New report ignores long term cost of nuclear waste dumps in search of quick and dirty cash

The Wilderness Society Inc
Media Release
5 December 2006

A new House of Representatives Committee report is unbalanced and fails to examine the real costs of a nuclear industry for the Australian public, according to the Wilderness Society today.

Wilderness Society nuclear campaigner Imogen Zethoven said the House Standing Committee on Industry and Resources Inquiry into developing Australia's non-fossil fuel energy industry report released yesterday advocated turning Australia into an international nuclear waste dump.

"This report makes it clear that pressure will continue to grow for Australia to take back nuclear waste resulting from Australian uranium," said Ms. Zethoven.

"But rather than analysing the vast public opposition to creating an international nuclear waste dump in Australia, all this report does is look at how much quick and dirty cash we can make out of it without considering the long-term costs."

"This is yet another element in the Federal Government's public relations exercise to build an international nuclear waste dump in Australia."

"Amendments passed in the Senate last week allow Australia to import foreign nuclear waste and amendments in the Senate this week allow the government to exempt a nuclear waste dump from environmental assessment laws and public scrutiny."

"The House report provides a euphoric account of the nuclear industry's potential contribution with almost all of the evidence coming from companies like Silex Systems that a vested interest."

"Arguments in the report for a uranium enrichment industry in Australia almost completely ignore the vast amounts of depleted uranium waste that would be generated."

"Echoing Ziggy Switkowski's flawed ideas, the report also mounts a false case that nuclear power can be a solution to climate change."

"With 25 nuclear power plants by 2050, Australia's emissions will be 29% higher than they are now."

"The report relies on yet to be developed technology to fix the highly radioactive nuclear waste produced by nuclear power plants."

"Under Howard's plan, we'll still have climate change as well as a toxic nuclear future."