level waste a nuclear reactor would produce.” Former Liberal Party Senator Nick Minchin (in charge of the failed attempt to impose a national nuclear waste dump in South Australia from 1998-2004.)
Nuclear power, Watt a waste – On Line Opinion , Jim Green and Natalie Wasley, – 6/12/2010, Continue reading
Beyond Nuclear will fight Labor govt on nuclear waste dump for Australia’s Northern Territory
The Beyond Nuclear Initiative’s Natalie Wasley says a change to Labor policy could result in more pressure on the Territory to take the nation’s nuclear waste.
Australia’s Martin Ferguson – no concern for nuclear radioactive waste impact
The Olympic Dam expansion Environmental Impact Statement estimates 68 million tonnes of tailings waste from production of 19,000 tonnes of uranium.
The [proposed for Australia 50 nuclear] reactors would directly produce 75,000 tonnes of high level nuclear waste and 750,000 cubic metres of low level and intermediate level waste.
Australia’s role in ‘peaceful’ nuclear energy diverted to nuclear weapons
The connections between nuclear power and weapons are well documented and even have a precedent in Australia.
North Korea Steps Up Aggression, Sydney Morning Herald James Norman/Jim Green
December 1, 2010, “………What proponents of nuclear power often fail to understand is the frequent connection between nuclear power programs and weapons programs. North Korea provides one of the most pressing examples of this. Continue reading
Australian public shut out of discussion on uranium mine expansion’s impact
BHP Billiton had been asked to further investigate issues of waste, air quality, radiation and desalination.
Wait too long for BHP environment response: Greens ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation), 3 Dec 10, BHP Billiton has given supplementary Environmental Impact Statements to SA Government The Greens say the public should not have to wait eight weeks to read BHP Billiton’s response to environmental concerns about its planned expansion of mining at Olympic Dam in outback South Australia. Continue reading
South Australian govt bias in favour of BHP’s uranium mine
Acting Premier Paul Holloway said “It is top priority as far as the Government is concerned.”
Olympic Dam expansion our ‘highest priority’ | Adelaide Now, Christopher Russell, 3 Dec 10, TECHNICAL experts will spend the next eight weeks scrutinising more than 15,000 pages of data which address public and government concerns about the expansion of Olympic Dam. Continue reading
Labor MPs speak out against nuclear power for Australia
“We’ve got untapped supplies of wind and solar energy so I think the economics of developing those sorts of energy sources are going to far outweigh the benefits and the costs of developing a nuclear industry.”…….”I don’t think that the end result, which is the whole expense and difficulties of decommissioning and dealing with the waste, have been addressed.”
llawarra MPs oppose nuclear power proposal – ABC Illawarra NSW – Australian Broadcasting Corporation December 2, 2010 Illawarra Labor MPs have voiced their opposition to nuclear power amid talks of a debate on the agenda for next year’s national conference. Continue reading
Wikileaks Whistleblower defends principle of free speech
“When governments stop torturing and killing people, and when corporations stop abusing the legal system, then perhaps it will be time to ask if free-speech activists are accountable.” – Julian Assange
A dream come true for WikiLeaks founder, DAILY NATION 2 Dec 10, The founder of the whistleblowing website WikiLeaks whose exclusive dossiers have captured the attention of the world is a man who seems to have achieved his dream. Continue reading
Australian National University research- Climate Change + Renewable Energy
ANU combines climate change, energy research – ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation), 2 Dec 10, The Australian National University has announced a new department which will bring together climate change and renewable energy research projects. Continue reading
1 This month
Help Aunty Sue Protect Her Land and Sacred Sites From Destructive Rocket Testing.
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Australians deserve the truth
about
AUKUS – https://aukuspublicinquiry.com/
PETITION – To: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and the Australian Labor Government
of the week – Australians for War Powers Reform (AWPR)
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