nuclear - hofreps - 1970

Contexts in which the word nuclear was used in the House of Representatives during the 1970s

What further countries have (a) signed and (b) ratified the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons since his predecessor’s answer to me on 19th August 1969 (Hansard, page 424), and when did each do so. [More…]
Treaty on Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (Question No. [More…]
When I was speaking previously I mentioned the building of nuclear power stations by the year 2000. [More…]
It refers to a paper on the ecological factors related to the siting, design and operation of a nuclear power station in Australia. [More…]
Tenders for the Jervis Bay nuclear power station closed on15 June, 1970. [More…]
It isnot possible to give an estimate of the number of these types of nuclear stations which can be constructed in Australia. [More…]
When generating authorities decide to install nuclear power plants in their own systems they will almost certainly call tenders on a world wide basis as the Australian Atomic Energy Commission has done in the case of the Jervis Bay project. [More…]
Decisions regarding the type and number of nuclear stations to be selected will be based on technical and economic grounds. [More…]
Are fast breeder nuclear reactors a commercial proposition. [More…]
(a) Extreme precautions are taken in the design, construction and operation of nuclear power reactors to prevent major accidents from occurring; in the most unlikely event of a serious accident occurring, additional precautions are invariably taken to limit the consequences and to safeguard the health and safety of operating staff and public. [More…]
The precautions include nuclear siting, conformity of designs to rigid specifications and safety codes, analyses of plant behaviour under all possible conditions, strict quality control during manufacture, construction and installation, detailed checking and testing of plant prior to start-up and intensive training of operating staff and checking of operating procedures. [More…]
Nuclear reactors are equipped with warning and safety devices which will shut the reactor down instantly if any fault occurs. [More…]
Many of the safety features of a nuclear power station are an intrinsic part of the plant required for normal operation, although a certain amount of duplication and additional engineered safety features are incorporated to ensure complete safety under all conditions. [More…]
Such features do account for a substantial part of the cost of a nuclear station but it is not possible to place a cost on them. [More…]
In the case of the Jervis Bay nuclear power plant the Commission will be responsible for ensuring the safety of the public and the staff of the Commission. [More…]
Did the Government, when the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty was signed on behalf of Australilia on 27 February 1970, issue a statement setting out various matters that would have to be resolved to its satisfaction before Australia would ratify the Treaty. [More…]
Did the matters mentioned in the statement include the effectiveness of the Treaty, the security guarantees given by the nuclear weapons parties, the nature and content of the safeguard agreements with the International Atomic Energy and the right of non-nuclear weapons parties to develop the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. [More…]
or right to develop nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, and what progress has been made in obtaining the assurances the Government requires. [More…]
In particular, Australia is taking an active part in the discussion in the Safeguards Committee of the International Atomic Energy Agency set up to devise a system of safeguards to meet the obligation under Article 3 of the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty. [More…]
All nuclear power stations which operate on uranium fuel (whether natural or enriched) will produce plutonium. [More…]
The Government has given no consideration to the manufacture of nuclear weapons. [More…]
Could the proposed nuclear power station at Jervis Bay and subsequent reactors be used as sources of fissionable material for the manufacture of nuclear weapons. [More…]
If so, is the Government prepared to give an assurance that fissionable material from nuclear reactors will never be used for the manufacture of nuclear weapons. [More…]
What part is Australia playing in the defence of the United States through the provision of ICBM network tracking stations, aid to U2 Spy aircraft and nuclear submarines and other means. [More…]
Will the Minister for National Development indicate whether the evaluation of tenders for the nuclear power station at Jervis Bay has been completed? [More…]
The Commonwealth/States Consultative Committee on Nuclear Energy has met once, namely on 8th June 1970 in Canberra. [More…]
When and where have there been meetings of the Commonwealth/States Consultative Committee on Nuclear Energy. [More…]
Was the visit to New Zealand of the Chairman of the Australian Atomic Energy Commission for the purpose of discussing the supply of heavy water for the proposed nuclear reactor at Jervis Bay. [More…]
What is the urgent need for Australia to introduce nuclear power bused on technology which is likely to be superseded within a few years. [More…]
With which countries has Australia discussed protests against the French nuclear tests at Muraroa atoll this year. [More…]
Can he say whether France detonated a nuclear device in the Pacific on the morning of Monday, 5th July 1971, Australian time? [More…]
Has the Government protested at the latest series of nuclear experiments in the Pacific by France? [More…]
Australia is a party to this treaty which prohibits nuclear weapons tests in the atmosphere, in outer space and under water. [More…]
Moreover, the Australian Government has supported efforts in the United Nations to conclude a comprehensive test ban treaty which would suspend nuclear weapons testing in all environments. [More…]
What studies have been made to determine the effects of the proposed Armco Steel Works on (a) timbered frontages now facing a proposed tourist resort, (b) sea water temperatures considering also the effects of the proposed nuclear power house, (c) air and water pollution, (d) ecological changes and (e) the consequences for fishing, swimming, boating and camping in the area. [More…]
The most populous nation in the world, the only nuclear power in Asia, is now a member of the United Nations. [More…]
Who produced the programme The Nuclear Game which was shown on Tuesday, 28th September 1971 on Australian Broadcasting Commission television. [More…]
Was this programme, in effect, a promotion of nuclear power at a time when the Government had decided not to take any action in the matter. [More…]
States, underground nuclear test on Amchitka Island. [More…]
What further countries have (a) signed and (b) ratified the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons since his predecessor’s answer to me on 12th March 197Q, and when did each do so? [More…]
Can he say whether France has announced that she will conduct further atmospheric nuclear testing at her testing site in the Pacific in 1972. [More…]
Consultative Committee on Nuclear Energy [More…]
what joint Commonwealth-State committees, such as the Consultative Committee on Nuclear Energy (Hansard, 18th March 1971, page 1123) and the Technical Committee on Water Quality (Hansard, 17 August1971, page 175) do officers of his Department serve. [More…]
Since becoming a member of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development in June 1971, what steps, if any, has Australia taken to become an associated country of the European Nuclear Energy Agency, as Canada, Japan and the United States of America each is. [More…]
A little while ago my attitude to French nuclear tests was compared to that towards the Chinese and the Russians. [More…]
In recent years I have written two or three letters to the Chinese Foreign Minister and two or three letters to the Russian Foreign Minister protesting against and arguing against the conduct of those nations in nuclear testing. [More…]
I ask the Minister for Supply: What action has been taken to measure the fall-out in Australia from the recent French nuclear tests in the Pacific? [More…]
What treaties on (a) nuclear weapons and (b) nuclear energy have yet to be ratified by Australia. [More…]
Can he say, when and why France transferred the nuclear tests from the Sahara to the South Pacific. [More…]
I preface my question, which is directed to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, by referring him to a question I asked on 21st September about the French nuclear tests. [More…]
Is the Minister aware of recent newspaper reports alleging that the French intend to continue nuclear testing in the future? [More…]
ls information available to the Government that either confirms or denies the reported intention of the Government of China to explode nuclear devices in the Pacific or Indian Ocean at an early date? [More…]
Should an announcement be made by the Government of China that it intends to explode one or more nuclear devices, will the Government on behalf of the Australian people immediately lodge with China and the United Nations the strongest possible protest against such a decision? [More…]
In the House of Representatives on 16th August (Hansard, pages 213 and 214), I clearly expressed the opposition of the Australian Government in regard to nuclear weapons testing by China. [More…]
Consultations (other than at the Fisheries Council) concerning the possible use of nuclear explosions for harbour construction have occurred on three occasions. [More…]
On what occasions and with what outcome have consultations taken place with the States, other than at the Fisheries Council (Hansard, 16th September (1970, page 1256 and 31st May 1972 1972, page 3391), concerning the proposed use of nuclear power in harbour construction. [More…]
In view of the re-election , of a French Government pledged to perform further nuclear tests, can the Minister confirm reports that the French Government has invited Australian experts to check on safety precautions? [More…]
In view of the Minister’s previous representations to the -Peking Government when he was Leader of the Opposition, will he ask the new Australian ambassador in Peking to raise at the earliest opportunity the question of Chinese nuclear tests? [More…]
Has the Government information on the reported intention of the People’s Republic of China to explode nuclear devices in the atmosphere shortly, either on the Chinese mainland or elsewhere. [More…]
Nuclear Tests by China (Question No. [More…]
As I stated in the House last year (Hansard, 16 August 1972, page 221), I protested to the then Acting Foreign Minister of China, Mr Chi Peng-fei, against the continued testing of nuclear weapons by China when I was in Peking. [More…]
The Government will in the United Nations and elsewhere emphasize Australia’s opposition to all forms of nuclear weapons testing by whatever nation. [More…]
The Government has not received the final report from the National Radiation Advisory Committee relating to the French nuclear tests in the Pacific Ocean during 1972. [More…]
Has the Government received any reports from the National Radiation Advisory Council relating to the French nuclear tests in the Pacific Ocean during 1972. [More…]
Is the Prime Minister aware of concern being expressed in the community at what is interpreted to be a difference in attitude on the part of the Australian Government between French nuclear tests and the tests conducted by the Chinese? [More…]
During the parliamentary recess I discussed the French nuclear tests with all the Commonwealth countries in the Pacific, with Mauritius in the Indian Ocean and, of course, with the British Government and the Italian Government. [More…]
Following the recent unsuccessful attempts and appeals to the French Government to suspend or to cease its series of nuclear tests in the Pacific area, is it the intention of the Australian Government to join with the New Zealand Government and to proceed to the International Court of Justice without further delay and by so doing to indicate to the French Government that we will not be treated in such a contemptuous fashion? [More…]
Does the Government support the Seamen’s Union’s ban on French ships entering and leaving Australian ports as a means of protesting against the French nuclear tests in the Pacific? [More…]
Would the Minister agree that the proposed action by the Seamen’s Union would, in effect, force the sheep farmers and other exporters to pay the price of the Government’s failure to dissuade the French Government from its nuclear testing in the Pacific? [More…]
I have read that the Seamen’s Union is proposing to take action against French shipping in the light of the French Government’s refusal to abandon nuclear tests in the atmosphere of the South Pacific. [More…]
The honourable member will be well aware that the Prime Minister, the Attorney-General and other Ministers over the years have taken extensive action in an endeavour to minimise and to stop French nuclear tests in the South Pacific. [More…]
Is he aware that the report stated that, in answer to a question directed to him about whether he had received any response from the Chinese Government to his protest note on the nuclear tests, he said that the protest to China was oral so there would be no written response? [More…]
Mr Speaker, may I inform the House that the Leader of the Government in the Senate, Attorney-General and Minister for Customs and Excise, Senator Murphy, left Australia on Sunday, 13th May, to present Australia’s case against French nuclear testing in the Pacific to the International Court of Justice at The Hague? [More…]
Has HMAS ‘Supply’ been ordered to sail to the French nuclear test zone? [More…]
Prime Minister aware of a recent statement by the officer-in-charge of Omega operations that if Australia does not allow an Omega base on its soil such a decision would be detrimental to countries in this region but would not affect the United States of America, that the Omega system has no relevance to nuclear missile carrying submarines and that an Omega receiver could not be used to send messages to such submarines? [More…]
I am afraid that we overlook the fact that, when we are speaking of power in the world now, foreign policy comes down still to nuclear policy and to the possession of the weapons which dictate the power balance and which allow the possessors of those weapons to stand in a situation quite different from that of the rest of the world and of those which do not possess those weapons. [More…]
Is it a fact that the International Court of Justice has rebuked him concerning a statement made in 1973 about theprobable result of the nuclear test case pending in the Court between Australia and France. [More…]
What action has been taken by the Government to (a) modernise and (b) apply international conventions to secure universal prohibition of (i) nuclear, (ii) chemical and (iii) bacteriological warfare since 2 December 1 972. [More…]
1 ) Will he provide a list of all research projects being undertaken in Australia into the applied use of nuclear energy which are receiving financial support from the Government. [More…]
What proportion does this represent of funds allocated by all sources in Australia to research projects into the applied use of nuclear energy. [More…]
and ( 10) The Australian Atomic Energy Commission consults with the various State electricity generating authorities on the relative merits of nuclear and fossil fuel power stations, and the prospects for nuclear power in each State. [More…]
The extent of consultation with each State body depends on the prospects and future timing for nuclear power in that State. [More…]
Representation on the National Fuel and Energy Commission will be related to the major energy resources of black coal, brown coal, petroleum, nuclear energy, hydroelectric power and solar energy. [More…]
Have all State Governments and their instrumentalities engaged in power generation and gas supply been consulted on their future requirements for, and sources of, natural gas and/or nuclear power. [More…]
-For the information of honourable members I present the final declaration made on 30 May by the review conference of parties to the Treaty on Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. [More…]
I believe there are millions of people in the United States who admire the courage of this Government for asking for joint say in the control of a nuclear base which could involve Australia in war, a base which is wholly and solely under the control of the United States President who can give the orders to fire. [More…]
Under the present situation this radio station or naval communications station can give directions to 15 or 20 nuclear submarines and order them to fire. [More…]
Has his attention been drawn to indexed item 1 1- Environmental studies of the Jervis Bay nuclear power plant. [More…]
At 30 June 1975 there were 159 nuclear power reactors of over 20 MW capacity in operation in 19 countries as listed below. [More…]
Can he say how many nuclear power stations are operating throughout the world, and in what countries they are situated. [More…]
Can he also say what fraction of the total energy generated world-wide comes from nuclear power stations. [More…]
Is it a fact that the Department of Environment, Housing and Community Development has recommended to the Minister that nuclear powered vessels - [More…]
-Is the Minister for Defence aware that an Opposition member of the State Parliament in Western Australia stated yesterday that he had information that nuclear weapons are to be stored on Garden Island in Cockburn Sound? [More…]
The Minister for Defence said that it was untrue to claim that a previous coalition government in 1971-1 said that it was in 1971; I am told that it was in 1971 or 1972- took a decision which resulted in nuclear powered ships being excluded from Australian ports and that that decision was taken by the right honourable member for Lowe (Mr McMahon) when he was Prime Minister. [More…]
-I draw the attention of the Minister for Foreign Affairs to certain comments in the Sydney Press concerning the recent underground nuclear explosion on an atoll in the Pacific. [More…]
Mr Speaker, I seek leave to make a statement concerning visits by nuclear powered warships. [More…]
1 ) Are nuclear weapons to be stored at HMAS Stirling on Garden Island in Cockburn Sound, Western Australia. [More…]
Will ships carrying nuclear weapons be allowed to call at Garden Island. [More…]
Will nuclear powered ships be allowed to call at Garden Island. [More…]
What possibility exists of nuclear material or waste being accidentally released on Garden Island or in Cockburn Sound. [More…]
What would be the likely effect of the accidental release of nuclear material or waste on Garden Island or in Cockburn Sound. [More…]
Are there at present any restrictions on the use of any Australian port or naval base by nuclear powered ships of any nation. [More…]
Are there at present any restrictions on the use of any Australian port or naval base by nuclear-armed ships of any nation. [More…]
The honourable member for Chifley (Mr Armitage) alleged- and it was confessed to by the honourable member for Mackellar (Mr Wentworth)- that in the mid-1960s the honourable member for Mackellar suggested to this House that nuclear bombs should be dropped on certain factories in mainland China. [More…]
Yes, when China did not have nuclear bombs. [More…]
I was sitting in the Parliament on that night and I was appalled that the honourable member for Mackellar should suggest dropping nuclear weapons on certain factories in the People’s Republic of China. [More…]
As far as I am concerned, the People’s Republic of China has vehemently declared to the world time and time again that she will never be the first to use nuclear weapons; that if nuclear weapons are used against her, she will retaliate, but she will never be the first to use them. [More…]
If China were not sincere in that regard, she could have given nuclear weapons to North Vietnam - [More…]
Can he say which countries have (a) signed and (b) ratified the treaties on nuclear tests and weapons and when have they done so. [More…]
This country is a signatory to the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty. [More…]
I refer the honourable member to paragraph 33 of ‘Environmental Considerations of Visits of Nuclear Powered Warships to Australia’ which was tabled in the House of Representatives by the Prime Minister on 4 June 1976. [More…]
Is he able to say whether any United States of America nuclear powered submarine or surface ship has ever been involved in any operational failure or accident resulting in any radiation leak in a port or on the open sea. [More…]
At a meeting of State and Commonwealth officials held in Melbourne on 21 July 1976, it was agreed that the existing arrangements under the current Victorian State Disaster Plan would cover the contingencies which might arise during the visits of nuclear powered warships to the Port of Melbourne, and thus met the requirements of the General Conditions of Entry referred to in the document. [More…]
Following discussions between State and Commonwealth officials, the Premier of Western Australia announced on 25 June 1976, the formation of a committee, responsible to the Minister for Works, to plan and co-ordinate arrangements for visits of nuclear powered warships to Western Australia, including necessary safety arrangements. [More…]
On what dates and for what ports did the (a) Victorian and (b) Western Australian Governments set up the safety organisations recommended in the document entitled Environmental Considerations of Visits of nuclear powered Warships to Australia tabled in the House of Representatives on 4 June 1976 (Hansard, 8 September 1976, page 794). [More…]
Is a team of officials making a study overseas of legal and treaty safeguards on the supply of nuclear materials. [More…]
What steps have been taken to verify the allegations by Dr John Coulter and Mr Avon Hudson on the radio program AM on 2 and 3 December 1976 that the British Government had flown radioactive waste including plutonium from nuclear power stations in Britain to Maralinga, where it was secretly buried at night [More…]
Does he now agree with the view of the President, expressed at his news conference a few hours ago, that the Indian Ocean should be transformed into a zone of peace free from nuclear weapons? [More…]
For the information of honourable members I table letters sent by me to the President of the United States and the Prime Minister of Canada both dated 4 February 1977 relating to nuclear safeguards. [More…]
The purpose of each explosion was related to the development of a British nuclear deterrent. [More…]
Can he provide a full list of all nuclear explosions which have taken place in Australia giving the date, the size, location and purpose of each. [More…]
Nuclear Explosions in Australia (Question No. [More…]
Sure, there are great dangers in nuclear energy and its development, but there are even greater dangers in not developing nuclear energy. [More…]
In relation to the world, let me say this: I withdraw nothing that I said previously in regard to the dangers of world nuclear proliferation. [More…]
What percentage of the Atomic Energy Commission’s budget is allocated for research into (a) effects of waste products of nuclear reactors on organic matter and (b) new or improved disposal methods of nuclear waste products. [More…]
1 ) Has the Atomic Energy Commission decided to build a new nuclear reactor at Lucas Heights. [More…]
It is true that India is not a signatory to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty but it is the desire of the United States to try to get as many countries as possible to become signatories and to abide by the rules laid down by that international organisation. [More…]
So there is a slight distinction between the weapon states- those which have been approved- and those which are not approved such as India which has produced a nuclear weapon in violation of the international regulations. [More…]
Is the Acting Prime Minister aware that India is not a signatory to the nuclear nonproliferation treaty and has violated the purposes of the treaty in secrectly manufacturing nuclear weapons? [More…]
Finally, will the Government, in line with the safeguard proposals announced last week, refuse to supply uranium to the United States on the grounds that its government may permit the re-export of uranium to a country that is determined to continue the manufacture of nuclear weapons? [More…]
It is the Government’s firm intention to enable a debate on the nuclear safeguard statement of the Prime [More…]
We feel that it is important that time be made available for a debate on the nuclear safeguard statement and that it is a more important and urgent proposition for debate at this stage than the General Business item which stands in the name of the honourable member for Port Adelaide (Mr Young). [More…]
3, Nuclear Safeguards Policy, Ministerial Statement, motion to take note of the paper. [More…]
Has he taken seriously the suggestion by a United States nuclear expert, that the money would be well spent to finance tunnelling work under the big rock to provide a storage space for nuclear waste. [More…]
Important though these considerations are in foreign policy terms, I wish now to concentrate on the relationship between uranium export and the problem of nuclear weapons poliferation. [More…]
Clearly we must regard most seriously the Inquiry’s findings that ‘the nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of nuclear war’ and that ‘this is the most serious hazard associated with the industry’. [More…]
The Government’s comprehensive nuclear safeguards policy announced by the Prime Minister on 24 May, is designed to do just that. [More…]
The requirement under our policy for International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards to be applied to any nuclear material supplied by Australia in the existing nuclear weapons countries, as well as in non-nuclear weapons states, is additional to these recommendations. [More…]
So are the requirements for prior Australian consent to high enrichment and reprocessing of nuclear material supplied by Australia and the requirement that adequate physical security be maintained on the nuclear industries of uranium importing countries. [More…]
-No, it will not, and I very much hope that the report I have here in Sunday Viewpoint which said ‘Mr Uren told a reporter he condoned this violence on the grounds that it was a small price to pay in the fight against nuclear warfare is not in fact true. [More…]
-Did the Minister for Environment, Housing and Community Development hear or has he since been shown a transcript of the remarks made on AM yesterday by a committee chairman of the United States Congress to the effect that the United States had a staggering problem of both cost and environmental danger in regard to what to do with the temporarily stored nuclear waste much of which is in liquid form, something like 74 million gallons of the stuff, which has fife of anywhere from 1,000 years to 250,000 years’? [More…]
-Has the Minister for Environment, Housing and Community Development seen or heard a statement which claimed that uranium and nuclear power is the most violent source of energy known to humanity? [More…]
-Can the Prime Minister inform the House whether the International Atomic Energy Agency has expressed a view on the safe disposal of nuclear waste? [More…]
In the light of President Carter’s decision that the United States of America will halt commercial reprocessing of nuclear fuels, can he advise which countries (a) currently operate reprocessing plants, (b) have announced plans to install these plants and (c) are negotiating to purchase plants. [More…]
My question, which is directed to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, concerns recent reports in relation to Australia’s nuclear safeguards policy. [More…]
I refer the Prime Minister to discussions on the question of nuclear safeguards that the Government is having with the British Government. [More…]
I ask the Prime Minister whether the Government is aware that the British Government and other Western European governments secretly supplied uranium for the nuclear weapons program of Israel. [More…]
I further ask whether the Government is satisfied that international nuclear weapons proliferation controls are adequate. [More…]
Has the Australian Government taken any particular initiatives in pursuit of a safer nuclear proliferation environment? [More…]
The Warsaw powers possess the conventional capacity to move into Western Europe with such rapidity and penetration that the use of even tactical nuclear weapons against them is now questioned by some authorities. [More…]
The rapid growth of Soviet nuclear capabilities is a matter of awe . [More…]
Australia’s participation in the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation flows directly from the Government’s uranium and nuclear safeguards policies. [More…]
It is based on the conviction, as expressed in Washington in October 1977 in the communique of the INFCE organising conference, that effective measures can and should be taken at the national level and through international agreements to minimise the danger of the proliferation of nuclear weapons without jeopardising energy supplies or the development of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. [More…]
All the eight working groups which cover the whole spectrum of the nuclear fuels cycle, from fuel availability through to enrichment, reprocessing, fast breeder reactors, waste management and even advance reactor concepts, have met and have organised their work programs. [More…]
Furthermore, Australia’s Ambassador-at-Large on nuclear nonproliferation and safeguards, Mr Justice Fox, has established an office in London and is maintaining an active travel program in monitoring developments on non-proliferation issues, including developments in INFCE and, of course, the International Atomic Energy Agency. [More…]
-My question, which is directed to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, concerns uranium and Australian participation in the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation. [More…]
In this year’s Budget $22 m was allocated to the Australian Atomic Energy Commission for research into nuclear energy, while a trifling $1.5m was provided for solar energy research. [More…]
1 ) Did he announce on the day before the recent Federal election that Australia was backing a United Nations resolution to enable all nations to use nuclear power under stringent safeguards, with particular emphasis on the needs of developing countries. [More…]
If so, did he admit that there was no international agreement on management of the nuclear fuel cycle. [More…]
Did he imply that nuclear power technology should be allowed to countries that unreservedly forswear the nuclear weapons option; if so, does he include India among such countries; if not, why not. [More…]
United Nations Resolution on the Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy (Question No. [More…]
1 ) On 9 December 1 977, 1 said that Australia had worked actively in the United Nations General Assembly to achieve a consensus in support of a resolution on the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. [More…]
This resolution recognised that international co-operation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy should be under agreed and appropriate international safeguards in order to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
I said that there was need for the widest possible international agreement on an appropriate framework for the management and operation of the nuclear fuel cycle. [More…]
The Government’s support for international nonproliferation objectives precludes co-operation either in the sale of uranium or the provision of technology directly related to the nuclear fuel cycle to non-nuclear weapon states which are not parties to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). [More…]
India is not a party to the NPT and under that Treaty is regarded as a non-nuclear weapon state. [More…]
I ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs: Has the Government prepared a model nuclear safeguards agreement? [More…]
Did he state in a press statement issued on 23 February 1 978 that Australia had accepted the Nuclear Suppliers Group ( N.S.G.) [More…]
rules on nuclear exports. [More…]
Discussions have taken place with over forty countries, including all the nuclear powers and countries from all major regions of the world. [More…]
Before the debate on this Bill resumes, I suggest that it might suit the convenience of the House to have a general debate covering this Bill, the National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Amendment Bill 1978 and the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill 1978, as they are associated measures. [More…]
That all words after ‘That’ be omitted with a view to substituting the following words: the House declines to give the Bill a second reading (a) until the Minister initiates consultations and provides all necessary material to relevant Ministers of all States and the Northern Territory on the hazards and dangers associated with uranium mining and nuclear activities and ( b) until such time as any State Government determines that it is safe to mine uranium and that proper international safeguards exist, no action should be initiated by the Commonwealth to make provision to enable mining to take place within that State or Territory’. [More…]
Can the Prime Minister inform the House whether a successful negotiation of a nuclear safeguards agreement with Iran has been carried out? [More…]
The Government has decided to accept this recommendation but to go further and together with the States to establish by legislation uniform national codes which cover all aspects of mining and milling and transport of uranium as well as any future nuclear activities. [More…]
The Government introduced the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill 1978 in Parliament on 10 April 1978 which will provide means whereby the Code can be incorporated in Commonwealth legislation. [More…]
I am not aware of any private companies which have conducted studies into nuclear waste disposal or storage in Central Australia. [More…]
It is perhaps not surprising that the Sydney Morning Herald, in its brief and inadequate report of my criticisms, published the inaccurate smear of the honourable member for Eden-Monaro (Mr Sainsbury) that I have not opposed nuclear power in the Soviet Union. [More…]
On many occasions I have spoken against Soviet development of nuclear power but it suits the Sydney Morning Herald to publish such smears. [More…]
I shall be precise and deal with the amendments affecting clauses 11 and 13 of the original Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill. [More…]
Was the National Energy Advisory Committee requested or directed by him not to make recommendations on nuclear energy or uranium processing in its report on proposals for a research and development program for energy. [More…]
If so, is it revealed in that part of the book that nuclear reactors become contaminated with radioactive materials with lives of up to 10,000 years. [More…]
Is he able to say whether the book claims that the operators of the Oyster Creek nuclear power station in New Jersey want to raise more than $ 100m over the next 26 years to seal the entire plant in a monstrous tomb of concrete and cover it with earth and that this latter-day pyramid will then be guarded for at least 100 years. [More…]
1 ) Is he able to say how many new power stations using (a) nuclear fission, (b) coal, (c) oil and (d) gas, as a primary energy source were ordered in the United Kingdom during each year since 1970 and what was their total generating capacity. [More…]
Is he also able to say how may orders for power stations using (a) nuclear fission, (b) coal, (c) oil and (d) gas as the primary energy source were (i) cancelled and (ii) deferred in the United Kingdom in each year since 1 970. [More…]
1 ) Is he able to say how many new power stations using (a) nuclear fission, (b) coal, (c) oil and (d) gas, as a primary energy source were ordered in West Germany during each year since 1 970 and what was their total generating capacity. [More…]
Is he also able to say how many orders for power stations using (a) nuclear fission, (b) coal, (c) oil and (d) gas as the primary energy source were (i) cancelled and (ii) deferred in West Germany in each year since 1 970. [More…]
1 ) Is he able to say how many new power stations using (a) nuclear fission, (b) coal, (c) oil and (d) gas, as a primary energy source were ordered in the United States of America during each year since 1970 and what was their total generating capacity. [More…]
Is he also able to say how many orders for power stations using (a) nuclear fission, (b) coal, (c) oil and (d) gas as the primary energy source were (i) cancelled and (ii) deferred in the United States of America in each year since 1970. [More…]
1 ) Is he able to say how many new power stations using (a) nuclear fission, (b) coal, (c) oil and (d) gas, as a primary energy source were ordered in the OECD during each year since 1 970 and what was their total generating capacity. [More…]
Is he also able to say how many orders for power stations using (a) nuclear fission, (b) coal, (c) oil and (d) gas as the primary energy source were (i) cancelled and (ii) deferred in the OECD in each year since 1 970. [More…]
1 ) Is he able to say how many new power stations using (a) nuclear fission, (b) coal, (c) oil and (d) gas, as a primary energy source were ordered in France during each year since 1 970 and what was their total generating capacity. [More…]
Is he also able to say how many orders for power stations using (a) nuclear fission, (b) coal, (c) oil and (d) gas as the primary energy source were (i) cancelled and (ii) deferred in France in each year since 1 970. [More…]
1 ) Is he able to say how many new power stations using (a) nuclear fission, (b) coal, (c) oil and (d) gas, as a primary energy source were ordered in Japan during each year since 1 970 and what was their total generating capacity. [More…]
Is he also able to say how many orders for power stations using (a) nuclear fission, (b) coal, (c) oil and (d) gas as the primary energy source were (i) cancelled and (ii) deferred in Japan in each year since 1 970. [More…]
and (2) In relation to nuclear power stations in the United Kingdom I am advised on the basis of information collected by the Australian Atomic Energy Commission that over the period 1 970- 1 977: 1(a)- [More…]
1 ) and (2) In relation to nuclear power stations in West Germany I am advised on the basis of information collected by the Australian Atomic Energy Commission that over the period 1970-77: 1(a)- [More…]
and (2) In relation to nuclear power stations in the United States of America I am advised on the basis of information collected by the Australian Atomic Energy Commission that over the period 1970-77: 1(a)- [More…]
1 ) and (2) In relation to nuclear power stations in the OECD. [More…]
1 ) and (2) In relation to nuclear power stations in France I am advised on the basis of information collected by the Australian Atomic Energy Commission that over the period 1970-1977: 1(a)- [More…]
1 ) and (2) In relation to nuclear power stations in Japan I am advised on the basis of information collected by the Australian Atomic Energy Commission that over the period 1970-77: 1(a)- [More…]
-I refer the Prime Minister to the debate on the Atomic Energy Amendment Bill on 3 May this year when the Opposition urged the establishment of a Nuclear Safeguards, Safety and Security Commission to set standards for aspects of safeguards, to make rules for physical security, to set physical safety standards, to issue and withdraw licences for construction and to carry out investigations and inquiries. [More…]
In the light of recent events and the evident failure of Ministers, departments and the Australian Atomic Energy Commission to establish and present the truth in respect of nuclear activities, I ask the Prime Minister whether he now acknowledges the urgent necessity for an independent authority to regulate nuclear activities. [More…]
I ask the Minister for Supply: Have quantities of radioactive waste from British nuclear establishments been dumped in Australia? [More…]
1 ) Are the export guidelines of the Nuclear Suppliers Group binding on members of the Group. [More…]
What sanctions exist for breaches by members of the Nuclear Suppliers Group guidelines. [More…]
Under what conditions are members of the Nuclear Suppliers Group permitted to withdraw from the Group. [More…]
Do Nuclear Suppliers Group export guidelines require full scope safeguards on all the nuclear fuel cycle activities of an importing country. [More…]
1 ) Does the Government ‘s nuclear safeguards policy prohibit the export of uranium on contract to any nations which manufacture, test or maintain stocks of nuclear weapons. [More…]
If not, what means will be used to ensure that uranium supplied on contract to such countries from Australia will not be used in nuclear weapons by those countries. [More…]
1 ) Did he say during his speech to the Special Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations devoted to disarmament, on S June 1 978, with reference to a comprehensive nuclear Test Ban Treaty, that in view of our geographical position and expertise, Australia would be well placed to participate in monitoring such a treaty by seismic means and would obviously co-operate to achieve these objectives. [More…]
If so, what facilities exist in Australia to monitor nuclear weapons tests. [More…]
When did these agencies become aware of the details of French nuclear weapons tests at Mururoa Atoll during 1978. [More…]
Those with a capability of detecting the seismic effects of under-ground nuclear explosions are the Joint Geological and Geophysical Research Station at Alice Springs; the Warramunga Seismic Installation at Tennant Creek; and the Seismic Research Observatories at Narrogin, Western Australia, and Charters Towers, Queensland. [More…]
Data collected by Australian seismic facilities relating to nuclear explosions are correlated with data collected by facilities elsewhere in the world. [More…]
1 ) Did the Joint Geological and Geophysical Research Station detect nuclear weapons tests by France at Mururoa Atoll during 1978. [More…]
On which days respectively did Australian officials at the research station or within the Department of Science become aware that nuclear weapons tests had been detected by the research station. [More…]
1 ) The purpose of the Joint Geological and Geophysical Research Station at Alice Springs is to gather seismic data which aid in distinguishing underground nuclear explosions from natural phenomena such as earthquakes. [More…]
Does this station collect data which would enable nuclear explosions to be distinguished from natural phenomena which cause seismic disturbances. [More…]
When did he first become aware that France had conducted nuclear weapons tests at Mururoa Atoll during 1 978. [More…]
Is he able to say what were the dates and places of all (a) above ground and (b) underground nuclear explosions carried out during the last three years. [More…]
No, because some of the information on nuclear explosions which is available to the Australian Government is of a confidential nature. [More…]
1 ) Did nuclear experimentation performed at Maralinga include experiments in which discs of plutonium were explosively shattered; if so, what was the explosive used in these experiments. [More…]
Were nuclear experiments performed at Maralinga other than nuclear explosive tests and those experiments described in part ( 1 ); if so, (a) what was the nature of these additional experiments, (b) what materials were tested and (c) what was the purpose of these experiments. [More…]
1 ) Have any studies been carried out into the health of personnel who worked at Maralinga and the Emu and Monte Bello Islands during or after the nuclear tests performed at these locations during the 1950s and 1960s. [More…]
Have any studies been carried out to determine whether Aboriginal people in the Maralinga area have been affected by the radioactive contamination from nuclear tests performed at the Maralinga site. [More…]
The British technical assessment team made a joint report with Australian experts on the nuclear material at Maralinga: [More…]
Has the British technical assessment team which visited Australia in connection with the nuclear material at Maralinga reported to the Government; if so, (a) what advice has been received in relation to the plutonium and /or other radioactive material buried at Maralinga, (b) what options for the long term safe disposal of the plutonium and/or other radioactive material are under consideration and (c) what is the projected cost of each of the options under consideration. [More…]
Although he was one of the people who suggested to Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1939 that it was essential that the Allies develop an atomic bomb before Nazi Germany, he always campaigned against the spread of nuclear weapons. [More…]
Does the Government propose to approve by order, under the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Act 1978, the Code of Practice on Radiation Protection in the Mining and Milling of Radioactive Ores as it is presently constituted; if not, in what aspects will it be amended. [More…]
If so, how does the Government reconcile this reliance with the expressed assertion that Australia is making its uranium available to the world nuclear fuel cycle in order to prevent reprocessing. [More…]
-I ask the Prime Minister: Does the Government support Sir Charles Court’s plans for the establishment of a nuclear power station in Western Australia? [More…]
The need to ensure that no new uranium export contracts are approved by the Government until such times as the grave risks associated with the nuclear industry have been resolved. [More…]
Although critical of various calculational techniques used in the Rasmussen Study the Lewis Report in no way declared the safety of nuclear power reactors to be unac’ceptable. [More…]
1 am further advised that in his recent testimony to the Sub-committee on Energy and the Environment of the House Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs, Professor Lewis emphatically agreed with the view that his Review Group Report ‘does not undermine the basis for confidence in the safety of licensed nuclear power plants ‘. [More…]
) Has he or his advisers studied the Risk Assessment Review Group Report prepared for the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission by Harold W. Lewis and others issued in 1 978. [More…]
If so, does he accept Lewis’ view that it is nearly impossible to say whether nuclear reactors are acceptably safe or not. [More…]
The Government’s failure to inform the Parliament of the implications of the Australia/Korea Nuclear Co-operation Agreement. [More…]
-The object of this Bill is to ratify the appointment of Mr Justice Fox as AmbassadoratLarge on nuclear matters. [More…]
Is he able to state when the pilot nuclear fuel reprocessing plant at Tokai-Mura, Japan, commenced operation. [More…]
5 ) Is any expansion in nuclear fuel reprocessing planned or under construction in Japan; if so, what is the capacity, type and projected date of commencement of any plant. [More…]
1) Can he say whether the Reactor Safety Study prepared for the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission by Professor Rasmussen of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology is no longer regarded as reliable by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission. [More…]
Can he also say whether this study formed the basis of the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s assessment of the safety of light water reactors. [More…]
1 ) and (2) On the basis of official reports and recent inspections, I can say that following the repatriation to the United Kingdom of approximately half a kilogram of plutonium formerly buried at Maralinga there are no burials of nuclear waste at former atomic weapons test sites in Australia which constitute a potential terrorist threat. [More…]
-Does the Minister for Foreign Affairs consider that Australia, as an exporter of natural uranium, should be concerned about the eventual disposal of nuclear fuel? [More…]
What is the Government’s view of proposals for storage of spent nuclear fuel, or nuclear waste, in an international repository in a remote location such as a Pacific island? [More…]
1 ) How many nuclear reactors are currently in existence in Australia and what is the location of each. [More…]
Are there a number of sites under consideration for the location of a new nuclear reactor in Australia; if so, what are these sites. [More…]
-This Government has always made it clear that the responsibility for waste material from nuclear reactors is that of the country that produces the waste material. [More…]
Can the Minister for Foreign Affairs confirm reports that the Council of European Communities has approved a mandate to enable the negotiation of a nuclear safeguards agreement between Australia and Euratom? [More…]
What is the nature of the arrangements being negotiated between the Australian Government, the Western Australian Government and the Government of West Germany concerning the dumping of nuclear waste in Western Australia? [More…]
The Government would not adopt a policy of allowing nuclear waste from overseas to be dumped in this country. [More…]
Nuclear Reactor at Lucas Heights (Question No. [More…]
Has his Depanment any plans to provide a re-fuelling depot for nuclear powered ships at Jervis Bay, ACT, or at any New South Wales port or naval facility; if so, when will a full report be given to Parliament. [More…]
During the life of the Parliament the Australian Atomic Energy Commission will begin construction of a nuclear power station in Commonwealth Territory at Jervis Bay. [More…]
References dealing with dam construction, eradication of brucellosis and tuberculosis in cattle; forestry development, the Australian Atomic Energy Commission’s proposed nuclear power station, research into wild life and marine science are all relevant to the degradation of our environment. [More…]
the strategic nuclear forces) which would subject them to the performance of actions contrary to deeply held moral convictions about indiscriminate killing. [More…]
He referred to the rise of Communist China as a nuclear power and to the growth and development of various countries of the region in which we live. [More…]
The second and even more notable omission, and possibly one of the most serious that has yet to be discussed in this House, was the failure to make any reference to the terms and reservations of Australia’s adherence to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. [More…]
It is only a few weeks since the Prime Minister (Mr Gorton) was literally dragged spitting and snarling into a most grudging and reluctant admission that Australia, with stringent reservations, would actually go through the preliminary procedure of signing the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty. [More…]
If we want to know what this Government is really up to we can have a look at the specifications in the letter of invitation which was circulated last December by the Australian Atomic Energy Commission to ten countries that are capable of producing nuclear reactors. [More…]
This Government has deliberately chosen a type of nuclear reactor that will enable it to avoid and circumvent the provisions of the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty. [More…]
If Australia accedes to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty it will be cut off from the supplies of enriched uranium which arc the normal supplies being used by every advanced country in the world today. [More…]
It was very interesting to note that when a nuclear reactor was mooted the then Minister for National Development made a beeline for France. [More…]
No doubt the Minister has seen reports that the French Government plans to resume the testing of nuclear weapons in the atmosphere at its test site near Tahiti in the near future. [More…]
Recently the Australian Government was advised that the French Government had decided to continue nuclear tests in the Pacific area close to Tahiti. [More…]
Firstly we think it is unfortunate that when considerable thought is still being given to a comprehensive nuclear test ban the partial nuclear test ban treaty should be defied. [More…]
We regard it as a fundamental step towards outlawing the use of nuclear weapons completely and as a basic step towards total disarmament, if they can ever be achieved practically. [More…]
In short, all too often this nation does the wrong thing or, more frequently, we lose the credit for doing the right thing by doing it grudgingly and gracelessly - most notably in Vietnam, but in all those other matters which the Minister mentioned but chose not to discuss, namely, the problems of southern Africa, the South Pacific, such developments in disarmament as the nuclear non-proliferation treaty, and the proposal for better control of chemical and bacteriological warfare. [More…]
The Minister for External Affairs avoided discussion of Australia’s attitude to the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty and the control of chemical and bacteriological warfare. [More…]
The second point of the Guam Doctrine - America’s nuclear guarantee to friends and allies - makes sense only in the context of the Treaty. [More…]
Our record on these 3 matters - Rhodesia, the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty and chemical and bacteriological warfare - has a common denominator. [More…]
Nuclear Weapons. [More…]
I have heard a very eminent scientist recommend that if a country wanted eventually to become a nuclear power the first thing it should do is to sign and to ratify the Treaty. [More…]
It will be able, under inspection, to build up supplies of plutonium, and if and when it desires to become a nuclear power all it has to do is pull out of the Treaty and within a matter of months it can become a nuclear power. [More…]
It is of interest to note that the support which has brought the Treaty into operation has come from those countries which have no possibility or feasibility in the near future, or even in the fairly distant future, of becoming a nuclear power. [More…]
They are both nuclear powers but they will not sign or ratify the Treaty. [More…]
Surely before we press ahead with committing ourselves - and we could commit ourselves irrevocably on this matter - we ought to determine what support the Treaty will get, and whether it will reduce proliferation or whether it will be like the nuclear test ban, during the operation of which we discovered that 2 new countries had become nuclear powers. [More…]
As the French nuclear tests in the South Pacific are an act of aggression against all people in this area, will the Government take steps to prevent the French Government from obtaining any assistance whatsoever from Australian sources by excluding French ships from Australian ports and French airlines from Australian air space during the preparation for and the execution of that operation? [More…]
The equilibrium has been set under the nuclear umbrella, as President Kennedy said very clearly. [More…]
He says that amongst other effects it has been found to cause an increased mortality of children during the first year of life, and to be so sensitive that it already has resulted in the death of 400,000 children in the United States alone as a result of the nuclear weapons tests which were carried out between 1945 and 1962. [More…]
Professor Sternglass has predicted that the employment of anti-ballistic missiles by the United States, even if successful against an enemy’s nuclear attack, would result in the death of all children. [More…]
I believe that as a result of this research by Professor Sternglass we must have another look at ourselves to see whether we are using all the influence we can in the forums of the world to persuade the nuclear powers to dump all their nuclear weapons in the ocean or in a place where they cannot harm any human being. [More…]
We have to reconsider the peaceful uses of nuclear weapons in the face of the research conducted by Professor Sternglass if it is proved to be correct. [More…]
Whilst Australia can take some comfort from the Nixon doctrine reaffirming that the United States will honour its treaty commitments and will provide a shield against nuclear threat, Australia cannot escape its own responsibilities and efforts to ensure a peaceful progress in South East Asia and the Pacific. [More…]
The one weapon in relation to which the Western world is most at a disadvantage is the nuclear armed and nuclear powered submarine. [More…]
A submarine can stand out to sea a few miles and send an atomic, nuclear or hydrogen rocket into such cities. [More…]
The theory is that if anybody decides to knock it out by a nuclear attack on Australia the United States will counter with a nuclear atttack on our behalf. [More…]
De Gaulle asked the simple question: ‘If a nuclear attack is made on France will the United States on behalf of France make a nuclear attack on the other power - the Soviet Union, shall we say?’ [More…]
His answer was no, because that in turn would provoke a nuclear attack on the United States. [More…]
In war it would be a very good propagandist action to knock out with nuclear weapons every thing in Australia that relates to American nuclear controls. [More…]
The attacker would not then have reached the point of no return where he was provoking an uncontrollable war because it is extremely unlikely that the United States would regard this as the casus belli for the exercise of nuclear weapons. [More…]
In an age of technology when, in our external relations, particularly through the United Nations and its agencies, we have to deal with matters such as nuclear weapons, the development of the sea bed and so forth, there is obviously a place for technologists with the highest qualifications. [More…]
Is it a fact that both these papers related to the environmental effects of the proposed nuclear power station at Jervis Bay? [More…]
Was the first paper on the agenda of the recent symposium of the Ecological Society of Australia and was it entitled ‘Ecological Factors in the Siting, Design and Operation of a Nuclear Power Station’? [More…]
I would like to make clear the second point that was referred to and which was brought out in the Press reports, that is, that this particular paper was to refer to the establishment of the nuclear power station at Jervis Bay. [More…]
This is entirely incorrect, because at this point of time we do not know the type of nuclear power plant that will be installed. [More…]
However, the paper referred to by the honourable member dealt in a general sense with the effect of effluent from a nuclear power station on the ecology of the country. [More…]
I understand that the matter of off-shore minerals was not mentioned and the main discussions which took place revolved around nuclear energy and power stations. [More…]
1 ask the Minister for National Development whether it is a fact that the first nuclear power station in Australia is estimated to cost approximately $l30m. [More…]
It is a fact that approval has been given in principle for the construction of a nuclear power station which will be designed to feed electricity into the New South Wales grid. [More…]
I refer the Minister for External Affairs to the nuclear tests being held in French Polynesia and ask: Have French ships and aircraft carrying supplies for the- tests used Australian ports or facilities? [More…]
overflight facilities were concerned the Australian Government had informed the French Government that it would not permit its territory or space over its territory to be used by aircraft that might be proceeding on these nuclear test activities. [More…]
What investigations have been made by his Department or any other appropriate authority into the effects on’ the environmental ecology of the proposed nuclear reactor at Jervis Bay? [More…]
I can assure the House categorically that every precaution is naturally taken in relation to the installation of nuclear plants. [More…]
This is not the first nuclear reactor for the provision of power that has been or will be installed throughout the world. [More…]
In fact Australia, as a developed country, is one of the last to move into the field of power generation by the use of nuclear reactors. [More…]
In addition to this, Mr Speaker, we have had for quite some years now a research reactor at Lucas Heights in Sydney and this has given us vast experience in respect of the safety precautions that arc necessary with nuclear reactors. [More…]
A considerable amount of work has been done by the Commission, assisted by outside bodies, in this field and it is my intention, Mr Speaker, to seek leave at a later stage to make a statement when the contract is being let in relation to the establishment of the nuclear power station at Jervis Bay. [More…]
When this statement is made - I hope this will be before, the end of this year or at the latest early in 1971 - it will cover, all aspects, not only of the type of power plant that will be .installedthe type of nuclear reactor that will be installed - but the policy governing operation and all other technical matters which would include the results of the studies in relation to the ecology in the district. [More…]
Has the Minister’s attention been drawn to the report that traces of radioactive fallout from the French Government’s recent nuclear tests have now appeared in New Zealand? [More…]
Will the Minister restate to the French Government our protest and our complete opposition to the continuance of nuclear tests in our part of the world? [More…]
The Commonwealth Government officially protested to the French Government and asked it not to continue the nuclear tests or even, to commence the nuclear tests in the Pacific of recent weeks. [More…]
not seen the comment made by the professor about the relationship between nuciear explosions and earthquakes, nor have I seen any report at all about nuclear fallout in New Zealand. [More…]
We are almost in the age when we will have our own nuclear power stations. [More…]
According to Sir Philip Baxter, something like 3500m is to be spent on nuclear power stations before the end of this century, but the Corporation will not be allowed to act as a constructing authority in Australia. [More…]
1 ask the Minister for National Development: Do the tender documents for the nuclear power station at Jervis Bay contain reactor sm;ig criteria? [More…]
Was a cost-benefit analysis made of the proposed nuclear power station at Jervis Bay; if so, will be table the report in Parliament. [More…]
(2) Beforea decision was taken, the Government considered an analysis of the likely costs and benefits arising from the construction of a nuclear power station at Jervis Bay. [More…]
however, it will be necessary to revise this analysis when tenders for the Nuclear Steam Supply System have been received and assessed by the Atomic Energy Commission and its consultants. [More…]
The initial analysis was prepared by the Commission on the basis of a continuing study of the developing costs of nuclear power throughout the world and the translation of this data to Australian conditions. [More…]
The costs of electric power, conventional or nuclear depend upon many factors such as the type of station, its location, its capital cost, whether it will meet base load or peak demands, whether it is a single or multi unit station; upon its fuel costs, interest rates, penalties to be met for the avoidance of pollution and other factors. [More…]
The impact of these factors is different for conventional and for nuclear stations and therefore a simple comparison of the Jervis Bay Station with a conventional station is not possible. [More…]
The Commission’s general conclusion was that a first nuclear station, which would have great value in establishing this new technology in Australia and the opportunities for training and experience which this would provide, would deliver power at an acceptable cost. [More…]
However any cost disadvantage could be more than offset by other benefits, depending on the relative movement of certain costs, a nuclear stationshould show an economic advantage over a conventional station. [More…]
Nuclear power stations using natural or enriched uranium produce isotopes of plutonium during their operation. [More…]
How will the cost of electricity generated at the proposed nuclear power station at Jervis Bay compare with the cost of electricity from conventional power stations. [More…]
When will the generation of electricity by nuclear power be an economical proposition for Australia. [More…]
Given that no major changes occur in the trends of costs of both conventional and nuclear stations the short answer is that nuclear stations will be economical when the electricity systems in the respective States are large enough to absorb larger units; this is likely to be the case in some States in the mid-1980’s but will vary from State to State. [More…]
I should perhaps explain that electricity costs decrease with increasing plant size but the decreases are far more rapid with nuclear stations. [More…]
It is not, however, feasible to integrate in the State systems at present, nuclear plants whose size would otherwise make them economic, as, for technical reasons, it is inadvisable for any unit to be larger than about 10% of the size of the total system. [More…]
What are the main reasons for the decision to build a nuclear power station in Australia. [More…]
Does South Australia have the need and a suitable site for a nuclear reactor. [More…]
To gain experience in contracting for, constructing commissioning and operating nuclear stations. [More…]
To assist in establishing a nuclear industrial potential which will be at the exacting standards required in the nuclear industry. [More…]
These problems need to be resolved in advance of the time when States become actively engaged in nuclear developments of their own. [More…]
As South Australia prospectively has relatively high fuel costs, it will no doubt be attracted to nuclear power in due course. [More…]
However, the States electrical system is at present too small to accept the size of a unit at which nuclear costs are competitive; thus it has no present need for a reactor. [More…]
In view of some recent apparently incorrect public statements, will he indicate the number of public references or displays which have been made or arranged during recent times in Australia on the subject of industrial nuclear power. [More…]
Recently the emphasis has mainly been on nuclear power, and a large exhibition explaining power reactor systems, engineering and economic aspects of nuclear power, and fuel development, is being shown at the Sydney Town Hall. [More…]
The Commission endeavours to meet all requests for speakers; in the past year over 30 addresses dealing with nuclear power have been given to community organisations, clubs and professional groups, and others are scheduled. [More…]
The Commission has held four exhibitions dealing with nuclear power in NSW, Canberra and Victoria, and it has equipped a mobile caravan dealing with Jervis Bay, which will shortly be making a tour of the Nowra area. [More…]
From time to time individual correspondents have called at the Commission’s Head Office on nuclear power, and telephone enquiries are answered every day. [More…]
Will he make available the reports on the (a) (i) geological, (ii) hydrological, (iii) hydrographical, (iv) meteorological, (v) ecological and (vi) environmental investigations carried out at each of the sites considered for the building of a nuclear power station, and (b) ability of each site to dispose of the radioactive and thermal waste from the proposed reactor. [More…]
Is the site chosen at Jervis Bay for the nuclear power station situated in one of the few remaining virgin areas in the region. [More…]
The area at Murray’s Beach, Jervis Bay, proposed for the site of the nuclear power station is a part of one of the undeveloped areas in the Jervis Bay region. [More…]
Will the discharge of heated waste from the proposed nuclear reactor at Jervis Bay be made into the open waters of the ocean. [More…]
Fast breederreactors are not yet a commercial proposition but a large effort is being directed towards their development in most of the countries with advanced nuclear programmes. [More…]
Has he any information as to whether privately-owned and operated industry in remote areas of Australia is interested in the purchase, construction and operation of nuclear power stations. [More…]
The Government is not aware of any plans of private industry to construct and operate nuclear power stations in remote areas in Australia. [More…]
Nuclear generating plant is owned by private enterprise in other countries and there would appear to be no reason in principle why this should not be permitted in Australia. [More…]
in respect of safety, insurance against nuclear damage and, in the Commonwealth’s case, of satisfying our international obligations, especially as to ‘Safeguards’ on the use of fissionable material. [More…]
Will an adequate supply of plutonium be necessary to operate nuclear reactors for power generation when fast breeder reactors become commercially feasible. [More…]
It is not possible at this time to say for certain that adequate supplies of plutonium would then be available but those countries which have built thermal nuclear power reactors will have had the opportunity to accumulate plutonium for these purposes. [More…]
Japan, like a number of other countries such as the United Kingdom and France, has a large thermal nuclear power reactor programme and is actively engaged in fast breeder reactor development. [More…]
Has a decision been made that gas-cooled reactors are unsuited to the present nuclear power needs of Australia; if so, why. [More…]
However when ail potential tenderers for nuclear power stations were invited in December 1969 to register as tenderers it was ascertained that none of them were interested in submitting a tender based on a gas cooled reactor; therefore there has been no occasion to consider the suitability of these reactors for Australian needs. [More…]
We have built this telescope and we are building a nuclear reactor at Jervis Bay. [More…]
In view of recent criticism regarding the advisability of Australia’s building a nuclear power station will the Minister outline the industrial benefits in addition to the generation of electricity which he sees accruing to the Australian people from the erection and operation of the proposed nuclear power station? [More…]
Will he also say why Jervis Bay was selected as the site for our first nuclear power station? [More…]
The honourable member has asked how Jervis Bay came to be selected as the site for our first nuclear power station. [More…]
Some years ago the Government, reviewing power requirements for the future, decided that there would be a requirement to supplement the present means of power generation by nuclear power. [More…]
A decision was made in 1968 to investigate the desirability of the Commonwealth’s constructing Australia’s first nuclear power station. [More…]
My predecessor, the honourable member for Farrer, visited all States early in 1969 and discussed the matter at length with representatives of the States with a view to seeing whether the States were interested in joining the Commonwealth in construction of a nuclear power station, the Commonwealth to take over the capital cost. [More…]
The second point on this very important subject is the question of benefits that will flow to Australia from the erection of its first nuclear power station. [More…]
I understand also that other States will be interested in training personnel at this first nuclear power station which is being provided by the Commonwealth with Commonwealth capital in conjunction with an agreement with the Government of New South Wales. [More…]
By then mainland China could well have a nuclear capacity to destroy the world. [More…]
The topic I wish to discuss concerns Australia’s use of nuclear power. [More…]
An amount of $2.4 m is provided for expenditure by the Australian Atomic Energy Commission in connection with the proposed nuclear power station at Jervis Bay. [More…]
The nuclear reactor to be constructed at Jervis Bay is to be the first in Australia. [More…]
This range of expenditure cannot be regarded lightly, but the Minister for National Development (Mr Swartz) is most reluctant to give detailed information on the choice of the site, the investigations carried out, the safety standards laid down, the comparative cost of nuclear generated electricity and thermal generated electricity and many other factors which should be taken into account before a decision of this magnitude is made. [More…]
Before doing this, I make it quite clear that I am not opposed to Australia using nuclear power. [More…]
The decision to construct Australia’s first nuclear reactor was announced by the Prime Minister (Mr Gorton) in October 1969. [More…]
How will the cost of electricity generated at the proposed nuclear power station at Jervis Bay compare with the cost of electricity from conventional powered stations? [More…]
When will the generation of electricity by nuclear power be an economical proposition for Australia? [More…]
Given that no major changes occur in the trends of costs of both conventional and nuclear stations the short answer is that nuclear stations will be economical when the electricity systems in the respective States are large enough to absorb larger units; this is likely to be the case in some States in the mid-1980s but will vary from State to State. [More…]
Tenders for the Jervis Bay nuclear power station closed on 15th June 1970. [More…]
Australia is entering on to a project that is likely to cost $5,000m before the year 2000 and contracts are being evaluated, yet the Minister cannot give me specific information on comparative costs between nuclear power stations and conventional power stations. [More…]
His paper is entitled ‘Costs of Nuclear Power Stations and Coal-Fired Power Stations in New South Wales’. [More…]
Mr Ross has to rely on estimated figures for the cost of operating a nuclear power station, but in all instances he has taken a conservative figure. [More…]
There is probably a good deal of logic, however, in constructing a nuclear power station in Australia to enable local scientists and technicians to obtain familiarity with nuclear techniques. [More…]
It is significant that no other country has commenced the nuclear generation of electricity with a station as large as that planned for Jervis Bay. [More…]
presumably, because this is the mimimum sized nuclear station which can compete economically with coal in most countries, (t has been demonstrated, however, such a station is not competitive in New South Wales. [More…]
Under these circumstances the economic criterion should not be the minimisation of unit costs of nuclear generation. [More…]
Using this criterion it is likely that the most economic way of introducing nuclear power to Australia would be to construct a smaller nuclear power station in a State with higher conventional generating costs than New South Wales. [More…]
There is one further point that I want to make on the subject of costs, and it is that the Commonwealth is to provide power from the nuclear reactor to New South Wales at no more than the cost of thermal generated power. [More…]
I have no doubt that when nuclear reactors are installed in the other States the Commonwealth will have to subsidise electricity wherever costs are higher than in thermal generated units. [More…]
The estimate is that most States will be capable of taking nuclear power by the mid-1980s. [More…]
In an official document that I have there is mention of the selection of the site at Jervis Bay for the nuclear power station. [More…]
Sir Philip Baxter estimates that S5,000m will be spent on nuclear work before the year 2000. [More…]
There has been much criticism of nuclear power itself and much doubt about safety standards and about whether Jervis Bay is the correct site for a nuclear power station. [More…]
I have read articles suggesting that our first nuclear power station should be built in South Australia and should be a combined generating and desalination plant. [More…]
It states that while the reactors we are looking at now will use natural uranium, certain countries which have used such reactors have now made a change and will not use natural uranium in their nuclear reactors in the future. [More…]
I suggest to the Minister that consideration be given to referring either to a select committee of this Parliament or a standing committee of the Senate the consideration of such matters as the comparative cost of nuclear and thermal stations, the siting of the power stations, the relation of the first station to planning for the future power needs of Australia, constitutional limitations on the utilisation of nuclear power, the environmental effects of nuclear power stations and Australia’s preparedness for the advent of nuclear technology. [More…]
Establishment of a nuclear power station is a very big project; it is a project new to Australia; it is a project that not many other countries in the world have undertaken. [More…]
I am in favour of the introduction of nuclear generated power into Australia and I would say that most members of the Australian Labor Party are in favour of it. [More…]
The main sources of this energy will remain petroleum products and coal, but with the introduction of nuclear power as a supplement, discoveries of crude oil and extensive deposits of low-cost coal, Australia is better equipped than ever to face the challenges presented by this demand. [More…]
That is the question of the development of the nuclear power station at Jervis Bay. [More…]
The Government, through the Australian Atomic Energy Commission, has kept a close watch on the world development of nuclear power. [More…]
In 1975 it is expected that 1 28,000 mega watts of nuclear power will be derived from 283 reactors in 21 countries. [More…]
Australia has come late to the use of nuclear power, mainly because we have substantial resources of low cost coal, and also because the small size of our generation systems did not allow us to take advantage of the low cost of nuclear power produced in large units. [More…]
This situation is, however, changing and studies made in 1969 suggested that nuclear power could be an important and economical supplement to our other sources of power in the later 1970’s and thereafter. [More…]
The break into such a new technology is not easy and the Government felt that, since Australian expertise in nuclear energy was largely confined to the Australian Atomic Energy Commission, there might be a case for the first step to be taken by the [More…]
Early in 1969 the Commonwealth consulted the States on their plans for the introduction of nuclear power and as a result concluded that it should co-operate with New South Wales in constructing a large power station with an output comparable to the needs of Canberra in the late seventies. [More…]
A station of about SOO megawatts was envisaged because the cost of electricity from a nuclear station decreases sharply as size increases. [More…]
The other is the ability of the State gen.erating system to accept the size of nuclear station selected. [More…]
Other States, although not able to accept such large units now, may anticipate being able to do so, by the early 1980s, lt has been suggested that Australia’s first nuclear power station should have been coupled to a large desalination plant located in an area of water scarcity, such as South Australia. [More…]
In deciding to introduce nuclear power the Government has been aware of the outstanding safety record of the nuclear power industry in other countries. [More…]
From years of experience, authorities overseas have established criteria for the siting and safe operation of nuclear power stations and the best of these have been adopted for Jervis Bay. [More…]
The most stringent safety requirements for the nuclear steam supply system have been detailed in the tender documents. [More…]
A large exhibition dealing with nuclear power was presented at the Sydney Town Hall in June 1970 and in Canberra in September 1969. [More…]
that Canadian nuclear power experts are claiming that the only tender for the nuclear power station at Jervis Bay which can be costed accurately is the tender submitted by Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd for a CANDU type reactor using natural uranium? [More…]
First of all, at this stage no tenderers can be confident that they will be successful in gaining the contract for the nuclear power station at Jervis Bay. [More…]
Yet the probability of world war between major powers has receded because of the deterrent of the nuclear equilibrium and I believe can arise only by miscalculation or accident. [More…]
That country has a standing army of 3,000,000 men - about 150 divisions - and 2,500 aircraft, a greatly expanding military capacity in socalled conventional and nuclear weapons, with ICBM’s by 1972, soon sufficient to threaten major powers. [More…]
We do not yet know the effect of this growing nuclear capacity on her political and military intentions, and the effect on the policies of other states in the region, including India, Japan, Pakistan, Thailand and Indonesia, but we do know that, for some purposes, it is making big military efforts its people can ill-afford. [More…]
China’s possession of nuclear weapons, especially ICBM’s, can only add to a sense of instability in the region and in the world. [More…]
For instance, even India, and consequently Pakistan, must consider going nuclear. [More…]
The Australian Labor Party offered the implausible nuclear-free zone as policy and criticised President Kennedy’s stand against the attempt of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics to put missiles on Cuba. [More…]
There has not been one sincere word from the Government about this Department so far as the construction of a nuclear power station is concerned. [More…]
We had a discussion in our Party Executive - I hope I am not breaching any confidences about what took place there - about the provision or otherwise of a nuclear power system in Australia. [More…]
We have been told that if the proposal to build a nuclear power station is implemented it will cost something like $5,000m. [More…]
Does it surprise honourable members to know that in its investigations the committee referred to what were the peaceful nuclear aims for Australia, yet the Government, as I said earlier this afternoon, is spending a tremendous amount of money, without debate as yet in this place, on a nuclear power station. [More…]
For it is true - and this I apprehend is the real force of the views of the honourable member for Wills (Mr Bryant) - that if the stakes were so vital in Vietnam that we were prepared to destroy that country, ready to risk nuclear war for it and tear our own communities apart rather than allow National Liberation Front participation in the government of Vietnam, then Cambodia was no less important. [More…]
In view of the importance of a national energy policy to Australia and having regard to the huge cost involved in the introduction of nuclear power into this nation will he refer this subject to a select committee of the House for investigation and report? [More…]
In view of the answer he just gave to the honourable member for Macquarie, I ask: Do a number of questions relating to the introduction- of nuclear power in Australia appear on the notice papers of this House and of the Senate? [More…]
What is the reason for the delay in answering them when it is reasonable to assume that all the information sought would and should have been available to the Australian Atomic Energy Commission and the Government prior to the decision to build a nuclear power station at Jervis Bay? [More…]
Is the Minister aware that the United States Atomic Energy Commission, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the International Atomic Energy Agency, the European Nuclear Energy Agency and many other governmental and non-governmental bodies periodically publish figures on estimated unit costs for the production of electricity for projected nuclear power stations? [More…]
The position in Australia, of course, is a little different from that in the countries that the honourable gentleman mentioned in that Australia does not yet have a nuclear power station and so we cannot yet maintain records or publish any data. [More…]
I can assure the honourable member that when a decision is made - and I hope it will be made before the end of this year - on the contract for our first nuclear power station and the type of station is known we will be in a position to indicate finally the capital cost involved and we will also have available to us data from countries operating stations of that type. [More…]
Is it true that the radio active wastes produced from a natural uranium nuclear reactor pose a far greater disposal problem than the waste produced from an enriched uranium reactor? [More…]
Bearing these factors in mind, and also the fact that nuclear wastes must be stored for 1,000 years, why did the tender specifications for the Jervis Bay project express a preference for a reactor type using natural uranium fuel which, of course, loads the specifications in favour of the Canadian tenderer? [More…]
Has he or the Government considered that Committee’s recommendation for constitutional amendments to empower the Commonwealth Parliament to make laws with respect to, firstly, the manufacture of nuclear fuels and the generation and use of nuclear energy and, secondly, ionising fuels? [More…]
Has the Government made its decision to construct the nuclear power station in the Australian Capital Territory at Jervis Bay on the basis of its having totality of constitutional power in that Territory? [More…]
Finally, will the Minister inform the House how the Government intends to control the introduction of nuclear power into the various States and particularly as to final waste disposal areas both for the Jervis Bay and other possible future stations? [More…]
The decision to build a nuclear power station in Australia was taken after consultation with all the States. [More…]
My predecessor, the honourable member for Farrer, spent some considerable time in discussions with the various States regarding the proposal at this point of time for the introduction of nuclear power as a supplement to existing power systems in Australia. [More…]
It was found as a result of those discussions that the New South Wales grid was the only one that could accept 500 megawatts, which is the proven minimum economic size for a nuclear power station these days. [More…]
Other States have indicated their interest in nuclear power. [More…]
Do they want a nuclear free southern hemisphere? [More…]
It is reliably reported that the Soviet Indian Ocean squadron averages about 14 warships, including at least 1 nuclear submarine. [More…]
Looking to the future, I say that the time must surely come when Australia will consider a nuclear as well as a conventional armament capacity. [More…]
If it is in terms of a nuclear capacity, we have the additional advantage of a second strike capability. [More…]
The security of the whole of South East Asia would be reinforced against a nuclear China if Australia and her allies possessed a similar capacity operating from Cocos Island. [More…]
I found rather interesting - I hope I did not misinterpret what he said - his statement that 40 warships and 1 nuclear submarine were involved. [More…]
With Australia on the threshold of entering the field of nuclear power and in the light of the recent discovery of high grade uranium ore at the Nabarlek prospect in the Northern Territory, the time is opportune, I believe, for the Government to adopt a standard policy for the exploration and utilisation of our uranium deposits. [More…]
Sir Phillip Baxter, the Chairman of the Australian Atomic Energy Commission, is reported to have already discussed the Nabarlek find with representatives of the Japanese Science Technology Agency who no doubt see the Nabarlek strike as a reliable source for the massive uranium needs of Japan’s nuclear power programme. [More…]
For example, the Nabarlek find would give Australia a nuclear fuel supply for only 25 power stations the size of the Jervis Bay project for a period of only 30 years. [More…]
Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty it will be seen that for years the Department of External Affairs stalled on the signing of the Treaty. [More…]
I have no doubt that those forces within the Cabinet that have the Sir Philip Baxter mentality applied pressure because of their fear that they might be sold down the drain by signing the Treaty and would not get the development that they wanted; that they would not be able to create first of all their own atomic weapon and later their own nuclear weapon. [More…]
In a short period of time Japan as a nation could create its own nuclear weapons. [More…]
Japan has the technology to become one of the nuclear powers in a short period of time, and already we have too many fingers on the nuclear trigger. [More…]
They seem to consider that the geographical and political differences of today can be met by the same methods as were tried in those years, and even on nuclear bombs- [More…]
Is his Government’s refusal to ratify the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons a prime impediment to the acquisition of such technology? [More…]
How does he justify his insistence on the use of natural uranium in an obsolescent process for the proposed nuclear reactor at Jervis Bay and the slanting of specifications accordingly? [More…]
He has to put his pride in his pocket and ratify the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
the strategic nuclear forces) which would subject them to the performance of actions contrary to deeply held moral convictions about indiscriminate killing. [More…]
Will he provide details of the agreement which has been reached between the Commonwealth and the Government of New South Wales covering the proposed nuclear power station at Jervis Bay. [More…]
The basis of agreement between Governments of the Commonwealth and New South Wales for the construction and operation of a nuclear power station at Jervis Bay are as follows: [More…]
that the management of the station complies with the standards and procedures approved by the Australian Atomic Energy Commission in relation to nuclear health and safety, the release of radioactivity into the environment, and such other matters as related to the safe operation of nuclear facilities at the station; [More…]
that there is compliance with such controls as may be necessary to give effect to Commonwealth obligations including those arising from international safeguards and Australia’s adherence to any international conventions or agreements on nuclear energy and [More…]
The Station Superintendent and staff will be provided by the Electricity Commission but all appointments of personnel normally subject to nuclear licensing requirements will be subject to the approval of the Australian Atomic Energy Commission in respect of their qualifications and competence. [More…]
Having in mind proposals for the erection of a nuclear power station on Commonwealth territory and, in that connection, the need to examine the efficiency or otherwise of this scourse of energy, I move: [More…]
That the proposed expenditure be reduced by $10 as an instruction to the Government that a select committee of this House should be appointed to inquire into and report on the uses of nuclear power in relation to - [More…]
the effects of the establishment of a nuclear power station upon the environment; [More…]
the desirability of establishing a nuclear power station at this time pending the outcome of further technological developments taking place elsewhere. [More…]
An announcement was made in the Budget Speech that this year there would be an allocation of $2.4m for expenditure on the proposed nuclear power station at Jervis Bay and that more money would be made available if required. [More…]
The Opposition is far from satisfied that full and proper consideration was given to the decision before it was announced to build the nuclear power station at Jervis Bay. [More…]
To allay any doubts that the Australian Labor Party is opposed to the introduction of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes I propose to state Labor’s policy in this respect. [More…]
Civil application of nuclear energy will play a significant role in Australia’s development through electricity generation, desalinaton and in some civil engineering applications. [More…]
Despite the expenditure of over $150m on the Australian Atomic Energy Commission, Australia is still not properly prepared for the advent of nuclear technology, and is lagging behind other developed countries in its adoption. [More…]
The establishment of an undergraduate course in nuclear technology iri an Australian university. [More…]
Stimulation of the growth of nuclear technology in Australia, particularly by early Commonwealth initiative to establish a nuclear power station. [More…]
Investigation of the application of nuclear energy to desalination. [More…]
No application of nuclear explosives to civil engineering except under the strictest surveillance and after exhaustive surveys have demonstrated that no untoward ecological damage will ensue. [More…]
Australia’s adherence to the nuclear weapons non-proliferation treaty, on the understanding that this will not hamper the growth of civil nuclear technology in Australia. [More…]
It will be seen that it is the Labor Party’s intention to encourage the development of nuclear technology in Australia, but we certainly do not want to be sold a pig in a poke for over $ 13.0m for our first power station. [More…]
Our amendment queries whether sufficient consideration has been given to the integrated power needs of the Commonwealth, the economics of nuclear power, the environmental effects, the safety standards for nuclear power stations and the timing of the establishment of our first nuclear station. [More…]
Were any other sites besides Jervis Bay considered for the building of Australia’s first nuclear power station? [More…]
1191 regarding studies made on ecological and environmental factors at the sites considered for a nuclear power station, the Minister replied: [More…]
Nobody in the community seems to be able to obtain any detailed information on very important factors surrounding the introduction of Australia’s first nuclear power station. [More…]
1109 the Minister referred to a paper by Messrs Davy, Giles and Charish entitled ‘Ecological Factors in the Siting, Design and Operation of a Nuclear Power Station’ and said: [More…]
I hope I have shown that the Parliament has been treated with scant consideration in its endeavours to obtain factual information on the establishment of the first nuclear power station at Jervis Bay. [More…]
The first nuclear power station was estimated to cost SI 30m when the announcement was made; but now there is silence on the amount that it will cost. [More…]
The Chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission has indicated that by the turn of the century in the vicinity of $5,00On will have been spent on nuclear power stations throughout Australia. [More…]
There is the question of the efficiency of nuclear power at the moment. [More…]
Technologies are being developed throughout the world Which, perhaps, will outdate our first nuclear power station almost before it is in operation. [More…]
1 am convinced that risks are being taken in the establishment of our first nuclear power station at Jervis Bay. [More…]
After all, a blind man could see that the first nuclear power station in this country would not be set up for the prime purpose of producing the cheapest power of all time. [More…]
In any case, I wish to leave the rest of that for the Minister for National Development (Mr Swartz), who is at the table, because he is more knowledgeable about this matter of our nuclear development than I am. [More…]
This Government’s policy to thrust Australia into the nuclear power race has been accomplished with sheer political arrogance and a complete contempt for public participation. [More…]
We are being asked to endorse a heavy appropriation of some $130m to construct a nuclear power station at Jervis Bay, and it is estimated .that some $5,000m will be spent on nuclear power over the next 30 years. [More…]
This Government arbitrarily decided to construct the nuclear power plant. [More…]
Is the proposed nuclear power station to be economic? [More…]
Had New South Wales been left to its own devices it would not have entertained the building of a nuclear power station at least until the 1980s. [More…]
Installation of nuclear rather than oil or gas plant before 1978-80 would involve about twice the capital investment and would be competing for baseload operation with the low cost of extra output from established but loaded Latrobe Valley stations, and unless heavily subsidised would not be economical. [More…]
In effect, whatever region of the Commonwealth is selected for nuclear power, in terms of power it will require a heavy Commonwealth subsidy and will be uneconomic. [More…]
Dr Alvin Weinberg of Oak Ridge National Laboratory in the United States of America predicted in a recent article in Nature’ that even with present technology nuclear power could be used to produce pure water from sea water at a cost of between 9c and 18c Australian for 1,000 gallons. [More…]
The nuclear power station will be in an area where the average rainfall each year is between 35 inches and 40 inches, lt is certainly not an arid zone. [More…]
I am not against Australia’s entering the field of nuclear power, but I strongly condemn the combined Government and AAEC ludicrous facade of secrecy by which the Government gags its own expertise by way of the iniquitous provisions of the Crimes Act, the Atomic Energy Act and the Commonwealth Public Service Act. [More…]
I deal now with the subject of uranium in relation to Australia’s future nuclear power needs and to the selection of the reactor type for the Jervis Bay installation. [More…]
The advantages are these: Firstly, national uranium fuel independence from overseas supplies; secondly, high plutonium production which can atd either a nuclear bomb project or the installation of fast breeder reactors; thirdly, partly proven design; fourthly, low fuel inventory and replacement, allowing a small interest burden on stockpiles if overseas fuel is used; fifthly, it is not necessary to reprocess fuel elements to extract unused uranium 235 to achieve good fuel economy. [More…]
I have a sneaking suspicion that with the nonratification of the Treaty on the NonProliferation of Nuclear Weapons this Government could be considering keeping its options open for the construction of a nuclear weapon. [More…]
I do not think this Government has any right to select a reactor of the CANDU type for the purpose of producing nuclear weapons without a full debate in this Parliament on this very question.If we manufacture nuclear weapons in Australia we will commit ourselves to be targeted by nations such as Communist China, which has perfected delivery systems for its nuclear weapons, and Russia. [More…]
The production of nuclear weapons is something that is linked with the selection of the CANDU type reactor. [More…]
Anorher matter which needs to be considered is the prob lem of nuclear wastage. [More…]
Mr Davy on 17th December 1969, agreed to present to the symposium a paper entitled ‘Ecological Factors in the Siting, Design and Operation of a Nuclear Power Station at Jervis Bay. [More…]
The only paper prepared and submitted for approval was entitled ‘Ecological Factors in the Siting, Design and Operation of a Nuclear Power Station’. [More…]
The initial heavy water requirements for500 MW CANDU and SGHWR type nuclear stations are approximately 400 and 140 tons respectively. [More…]
If a decision is taken to install a reactor type which required heavy water the provision of the requirement of heavy water would be the responsibility of the supplier of the nuclear steam supply system. [More…]
Nuclear power (Question No. [More…]
Finally, is it possible with the Omega system to obtain extremely accurate navigation fixes for nuclear submarines capable of firing Polaris and Poseidon missiles? [More…]
Were any other sites besides Jervis Bay considered for building of Australia’s first nuclear power station. [More…]
A 500 MW unit was chosen as the costs of electricity from a nuclear plant: decrease rapidly with size; New South Wales was the only system which could conveniently accept this size. [More…]
What are the respective (a) advantages and (b) disadvantages to Ausatralia if (i) natural uranium or GO enriched uranium is adopted as the fuel for our nuclear power stations. [More…]
Under Australian conditions, the costs of nuclear power derived from natural uranium and enriched uranium may not be very different. [More…]
Australia has adequate resources of natural uranium to sustain a nuclear power programme. [More…]
Purchase of enrichment services overseas would cost a considerable amount of foreign exchange, and would make the nuclear power industry dependent upon the ability and willingness of foreign powers, at present only one, but in the future perhaps two or three, not only to continue to supply, but to do so at an acceptable cost. [More…]
United States of America as an urgent preliminary measure to declare a moratorium on further testing and deployment of new strategic nuclear weapons systems: if so, why. [More…]
Did Australia abstain from voting on United Nations resolution 2602C which seeks effective methods of control of nuclear weapons that maximise radio-active effects and asks the United Nations Committee for Disarmament to inform the General Assembly al the next session the results of consideration of this subject; if so, why. [More…]
Undoubtedly one of the major campaign announcements will be that the Government has let a contract for the construction of a nuclear reactor at Jervis Bay. [More…]
The next one, of course - the real winner and stunner - is to be the glad tidings of great joy with regard to the Jervis Bay nuclear reactor. [More…]
The project for the construction of this nuclear reactor was hawked around Australia well and truly by the nuclear hawks in the Government, lt was found of course that the smaller States of Australia could not accept any commitment to participate in the construction of a nuclear reactor with a 500 megawatt capacity. [More…]
We object to the reactor also on the grounds that the Government, because of its failure to ratify the Treaty on the NonProliferation of Nuclear Weapons, will be committed to the use of either natural uranium or slightly enriched uranium - in either case, Australia’s resources of what in the future will be the world’s most valuable element. [More…]
Of course, a further objection is that the choice of a reactor is limited by our refusal to sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
They are going to show the world that they can do without the advanced atomic technology which is available to any country which is participating fully, by ratification, in the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty. [More…]
The Government’s real objective is access to nuclear weapons. [More…]
Weapons grade plutonium is readily accessible by the use of either of the two reactors from which the Government will choose, and of course that plutonium will provide the dirtiest of the dirty bombs with a primitive nuclear technology. [More…]
The Government is back 20 years in its thinking and its attitude is enshrined in the archaic Atomic Energy Act which goes back to the early 1950s - an entirely different era when the United States and Russia were hugging to themselves the secrets of the construction of atomic weapons and also the secrets of nuclear power generation. [More…]
An atomic reactor at Murray’s Beach, Jervis Bay, is a sitting nuclear bomb ready to be exploded by enemy craft, not to mention the mishaps that can occur even in peaceful power generation. [More…]
That the proposed expenditure be reduced by SIO as an instruction to the Government that a select committee of this House should be appointed to inquire into and report on the uses of nuclear power in relation to- [More…]
the effects of the establishment of a nuclear power station upon the environment; [More…]
the desirability of establishing a nuclear power station at this time pending the outcome of further technological developments taking place elsewhere. [More…]
In addition, one of the questions that I posed to the Minister in this place some time ago was as to whether or not his Department or in fact the Government had concerned themselves in any way in the matter of what ought to be done in the national interest insofar as constitutional reform was concerned in the setting up of a nuclear power station. [More…]
The manufacture of nuclear fuels and the generation of nuclear energy; and [More…]
It is true that information has been revealed concerning nuclear power in Australia. [More…]
More recently Sir Phillip Baxter and others in public speeches have revealed some aspects of Australia’s nuclear development. [More…]
An example here is the paper by K. F. Adler, Commissioner and Director of Research Establishment of the United States Atomic Energy Commission and W. J. Wright of the Nuclear Development Division of the United States AEC, which was presented to the Annual Conference of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy earlier this year. [More…]
It was entitled ‘The requirements for manufacture of nuclear fuel in Australia’. [More…]
In the United States for instance the Congressional Joint Committee on Atomic Energy has overview of all aspects of nuclear power. [More…]
A few examples of ils Hearings are: ‘Prelicensing Antitrust Review of Nuclear Power Plants’- 696 pages 1969 and 1970; Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program’ - 312 pages 1970; and ‘Environmental Effects of Producing Electric Power’, two volumes the first containing 1108 pages in 1969. [More…]
The system regarding licencing of nuclear reactors in the United States is particularly interesting. [More…]
Over the last 2 years the Canadian Senate Science Policy Committee as part of its terms of reference has looked into the question of nuclear power. [More…]
Periodically, and prior to the start of its nuclear power programme, the British Government published white papers setting out its programme, the first being in 1955 - Command paper No. [More…]
In 1967 the House of Commons Select Committee on Science and Technology published a report on the nuclear power industry. [More…]
This committee has a sub-committee on nuclear power policy and another on exploitation of power reactors. [More…]
Most parliaments have a comprehensive standing committee system within which one committee will have the authority to examine nuclear power legislation, or policy problems or administration. [More…]
The United States AEC is in the position where it initiates proposals, gives advice on their acceptance, runs a nuclear power programme, sets radiation standards, monitors its own operations- [More…]
The honourable member for Cunningham (Mr Connor) in rather an unkind way referred to the Government’s intention to establish the first nuclear power plant at Jervis Bay. [More…]
I do not doubt, and I accept what the honourable member has in mind, that there will be other projects and I am pleased to see that he is sufficiently progressive to understand that there will be further developments in the nuclear field. [More…]
It was interesting to note that most of the honourable member’s speech was devoted to objections to this nuclear development, yet at the outset the honourable member for Lang (Mr Stewart), although he did oppose certain aspects of the proposal which we have under consideration, indicated that the Opposition agreed with this programme of nuclear development in Australia. [More…]
By comparison the policy of the Opposition appears to be one of stagnation and its action in relation to these estimates, when we are moving for the first time into the field of nuclear power, indicates again its particular approach. [More…]
The whole of the Opposition approach to nuclear power seems to be on the basis that it is something entirely new in the world. [More…]
He said also that a study should be made of the effects of nuclear power on the environment. [More…]
The last point I want to mention is the query which has been raised by several honourable members during this debate in relation to informing the public on nuclear developments. [More…]
We have been in the field of nuclear research but this is the first move towards the production of electricity by the use of a nuclear reactor. [More…]
Our submarines are conventional, slow, not nuclear engined, of defective cruising radius and coffins if confronted underseas with hunter killer submarines at least nine times as fast submerged. [More…]
If Australia wants a naval presence anywhere that means anything it must have a Navy nuclear engined and missile equipped; it must have submarines that are effective because they are nuclear powered; and it must look at its lamentably slow and weak patrol boats and replace them with vessels of at least the speed and hitting power of the Royal Navy’s Gay Bombardier class. [More…]
The Royal Australian Navy needs to be backed by an industry which can make nuclear engines, which can make a profusion of fast anti-submarine craft, which can make missiles and which can make aircraft. [More…]
These studies were prepared for the United Slates House Armed Services Committee to assess the military strength, especially in terms of nuclear capacity, between the 2 great powers. [More…]
Every Australian should know what most Americans now realise, that the United States nuclear superiority over the Soviet Union in 1961 has now been reversed. [More…]
J remind the House that, even in 1967, the American Security Council reported that the available evidence indicated that the Soviet Union had a goal of strategic superiority designed to win a nuclear war rather than merely deter one. [More…]
Once in a war-winning posture, the USSR would be ideally situated to practice nuclear blackmail and would not even have to fight a nuclear war. [More…]
They will not bother to unleash their nuclear weapons because they need human labor to sustain them and to build their expanding empire. [More…]
When one reflects that these things are happening in a nuclear age, one wonders at the capacity of these planners to think. [More…]
Now it has nuclear warheads. [More…]
Other honourable members know as well as I do that if that type of engagement commences it will be only a prelude to a world wide conflict with all the nuclear arms and their horrors. [More…]
Has any honourable member opposite ever thought of the fact that there is the equivalent of 10 million tons of TNT stored up in nuclear weapons for every man, woman and child on this earth today. [More…]
T remind the House that in this report there are valuable sections on navigation and shipping, aviation, scientific and industrial research, nuclear energy, posts and telegraphs and other like services including broadcasting, television and other telecommunication services, industrial relations, corporations, restrictive trade practices, marketing of primary products, economic powers and interstate road transport, all subjects of vital concern to any active, energetic government which is concerned to protect the people of its nation from unnecessary economic hardship. [More…]
Intensive investigation into desalination of sea and sub-surface water by solar and nuclear energy. [More…]
This would further our objective of attaining selfsufficiency in nuclear fuel. [More…]
On what grounds were the sites at Bristol Point and Scottish Inlet in the Jervis Bay area considered unsuitable for the construction of a nuclear power station. [More…]
As I had indicated to the House previously, of the 9 tenders that had been received originally for the erection of the nuclear power station at Jervis Bay, 5 had been eliminated and a concentrated evaluation was being carried out on the remaining four. [More…]
Alternate sites being suggested are the north west Cape or that general area because it is thought that having a naval base within the bounds qf the metropolitan area is an unnecessary invitation to treat the city area as a nuclear target in time of war. [More…]
If the Government was consistent in its belief in forward defence and in the maintenance of a strategic military force in Malaysia then there is a powerful argument for the setting up of this naval base at Cocos Island so that the great populace of Perth would never suffer in the event of a nuclear attack upon the base - and may we hope that this never occurs. [More…]
Is it not one of the arguments that if the population is concentrated too much in the cities it becomes too vulnerable to nuclear attack? [More…]
The Minister will- recall that some time ago the Atomic Energy Commission called tenders for a nuclear power station at Jervis Bay. [More…]
In view of the announced intention of the Prime Minister to curtail expenditure in the public sector of the economy, does the Government intend at this stage to continue with the construction of the costly and economically doubtful nuclear reactor at Jervis Bay? [More…]
In accordance with the previous intention of the Government, tenders were called for the construction of a nuclear power station at Jervis Bay. [More…]
Are former employees of the Australian Atomic Energy Commission restricted., legally or otherwise, from contributing to public discussion on nuclear power stations; if so, why. [More…]
The information could be acquired as a result of expensive research activities, in Australia or from atomic energy activities overseas in countries wilh which we have agreements for sharing nuclear knowledge. [More…]
Accordingly, persons are not prevented from discussing published information - on nuclear matters merely because they have, at one time, been Commission employees. [More…]
a nuclear power station, other than the site selected al Jervis Bay. [More…]
1191 (Hansard, 19th August 1970, page 252) infer that confidential studies of the environmental and ecological factors in the siting of the nuclear power station at Jervis Bay had been made. [More…]
Question 1191 which the honourable member in substance has repeated in Question 1560 asked if reports could bc made available on some six factors (2 of which were the environmental and ecological factors) in respect of each site considered for the proposed nuclear power station. [More…]
I would add that in relation to possible dangers from the release there will be a continuing monitoring after the nuclear power station has been completed so that any effect of the discharge on the environment will be kept under constant observation. [More…]
Was the Western Australian State Government approached when the site of the first nuclear power station in Australia was being considered. [More…]
Has his attention been drawn to a recent announcement by the State Electricity Commission of Western Australia that it is now interested in the construction of a nuclear power station. [More…]
that their States might have for introducing nuclear energy. [More…]
The New South Wales Ministers however stated that they had an immediate interest in ‘going nuclear’ subject to the provision of finance and technical assistance by the Commonwealth. [More…]
and (4) I have no knowledge of any recent announcement by the Stale Electricity Commission of Western Australia that it is now interested in the construction of a nuclear power station. [More…]
Can he say whether Hamersley Iron Pty Ltd has expressed interest in installing a nuclear power station in Western Australia. [More…]
I am unaware of any interest recently expressed by Hamersley Iron Pty Ltd in the installation of a nuclear power station in Western Australia although in recent years there has been considerable speculation in newspapers on the possibilities of establishing such a station. [More…]
Vienna Convention on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage (Question No. [More…]
Has Australia signed and ratified the Vienna Convention on civil liability for nuclear damage. [More…]
What legislative action is required by the Commonwealth and the States lo provide for liability in nuclear accidents. [More…]
Did the Australian Atomic Energy Commission in its 1968-69 Annual Report indicate that overseas suppliers may not enter into contracts unless exempted from all third- party liabilities and nuclear materials may not be obtained from some countries unless such legislation has been enacted; if so, does the Government intend to take urgent action on this matter. [More…]
The form of the legislative action has not yet been decided: currently it is being considered by a Commonwealth/States body known as the Consultative Committee on Nuclear Energy. [More…]
I might add that limits specified in the legislation of other countries differ widely because of differing assessments of possible damage from a nuclear accident. [More…]
The probable need for legislation and its form are being considered by the Consultative Committee on Nuclear Energy. [More…]
If any required legislative action is not completed by the time a nuclear reactor is being installed a possible alternative would bc the completion of a formal agreement with the supplier so that he would be held harmless for third party liability for nuclear damage. [More…]
The possible need for safeguards agreements lo facilitate supplies of nuclear materials is a separate issue which was also mentioned in the Report. [More…]
Such agreements are designed to prevent the diversion of nuclear materials lo military purposes and are usually administered either by the supplying country or by the International Atomic Energy Agency by agreement between the supplying country and the receiving country. [More…]
Does he intend to present to Parliament the Annual Report of the Australian Atomic Energy Commission for 1969-70 prior to the acceptance of the tender for the Jervis Bay Nuclear Power Station. [More…]
If either of the tenders for nuclear power stations using heavy water are chosen (a) what will be Australia’s annual requirements for heavy water to the year 1990, (b) at what stage will a local heavy water plant be justified, and (c) what are the likely sources of supply before such a plant can be built in view of the Canadian difficulties with the Glace Bay plant. [More…]
Does he intend introducing legislation, as suggested in the 1968-69 Annual Report of the Atomic Energy Commission, to establish regular control over nuclear facilities and materials; if so, when. [More…]
The licensing and regulatory control of nuclear installations is currently under study not only by various Commonwealth Departments and the Atomic Energy Commission but also by the joint Commonwealth/States Consultative Committee on Nuclear Energy! [More…]
Can he provide information on the Government’s plans for nuclear power station development in Australia showing,- in particular (a) projected electrical energy power demand annually until 1990 and (b) projected nuclear power electric generation capacity annually until 1990. [More…]
The answer to the honourable member’s question is as follows: (() and (2) The Commonweatlh Government has no plans at present for nuclear power station development other than those associated with the proposed Jervis Hay project. [More…]
Power developments are primarily Stale matters but it is known that Stale Governments’ plans in respect of future nuclear power development are by no means firm nl present. [More…]
For the reason given above however 1 would not like to estimate how much of ibis capacity will be supplied by nuclear units. [More…]
Has the Atomic Energy - Commission investigated Doctor dc Bruin’s concept of a combined nuclear power and water desulination plant for South Australia if so with what result. [More…]
Has the United Nations recommended that the maximum sized station for the initial ‘ unit in a nuclear power programme should be 300 MW. [More…]
If so, can he indicate if the more comprehensive training and experience obtained in operating a 500 MW nuclear power station will be sufficient lo justify using a station of this size rather than a smaller station for which the subsidy required will be less. [More…]
The suggestion of locating .a combined nuclear power and water desalination plant in South Australia has been considered. [More…]
I have said that generation costs of the proposed Jervis Bay Nuclear Power station are expected to be higher than those of large new coal fired stations’ situated on the New South Wales coal fields. [More…]
I am unaware of any recommendation by the United Nations that the maximum sized stations for the initial unit in a nuclear power programme should bc . [More…]
Has any agreement been reached with any of the three governments who are parties to the agreement for collaboration in the development and exploitation of the gas centrifuge for enriching uranium (Great’ Britain, the Federal Republic of Germany and the Netherlands) regarding the supply of centrifuge technology to Australia if Australia should accept a lender for the nuclear power station at Jervis Bay from either the Nuclear Power Group of Great Britain or KraftwerkeUnion of West Germany. [More…]
Arc the economic factors associated with uranium enrichment and nuclear reactor fuel element fabrication such that large plants have a considerable cost advantage. [More…]
Has the South Australian Government submitted a proposal to the Commonwealth to connect the South Australian and Victorian electric power grids with a view to establishing a nuclear power station to supply both States with electricity. [More…]
Are suitable sites available for this type of nuclear power station in the south-east of South Australia. [More…]
At the present time a nuclear power station would not bc economic in South Australia as electricity can be produced more cheaply from oil or natural gas. [More…]
Jervis Bay Nuclear Power Station (Question Nu. [More…]
Will he provide details of specifications required of all tenders for the nuclear power station at Jervis Bay relating to: [More…]
However all radioactive discharge from the Jervis Bay nuclear power station will he controlled to limits less than 1/10th of those specified as safe by the International Commission on Radiological Protection, the internationally recognised expert body on the matter. [More…]
Has his attention been drawn to the recent publication “Ecological Factors in ;he Siting, Design and Operations of a Nuclear Power Station’ by Dr Davy, M. S. Giles and E. Charash. [More…]
will he inform the Hou<e when and where Australian data relevant lo the ecological hazards associated with constructing a nuclear power station al Jervis Bay will be published with special reference lo (a) concentration factors of critical radionuclides in marine organisms found in the Jervis Bay area, (b) movement In tritium through the marine food chain of So:. [More…]
The paper presents a general discussion of the current approach lo ecological considerations for the siting of nuclear power stations and does not contain da in relating specifically .to. [More…]
ls he able lo state whether the United States firms Westinghouse and General Electric have developed nuclear power reactors which claim io reduce emissions of radionuclides to near zero levels by the development of sophisticated air hold up systems. [More…]
ls it a fact ibm this new system will only add about $1,000 per megawatt to the cost of a nuclear power reactor. [More…]
will he investigate the possibility of having such a system incorporated into the proposed nuclear power plant al Jervis Bay. [More…]
Has the Government adopted, as a longterm strategy for planning future nuclear development, the building, initially only, of reactors of the. [More…]
type accepted for the Jervis Bay nuclear power station,, and then the building of fast breeder reactors as soon as they become available. [More…]
The construction of nuclear power stations subsequent to the Jervis Bay plant will be the responsibility of the individual States. [More…]
For these reasons, it would not be prudent at this stage to commit Australia to a fixed approach to nuclear power. [More…]
The only strategy which has been considered for Australia’s nuclear development is to construct conventional converter reactors, of the type offered for the Jervis Bay Station. [More…]
asked the Minister for National Development, upon notice: “(1) Has his attention been drawn to a suggestion by the eminent nuclear scientist. [More…]
Professor Sir Mark Oliphant, that the introduction of nuclear power to Australia should be delayed until fast breeder reactors are available. [More…]
If so, will he consider delaying the introduction of nuclear power until these fast breeder reactors are available. [More…]
It would be a mistake to delay the introduction of nuclear power to Australia. [More…]
What alternative sources of advice on nuclear- power, other than the Australian Atomic Energy Commission, are available to the Government (a) within the Commonwealth Public Service and (b) outside the Commonwealth Public Service. [More…]
Has the Government considered commissioning independent consultants to provide advice in the development of nuclear power in Australia; if not, why not. [More…]
Within the Commonwealth Public Service my department provides policy advice as dinstinc from technical advice on nuclear matters principally in respect to its relationship with other sources ‘of energy. [More…]
Outside the Commonwealth’ Public Service the views of the Stales on nuclear power development will be made available- from the newly formed Commonwealth-States Consultative Committee on Nuclear Energy. [More…]
The Electricity Commissions of the larger States also have had officers attached to nuclear installations overseas and as a result these Commissions are in an informed position on nuclear matters. [More…]
Finally the Commonwealth has access to the views of State Departments of Health universities, etc., on various aspects of nuclear development. [More…]
So far as the Jervis Bay project is concerned it has already been repotted that the Government has engaged the services of the Bechtel Pacific Corporation, lt is not considered necessary however to engage, independent consultants to provide advice on the general question of the development of nuclear power in Australia. [More…]
Nuclear power (Question No. [More…]
ls he able to say whether the Bolsa Island dual purpose nuclear power plant was ‘ejected by the Californian participants because the charge for water had increased from 22c lo -37c per 1,000 gallons. [More…]
If so, in view of these relatively high costs, will he initiate a detailed investigation with the object of establishing a dual purpose nuclear power plant in South Australia, instead of proceeding with the costly Jervis Bay project, which appears to be uneconomic in terms of the cost power. [More…]
Consideration was given to the construction of a dual purpose nuclear power/desalination plant at Bolsa Island, United States of America, but the project was abandoned because of poor economics, lt was estimated that the cost of water from the proposed plant would be in the range of 91c per 1,000 gallons for a 50 million gallons per day plant down to 56c per 1,000 gallons for a plant producing 150 million gallons per day. [More…]
There would appear little advantage in considering the installation of a duplex plant of the type proposed until the construction of such plants has been shown to be feasible by those countries with advanced nuclear power programmes. [More…]
Was the Australian Atomic Energy Commission established in 1953 becaues of (a) the increasing demand for industrial and domestic power, (b) Australia’s then limited resources and (c) the contention that nuclear power could provide a significant economic advantage over conventional power. [More…]
Is it a fact that oil and coal deposits discovered since 1953 have extended the guaranteed projected industrial energy supply by at least 100 years, while the economic promises of nuclear power have not eventuated. [More…]
Promises of nuclear power have in fact eventuated and nuclear power is at present making a major contribution to the energy needs of highly industrialised areas such as the United Stales, Europe and Japan. [More…]
As has been stated on other occasions the Commonwealth’3 interest in nuclear matters and the proposed Jervis Bay project is based on the following reasons: [More…]
To enable Commonwealth and State Departments and Authorities involved to gain experience in ordering, constructing, commissioning and operating a nuclear power station. [More…]
To assist in establishing a nuclear industrial! [More…]
potential in Australia by encouraging Australian industry to develop the new skills and techniques to the exacting standards required in nuclear installations; and [More…]
Is it a fact that two-thirds of the cost of nuclear power arises from fixed charges such as capital cost and interest. [More…]
If so, how can the price of nuclear power become competitive with conventional power which has been shown to have remained constant since 1953. [More…]
The capital and interest components of the total cost of production of electricity from a nuclear plant depends on the type of reactor involved. [More…]
Labour costs represent a fairly small component of generation costs in conventional stations and a smaller, component still in nuclear stations. [More…]
Accordingly 1 think it will be some time before nuclear stations are competitive with conventional stations in this area. [More…]
Nuclear power is already competitive in major industrial countries overseas which have passed through the stage of the favourable circumstances we at present enjoy. [More…]
as shown above the rapidly increasing size of our electricity systems will enable the size of generation unite to increase: cost reductions with increasing size occur far more rapidly in nuclear units than in conventional units. [More…]
Conventional stations have been developing over a long period and the scope for further technological development is becoming limited: nuclear power is a relatively new field still possessing considerable room for further technological advances. [More…]
If so, should nuclear power installations be designed not only for electricity production but also for the production of- additional fresh water. [More…]
On the basis of present estimates of costs of water from nuclear desalination plants and from conventional sources, .there does not appear to be any economic justification for use of such plants in Australia for desalination put poses in the immediate future. [More…]
There is little merit in the -proposal for Australia’s first nuclear power station to be a prototype nuclear power/desalination complex. [More…]
What attitude did he or the Prime Minister express on the staging of nuclear weapons tests by France and the dumping of chemical weapons by America in the south west Pacific area, to which the representatives of New Zealand and our three new Commonwealth neighbours expressed their strong objection? [More…]
As to the first part of the honourable gentleman’s question, the subject that he raised about nuclear explosions was not a matter of great concern to any of the countries at the Singapore Conference. [More…]
So far as nuclear explosions by France are concerned we retain our position. [More…]
When we heard that France was about to detonate a nuclear device we protested and we will continue to protest whenever we hear that this or any other kind of nuclear explosion is likely to be made in the Pacific theatre. [More…]
In recent months Japan has announced to the world that by 1985 40 per cent of the total electricity generated in Japan will be by nuclear energy. [More…]
The European Nuclear Energy Agency and the international Atomic Energy Agency have both predicted a steady increase in the demand for uranium which could in 10 years time slow clown because apparently there are tremendous innovations in the development of fast breeding reactors which I am told use only approximately half the fuel or energy requirements .of conventional reactors operating at the present lime. [More…]
There are available to honourable members in this House all sorts of publications from other countries which perhaps would give details of what is happening at these installations, from the construction of a nuclear plant at Pine Gap to God knows what. [More…]
I understand from information I received this afternoon that for the first time the United States is likely to use tactical nuclear weapons in the northern part of South Vietnam and the southern part of Laos to obliterate the Ho Chi Minh trail. [More…]
Very few of us have seen nuclear war or atomic war. [More…]
If the nuclear weapons that are available today had been used then and if I had been in the same place, I would have been annihilated. [More…]
The weapons to which I refer are called tactical nuclear weapons. [More…]
What the Americans will do is poison the whole of the area of the northern part of South Vietnam with nuclear tactical weapons. [More…]
1 will so brand any man who sniggers and smiles at the thought of anyone using nuclear weapons, whether they be used to poison the atmosphere or clean out an area where military action is taking place. [More…]
But we also have rights and these are particularly important when the United States is indulging in brinkmanship in Indo-China which could lead to Chinese intervention or he possibility of the use of nuclear weapons. [More…]
Problems could arise at Lucas Heights and subsequently at Jervis Bay and at all the other nuclear power stations which it is predicted will be established in the not far distant future. [More…]
The Press report stated that a nuclear fuel was involved, but this was quite incorrect. [More…]
It is not a nuclear fuel. [More…]
It is a beach sand product which had been used for experimental purposes some years ago to determine whether a nuclear fuel could be produced from it. [More…]
We are geared into the American nuclear system as is no other ‘ country in the world. [More…]
We are geared into the American nuclear sys- tern in such a way that Australia would be one of the first targets in the world hit by an enemy of the United States. [More…]
Apart from the catastrophe of possible world suicide by an all-out nuclear war, it seems that future conflicts are likely to be on the pattern of the Malayan emergency and the attack by North Vietnam against South Vietnam; that is, there is unlikely to be war in the traditional sense of one country attacking another by means of mass troop or aircraft movements across a national border. [More…]
For example, how will continental China exploit her growing nuclear power? [More…]
They could produce nuclear weapons and all the other weaponry possessed bv the United States of America and the Soviet Union. [More…]
Republic of China, which has nuclear power, and what has to be remembered is that in no circumstances would Japan bc able to engage in operations that involved nuclear warfare against that country, because Japan is so small in area that a few thermo-nuclear bombs would immediately destroy all of its productive capacity. [More…]
The supersonic dash capability, which is its real strength as a terrain tracking aircraft to drop a nuclear weapon under enemy radar, was supposed to be 210 miles; it is now limited to a mere 30 miles. [More…]
Our restrictions have been based mainly on strategic materials and whilst there is no intention to ease the restrictions on warlike or nuclear materials and goods, the Government has examined the list of goods that are at present restricted and it hopes, in the near future, to be able to publish a list of all goods which are restricted and all goods which are not restricted. [More…]
For the information of honourable members I present a report produced by the Atomic Weapons Tests Safety Committee entitled ‘Fallout Over Australia from Nuclear Weapons Tested by France in Polynesia from May to August 1970’. [More…]
Which of the following conventions will Australia be able to ratify after the current revision of the Navigation Act is completed: (a) Convention on Arrest of Sea-going Ships, 1952. which entered into force on 24th August 1955, (b) Convention relating to the Limitation of the Liability of the Owners of Seagoing Ships, 1957, which Australia supported, (c) Convention for the Unification of Certain Rules relating to the Carriage of Passengers at Sea, 1961, which Australia supported and which entered into force on 4th June 1965 and (d) Convention on the Liability of Operators of Nuclear Ships, 1962, which Australia supported. [More…]
What sort of radionuclides are expected to occur as waste products from the nuclear reactor at Jervis Bay. [More…]
and (2) The sort of radioactive wastes which will occur from the nuclear reactor at Jervis Bay and the methods employed to dispose of these products will depend very much on which type of reactor is chosen. [More…]
Can he say whether New Zealand authorities on nuclear power were of the opinion that the use of natural uranium fuel makes the most economic sense. [More…]
It is incorrect to say that any proposed nuclear power station at jervis Bay will be based on a technology which is likely to be superseded within a few years. [More…]
Can he say whether the (a) Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and (b) People’s Republic of China have any nuclear power reactors. [More…]
(a) There are several nuclear power reactors operating in the U.S.S.R. [More…]
There have been unconfirmed reports that there are nuclear power reactors in operation in the People’s Republic of China. [More…]
Can he yet say what the estimated cost per kilowatt hour of nuclear generated electricity in Australia will be using (a) natural uranium and (b) enriched uranium. [More…]
The cost of nuclear power generation in Australia will depend on a number of factors such as the size of the station, its location, the financial conditions involved, the type of reactor, the degree of local content and so on. [More…]
It is true that as a result of the assessment of the tenders received for the proposed Jervis Bay nuclear power station we now have a better knowledge of the relative costs of electricity generated from reactors using natural uranium and those using enriched uranium. [More…]
Costs of electricity generated by conventional plants in Australia vary very much between individual plants because of variations in local conditions so that again a precise comparative statement between nuclear and conventional generation cannot be supplied. [More…]
I would add, however, that under current conditions in Australia I do not believe that nuclear power stations are competitive with conventional ones. [More…]
Did the tender documents for the proposed nuclear reactor at Jervis Bay stipulate the use of indigenous natural uranium after 5 years of operation. [More…]
The Invitation to Tender document for theJervis Bay Nuclear Power Station States: [More…]
It is the intention that the Jervis Bay Nuclear Power Station shall become fully independent of overseas fuel supplies and services. [More…]
Can he say whether insurance companies in Australia refuse to cover damage caused by the effects of nuclear accidents. [More…]
If so, what arrangements are to be made for the insurance coverage of property and persons within the danger zone of the proposed nuclear power station at Jervis Bay. [More…]
Insurance companies in Australia include provisions in their policies to exclude liability for property damage which may have been caused by a nuclear accident. [More…]
I can assure the honourable member that adequate arrangements will be made to cover members of the public and their property against the most unlikely event of damage from a nuclear accident involving a Jervis Bay Station. [More…]
What types of nuclear reactors are regarded as being fully proved. [More…]
SGHWR-J-The Nuclear Power Group, U.K. [More…]
Will he supply answers to questions Nos 2830 to 2843 prior to his promised statement on the successful tender for the Jervis Bay nuclear power station. [More…]
by leave - On 28th August last year, I spoke to the House on the state of the proposal to construct Australia’s first nuclear power station at Jervis Bay. [More…]
The Atomic Energy Commission has for many years been engaged in close studies of nuclear power developments. [More…]
It advised that the time was approaching when nuclear power would be competitive with other means of power generation in some areas of Australia. [More…]
As a result of the discussions, the Government concluded that the Commonwealth should give the lead by building a nuclear power station which would not only produce power but also serve for demonstration and training. [More…]
The practical experience obtained directly in Australia on the station would be of great benefit to Australian industry and the electricity authorities in their future nuclear power activities. [More…]
It was against this background that agreement was reached with New South Wales to collaborate in the construction of a 500 megawatt nuclear power station at Jervis Bay. [More…]
It is in the large unit sizes that nuclear power is likely to become competitive first with fossil-fuelled power stations. [More…]
For example there is the question whether or not the tendered price includes the cost of the first charge of nuclear fuel, which is an item running into many millions of dollars and the cost of which varies substantially for different types of reactors. [More…]
The total cost of a nuclear power station must include the client’s own costs, which are again a multi-million dollar item. [More…]
Australia is by no means the first country to have called tenders for a nuclear power station, only to decide to defer entering into a contract. [More…]
Expenditure on site preparation and services will of course not be lost if in due course a nuclear power station is built at Jervis Bay. [More…]
These studies are providing valuable information and the results will be important not only in the Jervis Bay context, but also in providing information directly relevant to the siting of nuclear power stations at other places in Australia in the future. [More…]
We are conscious of the potential importance of nuclear power not only to industrial development of Australia, but also to easing the growing problem of pollution of the atmosphere. [More…]
In this connection the Atomic Energy Commission will continue its studies of nuclear power technology and relate this to the Jervis Bay project. [More…]
As I have stated, the Government will keep developments under review and will continue to give careful consideration to the introduction of nuclear power in Austrafia. [More…]
Jervis Bay Nuclear Power Station ProjectMinisterial Statement, 18th August 1971. [More…]
That all words after That’ be omitted with a view to inserting the following words in place thereof: ‘a select committee of this House be appointed to inquire into and report on the uses of nuclear power in relation to: [More…]
the effects of the establishment of a nuclear power station upon the environment; [More…]
the desirability of establishing a nuclear power station at this time pending the outcome of further technological developments taking place elsewhere; and [More…]
In the statement that he made this afternoon the Minister informed the House that the decision to build a nuclear power station at Jervis Bay was taken late in 1968. [More…]
The Opposition moved an amendment in the debate on the Estimates in order to give the Government an opportunity to examine thoroughly the economics of the introduction of nuclear power in Australia, particularly as it had been estimated by Sir Philip Baxter, the Chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission, that by the year 2000 something like $5,000m would have been spent on nuclear power stations throughout Australia. [More…]
Despite this fact there are grave doubts about the economics of having nuclear power stations in Australia at the present time. [More…]
If a decision had been taken to proceed with the construction of the Jervis Bay nuclear power station earlier this year and the estimated expenditure had been included in this year’s Budget, I have been reliably informed that the amount required by the Atomic Energy Commission would have been in the vicinity of $6m. [More…]
He was referring to the Atomic Energy Commission - that the time was approaching when nuclear power would be competitive with other means of power generation in some areas of Australia. [More…]
This growth means that quite large units will he required in New South Wales and Victoria in the 1980s, lt is in the large unit sizes that nuclear power is likely to first become competitive with fossil-fuelled power stations. [More…]
In that speech he said that a station of about 500 megawatts was envisaged because the cost of electricity from a nuclear power station decreases sharply as the size increases. [More…]
I would add, however, that under current conditions in Australia I do not believe that nuclear power stations are competitive with conventional ones. [More…]
If the leaks from the Cabinet are as numerous as the honourable member for Wentworth (Mr Bury) has suggested they are then it would appear that there have been leaks about the deferment of the proposed nuclear power station at Jervis Bay because the estimated price of the successful tender - the one that was recommended to the Cabinet - has been given and the name of the tenderer has been given. [More…]
So, in that 12 months of deferment, let us appoint a select committee, let it begin operating and let us get all the information possible so that before the taxpayers of Australia are committed to an expenditure of $5,000m by the year 2,000 not only the Government but also all members of this Parliament will know the true story of nuclear power generation in Australia. [More…]
I should have thought that all honourable members of this House would have agreed with the decision of the Government which has been announced by the Minister for National Development (Mr Swartz) to suspend or defer the construction of a nuclear power station at Jervis Bay. [More…]
The second part of the amendment refers to the comparative advantage or otherwise of thermal power stations or hydro-electric power stations against nuclear power stations. [More…]
Obviously, this is a factor that the Government has taken into account in deciding to defer the recommendation that this nuclear plant be purchased and set up at Jervis Bay. [More…]
With respect to the costs for the plant itself, the Government had in mind - again, I take this from the newspapers and not from leaks from Cabinet - that the original rough estimate to establish this SOO megawatt nuclear power station was approximately Si 30m. [More…]
Honourable members would know that the uranium ore obtained from mines in Australia would have to be sent overseas before it could be used in a nuclear power station at Jervis Bay. [More…]
lt has taken this Government more than 2 years to realise that nuclear power is not economic at this point of time. [More…]
The statement by the Minister for National Development (Mr Swartz) today, which is but one of his numerous statements made during approximately the last month, confirms the feeling, never more starkly portrayed than on this issue, widely held throughout the community that this Government’s policy is to thrust Australia into the field of nuclear power without any reference to Parliament, and without recourse to parliamentary inquiry, parliamentary debate, public inquiry or public debate. [More…]
Let me make this objective observation: If one compares the Australian Government’s attitude to questioning, investigation, parliamentary debate and parliamentary inquiries with other major countries which have gone deeply into the field of nuclear power one comes up with some interesting results. [More…]
The system of licensing nuclear reactors in the United States of America is particularly important. [More…]
Over the last 2 years the Canadian Senate Science Policy Committee, as part of its terms of reference, has looked into the question of nuclear power. [More…]
Periodically, and prior to the start of its nuclear power programme, the British Government published White Papers setting out its programme. [More…]
In 1967 the House of Commons Select Committee on Science and Technology published a report on the nuclear power industry. [More…]
This committee has a sub-committee on nuclear power policy and another on exploitation of power reactors. [More…]
Most parliaments have a comprehensive standing committee system within which one committee will have the authority to examine nuclear power legislation, policy problems or administration. [More…]
In the brief time available to me the point I want to make is that we should examine the possibility of a duplex plant in preference to the proposed nuclear power station at Jervis Bay because, undoubtedly, wherever a power plant is established in Australia at the present time it will not be economically viable. [More…]
On a world-wide basis the expenditure velocity on nuclear research and development has been conservatively estimated at $75m each day for the past 30 years. [More…]
The cost has been justified largely in the creation of a number of nuclear arsenals and fission propelled men-of-war. [More…]
At the same time significant industrial developments have been achieved, as shown from the nuclear power output on a global scale. [More…]
As a consequence nuclear wastes are accumulating at an everincreasing rate. [More…]
The lethal, long-lived solid wastes due to the proliferation of civil nuclear power plants in the United States alone will reach 58,000 cubic feet per annum in the year 2000. [More…]
With the postponement of yet another nuclear initiative - the power station at Jervis Bay - it seems appropriate to reassess Australia’s nuclear priorities and the procedures by which such initiatives are propounded. [More…]
lt is a pity that we are not going on in a progressive way with this proposed nuclear power station. [More…]
As it takes 5 years to build a nuclear power station and another 3 years to get all the bugs out of it, it would be 8 years before we got any results, even if we started to build the station now. [More…]
The States of Victoria and New South Wales will need a big nuclear power station because their requirements for electric power will quadruple in. [More…]
There is a tremendous amount of coal in the area where it is proposed to build the nuclear power station. [More…]
But because the proposed nuclear power station will be a very large station, the question arises as to whether power from this station would be cheaper than power from the thermal station. [More…]
So we need a nuclear power station with an acknowledged power market. [More…]
We are losing this money because we are slow and tardy at going ahead and building a nuclear power station. [More…]
The Australian Labor Party is practically gloating over the fact that we are not going ahead with the construction of this nuclear power station at Jervis Bay. [More…]
The proposed nuclear power station at Jervis Bay will cost a little over $200m. [More…]
The development of nuclear power stations has reached a high peak of efficiency. [More…]
Plenty of evidence is available to indicate that nuclear power stations are constructed on beautiful sites, such as that at Murrays Beach on the southern pincer of the Jervis Bay area. [More…]
The developing military and nuclear power of China is another threat to us as it is to every other nation in this theatre of the world. [More…]
Treaty on the Prohibition of the Emplacement of Nuclear Weapons and other Weapons of Mass Destruction on the Seabed and the Ocean Floor and in the Subsoil Thereof. [More…]
Lastly, I wish that the Minister had referred to the French nuclear tests. [More…]
Although nuclear armament may change the direction of China’s strategic thinking, it is not impossible that a nuclear umbrella could give Peking greater confidence in promoting revolutionary war on the periphery. [More…]
The Leader of the Opposition has ignored China’s support for revolutionary warfare; he has ignored China’s blatant support and pursuit of nuclear policies; he has ignored the fact that China is building strategic military roads in Asia that could be used to invade Thailand through Laos or through Nepal and which could be used for invasions in other areas; he has ignored the basic interests of Korea, Japan, Taiwan, the Philippines, South East Asian countries and Australia. [More…]
China is aware that she is virtually circumvented by American nuclear bases. [More…]
The Prime Minister must know that the Prime Minister of Japan thanked Mr Whitlam for what he had said about the Japanese and nuclear weapons. [More…]
I said: ‘There are men in the United States who want to use atomic and nuclear weapons against you’. [More…]
There have been discussions with Japanese authorities on the general subject of the market for nuclear fuel including enriched uranium but they have been of an exploratory nature only. [More…]
and (7) In view of the current world emphasis on energy expansion, particularly in the nuclear field, together with the recent important discoveries of uranium in Australia, the Government has been actively pursuing preliminary studies regarding likely markets available to an Australian uranium enrichment industry. [More…]
The Australian Atomic Energy Commission in the course of its normal responsibilities carries out continuing surveys of current and future supply and demand for nuclear materials and in recent months senior personnel from the Commission have had discussions with several overseas countries on enriched uranium markets and the market which might be available to Australia should it become involved in this technology. [More…]
But all tenderers indicated that before approval to export would be given, their respective Governments would require that the nuclear power station would be subject to Safeguards administered by the International Atomic Energy Agency in accordance with its Statute and Procedures. [More…]
They are nuclear complexes in which the Government of Peking is preparing a nuclear capacity. [More…]
I would imagine that if I were in government in Peking and If I came to the conclusion that there was likely to be any nuclear threat to my country one of the first moves I would make would be to seek a detente and some form of relaxation with those people who had been my enemies during recent years. [More…]
We should not rule out having the capability at least of developing nuclear weapons if we should need to do so. [More…]
In America the nuclear power stations are facing a doubling in demand for power every 10 years. [More…]
If we are to conserve our coal resources and not take the best coal and blend it with coal that is not so good we will have to use nuclear energy. [More…]
Australia need not rush into this field because before we get nuclear energy we have to get enrichment of the natural material used in a nuclear power station. [More…]
We have to put in a plant for fuel enrichment before we can operate Our first nuclear power station. [More…]
Australia has to have a nuclear power station quickly. [More…]
With the use of nuclear power at Gove Peninsula, Australia would receive an enormous income from the beneficiation of bauxite into aluminium. [More…]
Therefore, the first nuclear power station must be installed. [More…]
This will give Australia time to look at fuel enrichment plants and to install the first nuclear power station. [More…]
But we can wait 6 months or 12 months to find out what type of fuel we need and to obtain the latest type of nuclear power station. [More…]
On previous occasions in this House I have attempted to raise the fact that the American Defence Department, because of the attitude of this Government, has situated in this country bases at Pine Gap and at other centres which means that Australia will become a prime nuclear target. [More…]
Where is Australia’s nuclear deterrent? [More…]
Has the Government, in acceding to the United States request for the establishment of these bases which are designed not to defend Australia but to make it a prime nuclear target, abdicated its responsibility for the preservation of the people of Australia in its attempt to curry favour by acceding to every request made by the United States in relation to that country’s defence interests? [More…]
We in Australia have not been considered by the United States so far as the provision of a nuclear deterrent for Australia’s defence is concerned. [More…]
One can only conlude that in the event of a global nuclear world war III America considers that the people of this country are expendable. [More…]
This is made obvious by the fact that the defence experts of the Washington Pentagon are interested only in this continent in the interests of the American defence system and consider that Pine Gap in Australia will provide the necessary warning for the United States to take defensive and retaliatory action in any nuclear war for the purpose of American defence. [More…]
But I am concerned because we have become a prime nuclear target. [More…]
No doubt honourable members will have seen recent articles in the Press indicating that it has now been revealed by an American scientist named Phillip Klass, that the Pine Gap establishment is a top security United States base which is one of two vital links in a satellite system protecting the United States against a nuclear attack. [More…]
As far as I can find out, these articles have not been denied and accordingly it would seem this base now places Australia in the forefront of a possible nuclear attack. [More…]
I was also told that the facility had no relationship whatsoever to nuclear research or defence and, of course, that is contrary to what has now been revealed by Phillip (Class. [More…]
By 1980 it states that it will be running out of mainland cooling water and will have to build ocean floating nuclear stations. [More…]
It has been claimed by certain members of the Opposition that if any base were associated, either offensively or defensively, with American nuclear strategy that base would automatically have a high priority for nuclear attack. [More…]
The Government does not believe that any individual target in Australia would be singled out for nuclear attack in any situation short of a global nuclear war - the ultimate catastrophe which the Government’s policy of co-operation with trusted, peace-loving allies would assist in preventing. [More…]
The article is headed: ‘Nuclear bullseye in the dead Centre’. [More…]
Australia’s silent Centre is now a target in global nuclear warfare - a giant ‘sounding board’ in the US cold war with Russia and China. [More…]
The United States has been, quietly buttoning Australia into its global nuclear arc while, ironically, beginning to withdraw US troops from Asia. [More…]
If this is an early warning system in defence of the United States it could involve Australia in a nuclear war. [More…]
If there are installations in Australia that may embroil us in a nuclear war or may be a target in a nuclear war, we have no guarantees. [More…]
He went on to say that Australia was now a prime nuclear target. [More…]
I think Australia and the whole world has much more to fear if nuclear war comes. [More…]
If World War Jil breaks out with a thermonuclear exchange it would be small consolation to be spared from being hit by a weapon to have your people killed by the tremendous fall-out. [More…]
but remember that if you wanted to destroy Pine Gap you would probably have to use a nuclear weapon to do it, and once that left the launch pad, of course, the chickens would be out of the nest and there would be trouble everywhere. [More…]
they are watching out for nuclear submarines. [More…]
He made no reference to the fact that the United States was on the verge of using nuclear weapons in Vietnam. [More…]
A high altitude nuclear bomb be exploded ‘by way of demonstration’ in the area of the North [More…]
In 1962 the Pentagon was working on a nuclear demonstration’ on a larger scale, namely, the use of bombs and other nuclear weapons against military targets of major importance. [More…]
Secretary McNamara then went on to say that the possibility of major ground action also led to a serious question of having to use nuclear weapons at some point’. [More…]
Every member of this Parliament knows that China has now developed a nuclear bomb but that country does not have the skill to deliver it to a target more than 3,000 miles away. [More…]
What a catastrophe it would have been for the world if the United States had gone ahead with its war hawk attitude of using nuclear weapons in Vietnam. [More…]
It is -difficult to see what the Government means by an immediate threat; any immediate threat would arise from an outbreak of nuclear warfare which would be beyond the capacity of the Australian Army to influence. [More…]
; Secondly, there is the developing military and nuclear power of China together wilh her history of helping subversion and insurgency movements throughout South East Asia. [More…]
There is every possibility that such a war will become a nuclear war in which case the possible costs will certainly far outweigh the possible good for which the war is waged. [More…]
Now it has a nuclear warhead, and before long it will have the means of propelling this warhead. [More…]
It is being purchased for 5400m to drop nuclear bombs in places a couple of thousand miles away. [More…]
the strategic nuclear forces) which would subject them to the performance of actions contrary to deeply held moral convictions about indiscriminate killing. [More…]
The USSR is building nuclear submarines at the rate of one a month. [More…]
I would remind honourable members that the cost of one nuclear submarine at the present moment, even if Australia could obtain one, is far beyond our wildest consideration. [More…]
One of the sad facts of our society has been, firstly, the breakdown of the extended family unit and, secondly, as can be seen today, the breakdown of the nuclear family unit. [More…]
Have nuclear submarines been seen recently among Russian naval vessels in Australian waters? [More…]
If we cannot afford to equip our navy with nuclear propelled vessels, what steps can we take against this thinly veiled threat to our interests? [More…]
We in Australia do not have immediate plans for nuclear propelled vessels, but installations . [More…]
such as the Cockburn Sound facility will eventually be able to service nuclear powered vessels. [More…]
the Government in the light of experience by responsible overseas authorities in the nuclear field. [More…]
For example in contrast with the estimates quoted by the honourable member, it has been reported that Jersey Central Power and Light’s 1140 MW Forked River nuclear power station originally scheduled for 1976 operation will cost $345/kW - but we do not know on what ‘ground rules’ this was calculated. [More…]
Even so at the time of providing these estimates the sudden and unexpectedly large increase in prices of nuclear power stations which have since occurred could nut have been foreseen. [More…]
The cost per kilowatt for nuclear power stations decreases with size at much greater rate than is the case with conventional stations. [More…]
It is that tenders for construction of nuclear power stations in industrially developed countries which have already had experience in constructing nuclear stations (e.g. [More…]
Numerous figures have been published recently for European nuclear plants but without a statement of what has been included, those are quite meaningless. [More…]
If it is true would one of the consequences be, as indicated by one of the Minister’s predecessors, that in the event of nuclear war this base would be a nuclear target? [More…]
I think it is important to note that the present situation throughout the world is that there is sufficient nuclear fuel available to meet existing requirements for a few years, but that by about 1976 or 1977 the position should vary and from then on the demand for nuclear fuel will increase rapidly until the early 1980s when it will escalate considerably. [More…]
Therefore the position is that the whole of the industry must be geared to meet a rapid increase in demand for nuclear fuels in the early 1980s, persisting through into the next century, because whilst we may have some faith in the research and experimentation associated with the fast breeder type of reactor, that of course will not become a viable proposition for some years and will not have its main impact until early in the new century. [More…]
Of course, this brings Australia very much into the forefront when consideration is given to the development of a nuclear industry during the next decade. [More…]
We are also on the fringe of the atomic age and, here again, we as an Opposition have a very strong reason for criticising the Government, because from the very first moment when it decided to buy into nuclear power until the recent indications that it intended to opt out - and I refer to the Jervis Bay fiasco - the Government’s nuclear policy has been marked by ambiguity and secrecy. [More…]
The Government has never clearly stated its objectives, both short and long term, in this field, and it is questionable as to whether it is even now prepared to get fully involved in nuclear technology. [More…]
The nub of the whole problem is whether this Government is prepared not merely to sign but also to ratify the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, because unless and until it does so it will not have available to it the means of uranium enrichment. [More…]
The attitude of the United States Pentagon is quite clear: It is opposed to the United States opening its secrets of the gaseous diffusion process for converting raw uranium into uranium 235 because it might make it easier for Japan to join the nuclear club. [More…]
The process of uranium enrichment by gaseous diffusion is available not only for enriching uranium but also for enabling a country having access to that technology to make weapons-grade uranium for thermonuclear weapons. [More…]
Labor will stimulate the growth of nuclear technology, particularly by the earliest possible Commonwealth initiative to establish nuclear power stations using enriched uranium in reactors of basically similar design. [More…]
If any Government ever ducked out of the field of nuclear power with a red face and a tarnished reputation, it was this one. [More…]
(2) The possibility of transferring some base load electrical power generation to nuclear power. [More…]
Labor will stimulate the growth of nuclear technology, particularly by the earliest possible Commonwealth initiative to establish nuclear power stations using enriched uranium in reactors of basically similar design. [More…]
Labor will not use the development of a nuclear industrial capacity for the purpose of creating a nuclear weapon component in Australia’s defence force. [More…]
The resignation rate of nuclear experts disillusioned through lack of promotion opportunities, is reaching the proportion of a serious nuclear brain drain which Australia will come to regret. [More…]
The role of the new authority would be to set guidelines for atomic research at the Lucas Heights atomic research establishment; to make recommendations on the development of atomic power plants; to formulate a nuclear fuel policy; to give advice about Australia’s role in the world uranium enrichment industry; and to examine the relationship of atomic research to Australia’s defence requirements. [More…]
The Jervis Bay nuclear power station proposal was the next fiasco. [More…]
New South Wales was not to be equipped with a nuclear power station until the end of the 1970s or well into the 1980s when a nuclear plant might become competitive with coal fired stations. [More…]
New South Wales had coal fired stations capitalised and operating, and it was just not economical to propose that we should proceed to establish a nuclear power plant in New South Wales in that situation. [More…]
They say we are going to have a network of nuclear reactors throughout Australia. [More…]
On the one hand there is the market for automotive energy - 1 mean for road, rail and air transport - which is supplied by petroleum fuels - the energy source which is portable par excellence; and on the other hand there is the market for energy for general purposes, predominantly concerned with the generation and use of electricity, the fuel for which has been mainly coal, but which prospectively will also be natural gas and nuclear fuels. [More…]
With the advent of natural gas and nuclear fuel as major sources of energy in Australia, this de facto separation of State energy economies will be modified in some important ways. [More…]
As to nuclear fuels, these have a number of aspects, such as the scale and complexity of their use, security aspects and the international implications of dealing with fissionable materials which will be of national concern. [More…]
As regards nuclear energy, discussions between Commonwealth and State officials on various complex technical issues have already got well under way. [More…]
Should we suppose that all the electricity we need in30 years time will be efficiently produced from nuclear fuels with no pollution problems leaving no important call for gas for this purpose? [More…]
The Commonwealth has been active in regard to research in the fields of coal and nuclear energy. [More…]
I ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs or the appropriate Minister: Can he tell me whether any protest was made about the French nuclear tests in the Pacific and whether any protest has been made about the American nuclear test last weekend? [More…]
Would the use of Cockburn Sound by the United States Navy necessarily involve nuclear armed units of that Navy with a resultant increase in the attractiveness of the area as a target for nuclear attack itself? [More…]
There is nothing novel about nuclear warships coming to Australia. [More…]
We have bad visits from nuclear warships at various times. [More…]
These visits took place after discussions and an assurance that there was no risk involved in these nuclear ships being in this country. [More…]
The second respect in which 1 was misrepresented arose from the fact that the Acting Prime Minister sought to equate my question with a complaint against mere visits by nuclear armed units of other navies. [More…]
The Russians had greatly underestimated the potential of polaris-type nuclear submarines, and in the 1950s had devoted an enormous amount of energy to building a largely useless Navy. [More…]
Their present policy comprises 3 elements: Firstly, the build-up of a large polaris-type nuclear submarine force - this they have achieved; secondly, the provision of destroyers and submarines with long range cruise missiles to counter the American attack carriers; and thirdly, the build up of anti-submarine forces to counter the American polaris submarines. [More…]
They say that these systems are capable of detecting the wash of nuclear submarines, photographing them and placing them on a grid system to determine where they can be attacked. [More…]
This is the age of nuclear weapons, remember, and there can be only one policy for wars in this day and age; that is to prevent them from taking place. [More…]
This is the nuclear age. [More…]
Do they make Australia a nuclear target? [More…]
The most consistently expressed objection to the bases is that they make Australia a nuclear target. [More…]
Creighton Burns has described Woomera as a potential nuclear target in the event of a nuclear war. [More…]
Robert Cooksey and Des Ball claim that in a global nuclear war Pine Gap would be a priority target, and that there are other situations falling short of global nuclear war, in which it might be attacked. [More…]
When honourable members opposite become concerned by the establishment of particular bases of advanced technology in this country which, they say, make this country more likely to be a nuclear target, I feel I must say to them that the old adage of the Returned Services League, “The price of peace is eternal vigilance’, should be taken into their minds and hearts, studied and properly understood. [More…]
It was formulated in the environment of the 1890s when we had no such thing as radio, television or nuclear energy, or any interest in ecology or conservation. [More…]
There should be powers to deal with nuclear energy or anything that might be doubtful. [More…]
The first and most serious is that of nuclear obliteration. [More…]
If a global nuclear war broke out it would be the end of world civilisation, including Australia, whether Australia wished to be involved or not. [More…]
The Polaris submarines with which North West Cape is associated are essentially second strike weapons, designed to deter the launching of a surprise nuclear attack. [More…]
Their existence, and Australia’s contribution to them, thus reduce the likelihood of global nuclear war and therefore is clearly in Australia’s interest. [More…]
The Opposition would have us dismantle or emasculate these agreements with the United States; by doing so, it would increase the likelihood of global war, and thus increase the danger of Australia’s nuclear obliteration. [More…]
No precise answer has yet been given by the French Government to questions about the possible resumption of French nuclear weapon testing in1972. [More…]
Australia has not as yet taken any formal steps towards joining the European Nuclear Energy Agency as either an associate or a full member. [More…]
Can he say whether the French Government has indicated that it will continue with nuclear testing in the atmosphere at its Pacific tests centre in Polynesia; if so, what are the announced details. [More…]
What evidence is there of radioactive fallout in Australia resulting from the French Pacific nuclear tests carried out to date. [More…]
The Committee, having considered the data on the French nuclear tests, has a J vised trie Government in reports of November 1965, March 1967. [More…]
Extensive monitoring of fallout in Australia, including that resulting from French nuclear tests in the Pacific, has been carried out by the Atomic Weapons Tests Safety Committee. [More…]
The results of monitoring over the period 1966-71 (during which French nuclear tests occurred in the Pacific) are contained in 15 publications amongst those listed in the Appendix to Report AWTSC No. [More…]
In view of the deep concern felt by Australia and our Pacific neighbours over French nuclear testing in the Pacific region, can the Minister say whether the French Government has announced that it intends to resume testing in the Pacific in 1972? [More…]
-I think all honourable members will be aware of the deep concern felt by countries in this region about atmospheric nuclear tests in the region. [More…]
I am not aware of any statement by the French Government that it proposes to resume nuclear tests in the Pacific in 1972, but there would be some concern about the statement which was made by the Chief of Staff of the French Armed Forces before the ending of the tests in 1971 that France proposed to conduct two or three explosions each year until 1976. [More…]
We were co-sponsor at the last session of the United Nations General Assembly of a resolution condemning these tests and seeking the banning of all types of tests of nuclear weapons. [More…]
Nuclear power is very important to Japan, a country which not only lacks indigenous fossil fuels but is also subject to the risk of environmental pollution attendant upon a densely populated and highly industrialised State. [More…]
Its plans for installation of nuclear power stations envisage installation of 60,000 MW by 1985, and 220,000 MW by the year 2000. [More…]
The atomic energy industry in Japan is rapidly moving towards the export of nuclear power station equipment. [More…]
It is expected that it will have much to offer us in the way of information of use for our own future nuclear power programme. [More…]
As long as people keep their fingers off the nuclear button there will be young people in Australia who will be coming forward to be educated. [More…]
Certain small areas there are still unsafe for long term occupancy as a result of the testing of nuclear weapons in that region some years ago. [More…]
The United States of America maintains its global balance with the Soviet Union and it has a marked superiority in strategic nuclear strength vis-a-vis China. [More…]
It is, of course, no part of Australian defence policy to prepare for massive defence by ourselves - whether by conventional or nuclear means - against an onslaught by one of the great military powers. [More…]
The Chinese nuclear armoury is already substantial enough to be taken into account by both of the super powers. [More…]
The fact that Australia is not a nuclear power and has every desire to remain non-nuclear does not confer upon us some invulnerability. [More…]
On the contrary it confers upon us a need to contribute as a non-nuclear power to the maintenance of the global nuclear equilibrium which is sustained by the United States. [More…]
To help to prevent a nuclear war is, we believe, consistent with our first and highest national interests, with our alliances - including our obligations under those alliances - and with our international obligations generally. [More…]
I want to return, however, to the subject of China, whose military inventory contains a good deal more than nuclear weapons. [More…]
They are the foundation for maintaining an effective balance of power in relation to a nuclear arming China - a consideration of great concern for Australia in the years immediately ahead as will be seen from the description of the subject in the Defence Review. [More…]
There are no comparable restraints on the growth of the mobile strategic strength of the Sovietnor on the unannounced expansion of the land, maritime and nuclear forces of China. [More…]
What is not clear is how much the bases in Australia contribute to nuclear stability in terms of mutual deterrence between the United States and Russia. [More…]
This could bring a voluntary removal of these facilities from Australia so the United States could concentrate all its nuclear deterrent systems within its own borders. [More…]
This is the suggestion that Australia should acquire some form of nuclear weapons capability. [More…]
The Minister for the Navy (Dr Mackay), in a speech in Perth in January emphatically rejected any acquisition of nuclear weapons on the basis that they were unnecessary and too costly. [More…]
The Minister for Defence has also rejected a nuclear capability though in less emphatic terms. [More…]
The White Paper also sees no need for a nuclear weapons capability although it stressed the prudence of watching developments in nuclear technology. [More…]
The Labor Party policy explicitly prohibits nuclear weapons for Australia and supports the immediate ratification of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
Our rejection of nuclear weapons is based strongly on principle. [More…]
This is reinforced by our assessment of the diplomatic folly of moving Australia towards possession of a nuclear force. [More…]
A considerable amount of research work has been done on the cost and possible dimensions of a nuclear force for Australia. [More…]
But I do not think this research has proved conclusively that a nuclear force is economically feasible for Australia. [More…]
Nor has it shaken the basis of Labor Party belief that a nuclear force cannot be justified for Australia in any conceivable strategic circumstances. [More…]
The Labor Party policy which prohibits nuclear weapons extends the same prescription to chemical and biological warfare. [More…]
We face 3 potential threats - disruption of our overseas trade, nuclear obliteration and, in the longer term, invasion. [More…]
The final threat of which we must be aware is that of obliteration in a world nuclear war. [More…]
These are purely defensive, designed to deter the outbreak of a nuclear war. [More…]
These submarines, because of their mobility and undetectability, are second strike weapons, designed to be able to reply after a surprise nuclear attack has been launched on America. [More…]
Their existence and their effectiveness are thus vital components of the deterrent to a global nuclear war. [More…]
The Opposition would destroy this deterrent to nuclear war, regardless of the colossal damage to. [More…]
If the Australian Navy had to protect our sea lanes from the menacing of Russian naval vessels, does the honourable member seriously suggest that the Australian Navy would attack Russian vessels, invoking a probable nuclear response. [More…]
Five nuclear strikes from conventional or nuclear powered Russian submarines would wipe us out as a Nation. [More…]
It is designed to carry nuclear weapons, over a range of 3,000- odd miles, to fly a supersonic dash at near ground level below ground tracking radar, drop a nuclear weapon and get out. [More…]
This country does not have nuclear weapons. [More…]
China and Russia have a veto on such decisions by the United Nations and they are the countries which will increasingly have nuclear submarines and missile-equipped ships off our very coast. [More…]
As I have said here before, they can report the movements of nuclear submarines. [More…]
The White Paper states that China at present is working on the production of nuclear propelled submarines and it also states that not later than 1975 China will have intercontinental ballistic missiles with a range of 3,000 miles. [More…]
3 of the Atomic Weapons Tests Safety Committee entitled ‘Fallout Over Australia from Nuclear Weapons Tested by France in Polynesia from June to August 1971’. [More…]
Particular attention is given to these elements as they are considered potentially the most hazardous of the radioactive materials released into the environment from nuclear testing. [More…]
The second programme is directed mainly at the much shorter-lived radioisotopes in fallout (including Iodine 131) which are of significance only in the few months immediately after a nuclear test, and the programme is instituted when it is considered that fallout from a particular test or series of tests may reach Australia. [More…]
The Chairman of the Atomic Weapons Tests Safety Committee - Sir Ernest Titterton, a nuclear physicist of considerable standing who has done most significant work for the Commonwealth - keeps me informed on developments in both monitoring programmes. [More…]
3, which I have presented today, concerns the shorter-lived fallout of fresh fission products in Australia from 9th June to 26th November 1971, following nuclear tests by France in Polynesia. [More…]
France conducted 5 nuclear weapons tests in the period from 6th June and 15th August 1971 at the test site in the islands of the Tuamotu Archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean. [More…]
The Atomic Weapons Tests Safety Committee programme of daily sampling of milk for assay of iodine 131 content in fallout from the French nuclear weapons tests, covered 9 major population centres and included the milk being consumed by about 75 per cent of the total Australian population. [More…]
I emphasise that the total radiation doses from fresh fallout over Australia in 1971 were lower than those received for the 1966 series of French nuclear weapons tests in Polynesia, and comparable to those for 1968 and 1970. [More…]
I take this opportunity to refer generally to the current world situation of nuclear fallout. [More…]
Prior to the resumption of nuclear weapons testing by the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics in September 1961 much of the radioactive debris from earlier tests had been deposited. [More…]
France and China are today the only countries testing nuclear explosions in the atmosphere. [More…]
The USSR and USA continue to test nuclear weapons but these are conducted underground and there is no global fallout from them. [More…]
The levels of nuclear fallout in Australia - both old and new - are very low indeed and do not constitute a hazard to health. [More…]
1 emphasise that plutonium 238 is not a fissile material and it is not used in nuclear reactors or nuclear weapons. [More…]
The nuclear properties and applications of plutonium 238 are distinctly different from those of plutonium 239, the well known nuclear weapons material. [More…]
Radioactive Fallout In Australia From Nuclear Weapons Tested by France in Polynesia - Ministerial Statement, 13th April 1972. [More…]
It is in this context that we should look at the Minister’s remarks about ‘needless concern’ over fallout from French nuclear tests in the Pacific. [More…]
I conclude by again stressing that it is important that the Australian Government, as a responsible body, should ensure that these protests against the testing of French nuclear weapons are made forcibly. [More…]
The Government has a grave responsibility and, as I have already stated, if there is a weakness, apart from this one in the Minister’s statement, it is that the Minister to my mind - I am sure that this would be the opinion of honourable members on this side of the House - has not stressed sufficiently the grave concern that all Australians would have at a continuation by the French Government of nuclear testing in our area. [More…]
As is well known, that body has progressed to the stage where Australia is currently looking at the establishment of a nuclear generation plant and also the possible introduction of enrichment of uranium fuel in Australia. [More…]
It is clear to everyone that the main purpose of the Fill aircraft is a strategic role - to drop a nuclear weapon. [More…]
It has a supersonic dash capability - that is, to drop a nuclear weapon and get out. [More…]
We have no nuclear weapons and to suggest the Fill as a strategic deterrent with conventional iron bombs is ludicrous. [More…]
The honourable member said that the Fill is not a strategic deterrent without its nuclear bomb. [More…]
The aircraft of the United States Strategic Air Command carry nuclear weapons on a 24 hour basis. [More…]
Should the United States be pre-empted in a nuclear attack the aircraft of that unit of the United States Air Force are targeted on places in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and other countries. [More…]
But my point is that it is not a strategic aircraft unless it carries a nuclear weapon, and the bomb load of the Fill in far too low for it to be considered as a strategic aircraft. [More…]
With the advent of natural gas and nuclear energy the whole outlook for coal has changed. [More…]
It could not say that the price of coal will be so much and the price of nuclear energy will be so much. [More…]
Is he aware of reports which indicate that France will test a nuclear bomb during June this year? [More…]
As the honourable member for Sturt will know, Australia is a party to the ban on nuclear testing which was adopted in 1963 and indeed, we have expressed our concern and protested officially to the French Government within the last month at the prospect of further tests taking place in the Pacific. [More…]
As the House will know, there has been published recently by the Institute of Strategic Studies an assessment of the progress at present being made with the nuclear programme in the People’s Republic of China, both as to the intercontinental ballistic missiles and the movement into nuclear submarines. [More…]
On that occasion nuclear war was averted by the restraint and ultimate commonsense of both sides. [More…]
Have there been any meetings of the Commonwealth/States Consultative Committee on Nuclear Energy since 8 June 1970 (Hansard, 18 March 1971, page 1123); if so, on what dates. [More…]
There have been no meetings of the Commonwealth/States Consultative Committee on Nuclear Energy since 8th June 1970. [More…]
Both the Soviet Union and the United States have for some years been searching for ways of reducing the tensions between them, particularly those tensions that have buttressed the super power confrontation and have from time to time erupted into serious disputes that exposed the danger of nuclear war. [More…]
We should be trying to generate throughout the world an international treaty, perhaps of the same order as the one concerning the nonproliferation of nUclear weapons, towards this end, so that Britain will not sell arms to South Africa and no country will supply arms to Israel or the Arab countries. [More…]
I refer to the atmospheric testing of nuclear devices in the Pacific by a power that will not test them near its own shores and contaminate its people. [More…]
If one assumes that naval warfare between the United States of America and the Soviet Union takes place, and the world has reached that point of disaster, it is quite possible that the war would be nuclear warfare. [More…]
In nuclear warfare this naval base may not be the great defence asset claimed. [More…]
At this point in time - 61 years later - we pick up again the general ideas if not the specific recommendations of Admiral Henderson in the era of Lord Kitchener and that, I think, is generally welcomed in Western Australia, although there are very distinct reservations in the minds of some people who believe that the naval base should be Exmouth Gulf or at some other point on the coast, and in the minds of some who hold the view that navies should have nuclear propulsion - I am not speaking about weapons - which would render them independent of these inflexible and vulnerable bases. [More…]
I ask the Acting Minister for Foreign Affairs: Can he confirm that in Noumea on Saturday Mr Pierre Messmer, the French Minister of Overseas Territories, said that Australia now seemed convinced that the French nuclear tests in the Pacific were necessary? [More…]
French nuclear test programme in the Pacific as detrimental to the interests of those who live in this area. [More…]
The report of the National Radiation Advisory Committee on the Biological Aspects of the Fallout in Australia from French Nuclear Weapons 1971, which was distributed in printed form recently, falls into 2 parts. [More…]
The main part of the report is the assessment made by the NRAC of the biological significance of fallout from the 1971 nuclear tests in the Pacific. [More…]
3 of the Atomic Weapons Tests Safety Committee on the levels of fallout over Australia from nuclear weapons tested by France in Polynesia from June to August 1971. [More…]
The Atomic Weapons Tests Safety Committee is responsible to the Minister for Supply for safety aspects of the use of testing of nuclear explosive devices in Australia, for evaluation of proposals by other countries to explode nuclear devices outside Australia which might give rise to increased levels of radioactivity in Australia, and for monitoring of levels of radioactivity in the Australian environment arising from activities with nuclear explosive devices either in this country or elsewhere. [More…]
Its members are all physicists in the fields of nuclear, radiation and meteorological physics. [More…]
Since its responsibility is to consider the effects of ionising radiation, including those which might arise from fallout from nuclear explosions, the membership of the Committee is biased towards the biological sciences - genetics, public health, experimental pathology, radiobiology - but also includes several physical scientists with particular expertise in the nuclear sciences. [More…]
The National Radiation Advisory Committee has reported in the past on the possible biological consequences of a wide range of sources of ionising radiation including the medical use of X-rays, the tuberculosis case-finding programmes and radiation control programmes as well as fallout from each French nuclear test series in the Pacific. [More…]
(Quorum formed) In its present report the National Radiation Advisory Committee has stated that fallout from the 1971 French nuclear weapons tests presents no hazard to the Australian population. [More…]
In part of its evaluation of the hazards to health of the 1971 French tests the National Radiation Advisory Committee followed a practice adopted by the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation, namely, that of comparing the radiation doses from nuclear weapons tests with the doses inevitably received by the community from natural background radiation. [More…]
The Appendix to the report of the NRAC shows, for example, that the total external radiation dose from fallout deposited on the ground from the 1971 French nuclear tests was, when reduction factors due to shielding are applied, in all cases less than 0.7 millirad. [More…]
The Government has made known its opposition to atmospheric nuclear weapons testing by any nation. [More…]
French Nuclear Weapons Explosions m the Pacific - Ministerial Statement, 16th August 1972. [More…]
I do not want to over emotionalise the aspect of the fallout from the French nuclear tests but I want to draw to the attention of the House some facts which have been stated by the Minister for the Environment, Aborigines and the Arts (Mr Howson) in his statement. [More…]
He said that there are 2 bodies which will deal with aspects of nuclear fallout. [More…]
Dealing with fallout I quote again from the Minister’s statement: the total external radiation dose from fallout deposited on the ground from the 1971 French nuclear tests was, when reduction factors due to shielding are applied, in all cases less than 0.7 millirad. [More…]
First, it should take a moral and political stand against the French nuclear tests. [More…]
It is because this Government wants to co-operate with nuclear powers and to work with them in the production of nuclear bombs; there is a bomb lobby in Australia. [More…]
In fact I believe that this Government is involved in a nuclear conspiracy and that it believes there is some way by which Australia could have nuclear weapons. [More…]
who was then Minister for External Affairs, on behalf of Australia condemned nuclear tests in the roundest terms in the United Nations. [More…]
In that year we signed and subsequently ratified the partial nuclear test ban treaty. [More…]
I am riot going to weary the House by going through year by year the strong stand which we have taken in regard to nuclear testing. [More…]
stresses anew the urgency of bringing to a halt all nuclear weapons testing in all environments by all States. [More…]
Nor have I heard the honourable member for Lalor (Dr J. F. Cairns), who is sitting opposite, suggest that he wants the Leader of the Opposition (Mr Whitlam) to assist by giving $5,000 from his political slush fund to permit the honourable member for Lalor to travel to China and place himself in the way of that country’s nuclear tests in the atmosphere. [More…]
We have not so far succeeded in stopping France from carrying out nuclear tests. [More…]
The attitude that has been taken by people who support resolutions of that kind, including this present Government, is that they will not protest against the testing of nuclear weapons by one nation but only against all. [More…]
Indeed, when I spoke to the Diplomatic Counsellor to the President, M. Bernard, in the Elysee Palace, he told me that the Australian Government had always been sympathetic and always had shown an understanding of the French policy to develop a nuclear weapon. [More…]
I repeat: The diplomatic adviser to the President of France told me that the Australian Government had always been sympathetic and always had shown understanding towards the French policy to develop a nuclear weapon. [More…]
Ever since the Chinese first showed any signs of developing a nuclear weapon both the honourable member for Reid and I have consistently opposed this. [More…]
I have been to France to tell the French and I am quite happy to tell the honourable member who has interjected and his Government to keep their hands off nuclear weapons too, just as I would be prepared to tell the Chinese. [More…]
I think it is a most important one because the people of Australia have been awaiting some substantial and authoritative remarks as to what has been the result of the French nuclear tests in the Pacific. [More…]
The honourable member for Lalor has said how many speeches he has made in opposition to Chinese nuclear tests. [More…]
We all remember the emotion that was engendered in this country when the French nuclear tests were about to take place, but have we ever experienced the equal of it when Russia was about to test or had tested nuclear weapons or when China was about to test or have tested nuclear weapons? [More…]
Who has suffered from the protests about nuclear testing by France? [More…]
1 take part in this debate in order to welcome and encourage the announcement of the Minister for Foreign Affairs (Mr N. H. Bowen) that the Australian Government hopes to take part in an international conference concerning French nuclear tests in the atmosphere above the South Pacific. [More…]
He challenged me, I took it, to state whether I had ever protested against nuclear tests by the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and the People’s Republic of China. [More…]
I have also protested against the continuing testing of nuclear weapons in the atmosphere by China. [More…]
The second was the recognition of Bangladesh and its admission to the United Nations and the third, to quote Dr FitzGerald, concerned nuclear weapons. [More…]
I did protest against Russian nuclear tests when they were being performed in the atmosphere. [More…]
I have protested against Chinese nuclear tests. [More…]
In view of the recent agreement between the major powers on the cessation of surface, atmospheric and underwater nuclear tests, to which Australia promptly subscribed, has the Minister taken any steps to discourage the French from proceeding with any such tests in the Pacific as France’s former colonies took to prevent her from continuing them in Africa? [More…]
Sir Garfield told me in reply that he would be making a statement on nuclear tests later that day. [More…]
He told me with which countries Australia had discussed protests against the French nuclear tests at Mururoa Atoll in 1971 and which countries were known to have made protests. [More…]
He went on to say that on 17th August 1971 Peru had threatened to break off diplomatic relations with France if another nuclear weapons test were held by France at its testing site in the Pacific. [More…]
Whether it was merely post hoc or was, in fact, propter hoc, France did not carry out nuclear tests last year. [More…]
Has he obtained the text of the remarks by Monsieur Pierre Messmer in Noumea on 27th May 1972 concerning Australia’s attitude to the French nuclear tests this year. [More…]
Steps have been taken both in Canberra and in Paris to draw the attention of the French Government to the fact that, if these reports are correct, Monsieur Messmer’s statement is a misrepresentation of the Australian Government’s position towards the conduct of French Pacific nuclear tests. [More…]
This year, the following countries are known to have protested to the French Government over the conduct of atmospheric nuclear testing in the Pacific: [More…]
As with most industrial enterprises, the operation of a nuclear reactor involves the possibility of an accident. [More…]
This raises the rather sinister implication that some sort of nuclear deterrent using the Fill as a delivery system exists somewhere in the Government’s consciousness. [More…]
One is the ecological studies that were undertaken at Jervis Bay at the site for the proposed nuclear power station. [More…]
These studies were undertaken to an extent to which they had not been undertaken anywhere in the world where a site was being considered for a nuclear power station. [More…]
That was carried on through the period when, it will be recalled, in 1961 and 1962 the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and in 1962 the United States of America exploded a large number of nuclear devices which caused a far greater fall-out throughout the world than has happened since. [More…]
Today only 2 countries are exploding nuclear devices in the atmosphere and they are China and France. [More…]
They are tired of a government that gets its policies from the gallup poll; that reacts to every test of leadership and statesmanship by playing on every prejudice and fear lying dormant in the community; that acts in every national or international crisis only in terms of the political advantage it can squeeze out of it - whether it be China, South Africa, Bangladesh or French nuclear tests, or whether it be poverty, industrial relations, racism or rural depression. [More…]
It is also a fact of modern day living that the evolution of the so-called nuclear family tends to exclude, often through necessity rather than choice, the care of parents or grandparents in the same home as their children or other relatives. [More…]
For instance, if we are concerned about social costs - believe me, I appreciate that the Minister for Social Services (Mr Wentworth) is not only aware of them but is genuinely concerned - arising in our community because of the destruction of the nuclear family unit, we also should be concerned about the tremendous social and economic cost of the single unattached male in our community and of his particular problem. [More…]
I now refer to nuclear power and uranium. [More…]
As an alternative fuel source it has been estimated that by the year 2000 63 per cent of the world’s electrical power will come from nuclear energy. [More…]
Japan, for energy purposes, is the third major world power in the utilisation of nuclear energy, and, unlike this Government, is fully conscious of the pending world fuel crisis and is rapidly stockpiling its imports. [More…]
I am sure the Minister will .know that nuclear means of warfare and long range guns have not made the rifle obsolete. [More…]
Although we have nuclear warfare and that sort of thing now the rifle is not obsolete because once you are at war and you take a position, you have to hold it. [More…]
(a) The following nuclear weapons treaties have been signed but not yet ratified by Australia: [More…]
Treaty on the non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (signed by Australia 27th February 1970). [More…]
Treaty on the Prohibition of the Emplacement of Nuclear Weapons and Other [More…]
Australia has not yet ratified the following nuclear energy treaty: International Labour Organisation Convention No. [More…]
Between I960 and 1965 France conducted a series of nuclear weapons tests in Algeria: in the Sahara at Reggane and in the Hoggar mountains. [More…]
The military clauses of the 1962 Evian agreements, setting out the terms of Algerian independence, granted France the continued use of military installations in Algeria for nuclear testing until 1967. [More…]
Following a nuclear weapons test on 18th March 1963, the Algerian National Assembly resolved lo seek a revision of the military clauses of the Evian agreements. [More…]
During debate on the presentation of Defence Estimates to the French National Assembly on 8th November 1963, M. Messmer, then Minister of the Armed Forces, said that under the Evian Agreements between France and Algeria testing grounds for nuclear weapons and missiles in the Sahara were available to France only until 1967. [More…]
M. Messmer said that the French Government had begun looking for new sites in 1962, and work had already begun on the new nuclear centre in French Polynesia. [More…]
The first French Nuclear weapons tests in the South Pacific were held m 1966. [More…]
But 2 of the so-called cemeteries or hot areas - the areas in which nuclear explosions took place many years ago, which were very well covered up and buried in concrete by the British Government and in which radio activity has very much decreased year by year - will be still within the 10 per cent remaining of the Maralinga prohibited area. [More…]
I ask the Minister for Supply: Have quantities of radioactive waste from British nuclear establishments been dumped in Australia? [More…]
No request by the British to bury in Australia waste from their nuclear establishments has been made and certainly no such permission has ever been given. [More…]
Of course we have never produced nuclear weapons or bombs in Australia. [More…]
Treaty on the Prohibition of the Emplacement of Nuclear Weapons and other Weapons of Mass Destruction on the Seabed and the Ocean Floor and in the Subsoil thereof. [More…]
Convention relating to Civil Liability in the field of Maritime Carriage of Nuclear Material. [More…]
The question concerns the opinion which 3 States obtained and sent on to the Commonwealth, from Professor D. P. O’Connell, the Chichele Professor of International Law at the University of Oxford, on action which Australia can take before the International Court of Justice to enjoin France from continuing nuclear testing in the Pacific. [More…]
Probably the answer to the question lies in the fact that the Royal Australian Navy has recently completed a very important exercise conducted with the navies of the United States of America, Canada and New Zealand in which nuclear submarines and highly sophisticated missile firing ships were involved. [More…]
Perhaps it would be even more surprising to many Australians to know that the Wessex helicopters and the Tracker aircraft from HMAS ‘Melbourne’ together with the United States aircraft carrier - they were the 2 types of aircraft used - were successful in frustrating major attempts by nuclear submarines at high speed to attack the fleet. [More…]
I preface it by referring to the disquiet in Australia shown over recent French nuclear tests. [More…]
I ask the Minister: Was the subject of French nuclear testing discussed at the recent South Pacific [More…]
If it was discussed, what was the result of this discussion and will the Minister be stating Australia’s position with respect to atmospheric nuclear testing when he addresses the United Nations? [More…]
I have already referred to the fact that there was a discussion on the French nuclear tests at a recent meeting of the South Pacific Forum. [More…]
The basis on which this protest is persisted in is that we are opposed to the increase of nuclear weapons of war wherever they are; we are opposed to the cumulative effect of fallout as pollution in the atmosphere of the Earth; and we are opposed to the cumulative effect which may ultimately become a hazard to health. [More…]
The United States also endeavoured to prevent a subsidiary company of International Business Machines in France from selling a computer to the French Government for its nuclear programme. [More…]
The Vienna Conference naturally discussed nuclear pollution of the atmosphere because of the tests which France had been conducting at that time. [More…]
The conference concluded that nuclear weapons testing in the atmosphere constituted a most dangerous source of pollution. [More…]
People are afraid of uranium and nuclear energy because of the safety hazards that they present and also because of the waste materials. [More…]
As we move into the 1970s, 2 great problems stand out above all others: (1) how the world community can avoid the kind of conflicts that might lead to all-out nuclear war; and (2) how we can utilise world resources so that mankind may be able to meet the urgent challenge of poverty and then move on to better things. [More…]
Has the Minister for Foreign Affairs seen reports that Australian scientists have worked closely with the French in research relating to nuclear weapons and that there is an agreement on a feasibility study to establish a joint uranium enrichment plant? [More…]
Has this close co-operation with the French been chosen because it is most consistent with the production of nuclear weapons, and does it expose the Australian Government’s verbal protests against French nuclear tests as humbug? [More…]
If the Australian Government desires to oppose French nuclear tests, will it now break off this close co-operation with the French in the production of nuclear weapons? [More…]
-I think that in the last part of his question the honourable member for Lalor suggested that there is close co-operation with the French in the production of nuclear weapons. [More…]
The honourable member for Lalor just selects the French because he thinks that he can make some sort of mileage out of this in relation to the nuclear test protests which we have made. [More…]
There is certainly no joint co-operation in the development of nuclear weapons - the suggestion is ridiculous - but there is a very wide ranging feasibility study in relation to the development of resources, involving a number of countries. [More…]
There are others covering general matters such as damages and civil liability and nuclear materials and load lines. [More…]
This truth has application in all forms of energy - of coal, oil, natural gas, nuclear power and other agencies of power. [More…]
Neither is prepared to sign the nuclear non-proliferation treaty. [More…]
In the case of Australia, to get nuclear technology we must give appropriate undertakings and be subject to appropriate supervision - international supervision at that. [More…]
The Government is trying behind the door to get nuclear technology and at the same time not to accept any commitment in respect of renouncing the right to the construction of nuclear weapons. [More…]
The honourable member did say that Australia had not signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
She has been associated with a front known as the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament. [More…]
Can he also say whether M. Sanford recently travelled to the United Nations to protest against the French nuclear tests. [More…]
M. Sanford travelled to the United Nations in early July with sr resolution opposing French nuclear tests passed by the Permanent Commission of the French Polynesian Territorial Assembly. [More…]
Who was present and what was decided at the meeting called in New York on 26th September 1972 to discuss French nuclear testing in the Pacific (Hansard, 19th September 1972, page 1523). [More…]
The meeting discussed ad referendum the action the group might take in the General Assembly with the aim of achieving suspension of nuclear weapons tests in all environments, and in particular French nuclear weapons tests in the atmosphere in the Pacific area. [More…]
What are the estimated maximum disaster effects on the Australian environment of the forthcoming French nuclear tests in the Pacific. [More…]
All of the radiation doses from fresh fallout in 1971 are small: they are lower than those for the series of nuclear weapons tests in Polynesia in 1966 and comparable to those for 1968 and 1970. [More…]
On 29th March 1972, a Note expressing the opposition and concern of the Governmentoward the conduct of French nuclear tests in the Pacific was delivered to the French Ambassador in Canberra by the Department of Foreign Affairs. [More…]
At the 1971 United Nations General Assembly, Australia co-sponsored, along with 14 other nations, a resolution condemning nuclear testing in the Pacific and seeking the banning of all types of nuclear weapons tests. [More…]
In which years has the French Government exploded nuclear devices in the Pacific area. [More…]
Have any Australian officials or members of the National Radiation Advisory Committee or any other persons on behalf of the Australian Government received information from or given any information to the French authorities about nuclear devices; if so, what are the details. [More…]
Is any co-operation taking place or proposed between French and Australian officials regarding the production of nuclear devices; if so, what are the details. [More…]
Prior to the second series of French nuclear tests in the Pacific in 1967, the French Ministry of Information announced that ‘a small number of devices of limited power will be exploded’. [More…]
and (9) At the invitation of the French Government and with the approval of the Australian Government 2 officials of the Australian Atomic Energy Commission and the Chairman of the Atomic Weapons Tests Safety Committee (AWTSC) visited Tahiti, the headquarters of the French Pacific Test Site, in June 1966 to examine the means established to ensure the safety of the French nuclear tests in the Pacific. [More…]
The National Radiation Advisory Committee is not aware of any reports from Public Health Authorities in Australia or the Pacific area of cases of death or illness attributable to radiation from fallout from the French nuclear tests in the Pacific. [More…]
Atomenergi, a government organisation rather than a private company and (c) the British company, Nuclear Fuels Ltd, is wholly owned by the British Government. [More…]
The recent Agreement with Japan for co-operation in the peaceful uses of atomic energy is basically an enabling agreement under which the parties, or organisations under their jurisdiction, may make arrangements for exchanges of information and co-operative ventures in specific fields of nuclear science and technology. [More…]
(a) The Spanish Government is at present setting up a National Fuel Company to develop a nuclear fuel cycle capability in that country. [More…]
The Swedish Government is setting up a nuclear fuel corporation to co-ordinate purchases of uranium from overseas and also to undertake and promote studies of uranium enrichment possibilities in Sweden. [More…]
It is reported that the corporation is to be 50 per cent owned by the State Power Board and 50 per cent by private and municipal utilities, (c) British Nuclear Fuels Ltd, is at present wholly owned by the United Kingdom Government. [More…]
Under my Government, Australia has now ratified the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and the Treaty prohibiting the placement of nuclear weapons on or under the seabed. [More…]
We must, however, insist on seeking renegotiation of certain treaties where this is necessary to obviate the complete exclusion of Australia from any effective control over a defence installation on Australian soil or to obviate any possibility that Australia could be involved in war - and a nuclear war at that - without itself having any power of decision. [More…]
The essential point I wish to announce tonight is that it has proved possible, through use of these research devices, to monitor the Partial Test Ban Treaty in respect of the testing of nuclear weapons in the atmosphere andon the surface. [More…]
The man-made tremours are of course made by massive explosions, particularly by nuclear devices underground. [More…]
The progressive development of this scientific capability to distinguish nuclear tests from natural seismic occurrences is of course an essential basis to the development of an effective comprehensive test ban treaty. [More…]
They make contributions towards the acheivement and monitoring of nuclear disarmament. [More…]
We have ratified the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and the treaty prohibiting the placement of nuclear weapons on or under the seabed. [More…]
But in that 3-minute address was a reference to a nuclear power station which the then Government proposed in order to dress up its electoral grab bag. [More…]
As we know, 18 months later that nuclear plant project was scrapped. [More…]
We intend to govern the areas of nuclear power as well as coal and natural gas. [More…]
Although the sun is 93 million miles away it is the best nuclear reactor that we have. [More…]
Why has there not been a single word of protest against China’s nuclear testing programme from the Prime Minister and others who are so critical, and rightly critical, of the French tests? [More…]
To this end in trying to lower the barriers and break down the walls, this Government has, after many years of waiting for the last Government to do it, ratified the Treaty on the Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons - again, many people would say, a naive proposition. [More…]
There is enough nuclear power in the world now to blow us to smithereens probably 100 times over. [More…]
It is time that we sought to lower the anxieties of the world community by agreeing to things such as the Treaty to which I have just referred, seeking to show that we are prepared to trust the present nuclear nations and that we do not aspire to compete with them. [More…]
In turn, they may then recognise that they are wasting their time continuing to produce these nuclear weapons. [More…]
lt is interesting to wonder whether, if the People’s Republic of China had not proceeded to establish its own nuclear capacity and if, for example, from the period of Premier Khrushchev onwards there had not been a deterioration in relations between the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and the People’s Republic of China, the present situation would have existed at all. [More…]
Australia, being so far away, has watched the deterioration in relations between the USSR and the People’s Republic of China and wondered whether this deterioration was an indication that nuclear war would take place in due course. [More…]
This is a matter of great concern to the people of the United States of America and their President must know that, in the event of hostilities breaking out between countries which are capable of using nuclear weapons, the dangers of nuclear war are increased enormously. [More…]
We must, however, insist on seeking renegotiation of certain treaties where this is necessary to obviate the complete exclusion of Australia from any effective control over a defence installation on Australian soil or to obviate any possibility that Australia could be involved in war - and a nuclear war at that - without itself having any power of decision. [More…]
Perhaps the Government has suddenly realised that joint control would be inconsistent with Article 2 of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty? [More…]
Apart from the obvious point that the US is hardly likely to accept a situation in which Australia could snatch its finger from the nuclear trigger in a time of crisis, there are severe practical problems in exercising control. [More…]
Without wishing to put too finer point upon it, a stiff note of protest to the US after a nuclear war is not likely to have much impact. [More…]
He referred to the Pine Gap station near Alice Springs as ‘a nuclear link in United States nuclear warfare, systems’. [More…]
The Australian Govern ment has always refused to disclose information on which a rational debate on the Austraiian role in a nuclear war could be based. [More…]
Obviously the Pine Gap base is a prime nuclear target, a fact that has been repeatedly denied by the Government. [More…]
Surely, he went on, the Australian people have the ultimate right to decide whether they should accept or reject the risks of integration into American nuclear strategy in this way. [More…]
It is not true to say that it is impossible that this station can be an involvement of Australia in nuclear war without its consent and it is not true to say that the words the honourable member for Barker (Dr Forbes) who led for the Opposition, quoted from the speech by the Minister for Defence (Mr Barnard), are a sop to some sort of opinion in the Labor Party. [More…]
We must, however, insist on seeking renegotiation of certain treaties where this is necessary, to obviate the complete exclusion of Australia from any effective control over a defence installation on Australian soil or to obviate any possibility that Australia could be involved in war - and a nuclear war at that - without itself having any power of decision. [More…]
But if a Polaris missile with a nuclear warhead is sent from a few miles out of Sydney at Sydney or any of these great western concentrations of population there are no chances of interception. [More…]
The advantages to Australia are extremely problematical if one postulates a situation of extreme tension where we may be moving towards nuclear war. [More…]
He was taunted at the time by the Chinese as a coward but instead of risking a nuclear war with the United States he was prepared to withdraw. [More…]
The Soviet Union was trying to develop the exquisite advantage of having the control of critical nuclear weapons on somebody else’s soil. [More…]
The United States reached the point when the presence of those critical nuclear weapons of somebody else’s became an issue where President Kennedy was willing to risk a nuclear war. [More…]
We are harbouring on our soil an installation that could be critically important in a nuclear war. [More…]
One was made by the Minister for Education (Mr Beazley), who said that the North West Cape station and the Alice Springs, Woomera and Amberley stations would be critically important in a nuclear war. [More…]
Supposing nuclear weapons had been used by the United States in North Vietnam. [More…]
The Australian Government’s attitude towards nuclear testing in the atmosphere by all nations is the same as it was when the Party constituting the Government was in Opposition. [More…]
For years the Australian Labor Party has made it plain that it objects to the testing of nuclear weapons in the atmosphere. [More…]
We deplore the fact that China and France have not joined the treaty banning nuclear tests in the atmosphere to which America, the Soviet and Britain long since subscribed. [More…]
Tonight I would like to deal with a question which is exercising the minds of many people in Australia at present - nuclear testing in the atmosphere. [More…]
I would like to discuss a couple of the aspects of atmospherio nuclear testing. [More…]
Even now despite the widening use of radiation producing devices, the widespread radioactive contamination from nuclear weapon tests and the Increasing applications of nuclear energy and radio isotopes, natural sources are the main contributors to the average radiation exposure of human populations- [More…]
I think it is important to remember this even if only because a large segment of the population knows little or nothing about naturally occurring radiation and has the mistaken idea that radiation occurs only as the result of nuclear explosions. [More…]
It is also important because any discussions about levels of radiation following a nuclear explosion should take place bearing in mind the naturally occurring radiation levels. [More…]
Man-made sources of radiation include mining for radioactive material, medical use of radioactive material both for diagnostic and treatment purposes, nuclear power production, miscellaneous sources such as electronic tubes emitting X-rays, but not designed for that purpose and, of course, nuclear explosions for both peaceful and non-peaceful purposes. [More…]
The radioactivity concerning us originates from nuclear explosions - specifically atmospheric nuclear explosions associated with the testing of nuclear devices. [More…]
It is well to remember that nuclear weapon testing has declined in rate over the past few years. [More…]
The fallout from nuclear testing of most concern is that which results from longer life particles of radio-active material. [More…]
Leaving aside the technical details, the most dangerous radioactive isotopes resulting from nuclear explosions are strontium 90, cesium 137 and iodine 131. [More…]
France and China are the only 2 countries currently testing nuclear weapons in the atmosphere and thus contributing to nuclear fallout. [More…]
Whipping up public fear will not solve the problem presented by atmospheric nuclear testing. [More…]
This may lead honourable members to think that 1 do not believe we should protest about the French continuing atmospheric nuclear testing. [More…]
I believe that we were quite right in protesting and in continuing to protest over the years and that we should take whatever responsible action we can to mobilise world opinion against those who continue to conduct atmospheric nuclear tests. [More…]
On 29th March last year the then Minister for Foreign Affairs released a statement saying that the Australian Government remained opposed to all nuclear tests particularly in the Pacific. [More…]
It re-affirmed our interest, as a party to the Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty of 1963, in seeing the Treaty universally applied and supported. [More…]
We continued to make our opposition known and at the Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment we sought to promote a form of resolution which would mobilise the greatest number of delegations in opposing atmospheric nuclear tests. [More…]
On 1st August last year we announced at the fourth session of the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of the Seabed and Ocean Floor, that, with 11 other countries, we would be sponsoring a resolution declaring that no further nuclear weapons tests likely to contribute to the contamination of the marine environment should be carried out. [More…]
Our protests continued to escalate, culminating with our cosponsoring of a resolution with 12 other sponsors inviting the General Assembly of the United Nations to declare itself in favour of 2 main objectives: Firstly, a halt to all atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons in the Pacific region or anywhere else in the world, and universal support for the Partial Test Ban Treaty of 1963; and secondly, the suspension of all nuclear weapons tests in all environments and the negotiation of a treaty banning all such tests. [More…]
Australia would particularly like to see the negotiation of a comprehensive treaty with effective provisions for verification and control to prohibit the conduct of nuclear weapons testing in all environments in all states. [More…]
The first step towards that objective should be, in our view, the universal acceptance and Application of the existing treaty banning nuclear weapons testing in the atmosphere. [More…]
But we still do not have universal acceptance of this treaty and there is still no halt to nuclear weapon testing in the atmosphere. [More…]
I mention this because, contrary to some popular opinion, it shows a consistent, long term opposition to atmospheric nuclear testing, exhibited by the previous Government over very many years. [More…]
There are now only 2 countries testing nuclear devices in the atmosphere - China and France. [More…]
We do have fallout from Chinese nuclear testing on Australia. [More…]
If atmospheric nuclear tests are contemplated by the Chinese then we are duty bound to protest to them in similar vein to our protests to the French. [More…]
I remember Mr Barnard giving a learned exposition on how it could be used by nuclear submarines. [More…]
In view of the great concern expressed by him and his colleagues about the effects of radiation from nuclear fall-out, will he have carried out a comparison of the amount of radiation received on the body of a person in Australia from the fall-out during the last 2 years and the radiation received by a person from the compulsory mass chest X-rays carried out; if so, will he inform the House of the results. [More…]
The Government does not believe that the issues raised by fall-out from nuclear testing are to be resolved by comparisons of the kind suggested. [More…]
In addressing my question to the Prime Minister I refer him to the Press conference he gave on Tuesday, 13th March last, during which, in answer to a question, he said: ‘Australia is not discernibly affected by nuclear tests by China’. [More…]
I ask the Prime Minister: Has radioactive fall-out from Chinese nuclear tests been registered in Australia? [More…]
In order to justify his statement which I have just quoted, will he inform the House of the relevant percentages of total radioactive fall-out registered in Australia attributable to Chinese and French nuclear tests? [More…]
All atmospheric nuclear tests have an effect, wherever they take place in the globe. [More…]
In general terms, the effect of the Chinese nuclear tests is only one-tenth as great in Australia as the effect of the French nuclear tests at Mururoa. [More…]
The attitude of the Australian Government is, as I think the attitude of the previous Australian Government was, that France should accede to the nuclear treaty to which the United States of America, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and Britain have acceded. [More…]
We believe that France and China, the other remaining nuclear powers, should both accede to the treaty. [More…]
I hope that in the not too distant future Australia will have its first generator, making nuclear power from uranium. [More…]
At its first session, the Forum adopted a joint declaration deploring French nuclear tests in the Pacific. [More…]
I explained to Sir Alec Douglas-Home and other Ministers and officials the decision of the South Pacific Forum in relation to French nuclear tests. [More…]
This would appear to be a natural consequence of our close Commonwealth relations, of Britain’s major role in the negotiation of the partial nuclear test ban treaty and of its responsibilities, as an administering power, in respect of a number of Pacific territories. [More…]
Sir Alec also pointed out that the United Kingdom had already urged the French to sign the partial nuclear test ban treaty. [More…]
I also explained to Signor Colombo our attitude to continued French nuclear testing in the Pacific. [More…]
I was given to understand in clear terms that the Italian Government understood the concern of Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islanders in a continued atmospheric testing in the Pacific and I was left in no doubt as to what the reaction of Italy would be if the French were to conduct nuclear tests in the Mediterranean. [More…]
I raised, as I did in each country I visited, the question of French atmospheric nuclear tests. [More…]
5 of the Atomic Weapons Test Safety Committee entitled ‘Fallout over Australia from Nuclear Weapons tested by France in Polynesia during June and July 1972’ compiled October 1972. [More…]
Report by the National Radiation Advisory Committee entitled ‘Biological Aspects of Fallout in Australia from French Nuclear Weapons Explosions in the Pacific, June-July 1972’ compiled April 1973. [More…]
Report by the Australian Academy of Science entitled ‘The Biological Effects of Nuclear Explosion Fallout - Report to the Prime Minister’ compiled April 1973. [More…]
The reports by the National Radiation Advisory Committee deal, as the title implies, solely with the effects on Australians of the testing of nuclear weapons by France during June and July 1972. [More…]
In February 1973, I requested the Australian Academy of Science to report to me on ‘the actual or potential harm to Australia, including its human and animal population, its resources and environment, from the explosion of nuclear devices in the atmosphere, underwater, or on or near the surface of the earth, with particular regard to the past and prospective explosions by France in the Pacific’. [More…]
The report of the NRAC and the Academy establish that the people of Australia may have been adversely affected by France holding nuclear weapons tests in the Pacific. [More…]
Court of Justice with a view to restraining France from continuing the testing of nuclear weapons in the atmosphere of the Pacific. [More…]
The Government has also taken steps to review and rationalise the means by which it is provided with information on the effects of nuclear fallout on the Australian population. [More…]
Honourable members will note that in the foreword to the reports of the AWTSC it is stated that the AWTSC is responsible for safety aspects of the use or testing of nuclear explosive devices in Australia; evaluation of proposals by other countries to explode nuclear devices outside Australia which might give rise to increased levels of radioactivity in Australia; and monitoring of levels of radioactivity in the Australian environment arising from activities with nuclear explosive devices either in this country or elsewhere. [More…]
I refer here to the report by Messrs Rathgeber, Gibbs and Stevens which deals with the safety regime operating at the French nuclear test site in the Pacific. [More…]
Many honourable members would have liked to have said something about the Government’s nuclear adventures with France and the lack of its nuclear adventures with Communist China. [More…]
For example, there is a tremendous pother about the French nuclear tests. [More…]
That is well and good, but why is there no pother about the Chinese nuclear tests? [More…]
lt has been said that the Communist Chinese are not really parties to the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty and they cannot be brought before the International Court of Justice, which they have not acknowledged. [More…]
I am one of the people who take these nuclear tests very seriously, not because I believe that the radiation damage is important - it is not - but what is important is the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
In talking about the attitude of the Government to the French nuclear tests the honourable member criticised its approach to tests carried out by China. [More…]
It supported a nuclearfree zone in our area, but the Government of which the honourable member for Mackellar was a member only 2 years ago was encouraging Professor Baxter to establish a dirty bomb unit on the south coast of New South Wales at Jervis Bay from which a nuclear weapon could be developed. [More…]
The honourable member talks about the French but he was a Minister in the Government which agreed to have Baxter go to Britain and attempt to rubber stamp and push through a purchase of a type of nuclear reactor which could have produced weaponsgrade plutonium in this country. [More…]
The Labor Party has been consistently opposed to nuclear tests. [More…]
We have been opposed to nuclear weapons. [More…]
We are opposed to the testing of nuclear weapons in the atmosphere anywhere, and we have been consistent in that approach. [More…]
As I understand it, there is no difference between members of the parties in this House concerning the French nuclear tests in the atmosphere. [More…]
I have presented to the French Ambassador a letter from myself to President Pompidou of France expressing the adamant opposition of my Party and of the Australian people to any further nuclear weapons tests in the atmosphere. [More…]
I believe that the people of Australia and the people of the Pacific region are unanimous in their opposition to the continued testing of nuclear weapons in the atmosphere. [More…]
My Party opposes atmospheric nuclear tests by any country, anywhere. [More…]
We must condemn all countries carrying out atmospheric nuclear tests which are contrary to the interests of all nations, contrary to the interests of mankind. [More…]
This protest, as with similar protests in previous years, was conveyed in the strongest terms, and the French nuclear weapon tests at Mururoa Atoll were repeatedly deplored and condemned by the Liberal-Country Party Government. [More…]
Members expressed their determination to use all proper and practicable means open to them to bring an end to nuclear testing particularly in the South Pacific. [More…]
However, we support any responsible action, and in terms of the South Pacific Forum resolution, proper and practical means which might serve to curtail French nuclear testing in the atmosphere in the Pacific - but it must be responsible, proper and practicable. [More…]
There is evidence available from several sources that the nuclear tests which France has carried out in French Polynesia, and which it now proposes to continue, have added to the radioactive fallout to which people in this region are exposed. [More…]
No matter how effective safeguards may be, and we assume that the French Government is planning to take the most effective precautions, further nuclear weapons tests in the atmosphere remain unacceptable. [More…]
The Australian Academy of Science has produced a report on the biological effects of nuclear explosives fallout’ which the Prime Minister (Mr Whitlam) tabled on 2nd May. [More…]
Further, with the long-lived isotopes produced as the result of nuclear explosions in either the Southern or Northern Hemisphere, the effects on the Australian population, though small, would be cumulative. [More…]
We must condemn the testing of nuclear weapons in the atmosphere at the same time that we continue to seek the co-operation of the French Government. [More…]
The French Government’s action in continuing nuclear weapons tests in the atmosphere in the Pacific is contrary to the provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which states that all people ‘should act towards one another in the spirit of brotherhood’. [More…]
When there has been no comparable organised campaign against the atrocities committed in Vietnam, against capital punishment, against nuclear testing in the Pacific or against an infant mortality rate amongst Aborigines that is 17 times higher than for the general community, one can be excused for thinking that among those who now campaign so strongly against abortion law reform there are many who have a great feeling for foetal life but once it stops being a foetus their respect for human life stops well short of that concern. [More…]
We have heard such comments in relation to escalation of the bombing in Vietnam, detonation of a nuclear device in the Pacific area, a visit to this country of a sporting team representing a country that selects its sporting teams strictly on a racial basis, and many other issues. [More…]
Australia has claimed in the proceedings which have been brought against France in the International Court of Justice that the conducting by France of atmospheric nuclear tests in the Pacific is contrary to international law. [More…]
This does not mean that there is no scope at all for union action against French nuclear tests. [More…]
The Prime Minister will be aware that I have made a statement in this House condemning French atmospheric nuclear tests and that in that view we were bipartisan. [More…]
I appreciate the fact that the opposition to French nuclear testing in the atmosphere is bipartisan and that he has contributed personally to that view being made known to the French Government. [More…]
Instead of placing too many eggs in the still problematical nuclear energy basket, Barnea urges recourse to a variety of long term alternatives, from refineries for low sulphur coal to research into solar and geo-thermal energy. [More…]
The second point to be noted is that a high proportion of research expenditure in the United States in recent years has been in the area of nuclear power and a very minute proportion has been in MHD - that is the conversion of fossil fuel whereby one can reduce the pollution content. [More…]
Solar energy and nuclear power must not be forgotten simply because Australia is late in developing its natural gas. [More…]
1 did have discussions with the Prime Minister of New Zealand who, as the right honourable gentleman will be aware, had already indicated that, as a part of his Government’s protest against the French nuclear testing in the South Pacific, New Zealand would be sending a frigate to the area. [More…]
As a preface, I refer him to his Press conference of 8th May at which, in reply to the question ‘Have you had any response from the Chinese Government on your protest note on the nuclear testing? [More…]
The Professor has agreed with me that although nuclear tests as a whole have been about as dangerous as chest X-rays in certain respects - I should not really use the word dangerous’; I should say that the tests have done as much harm as X-rays in certain respects - nevertheless, with the precautions and techniques that have been developed here the damage to future generations is approximately one-sixtieth as much from the chest X-rays done in Australia as the damage from the French nuclear tests and other nuclear tests in the atmosphere. [More…]
For the information of honourable members, I present the report of the meeting between Australian and French scientists on 7th, 8th and 9th May at the Australian Academy of Science in Canberra on biological effects of nuclear explosion fall-out. [More…]
I also asked the Prime Minister about the effect of nuclear fallout from Chinese atomic tests in the atmosphere. [More…]
Even then he sought to obfuscate the truth by giving the impression that the effect of the Chinese nuclear fallout in Australia was one-sixth of that provided by fallout from French tests. [More…]
In fact it is onesixth of the total nuclear fallout on Australia. [More…]
The French nuclear tests make up some other proportion of it. [More…]
This legislation is nuclear in many areas. [More…]
by discussions with French authorities and with the indigenous population of the area and by inspections of installations and facilities, to assess and evaluate the precautions taken by France with respect to radiological and biological safety in the testing by France of nuclear devices in French Polynesia; [More…]
to ascertain indications of the possible future program of testing by France of nuclear devices in French Polynesia; [More…]
Thatin the opinion of the Legislative Council and the House of Assembly the testing of nuclear devices in the atmosphere is to be deplored. [More…]
That the Parliament of the State of Tasmania records its support for moves by the Federal Government to prevent the planned nuclear tests by the French Government in the South Pacific area and to refer this important matter to the International Court of Justice at The Hague. [More…]
Perhaps I might take this opportunity of publicly acknowledging the debt that the Commonwealth Government owes to the initiative of the Attorney-General of Tasmania - of which both the previous Minister for Foreign Affairs and I were aware at the time - in seeking advice from Professor O’Connell of the University of Adelaide, now the Chichele Professor of International Law at Oxford, on the prospects of this avenue before the World Court of restraining the French nuclear tests. [More…]
Accepting, as members on this side of the House do, the necessity for all reasonable steps to be taken to try to prevent future nuclear explosions in the atmosphere, whether by the People’s Republic of China or by France, what purpose does the Minister believe will be served by the dispatch of HMAS ‘Sydney’ or any other Australian naval vessel to Mururoa Atoll or thereabouts, apparently in order to intrude on the nuclear explosion area? [More…]
I made a statement in answer to a previous question in this House concerning the Government’s attitude to nuclear testing in the Pacific area. [More…]
None of these great objectives - sensible relations with China, the limitation of nuclear weapons and the end of foreign intervention in Indo-China - have yet been brought to ultimate fruition. [More…]
Despite the relaxation of tension which I have mentioned, suspicion and conflict of interests between the nuclear weapons states persist. [More…]
Through the United Nations and other international machinery we have the opportunity to press for the removal of barriers and constraints against a less hostile and more fruitful development of relations between the major nuclear states. [More…]
The most disturbing matter presently troubling the South Pacific is the continuation of French nuclear testing. [More…]
Australia is party to the Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, the NonProliferation Treaty and the Sea Bed Arms Control Treaty, and supports the conclusion of an effective and comprehensive nuclear weapons test ban treaty. [More…]
We are opposed to all forms of nuclear weapons testing by whatever nation and our objective is the suspension of all such testing. [More…]
We have registered with the Chinese Government Australia’s opposition to its nuclear weapons testing in the atmosphere and are pursuing with the utmost vigour an international legal and political campaign to induce France to abandon her testing program in the Pacific. [More…]
The World Health Assembly in Geneva has just adopted by a vote of 87-4 with 10 abstentions, a resolution deploring all nuclear test ing which results in an increase in the level of ionising radiation in the atmosphere and urging its immediate cessation. [More…]
Given the feelings of public outrage throughout the Pacific region and bipartisan parliamentary condemnation in Australia of French plans to proceed with her nuclear weapons tests, the Government has acted dispassionately and with considerable restraint, because of the great value it attaches to its wider relations with France, by exploring all possible avenues in seeking a solution to this disagreement. [More…]
It is in the context of our attitudes to nuclear testing that the presence of two of the United States installations in Australia should be seen. [More…]
The United States Air Force detachment at Amberley and the Joint Geological and Geophysical Research Station at Alice Springs collectively possess technical facilities to monitor the testing of nuclear devices in the atmosphere, on the surface and underground. [More…]
Will the Minister see that, if more naval personnel than the number required want to serve on the naval ship to visit the French nuclear testing area in the interests of all mankind, priority is given to the present crew now serving on the ship to be used? [More…]
I refer to the question of atmospheric nuclear testing. [More…]
Firstly 1 wanted to try to reduce the public hysteria and lack of knowledge about nuclear radiation. [More…]
The second reason I raised this matter was to stress my position against nuclear atmospheric testing by whatever country carries out this testing. [More…]
As we know there are only 2 countries at present which test nuclear weapons in the atmosphere, and they are France and China. [More…]
Unfortunately I have not been supported to any great extent by the Prime Minister (Mr Whitlam), whose position with respect to Chinese atmospheric nuclear testing has been ambivalent in the extreme. [More…]
More information has been tabled by the Prime Minister on the effects of atmospheric nuclear testing and the resultant fall-out on Australia. [More…]
A report dated April 1973 by the National Radiation Advisory Committee on Biological Aspects of Fall-out in Australia from French Nuclear Weapons Explosions in the Pacific, June-July, 1972, was tabled in this Parliament after I made my previous speech. [More…]
I would like to quote from this report because I think it is very germane to my previous remarks about the need for objectivity and lack of panic when assessing the atmospheric fall-out from nuclear weapons on Australia. [More…]
Paragraph 3 on page 2 of the report states: the Committee assessments of these data were embodied in the NRAC Reports in March 1967, December 1967, March 1969, March 1971 and July 1972 on Biological Aspects of Fall-out in Australia from French Nuclear Weapons Explosions in the Pacific. [More…]
It was concluded that fall-out over Australia from these series of French nuclear weapons tests in the Pacific did not constitute a hazard to the health of the Australian population. [More…]
As we know, the Prime Minister commissioned the Australian Academy of Science to prepare a special report on nuclear fall-out, and I have a copy of that here. [More…]
It is entitled: ‘The Biological Effects of Nuclear Explosion Fail-Out. [More…]
Firstly, I complain very strenuously about the scare tactics which have been used by this Government and to a certain extent, I am afraid, by the Australian Academy of Science in presenting the case against French nuclear testing not only to this country but to the world at large. [More…]
In another paper presented in the Parliament entitled ‘Biological Effects of Nuclear Explosion Fail-Out - Report of Meeting between Australian and French Scientists, the French were very restrained. [More…]
We should get into perspective the possible effects of nuclear fall-out. [More…]
These figures put the case in perspective for people who are frightened about radio active fall-out from atmosperhic nuclear tests. [More…]
Remembering that Academy of Science report, let us consider these figures: The total injection of nuclear fission products so far into the atmosphere in the northern hemisphere comes to approximately 511 megatons. [More…]
The total amount of nuclear products injected into the atmosphere by the Chinese tests was 12.6 megatons. [More…]
So rather than the very low figures that the Prime Minister (Mr Whitlam) has sought to portray the Chinese as having contributed, in fact the Chinese tests contributed more like one-quarter of the nuclear fallout on Australia of the French total. [More…]
There is very little doubt that the Chinese contributed closer to one-quarter as much of the nuclear fallout as did the French. [More…]
So under any measurement, there is a very real case for Australia being consistent in its opposition to atmospheric nuclear testing and, if we are going to the extreme of taking the French to the World Court, we should certainly place a much stronger protest with the Chinese than the one which was firstly described as an oral protest to which, therefore, we would receive no reply and which secondly was seen to be a written protest and to which still we do not know whether we are to receive any reply. [More…]
If that is so - if we are talking as we should about the real damage to mankind as a whole - let us analyse 2 interesting aspects of the countries which are testing nuclear weapons in the atmosphere. [More…]
Can he provide details of (a) the nuclear weapons tests carried out by the People’s Republic of China during the last 5 years, (b) the dates on which these tests took place, (c) the location of these tests and (d) the explosive power of each device tested. [More…]
The Chinese Government has generally in the past made public announcements when its nuclear weapons tests have taken place; and the United States Atomic Energy Commission has released esti mates of the yield of all the tests monitored by them. [More…]
Is he aware that the report stated that, in answer to a question directed to him about whether he had received any response from the Chinese Government to his protest note on the nuclear tests, he said that the protest to China was oral so there would be no written response? [More…]
He asked whether the Australian Government had made a protest to the Chinese Government about that country’s nuclear atmospheric testing, whether there had been a protest and whether it had been verbal or written. [More…]
Then we have had all the brouhaha of the nuclear tests. [More…]
A matter of immediate significance to al) Australians in our relations with Europe is the question of the continuation of French nuclear testing in the atmosphere in the Pacific. [More…]
I stated recently that we strongly oppose atmospheric nuclear testing by any country and our feelings must be aroused when such testing is conducted in our own region and against the wishes of most Australians. [More…]
The Liberal Party sees danger in the proliferation of devices of nuclear war which threaten the future cf mankind, and all Australians deplore any action which in any way threatens the earth’s environment and possibly the lives of people now or in the future. [More…]
We are unequivocal in our opposition to all atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons by any country. [More…]
Has he published reports numbers 4 and 5 of the Australian Atomic Weapons Testing Safety Committee which report on the fall-out from the French and other nuclear tests measured in Australia and Papua New Guinea; if not, why not? [More…]
Before moving on let me refer to the visit to Mexico, the prime aim of which seemed to be to enlist support for the Australian Government’s views, which the Opposition supports, on the French nuclear explosions. [More…]
The ability of the 2 super powers, the Soviet Union and the United States, to destroy each other by nuclear exchange has placed substantial restraint on direct military confrontation. [More…]
It amazes me that people are sometimes prepared to take the word of university professors, or so-called experts with little or no knowledge, especially in the field of radiation, instead of taking -advice from the specially constituted and independent body set up to advise the Government in nuclear fields. [More…]
For example, we all know that a major report by the Commission on atmospheric nuclear testing was not made available to the public because it did not support the line that was being taken at the time against nuclear fallout. [More…]
The other is in getting nuclear power accepted by the public. [More…]
After all, as the Commission points out, uranium is expected to become the basic fuel for man’s energy needs in the latter part of this century, both for power and for nuclear powered ships. [More…]
There is a need to convince the public of the inherent safety of nuclear energy, the safe disposal of its wastes and the fact that strict measures are taken to ensure this continued safety at all times. [More…]
I want to make it quite clear that I regard the question of nuclear disarmament as one of the most important questions facing not only this country but also the world. [More…]
I do not think that our standing in this area or the overall success of the world campaign for nuclear disarmament has been furthered by a campaign of lies about the effects of nuclear radiation. [More…]
This is not a debate on the use or application of nuclear energy. [More…]
The power to make nuclear weapons - the Commission must be the Government’s adviser in this matter - is now proliferating among other nations. [More…]
We know that already nuclear weapons are in the hands of the United States of America, the Soviet Union, Communist China, Great Brittain and France. [More…]
I think that the Commission would be in a position to advise the Government that the proliferation of nuclear weapons, because of new techniques- [More…]
I support this Bill and I express the hope that in the near future the Government will allow this whole vital nuclear question to be debated in this House. [More…]
I approve of his opposition to the French nuclear tests, although I would have greater respect for his integrity if he displayed equal vehemence in condemning the Chinese nuclear tests. [More…]
The family unit as it exists today in the nuclear age is hardy recognisable from that unit which existed one generation ago. [More…]
the possession by various rations of nuclear weapons and of machinery for their utilisation; and [More…]
My question, which I address to the Prime Minister, concerns the judgment given by the International Court of Justice relating to this country’s application for an injunction to restrain France from nuclear testing. [More…]
It was alleged and apparently proved to the satisfaction of the American courts that they had given atomic secrets to the Soviet Union, which was about to make this development in nuclear technology in any event. [More…]
If we go in for nuclear power during the 1980s and retain our present reserves, or at least control their export, we will have sufficient fuel for electricity to see us through the first half of the 21st century. [More…]
It is well known that the Attorney-General achieved legal history when he went to The Hague and appeared as the principal advocate before the International Court of Justice seeking, and obtaining, an interim injunction against France in respect of the nuclear tests that were then being conducted in the Pacific. [More…]
In big power terms and stating the position baldly, I expect the next few years to be marked by a fairly stable equilibrium between the 3 major nuclear powers - the United States of America, the Soviet Union and China. [More…]
This will mean that while nuclear arsenals continue to mount and most states continue to preserve and sometimes enlarge conventional forces, the equilibrium between the great powers will produce less emphasis on strategy and leave more room for international economic negotiations. [More…]
For instance, such a project could be the operation of nuclear reactors in Australia. [More…]
In our predominantly conformist, overtly masculine society, fixed on the 2-child nuclear family mushrooming in suburban wastelands, the homosexual is an unwelcome outsider. [More…]
I believe that the expenditure of $100,000 prior to the engaging of legal counsel and the obtaining of scientific evidence to submit to the International Court of Justice in an effort to halt the French nuclear tests in the Pacific was excessive when compared with the results achieved. [More…]
I propose to refer briefly to the statement made by the Deputy Leader of the Country Party, the honourable member for New England (Mr Sinclair), in which he expressed concern in respect of the expenditure of $100,000 on the legal case put to the International Court of Justice in an attempt to stop the French nuclear tests in the Pacific. [More…]
It may be able to champion third world countries and be their nuclear leader, but the limits of this will be the degree to which the other 4 great power blocs provide assistance to them. [More…]
United States and the USSR to exercise self restraint in their future demands, otherwise Japan, India, Brazil and other countries will go nuclear. [More…]
Foreign affairs is now unhappily, as I have said before, a question of nuclear politics. [More…]
At the end of the last War, the United States had a nuclear monopoly. [More…]
Its rejection was due almost entirely to the machinations of the Soviet bloc which pretended to be affronted and to be in favour of nuclear disarmament but which actually achieved a position where the nuclear threat continued to hang over the world. [More…]
Unhappily, it has been complicated by the advances of nuclear science. [More…]
In 1945 and 1946, the nuclear bomb- the fission bomb - was, I think, decisive in terms of power, but not decisive in terms of necessary annihilation. [More…]
That situation changed when more than one country obtained the necessary nuclear know-how and completed the necessary nuclear preparations. [More…]
At the present moment nuclear arms are held by the United States, by Soviet Russia, in a small way by the United Kingdom and France, certainly by China and probably by other countries as well but those other countries have not yet revealed in full what they possess. [More…]
We do not know the full extent of the possession of nuclear arms by those countries. [More…]
When, in the early 1950s, the fusion bomb superseded the old fission bomb, the power of the nuclear weapon became immensely extended. [More…]
It is almost certain now that Israel has some kind of nuclear capacity. [More…]
That is not to say that all of those countries necessarily have nuclear weapons, but they have nuclear weapons within their short term grasp. [More…]
The so called Treaty on the Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons is a pure sham. [More…]
I am in favour of watertight nuclear control. [More…]
But it is clear that unless there is some kind of effective nuclear disarmament, we and the world are set for destruction. [More…]
Would we not be carrying out our duties as members of the Australian Parliament and as members of one of the parliaments of mankind - as members of the parliament of mankind, if honourable members like to put it that way - and would we not be doing better if, in the United Nations and elsewhere, we were to reject this kind of sham nuclear disarmament as pure piffle, absolutely unreliable, and work as we should be working for something effective and secure? [More…]
In this age of nuclear weapons, no nation can guarantee that it would be unaffected by any war between 2 major nuclear powers. [More…]
In this discussion I raised with the Chinese Vice-Premier the question of Chinese nuclear testing because, as all honourable members and people in Australia know, the Australian Government is strongly opposed to nuclear testing by any nation, and particularly to atmospheric testing. [More…]
The Chinese Vice-Premier’s reply was that the Chinese are prepared to discon tinue their nuclear testing but only in the context of all nations, including the United States of America and the Soviet Union, dismantling their own nuclear arsenals. [More…]
They believe that they cannot reasonably be expected to stop their nuclear testing while nothing is done to reduce the nuclear capacity of the Soviet Union - which is their next door neighbour and which they believe is threatening their security - and of the United States. [More…]
I do not believe that one can justify developing nuclear weapons just because the United States, and the Soviet Union already have nuclear weapons. [More…]
If this argument were to be used to justify the Chinese developing their own nuclear weapons, then the same argument could be used for every other country doing the same. [More…]
For that reason I believe that the Australian Government will continue to oppose nuclear testing, whether it is by China, by France or by any other country. [More…]
It is essential that all the middle and small powers should jointly try to bring about complete nuclear disarmament, because this is the only way to ensure world peace. [More…]
I believe that it is no longer sufficient for the representatives of the United States and the Soviet Union to make agreements behind closed doors on the size of their nuclear arsenals. [More…]
Better still, they should be multi-partite and include all countries which have nuclear weapons. [More…]
Obviously, this would not be the answer to all our problems, but it would be an important step and would at least establish workable machinery to enable realistic nuclear disarmament talks to take place. [More…]
Firstly, we should continue to press for the cessation of nuclear testing by all countries. [More…]
Secondly, we should press for total nuclear disarmament. [More…]
As a means of bringing this about, we should press for all nuclear powers to be included as participants in the SALT talks, and jointly we should press for international diplomatic action to bring about a resolution of the Sino-Soviet dispute. [More…]
I commend him, and I commended him at at the time, for his courage in bringing up at a high level meeting his abhorrence of atmospheric nuclear testing, something which had not been done quite as forcibly by the Australian Government of which he is a supporter. [More…]
He mentioned though - I think I quote him almost exactly - that the only way in which we shall ensure world peace is to bring about nuclear disarmament. [More…]
Whilst no nuclear weapons have been used in warfare since approximately 1945 a series of wars has been continuing throughout the world.. Of course we have the very unfortunate spectacle of one continuing at the moment. [More…]
Whilst we would all support a general nuclear disarmament, let us not kid ourselves for one moment that just by bringing about nuclear disarmament we will bring about world peace. [More…]
For example, I reaffirmed at the highest level the Australian Government’s determined opposition to nuclear testing in the atmosphere. [More…]
We know now that he raised the issue of Chinese nuclear tests but did he receive any committment from the Chinese that they would try to make their tests cleaner, to test underground or to curtail their testing program? [More…]
We would seek action by the Chinese on their nuclear testing and if they refused it we would say that they refused to do so. [More…]
I preface it by reminding honourable members that yesterday the Prime Minister told this House that he had made strong protests in China about Chinese nuclear atmospheric testing. [More…]
Dealing first with the all-pervasiveness and the power of the media, I would say that technology makes this field as important as, say, the development of nuclear weapons, or jet aircraft, or modern earth-moving equipment, or the electronics industry - for example, in the field of computers. [More…]
I should like to be somewhat critical of the way in which the media have reported the French nuclear tests. [More…]
He asserts his concern at the degree to which there is a potential nuclear war between the major powers of the world. [More…]
The whole question of nuclear technology as it applies to both reactor and waste disposal has not yet reached the level of meeting national accepted standards of safety. [More…]
It may be that British power is not so great east of Suez as once it was but at least there is still - let me say the brutal truth again - a British nuclear capacity which might be essential at some stage for the survival of Australia. [More…]
I do not mean that the nuclear weapon would be used. [More…]
What I suggest is that the capacity to call on the nuclear weapon would mean that it would not be used and it would mean that the identity and security of Australia could still be maintained. [More…]
Whilst the research can continue, the real bridge spanning the growing shortage of fuel oil is coal, then to nuclear energy, and ultimately to solar energy. [More…]
For the information of honourable members, I present papers concerning the nuclear tests case between Australia and France before the International Court of Justice. [More…]
By 1980 oil will claim some 48 per cent, gas some 20 per cent, coal some 25 per cent, and the remainder will be chewed up by way of hydro and nuclear power. [More…]
I hope that natural gas and petroleum products will keep Australia going for many years without having to resort to the use of nuclear power because I can see problems in the disposal of nuclear waste. [More…]
There is no guarantee that these nuclear cemeteries will not be accident prone, or that the steel caskets will hold indefinitely, or that an earthquake or some other disturbance of nature will not set off a devastating nuclear-shower. [More…]
We cannot dispose of nuclear wastes in the Antarctic, which has been suggested by some people, because the Antarctic Treaty of 1959 prevents this being done. [More…]
Anyone who went to those places and saw what had happened would believe that a nuclear bomb had fallen there. [More…]
2 May: Report from the Academy of Science on the Biological Effects of Nuclear Explosion Fall-out. [More…]
17 May: Biological Effects of Nuclear Explosion Fall-out. [More…]
It will press for world disarmament in general and nuclear disarmament in particular. [More…]
Owing to the development of new weapons, nuclear or otherwise, either side can entirely destroy the other and neither can protect itself against the other. [More…]
A Mr Sakharov, a Russian scientist who is close to the centre of things and who has, in fact, been concerned with the production of nuclear weapons- [More…]
The Minister is making the arrangements for this natural disaster organisation to be on a contemporary basis largely to provide that what used to be the Civil Defence Organisation should be concerned not primarily or solely with the possible consequences of nuclear attack but also the certain consequences of recurrent natural disasters. [More…]
What did they as a government do about the French testing of nuclear weapons? [More…]
In this age of tremendous power being vested particularly in the super powers - the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and the USA which have the capacity to bring about a nuclear holocaust - one cannot have detente unless there is some understanding and some alleviation of tension. [More…]
At the recent South Pacific Conference meeting was a resolution adopted by ten votes to five condemning the French nuclear testing in the Pacific. [More…]
General Assembly of the United Nations Information on Nuclear Weapons (Question No. [More…]
the possession by various nations of nuclear weapons and of machinery for ‘their utilisation and [More…]
We have had our differences - differences in relation to nuclear tests. [More…]
In the tangled web of international affairs I think that nuclear control and disarmament form the great question which hangs over not only us but, indeed, the whole world and we have had our differences with France. [More…]
We believe, and I think that the French people would also believe, that it is essential that we have effective control of nuclear armaments and effective disarmament. [More…]
We have had our differences in regard to the atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons. [More…]
Because of various factors, but above all the compelling restraints of the nuclear balance, the long term prospect for global stability and avoidance of general war and for the limitation of local conflicts remains favourable. [More…]
The first is a reference to page 6 of the Minister’s statement where he acknowledges a force which is so vital to Australia’s future security - the compelling restraints of the nuclear balance. [More…]
Unfortunately, I am sure that in the Australian Labor Party the left hand does not know what the right hand is doing because I am quite sure that the Prime Minister (Mr Whitlam) has never heard of the nuclear balance even if the Minister for Defence has. [More…]
After all, the nuclear balance is the fundamental reason why the Opposition supports the American presence in Diego Garcia. [More…]
The Government apparently is not concerned at the implications for Western Australia and for Australia in the future of any change in that nuclear balance which the Minister uses as the basis for his own forward strategic assessment. [More…]
Nuclear balance means the equal strategic positioning of the major powers of the world to ensure that, at least from our side, we are not significantly disadvantaged. [More…]
One is by any weakening of this nuclear balance. [More…]
The nuclear balance involves not only the major powers but also those which are aligned on either side and this Government is distinctly moving away from Australia’s traditional position with the Western free world to one which is aligned on the other side of the camp or one that is stuck somewhere in between sitting on the fence. [More…]
In foreign affairs the orientation away from the free world to the third world of socialist states, the rejection of a concern for the Indian Ocean in favour of a dominance of it by the Russians, a concern for the development of relations with North Vietnam, North Korea and the other communist states of the world and excessive concern for countries like the People’s Republic of China - for example, the failure to condemn it in the South Pacific Forum for its nuclear explosions but the preparedness to condemn France- [More…]
It will pursue actively the objective of nuclear disarmament. [More…]
We have had a great deal of bother- about French nuclear tests. [More…]
Yes, I do believe that when we had the chance to enforce nuclear disarmament we should have taken that chance. [More…]
The honourable member for Mackellar (Mr Wentworth) said that my attitude towards the use of nuclear weapons could bring about a world holocaust. [More…]
He has protested to France and he has protested to China about their experimenting in the atmosphere with nuclear weapons. [More…]
I have never been, and I never will be, a party to the indiscriminate use of nuclear weapons. [More…]
As Australia was obliged, under the provisions of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, to complete a safeguards agreement by 11 July 1974 with the Government of the United States of America, will the Minister incorporate in Hansard the text ofthe safeguards agreement which was signed with the United States on 10 July 1974. [More…]
As required under the provisions of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the Australian Government concluded a safeguards agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency on 10 July 1974, for the application of NPT safeguards on safeguardable nuclear material within Australia. [More…]
The statement noted that the discussions in Paris, which concerned the continuance of French nuclear tests in the Pacific, were ‘cordial and frank and every effort was made to find an amicable resolution to this dispute’. [More…]
The top 25 oil corporations control 84 per cent of oU, 72 per cent of gas, 50 per cent of coal, 80 per cent of atomic or nuclear power and 60 per cent of electric power. [More…]
Did he take the opportunity at the meeting to make clear that he disapproved of Chinese testing of nuclear devices in the atmosphere, and to suggest that the French tests were more reprehensible than the Chinese tests. [More…]
Has he ever suggested elsewhere that testing nuclear devices in the atmosphere by France is more reprehensible than testing nuclear devices in the atmosphere by China. [More…]
I told Chairman Mao Tse-tung that the Australian Government and the Australian people were strongly opposed to all forms of nuclear testing, whether in the atmosphere or underground. [More…]
I have on numerous occasions reiterated the Government’s policy of total opposition to the testing of nuclear devices in the atmosphere by any State. [More…]
Nuclear Weapons Testing by China and Russia (Question No. [More…]
Did the Government deliver protest notes to the Chinese and French Governments on 18 June 1974 for exploding nuclear devices in the atmosphere; if not, what form of protest took place; if so, were the notes in the same terms, or were they identical. [More…]
1 ) Yes; the Notes were identical as regards the terms in which the Government’s concern at the atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons was expressed. [More…]
The protest in the Notes in each case was a protest against atmospheric nuclear weapons testing. [More…]
Grants by the Australian Atomic Energy Commission to the Australian Institute of Nuclear Science and Engineering (AINSE) [More…]
We co-operated particularly closely in our opposition to nuclear tests in the Pacific. [More…]
One particular matter in respect of which a great deal of publicity was given to the efforts of Norman Kirk related to nuclear testing in the Pacific by France. [More…]
I know he would be disappointed, were he still alive, to realise that there were nuclear tests so soon after his death. [More…]
It is in that context that the recent nuclear explosion by India could do much harm. [More…]
India is now answerable for the further proliferation of nuclear weapons by countries which do not yet possess them. [More…]
We all know that enormous sums are necessary for nuclear research. [More…]
On the other hand, India must realise that from a public relations point of view, if for no other reason, the recent nuclear tests make it that much harder for those of us who believe in and encourage strong aid programs to get our point of view across. [More…]
I have made these specific criticisms because I am concerned about the growing criticism in the community of that country which exploded a nuclear weapon without having due regard either to the consequences of further proliferation in other countries or to the pressures on the developed countries, such as our own, which wish to give further funds by way of aid programs but which receive criticism for doing so. [More…]
-I ask the Prime Minister whether the Government has received details of the nuclear bomb explosion testing reported to have taken place in India about 3 months ago. [More…]
As the success of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty depends on the effective containment of nuclear testing, I ask whether Australia has made any protest. [More…]
-The Government has been in touch with the Indian Government about the peaceful nuclear explosion which it conducted. [More…]
An experimental explosion to develop the peaceful use of nuclear energy. [More…]
All I should add is that we do not believe that the long sustained effort which many nations have made to secure acceptance for the nuclear non-proliferation treaty has been in any way assisted. [More…]
For the information of honourable members I table 2 documents relating to the proceedings of Australia against France in the International Court of Justice, concerning the prohibition of further atmospheric nuclear tests at the French Pacific test centre. [More…]
There again our overriding consideration, of course, will be to ensure that uranium, when exported, will go only to countries which are fully accessories to and have signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
The yellowcake is eventually to be used by a 100 per cent Australianowned nuclear enrichment plant. [More…]
A nuclear enrichment plant would cost a tremendous amount of money- at least $2,000m and possibly $3,000m. [More…]
All major nuclear countries except Japan have assured supplies of uranium until 1985. [More…]
The potential market would be nuclear reactors. [More…]
As a reasonable guess then, our large deposits of uranium will probably have a peak market period for the next 15 to 20 years, when advances in nuclear development or other energy sources, such as solar energy, or even the conversion of sea water, are unknown factors. [More…]
Producing countries, specifically Canada, are recognising the need for a national policy regarding uranium and in this respect we attach a letter of 22 June 1972 from Mr O. J. C. Runnalls, Senior Adviser, Uranium and Nuclear Energy to the Government of Canada, setting out the position in that country. [More…]
Although nuclear energy is not part of the Australian energy scene today, it is most likely to be a significant part by the end of this century. [More…]
All the Western world is finding that it must turn to nuclear energy more and more to satisfy its energy demands. [More…]
It is a fact that the Japanese plan that by 1985 one-quarter of that nation’s total generating capacity will be of nuclear origin. [More…]
But what we have to do for Australia is to establish now our national program for development of the uranium industry and, in the future, the nuclear energy field. [More…]
One of the key subjects which we discussed was uranium and nuclear energy. [More…]
The Opposition asks that this Minister does his homework and that this Government does its homework in the field of uranium and nuclear energy, and that this Minister and this Government give a prepared statement which the Opposition, the industry and the people can study. [More…]
If the Minister only studied what is going on in other parts of the world he would understand that countries which in the 1980s and beyond will be dependent upon nuclear energy are looking to private investment to supply them with their needs. [More…]
Unless we build the base within the industry itself, we will not be able to compete in the world energy scene and, in particular, on the world nuclear energy scene because uranium enrichment will become an international industry. [More…]
What are so often forgotten are the tremendous lead times that are involved in developing the technologies in this field and building the plants, whether they be nuclear reactors or uranium enrichment plants. [More…]
I believe that the Australian Prime Minister, Mr Whitlam, said in the United Nations that Australia would not export uranium to any country that had not signed the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. [More…]
We know from the lectures of Linus Pauling, the great American nuclear physicist, that a 20 megaton bomb exploded 5 miles above the earth has such a killing effect, that every living thing is destroyed within a radius of 50 miles and very few people survive within a radius of 100 miles. [More…]
Was it this desire that prompted his Government to commence proceedings against France in the International Court of Justice to ban nuclear testing in the atmosphere? [More…]
Indonesia’s planned possession of nuclear armaments in 1985 was described in Djakarta on August 2 as ‘armament of peace’. [More…]
The Foreign Minister, Mr Adam Malik, said the term might be new, but ‘armament of peace’ stood for nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. [More…]
Mr Malik was commenting on a statement by State Minister for Research Professor Soemitro, while in Australia recently, that Indonesia might possess nuclear armaments in 1985. [More…]
Is it a fact that while Indonesia has signed, it has not ratified, the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty? [More…]
In view of the Labor Government’s ratification of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, has the Prime Minister sought, during his visits to Indonesia and particularly during his recent talks with President Suharto, any guarantee from the Indonesian Government that it will ratify the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and, secondly, give a clear undertaking that it will not develop nuclear weapons? [More…]
-When I was having discussions with President Suharto in Indonesia at the beginning of September, I naturally discussed the general question of armaments, including a nuclear armament and also the peaceful uses of nuclear energy and the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
I do not claim to have spoken to the same people in high places as the Prime Minister, but I spoke to a good cross-section of officers of the United States and Canadian Governments and to leading men in the nuclear and uranium industry in the United States in particular. [More…]
Every reputable assessment of that pattern shows that the combination of the nuclear reactors to be commenced in the decade of the 1980s and in particular the number of uranium enrichment plants required in the Western world to satisfy enriched uranium demand has compelled the international uranium industry to reassess that demand in the 1980s. [More…]
Therefore, once the projected demand for enriched uranium is appreciated, looking at it from a conservative view and looking at the more accelerated nuclear growth patterns for that decade, it is quite clear that by 1990 the Western world will require between six and nine new enrichment plants. [More…]
The Minister told this chamber on 1 October that we will sell uranium only to countries which are full accessories to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty. [More…]
I think there has been too great a tendency to accept that a nuclear family is inevitable and that this is a process that cannot be reversed. [More…]
We have only to consider the suggestion of uranium as an energy source to realise that we are beset with enormous problems associated with nuclear reactors, problems of leakage and the transport of uranium and associated material. [More…]
A very senior Army officer, Brigadier Hooton who last year resigned as the head of Army intelligence in protest against cuts in defence expenditure, has pointed out that Japan, China and India, as well as the Soviet Union, have the nuclear capacity to threaten Australia. [More…]
Since 2 December 1972, the Government has paid close attention to international conventions directed towards securing the prohibition of nuclear, chemical and bacteriological warfare. [More…]
Nuclear Warfare t [More…]
The Government ratified the Treaty on the NonProliferation of Nuclear weapons in January 1973. [More…]
The Government has participated in many bilateral and multilateral consultations about aspects of nonproliferation including in particular the development of effective international arrangements to govern and control nuclear experiments for peaceful purposes. [More…]
As the Prime Minister said in his address to the UN General Assembly on 30 September, Australia seeks support for an international arrangement by which all States could gain access to nuclear explosives services under agreed and secure international controls and for peaceful purposes. [More…]
important discussions on the question of halting the spread of nuclear weapons capability (nonproliferation) and related matters take place or will take place in certain forums additional to those mentioned above: [More…]
Australia supports the concept of such a conference but considers that it can only be held when there is widespread international agreement about its agenda and the objectives sought, and when the five nuclear weapon States and other States of major military and political significance have agreen to participate. [More…]
To this end, when the Government assumed office on 2 December 1972 it moved quickly :o ratify the Treaty on Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and the Seabed Arms Control Treaty. [More…]
The Government has also actively promoted the cessation of nuclear testing through bilateral representations, through its activities in the United Nations and through the action it has taken in the International Court of Justice against French testing in the atmosphere. [More…]
The Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty was raised. [More…]
We have seen in the last few months the enunciation of a new doctrine of nuclear war by the United States Secretary of Defence. [More…]
Why should not the people of this nation be given a chance to appreciate that although we must live in the bi-polar context the fact remains that there is a considerable growth in technology which has developed through nuclear capacity? [More…]
It is relevant to Australia’s defence, especially when we see the nations to the north of us- India, and Indonesia in particular- already, in the last 2 months, coming out with a statement which to say the least was ambivalent but which would give reasonable expectation that they too are now prepared to get on the nuclear bandwagon if they can do so. [More…]
We are well aware, through the comments made in the United Nations and elsewhere, that the Government is against the proliferation of nuclear weapons and so are we. [More…]
But is the Prime Minister when he goes to Moscow at the end of this year going to make it quite clear to the Russians where we stand and how we expect to see the Russians assist the United States in coming to a reasonable arrangement with the states which already have nuclear capacity to ensure that we do not have this proliferation any further? [More…]
One of the sad things about the 20th century is the nuclear family and the decline of the extended family unit which has left the field of caring for the aged largely in the hands of voluntary organisations or the States. [More…]
Fallout Over Australia from Nuclear Weapons Tested by France During July 1966. [More…]
Fallout Over Australia from Nuclear Weapons Tested by France in Polynesia from July to October 1966. [More…]
A Report on the Meteorological Aspects of Radio-active Fallout over Australia from the 1966 Nuclear Tests at Muroroa Atoll. [More…]
Fallout Over Australia from Nuclear Weapons Tested by France in Polynesia During June and July 1967. [More…]
Iodine-131 Concentrations in Australian Milk Resulting from the 1967 French Nuclear Weapons Tests in Polynesia. [More…]
Fallout Over Australia from Nuclear Weapons Tested by France in Polynesia from July to September 1968. [More…]
Iodine-131 Concentrations in Australian Milk Resulting from the 1968 French Nuclear Weapons Tests in Polynesia. [More…]
Fallout over Australia from Nuclear Weapons Tested by France in Polynesia from May to August 1970. [More…]
Fallout over Australian from Nuclear Weapons Tested by France in Polynesia from June to August 1 97 1 . [More…]
Fallout over Australia from Nuclear Weapons Tested by France in Polynesia During June and July 1972. [More…]
In that period, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom and the United States, all signatories to the Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty of 1963, have not carried out any nuclear weapons tests in the atmosphere. [More…]
The People’s Republic or China carried out nuclear weapons tests in the atmosphere, over the mainland, in each year from 1964to 1974. [More…]
There are no simple means for identifying the radio-active components of fall-out with the country conducting the nuclear test However, complex analysis of the data obtained from the Australian Government fall-out monitoring programs and of data published by other countries permit an apportionment of the radio-active materials deposited on [More…]
Australian Territory to be made between the various countries which have carried out nuclear weapons tests in the atmosphere. [More…]
Nuclear Non-Prolif feration Treaty (Question No. [More…]
Since ratification of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, what inspections have been conducted or what other arrangements have been settled or entered into with respect to the development of nuclear energy technology in Australia. [More…]
At the same time a protocol to the U.S.A.IAEAAustralia Safeguards Transfer Agreement was concluded to provide for the suspension of trilateral safeguards on U.S.- supplied nuclear material while NPT safeguards were applied. [More…]
Australia, in company with Norway, U.S.S.R., U.S.A., U.K.., Denmark, Canada and Finland, informed the IAEA on 22 August 1974 of certain procedures it would apply to exports of nuclear materials and equipment to states not party to the NPT in order to meet the requirements of Article III of the NPT. [More…]
under the Australian NPT Safeguards Agreement, the IAEA carried out a safeguards inspection on 2-5 September 1974 to verify the initial inventory of nuclear material declared by Australia under its NPT obligations. [More…]
1 ) Has the Minister’s attention been drawn to reports that the United Kingdom, the United States of America and the Soviet Union have agreed to a nuclear embargo on India. [More…]
Australia was one of a number of countries which were involved in achieving this improvement in international nuclear safeguards arrangements. [More…]
The initiative was not directed specifically at any country but the arrangements agreed will apply to India in the same way as they will apply to other importers of nuclear materials and equipment. [More…]
1 ) With reference to his answer to my question in the House of Representatives on 22 October 1974 concerning Indonesia’s attitude to nuclear armaments, has he sought the Indonesian Government’s attitude to ratification of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty; if so, what is its attitude. [More…]
Has his attention been drawn to the indication by the Indonesian Ambassador to Australia, on an ABC television program, This Day Tonight, on 22 October 1974, that the Indonesian Government would keep its options open on the development of nuclear weapons. [More…]
Will he undertake to begin discussions immediately with the Indonesian Government to clarify its attitude on the development of nuclear weapons and the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty. [More…]
1 ) The Indonesian Government, although a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, has entered certain reservations and is withholding ratification until they are satisfied. [More…]
and (4) My September meeting with President Soeharto has been followed by officials’ talks in Djakarta at the end of October on a range of matters including the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
As opportunity offers the Australian Government will continue dialogue with the Indonesian Government on the important question of nuclear proliferation. [More…]
1 have since read the transcript of the interview and from that transcript I did not gain the view that the Indonesian Government was intending to pursue the development of nuclear weapons. [More…]
I have particularly noted that the Ambassador said ‘we have no intention whatsoever to use our nuclear reactor to prodduce nuclear weapons ‘. [More…]
I declared at the United Nations General Assembly on 30 September 1 974 Australia ‘s intention to work towards the strengthening of the international non-proliferation regime by supporting the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and working for its acceptance everywhere. [More…]
As a party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Australia will be an active participant in the forthcoming conference in May 1 975 at Geneva to review the Treaty as required by its Article VIII (3). [More…]
For the developed world to accept that famine and disease are acceptable alternatives to economic development as a solution to population growth is to admit that all our advances in this world, through computers, telecommunications, nuclear energy and other factors, have been a failure. [More…]
One can illustrate it, dramatise it, by the report that at the time of the visit to this country of the Shah of Iran he had ordered from France some 5 nuclear power stations, half a dozen major plants or factories, including a steel plant, three or more railways, and so on. [More…]
We have urged mutual restraint on the 2 superpowers in the Indian Ocean and have given our support in principle to peace zone proposals as part of our design to strengthen the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
We have signed an agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency on the application of safeguards pursuant to ratification of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and proposed the introduction of an international service for peaceful nuclear explosions. [More…]
They want a nuclear-free zone. [More…]
India has already exploded a nuclear device. [More…]
In those circumstances, with neither of those countries having signed the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty and Australia having done so, how can we hope that the Indian Ocean will be a nuclear-free zone? [More…]
The Prime Minister has made no effort to encourage Indonesia or India to sign the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty. [More…]
Outside his legislative record Mr Murphy has been responsible for the establishment of the Australian Legal Aid Office and the conduct of the nuclear test case before the International Court of Justice. [More…]
At the same time we have in our Constitution a complete gap relating, for example, to the control of nuclear power in Australia. [More…]
In the course of recent weeks- recent weeks, mark you- various State Premiers have sought to give expression to their views as to what should be done regarding the establishment of nuclear power stations in Australia. [More…]
It may be true that the Commonwealth, by dint of signing an international convention relating to nuclear power in some form or another and the control of nuclear waste, would be able to assume a clear responsibility in this field. [More…]
Then, right at the end of his speech, he asked why this matter should be put to the people again and why more important matters such as nuclear energy were not being submitted? [More…]
The change from the extended biological family we had in the past to the more fragile nuclear family, the increase in the breadth of education for women in our society and the changing rate of opportunities for women have all made marriage a more stressful situation. [More…]
It arises from the declaration of the Japanese Foreign Minister at the last session of the United Nations General Assembly that Japan was making the necessary preparations for the ratification of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. [More…]
In view of Australia’s interest in this matter, can the Prime Minister inform the House of the measures being taken by Japan to give effect to its public statement in favour of ratification of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty? [More…]
-The Government knows that Japan shares our deep concern over nuclear proliferation and has participated actively in recent international efforts to strengthen the nonproliferation regime. [More…]
We have been greatly encouraged by reports that Japan has negotiated a draft agreement with the secretariat of the International Atomic Energy Agency on the safeguards that would enter into force after Japan’s ratification of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
We welcome this progress towards a safeguards agreement, which is a significant step towards ratification of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty by Japan. [More…]
The mere reduction in the physical size of the family from the extended family of the past which embraced a wide range of relatives, down to the nuclear family of today, must of necessity reduce the strands which tend to hold the family together. [More…]
For the information of honourable members I present reports by the Australian Ionising Radiation Advisory Council and the Australian Radiation Laboratory entitled ‘Fallout over Australia from Nuclear Weapons Tested by France in Polynesia during July and August, 1973’. [More…]
Clearly the question of involvement in any particular military conflict is one of enormous concern to any country and particularly to the great powers with their nuclear capability. [More…]
1 ) Does he have information to confirm or deny the presence in the Indian Ocean of an increase in the U.S.S.R. Indian Ocean fleet involving the helicopter carrier ‘Leningrad’ carrying Ml-8 helicopters and capable of operating attack aircraft, a C-Class nuclear-powered submarine armed with long-range SSN-7 missiles which have a nuclear warhead capacity, a V-Class nuclear-powered hunter-killer submarine, intelligence gathering vessels, minesweepers, a tug, a replenishment ship and a space research ship. [More…]
The November breakdown includes a cruiser and a nuclear powered submarine which entered the Indian Ocean after 18 November. [More…]
I would not presume to express a view on the statements which have been made in Townsville in the last few days concerning the possible relationship between nuclear tests in the South Pacific and some babies who were born with abnormalities in the north Queensland area. [More…]
I can of course answer the honourable gentleman’s question about international arrangements to preclude further nuclear testing. [More…]
The Government has noted with concern that over the last year an increased number of states engaged in nuclear testing. [More…]
In particular, we hope that the Conference will help make all states aware that the introduction of nuclear technology throughout the world must be accompanied by internationally accepted standards of physical and environmental security and by adequate assurances of peaceful use. [More…]
The Government has supported international efforts aimed at the early conclusion of a comprehensive test ban treaty with adequate provisions for access by all states for the benefits of peaceful nuclear explosions. [More…]
Our proposals for arrangements for international non-discriminatory facilities for peaceful nuclear explosions for all states are to be seen as part of this objective. [More…]
Nuclear brinkmanship, ideology, border disputes, race hate, religious bigotry, national ambitions, foreign exploitation all provide actual or potential sources of tension, conflict, bloodshed and war. [More…]
Each family, if it wishes, should be able to find a type of support which has been described by Margaret Mead as the process of ‘re-surrounding the nuclear family’. [More…]
1 ) With reference to his predecessor’s press release of 2 1 December 1974, what are the grounds for the belief that the case Australia put to the International Court of Justice influenced the French Government’s decision to discontinue atmospheric nuclear testing in the South Pacific. [More…]
What my distinguished predecessor, Mr Justice Murphy of the High Court, stated was that he believed the case Australia had put to the Court and the injunction granted by the Court in 1973 had influenced the French Government’s decision to discontinue atmospheric nuclear testing in the South Pacific. [More…]
He said that he believed there ought to be a debate in this Parliament on 2 aspects of defence- firstly conscription and secondly nuclear weapons. [More…]
Honourable members come into this chamber projecting exactly the same philosophy and reaching the point where they advocate union bashing, conscription, nuclear defence, snobocracy, phoney money policies, the gerrymandering of electorates and blatant dedication to vested and sectional interests. [More…]
I also refer the Prime Minister to the strong stand which his Government has taken against the French over atmospheric nuclear tests and in relation to nuclear non-proliferation. [More…]
Will the Prime Minister explain, for the benefit of the House and of the young people concerned, why it is that there are no double standards involved in his Government’s taking this strong stand whilst permitting the export of uranium to countries in circumstances in which the minerals could be used for the production of nuclear weapons. [More…]
-The Government has been scrupulous to ensure that no negotiations for the export of uranium from Australia will take place with any country which has not subscribed to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty or which has not undertaken to observe the safeguards laid down by the International Atomic Energy Agency. [More…]
The Australian Government took steps to deter the French Government from carrying out nuclear tests in the atmosphere. [More…]
He will recall telling the honourable member for Wentworth yesterday that Australia will not export uranium to any country which has not subscribed to the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty. [More…]
The Government has been scrupulous to ensure that no negotiations for the export of uranium from Australia will take place with any country which has not subscribed to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty or which has not undertaken to observe the safeguards laid down by the International Atomic Energy Agency. [More…]
Japan is, I believe, proceeding to ratify the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
If so, I ask: Did the article assert that the ANZUS Treaty was not worth the paper it was written on, advocate the acquisition of nuclear weapons and support the creation of private armies? [More…]
The Government does not believe that Australia ‘s security would be advanced by acquiring nuclear weapons. [More…]
If any honourable member believes that Australia’s security would be advanced by acquiring nuclear weapons I believe he has the obligation to tell the public that that is his view. [More…]
The first is destruction by nuclear war, the second is being crippled by overpopulation and the third is the Age of Leisure. [More…]
Plans are under way to construct 35 nuclear power plants in Japan by 1985. [More…]
We know that the establishment of nuclear power stations in Japan is vital to Japan’s energy sources in the 1980s and beyond. [More…]
Therefore Japan is interested in moving into nuclear power and enriched fuel. [More…]
The answer to the right honourable member’s question is as follows: (1), (2) and (3) An exhaustive survey of all the research projects bearing on nuclear energy has not been undertaken, However, the twenty-second Annual Report of the Australian Atomic Energy Commission, which was tabled in Parliament on 17 October 1974, lists at pages 105 to 110: the main research programs in progress within the Commission; research contracts awarded by the Commission during the year 1973-74; and research projects carried out within Australian tertiary education institutions with support by the Australian Government through the Australian Institute of Nuclear Science and Engineering. [More…]
These provisions we relied on in the nuclear test case. [More…]
Has the Minister stated that the Government is opposed to nuclear tests both above and below the ground? [More…]
Has the French Government announced that it will conduct underground nuclear tests in the South Pacific during 1975? [More…]
1 ) The Australian Government has on many occasions expressed its opposition to all forms of nuclear testing and has urged the nuclear powers to reach agreement on a comprehensive test ban. [More…]
As I indicated in my press statement on 8 June 1975, and as the French Government subsequently confirmed, that Government has already conducted the first of a series of underground nuclear tests in the South Pacific. [More…]
The honourable member will be aware that underground testing of nuclear devices constitutes a lesser hazard than atmospheric testing in that it is designed to prevent the release of radioactive fallout into the atmosphere. [More…]
However, the Government, through the Australian Radiation Laboratory of the Department of Health has made arrangements to monitor levels of radioactivity in the atmosphere as a precaution in case of any fallout reaching Australia as a resul t of any incomplete containment of the underground nuclear tests being conducted by France in Polynesia. [More…]
Can the Prime Minister give an unequivocal assurance that the Government is opposed to acquisition by Australia of nuclear weapons? [More…]
Will the Prime Minister also affirm Australian support for the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty? [More…]
Secondly the Australian Labor Party says that we should have a nuclear free zone in the Indian Ocean. [More…]
It has told us that it wants a nuclear free zone. [More…]
At a time when the super powers- the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and the United States of America- have nuclear arsenals that can destroy the world one hundred times over, a little rational debate about what part a country plays in its own policies about what influence it may have in its own region and about how it may be able to persuade in some small way the actions of the super powers, is extremely important. [More…]
A spokesman for the National Country Party or the National Party wants to put nuclear weapons up and down the coast of Queensland. [More…]
Will someone please tell us on this side of the House whether what that person said in Queensland at the Returned Service’s League Convention about wanting nuclear weapons up and down the coast of Queensland and around all the cities of Australia is the policy of the Liberal-Country Party Opposition? [More…]
If one goes to Peking one will be shown shelters and be told by the Chinese that rocketry is aimed at Peking and that the shelters are to protect them from nuclear fallout. [More…]
Instead members of the Government talk about a nuclear free zone, but what will that do? [More…]
Does anybody imagine that the Soviet ships unload their nuclear weapons before they sail into the Indian Ocean? [More…]
Who would say that before they sailed into the Indian Ocean they must likewise jettison their nuclear weapons? [More…]
A nuclear free zone would operate only to the great disadvantage of Australia. [More…]
I say that it is a base to communicate with 15 to 20 nuclear submarines in the Indian Ocean. [More…]
It is expected that each nuclear submarine would carry from 15 to 20 nuclear warheads, with a striking power at least 10 times greater than that of the bombs which were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. [More…]
When Sir Robert Menzies endeavoured to play down this communications station by saying that it was merely a radio station, it was pointed out to him that it was more important than one or two nuclear submarines; that it was a radio station that could communicate with 15 to 20 nuclear submarines as a result of the sole decision of one man, without Australia having any say in it whatsoever. [More…]
At the time of this great debate in this Parliament a nuclear submarine was described by a member of the House of Commons as a mobile nuclear base. [More…]
It provides that the power of the President of the United States of America shall be restricted so that without consultation he cannot give orders to the base to contact nuclear submarines and give the order to fire. [More…]
It also has the capacity, as the honourable member for Hunter correctly pointed out, to make contact with nuclear submarines. [More…]
What is so unusual about that when all the major powers today- Britain, the United States, possibly China and certainly the Soviet Union and Francehave nuclear submarines and submarines with nuclear potential? [More…]
If it had not been for this nuclear capacity being in the hands of the free world, I have no doubt that communist aggression would have gone much further and got much worse. [More…]
In terms of the global deterrentthe global nuclear balance- Australia is fundamentally aligned with the United States. [More…]
I want to say that again: The Australian Governmentthe Australian Labor Party- in terms of the global balance, the nuclear deterrent- the big league, if you like, of nuclear balance between the Soviet Union and the US- is fundamentally aligned with the US. [More…]
and (4) The requirements are set out in ‘Jervis Bay Nuclear Power Station- Invitation to Tender on Nuclear Steam Supply System and Related Services’ dated 28 February 1970, which document was sent to parties expressing an interest in tendering. [More…]
It will be remembered that the Government ratified the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty on 23 January 1973. [More…]
That Treaty prohibits the developing of technology to manufacture nuclear weapons. [More…]
It permits the export of uranium to non-parties, but requires that specific International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards apply to such exports and that such uranium be not used in nuclear explosive devices, including those for peaceful purposes. [More…]
Australia played an active part in the proceedings of the review conference of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in Geneva in May. [More…]
We are convinced that the early conclusion of meaningful arms control agreements by the nuclear powers, including a Comprehensive Test Ban Agreement, remains crucial to the containment of nuclear proliferation. [More…]
At the last United Nations General Assembly I made clear that the concept of nuclear free zones was one that deserved the most serious exploration but emphasised that such zones were no substitute for an effective nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
I think the honourable member for Kingston and everybody else on this side of the House would deplore the fact that the Liberal Party at 2 State conferences recently has resolved that Australia should develop nuclear weapons. [More…]
The Government adheres to its international obligations under the International Atomic Energy Agency and the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
and (4) The following information has been made available in relation to environmental studies of the Jervis Bay nuclear power plant: [More…]
Giles and E. Charash Ecological Factors in the Siting, Design and Operation of a Nuclear Power Station, Proceedings of the Ecological Society of Australia, Volume 5, 1970, pages 153-168; [More…]
Davy, ‘Nuclear Power and Environmental Pollution’, Atomic Energy in Australia, Volume 14, Nos. [More…]
It must be most disturbing, and certainly was during my visit to Japan, to find that the Japanese Atomic Energy Commission is undertaking an intensive program of research into steel making by nuclear methods. [More…]
Until the arrival of Mr Connor as a minister we had a succession of ministerial appointments who neither asserted nor sought to assert any strong political guidance over the one area of energy policy where the Government did have a direct in vollvement nuclear energy. [More…]
Uranium policy was left to the Department of National Development which regarded it as purely another mining activity and nuclear policy as such was framed and pursued by the scientists of the Atomic Energy Commission. [More…]
They include, of course, solar energy, hydroelectric power, fossil fuel, oil from coal, nuclear energy, tidal power, the lot. [More…]
Doubtless these will be followed in the very near future by nuclear power. [More…]
I understand the United Kingdom is already obtaining something like 17 per cent of its power from nuclear sources. [More…]
Six nuclear bombs dropped on the mining industry of Australia could not have done as much damage as this Minister has done. [More…]
The editorial mentions nuclear energy and virtually says, as that publication has said constantly, that there was no management of Australia’s natural resources by the LiberalCountry Party governments. [More…]
They concerned suggestions that Jervis Bay might become, firstly, the site of a major steel works and associated development, and secondly, the site for Australia’s first nuclear power station. [More…]
They merely serve United States global strategy, including nuclear strategy, and increase the possibility of Australia becoming a nuclear target in the future. [More…]
Cockburn Sound is a vital part of our defence system- there is no denying that- but the decision to open it to nuclear-powered and nuclear-armed United States warships is not. [More…]
It will undoubtedly invite reprisals against the citizens of Perth in the event of nuclear conflict between the super powers. [More…]
He spoke about the liability of the North West Cape base to nuclear attack. [More…]
There is a delicate balance of theory about whether North West Cape would be subject to a nuclear attack or not. [More…]
On the other hand there are those who hold that if a nuclear war breaks out there will be a continual effort on both sides to stop it escalating, and if they destroy one another’s communications systems there will be nothing to stop the war escalating, because if one lives in hopes of reversing the tendency to use more and more nuclear missiles and to get some kind of agreement over the hot line, one will have to presuppose that one’s enemy can communicate with his submarines or whatever are the vehicles by which the attack is being carried through. [More…]
The NATO headquarters was in France, and it finally came to the point where de Gaulle needed to ask a straight question: ‘If, because of the presence of these headquarters, or because of the position of France in the alliance, the Soviet Union were to land a few nuclear missiles on France, would the United States retaliate on her behalf?’ [More…]
Anybody who is not a complete fool would know for instance that the United States is not going to sentence to death 10 million New Yorkers because a nuclear weapon had been used on France. [More…]
There began to be in de Gaulle’s mind a fear that subordinate allies of the great nuclear powers might be used as testing grounds of one another’s will. [More…]
France has not left the NATO alliance but it has cleared NATO headquarters out of France and proceeded to develop at great speed, its force de frappe, its own independent nuclear deterrent. [More…]
The very large French naval forces in the Indian Ocean, which at first sight is an ocean that appears to have absolutely nothing to do with the strategic defence of Fance, are there simply so that nuclear missiles on submarines or on other vehicles are deployed on Soviet Donets Basin cities so that if the Soviet Union were to use nuclear weapons on France, France might have this deterrent to be able to retaliate and not be beholden in any way to the United States of America. [More…]
I do not overdraw this because I think the nuclear balance has become fairly strong. [More…]
There was one possible objection which had to be examined, that an Omega station in Australia could be used to guide missile-firing submarines, that it could provide the navigation basis for them and that, therefore, an Omega station in Australia could become a nuclear target. [More…]
The evidence presented to the Committee does show that the Omega system is not vital to nuclear ballistic missile submarines. [More…]
The speeches of the honourable member for Fremantle show that his clear and obvious intention in them was a demand for the acquisition of nuclear submarines, though he phrased this carefully in an attempt to evade the vengeance of the World Peace Councillors in his own Party. [More…]
Thirdly, we must recognise that the production of energy by a nuclear fission process is only a short term alternative in the supply of the world’s energy. [More…]
At some time the nuclear question will have to be considered. [More…]
If one was a monetary time bomb the other must have been a monetary nuclear time bomb at least. [More…]
Nevertheless, I make this observation: I hope the House understands that the United Nations today has in operation some 1 14 submarines and that 105 of those submarines are nuclear powered submarines. [More…]
It is estimated that by the year 2000- in about 25 years’ time- half the world’s power will be generated by nuclear stations. [More…]
Do they dispute the information given to me that by the end of this century half the world’s power generation will come from nuclear stations? [More…]
Nuclear brinkmanship, ideology, border disputes, race hate, religious bigotry, national ambitions, foreign exploitationall provide actual or potential sources of tension, conflict, bloodshed and war. [More…]
We are aware that the defence ministry in Paris has announced that an underground nuclear test was held at the Mururoa test site in French Polynesia, I think on 2 April of this year. [More…]
The Australian Government’s long-standing policy has been to support international efforts to achieve comprehensive nuclear test bans prohibiting all nuclear weapons testing in all environments. [More…]
The present Government remains firmly committed to that goal, as a result of which we are concerned that all forms of nuclear weapons testing be stopped. [More…]
At the same time the Australian Government has noted that the French Government is refraining from conducting nuclear weapons tests in the atmosphere in the Pacific region. [More…]
Therefore the Australian Government hopes that the French Government will continue to refrain from further atmospheric nuclear tests which, in past years, have given rise . [More…]
There is a proper and realistic approach and a proper re-affirmation of our firm stand against nuclear testing. [More…]
This Government re-affirms its strong opposition to nuclear weapons testing, and does so through proper channels. [More…]
The fact is that in 1972, when I was the Prime Minister, I received a report from a special technical committee of the Defence Committee which advised that the Committee as a whole was unable to determine conclusively the security considerations attached to nuclear powered and nuclear armed ships going into Cockburn Sound. [More…]
-Will the Minister for National Resources inform the House whether he has had any official involvement with the Japanese proposal to set up a nuclear recycling plant in Australia? [More…]
Does he, like the Premier of Western Australia, favour this proposal, or will he prevent the country from becoming a dump for nuclear waste until it is clear that there will be no threat to the environment or the health and safety of the Australian people? [More…]
The whole question of Australia’s policy on the development of uranium or the processes of the nuclear cycle will depend largely upon the outcome of the present Ranger environmental inquiry. [More…]
OK’d by Parliament and Prime Minister Overseas Development Geneva had all papers Discussed Nuclear Energy stated Japanese Company had been retained to advise Mr Connors and Government [More…]
The anti-nuclear lobby was started 20 years ago by coal and oil interests to protect their investments. [More…]
We are told by them that nuclear power is utterly abominable yet the communists, who are running them, sponsor nuclear power in Russia without any compunction whatsoever. [More…]
The truth of the matter is that nuclear power is the cheapest, safest and cleanest power available to mankind at the present moment. [More…]
The pollution from a nuclear powered station is infinitely less than the pollution from a coal fired station. [More…]
It is true, of course, that there is some nuclear waste, but the dangers of this nuclear waste have been magnified a hundred-fold, a thousand-fold, a million-fold, so that all sense of proportion has been lost. [More…]
Has the Minister seen the very authoritative reports establishing clearly that carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels pose a far greater threat to the atmosphere and the environment in general than does nuclear power? [More…]
Has the Minister’s attention been drawn to the recent decision by the Japanese Government to ratify the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty? [More…]
-The Government has, in fact, applauded the decision by the Japanese Diet to ratify the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty under the terms of which non-nuclear weapon states undertake not to receive, manufacture or acquire by any means nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices and agree to place all civil nuclear facilities under international atomic energy agency safeguards. [More…]
The Japanese Government, like the Australian Government, has been actively participating in international efforts to bring nuclear proliferation under effective control. [More…]
In the House on 21 October 1964 he developed a colourful theory about Chinese nuclear blackmail. [More…]
What is to prevent the Chinese from sending a merchant ship with a nuclear weapon in it to some harbour? [More…]
Then some situation could arise and some city would be under blackmail from Chinese nuclear power. [More…]
Labor’s foreign policy was to concentrate greater attention on the causes of tension and to seek ways in which these problems might be tackled- hence Labor support for the zone of peace proposal, for international efforts to control the spreading of nuclear weapons and for greater efforts directed at tackling the problem of underdevelopment in which lie the root cause of insecurity and political instability. [More…]
The Dyason House Papers state as follows: … the United States Navy, for example, will build more ship than it scraps between now and 1980; its surface fleet will be about 13 per cent larger than it is now; the submarine fleet will remain about the same size, but the remaining diesel boats will be replaced by nuclear-powered ones. [More…]
Another example is the yet to be resolved problem of the storage of radioactive material and other waste products, some of which remain toxic for thousands of years, generated by use of uranium and nuclear power as an energy source. [More…]
I wish to inform the House that my Government has decided to allow the resumption of visits to Australian ports by nuclear powered warships. [More…]
Nevertheless, in order that maximum possible information, consistent with the interests of Australia be made available to the public, a document titled ‘Environmental Considerations of Visits of Nuclear Powered Warships to Australia’ dated May 1976 is attached to this statement. [More…]
The House will be aware that there have been a number of visits in the past by United States nuclear powered warships. [More…]
States Navy, which is increasingly converting to nuclear powered warships. [More…]
With well over 100 naval reactors in operation, United States nuclear powered warships have visited over 30 countries and 85 foreign ports. [More…]
In the latter connection, the United States Congress in December 1974 enacted a Law- Public Law 93-513- pursuant to which, as was made clear by the Joint Congressional Committee on Atomic Energy, the United States accepts absolute liability for any nuclear damage which might result from a nuclear incident involving the reactor of a United States warship. [More…]
The Government is taking these decisions on the basis of international experience with nuclear powered warships and in light of the assessments in the unclassified environmental document which I am tabling. [More…]
Those matters are dealt with in detail in the document ‘Environmental Considerations of Visits of Nuclear Powered Warships to Australia’. [More…]
I would also point to the remarkable safety record of United States nuclear powered ships. [More…]
About a third of the United States Navy is nuclear powered. [More…]
Unless nuclear powered ships are able to use Australian ports, there will be no prospects of Australia remaining an adequate and reliable ANZUS partner. [More…]
Visits of Nuclear Powered Warships, Ministerial StateStatement June 1976. [More…]
The Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) tabled a document- as you were careful to point out to him, not for the first time, Mr Speaker, he did not need leave to table a document- of in this case over 30 pages titled ‘Environmental Considerations of Visits of Nuclear Powered Warships to Australia’. [More…]
The first is that the ban on nuclear powered warships coming to Australia was imposed in, I think, 1972- it might have been 1 97 1 -by the McMahon Government. [More…]
That Government properly did not wish nuclear powered warships to come to Australia at that time. [More…]
The first was that at that time the country- in this case Britain- which wanted to send nuclear powered warships to Australia did not accept absolute liability for any mishaps which might occur as a result of those visits. [More…]
Before I proceed I should make it plain that there is regrettably in the public mind a great deal of confusion about nuclear ships. [More…]
There is a difference between nuclear armed ships and nuclear powered ships. [More…]
Nuclear armed shipspresumably only nuclear armed naval shipshave come to Australia for very many years. [More…]
Successive governments have accepted that naval ships these days are quite likely to be nuclear armed. [More…]
It is impossible to expect the navies of other countries to specify for public consumption which of their ships are nuclear armed and which are not so that any country which is host to those ships may require that only those which are non nuclear armed can come to the ports. [More…]
If that information and that requirement are imposed it becomes a matter of public knowledge which of the ships in any particular navy are nuclear armed and which may not be. [More…]
The other matter which has to be acknowledged is that ships which are nuclear powered are becoming more and more numerous. [More…]
There are not only nuclear powered warships; there are also nuclear powered merchant ships. [More…]
The principles which we apply to nuclear powered allied warships will inevitably apply to nuclear powered merchant ships under any flag or to nuclear powered warships of countries with which we have no alliance. [More…]
As far as entry of nuclear powered warships or nuclear powered merchant ships is concerned, the question of alliance or no alliance does not arise. [More…]
Nevertheless, I wish to make this point: Towards the end of last year the position had arisen in consultation between the Department of Defence and the Department of Environment where my Government was about to make an approach to the governments of New South Wales and Western Australia, to consult them about the environmental aspects of nuclear powered ships- in this case nuclear powered allied warships- visiting their ports. [More…]
But the question of cure in the case of a nuclear explosion does concern some very important State activities. [More…]
Obviously hospitals, transport, and public buildings in general can all be under immense pressure if anything goes wrong as regards nuclear explosions. [More…]
Accordingly I do not doubt for one minute that this Parliament could make laws and the Australian Government could make administrative arrangements safeguarding the Australian population from the effects of mishaps in nuclear powered warships or nuclear powered merchant ships. [More…]
The Sydney and the Perth hospitals, for instance, have made no additional arrangements and have no preparations under way to deal with the unlikely but the catastrophic effects of any mishap to a nuclear powered warship in Australia’s two largest naval ports. [More…]
The truth is that I never prohibited the use of those 2 ports by either nuclear powered or nuclear armed ships. [More…]
But let be repeat that these weapons and defence systems are a reality and setting aside the nuclear element they would most certainly be used in the case of wholesale warfare. [More…]
At various times hopefully there will be only minor brush fires to cope with because if ever there was a major war in these days of nuclear weapons that would be the end of us all. [More…]
The films showed what would happen if something went wrong and nuclear weapons were dropped. [More…]
If a nuclear war were to occur, I have a sneaking suspicion that we would experience the kind of horrifying scene depicted in Fail Safe. [More…]
That is the sort of madness that I think will ensure that we do not ever have a nuclear war. [More…]
It was announced this morning when the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) said that nuclear powered vessels would be entering our harbours. [More…]
However, on looking through the document entitled Environmental Considerations of Visits of Nuclear Powered Warships to Australia I am tempted to mention a couple of things. [More…]
For how long will the nuclear material stored in those reactors stay there and remain harmless? [More…]
I am not now contemplating a nuclear war; I am contemplating an old fashioned war with ordinary shells. [More…]
If these nuclear powered vessels take part in such wars and an ordinary old fashioned bomb or an ordinary old fashioned torpedo hits them, blows them apart and sinks them, does what happen come within the category mentioned in the subheading to paragraph 6 which is ‘Collision”? [More…]
Do we not then have a situation where we are releasing unknown quantities of nuclear material, maybe not immediately but sending it to the bottom in these beautiful reactors that are beautifully safe and marvellously efficient in producing energy when in the right place, in a ship floating on the surface of the water? [More…]
I seriously question the validity of this document placed before us and headed Environmental Considerations of Visits of Nuclear Powered Warships to Australia. [More…]
I am not against nuclear powered ships. [More…]
I am in favour, perhaps, of nuclear powered merchant ships, but that could be another argument. [More…]
But let us accept that they are safe and that nuclear powered vessels could get around more cheaply in the long run than oil or coal powered vesselswell, oil powered vessels these days. [More…]
Where is the final environmental impact statement on warfare conducted by nuclear powered ships? [More…]
He was discussing the ministerial statement made this morning about the admission of American nuclear powered ships to our ports. [More…]
What we are discussing is Australia’s defence, and at the moment Australia has no nuclear weapons and no nuclear powered ships. [More…]
As I understand this concept it is that we should prepare our forces- a core force- to meet a massive conventional invasion of Australia by a fully sophisticated enemy, but not using nuclear weapons on the assumption that this core force could be expanded in the time from which the threat becomes apparent to a size large enough to meet the threat. [More…]
The second point I should like to make is that the submarines I am talking of will certainly have to be nuclear. [More…]
The only new submarines being produced which have the long range which we require are in fact nuclear. [More…]
I think we have to look very seriously at all future submarines being acquired by the Australian Navy being nuclear powered. [More…]
1 ) The Government has no proposal under consideration to store nuclear weapons at Garden Island or elsewhere in Australia. [More…]
None of the nuclear powers reveals whether its ships or aircraft are carrying nuclear weapons at a particular time. [More…]
As I have said on a number of occasions, visits by the ships of friendly navies, including nuclear powered warships, would be welcome at HMAS Stirling provided that adequate control and safety precautions were taken. [More…]
Under the normal operating conditions there is no release of nuclear waste into the environment at all. [More…]
This assessment is backed by the substantial history of accident-free operations by U.S. and British nuclear-powered warships for many years. [More…]
The question of a South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone was considered at length by the Prime Minister and the Heads of [More…]
The Record of the Meeting reported the discussion in the following terms: ‘The members of the Forum agreed that in carrying forward their consultations under the resolution adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 1 1 December 1975, endorsing the idea of a nuclearweaponfree zone in the South Pacific, their objectives would be to advance the cause of general disarmament and to seek the cessation of nuclear weapons testing in the South Pacific. [More…]
This refers to nuclear weapons- must be taken out of the hands of those who would destroy humanity if they can once get the nuclear capacity. [More…]
The Chinese did not even have a nuclear weapon. [More…]
It should be used to destroy the factories which are making nuclear material in China- not war with the Chinese people, not wholesale destruction in any way at all, but simply the removal from their hands of the weapons whereby humanity can be destroyed. [More…]
We do not know at this moment who is going to use or refrain from using the nuclear weapons which certainly now exist in Chinese hands as we know they certainly exist in Russian hands. [More…]
For the information of honourable members I present a series of reports by the Australian Ionising Radiation Advisory Council, the Australian Radiation Laboratory and the Bureau of Meteorology entitled: Fallout over Australia from Nuclear Tests. [More…]
It seems to me that world nuclear experience, from mining to power generation, has not changed so much in the last 10 years that the experience and the knowledge gained should not be available to mine uranium safely. [More…]
The Firemen and Deckhands Union has given constant trouble in its militancy and caused stoppages for reasons as wide ranging as Medibank, the environment, higher wages, sympathy with the teachers ‘ strike and the refusal to handle French ships, following the French nuclear tests. [More…]
Because of the actions of a communist trade union leader, aided and abetted by people who should know better, that vessel, nuclear powered as it was, was forced to berth without the assistance of tugs, and whilst it remains in this country it and the wharf are declared black by communists who, in my opinion, are making a deliberate attempt to prevent Australia from honouring her treaty obligations under ANZUS. [More…]
I ask the Prime Minister whether he agrees that it is in the interests of Australian security to allow nuclear powered and conventional ships of the United States Navy to use Australian ports. [More…]
Yes, it is essential that nuclear powered ships be able to visit Australian ports, not just in the southern part or the western part of Australia, but also in the eastern part. [More…]
Increasingly United States ships are nuclear fuelled. [More…]
People who strike at nuclear ships coming to Australian pons are striking at the ANZUS treaty itself. [More…]
The Minister for Environment, Housing and Community Development will remember that in the document entitled Environmental Considerations of Visits of Nuclear Powered Warships to Australia tabled on 4 June, it was stated that because the authority for controlling emergency services is vested in State governments, the Commonwealth Government must rely on the States to establish and control the safety organisation in their ports. [More…]
Currently the United States nuclear vessel Truxtun is visiting Australia, a visit obviously engineered to trigger a reaction from certain sections of the trade union movement, again to distract attention away from the evil of unemployment which this Government is fostering. [More…]
We may choose to ignore the basic Marxist militancy, but at least we should not forget that the primary split between the 2 communist giants occurred because Moscow would not accept Mao’s urging to risk nuclear war and face a world holocaust. [More…]
That occurred nearly 20 years ago when China, having then no nuclear weapons, could only urge and could not herself act. [More…]
If Maoism persists eventually there will be another Genghis Khan and the new golden horde will have nuclear weapons strapped to its saddles. [More…]
Is it further a fact that he has on 2 occasions requested an expression of attitude from the Tasmanian Government to a visit by nuclear powered vessels, including the USS Enterprise, to Tasmania? [More…]
If my memory is correct, about 16 or 18 ships of the United States Navy, including 2 nuclear ships, will be involved. [More…]
I wrote to a number of Premiers- that was done in June and was not by any means just as a result of this exercise- seeking examination of the environmental issues involved in relation to this matter so that nuclear ships could go into as many Australian ports as possible with complete impunity and safety and with all the proper safeguards taken. [More…]
I hope that there will be an answer because it is essential for Australia’s own purposes that nuclear ships be able to enter as many of Australia’s ports and harbours as possible, bearing in mind the necessity to take account of essential environmental safeguards. [More…]
We are prepared to welcome visits of the U.S. and U.K. nuclear warships subject to the stringent safety precautions ordered by the environmental report . [More…]
That telegram says in very plain terms in the last part that these unions will stand by any trade unionist who may be penalised or sought to be penalised by any union other than his own in relation to nuclear ships visiting the port of Hobart. [More…]
The Tasmanian Government has indicated that it would not object to the visit of United States nuclear-powered warships provided they are anchored in-stream in Hobart harbour . [More…]
The Federal report on the safety and environmental aspects of visits of U.S. and U.K. nuclear powered warships which was subjected to independent examination by the Australian Ionizing Radiation Advisory Council. [More…]
We are prepared to welcome visits of the U.S. and U.K. nuclear warships subject to the stringent safety precautions ordered by the environmental report. [More…]
Is the Minister aware that yesterday the National Congress of the Returned Services League adopted unanimously a resolution advocating nuclear weapons for the Australian defence forces? [More…]
The site leaves open the option of further developments, such as nuclear power generation (should this become an acceptable and necessary energy alternative in the future) and associated spin offs, such as sea-water desalination. [More…]
Both nuclear power and desalination may be necessary to supply these vital requirements to its industries and people in the future. [More…]
Australia does not need nuclear power. [More…]
It led to the setting up in 1953 of the Atomic Energy Commission, after the South Australian Government and the Commonwealth had agreed to export uranium so that Australia would have the best technical expertise available to co-operate with the States and allow Australia to move, if needed,- into nuclear power generation. [More…]
Nuclear power is here to stay, and sane thinking people should realise this fact. [More…]
In various parts of the world nuclear power is already being used to provide power generation. [More…]
Research has shown that 160 nuclear power stations are already operating, and there has not been a single death or injury to the public at large as a result of the operation of those stations. [More…]
The United Kingdom, the United States, Russia, France, Canada, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, West Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Holland, Pakistan, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and many other countries are investing massively in nuclear power because they realise that this is the power of the future, particularly because of the drain on petroleum resources throughout the world. [More…]
That is why nuclear power is so important Currently 1 80 new nuclear power stations are being built and 160 stations are on order. [More…]
It is estimated that by the year 2000, 50 per cent of all electricity generated in the world will come from nuclear power stations. [More…]
Here again it is reasonable to ask: Can all these governments and their advisers be wrong about the safety of nuclear power? [More…]
It is not essential to have nuclear power stations to produce a nuclear weapons capability. [More…]
The denying of access to Australian uranium therefore can have no effect on the spread of nuclear weapons. [More…]
Convention Relating to Civil Liability in the Field of Maritime Carriage of Nuclear Material, 1971 [More…]
The President and Prime Minister noted the importance of maintaining the cohesion and constancy of alliances in present international circumstances, and the importance of conventional forces in conditions of nuclear parity. [More…]
Will American nuclear powered warships be visiting Gladstone harbour for rest and recreation following naval exercises? [More…]
Is Gladstone equipped to handle visits by nuclear powered ships? [More…]
Is there a naval nuclear ship safety organisation in the area? [More…]
If not, will the Minister stop the entry of nuclear ships to Gladstone? [More…]
But if there is to be any visit of an American nuclear powered ship to Australia, the procedures and the consultations that I have described previously in this place and in response to questions on notice from the Leader of the Opposition will apply. [More…]
The honourable member for Cunningham also referred to nuclear policies and to the problems that Australia faces in future in relation to fuels for energy. [More…]
I will make a few comments on the references to nuclear energy. [More…]
I believe that in debating the estimates of the Department of Science we should say something about the appalling effect in the community of the gross misrepresentation at the present time, and the guessing about the future effect of nuclear energy on the environment. [More…]
I am firmly convinced that when the 170 nuclear stations which are being built around the world today are functioning properly they will provide more and more power for people all over the world. [More…]
When one considers the programs for the development of nuclear energy, and even the testing of nuclear weapons, in the People’s Republic of China, for example, one must say that that country does not appear to have been terribly concerned about its own people living within the area of Lop Nor and in the northern sections of Mongolia. [More…]
The Russians do not appear to have given too much attention or concern to the effect of their nuclear program upon the Chinese. [More…]
The fact of the matter is that whilst other nations are going to develop their nuclear capacity Australia is going to be hindered by people. [More…]
If Australia does not have the ability to develop nuclear energy, in the future Australia will suffer unnecessarily. [More…]
Therefore I suggest that it is only in the next 40 or 50 years that Australia’s nuclear capacity can be at its optimum in providing for the development of the country. [More…]
I think it is not sensational to speculate on what could happen in that continent if nuclear waste were to be stored there. [More…]
It is also evident in regard to the significant factor of nuclear energy which is of tremendous interest to our defence scientists. [More…]
The nuclear submarine is far faster than the surface ship and so it can pursue and intercept. [More…]
Next we have to consider the possible use of nuclear weapons at sea. [More…]
Even if nuclear weapons were not used on land their use at sea is entirely conceivable. [More…]
China is developing a nuclear capability. [More…]
I think that the key global elements of that agenda, using the terminology of the Carter team- do not ask me to spell it all out extensively in the time available for questions without notice, or in any order of priorityare, firstly, a cooler hard-headed approach to the Soviet Union; secondly, a stress on reducing the proliferation of nuclear weapons; thirdly, the building up of core alliances with democratic countries, which Mr Carter describes as a democratic concert and in which he includes quite specifically, Australia; fourthly, greater stress, to use his terminology, on global issues, and in particular the north-south dialogue; and finally, and this is by no means unimportant, the belief that there is a need to get a firm domestic base for his foreign policies by making these policies reflect, as he puts it, the moral values of the American people. [More…]
The USSR has achieved essential nuclear strategic equivalence with the US and competes with the US as a global power. [More…]
I merely mention however that I find it hard to understand the basis for this assertion of essential nuclear strategic equivalents. [More…]
Secretary of State Kissinger in a speech in March this year at Dallas, Texas, pointed out that America has about 8500 nuclear warheads to the Russians’ 2500 nuclear warheads. [More…]
The Americans have more nuclear missiles at sea on invulnerable submarines than do the Russians. [More…]
All honourable members are aware of the result of the recent Californian referendum on nuclear energy. [More…]
They are also aware of the referenda which were run in conjunction with the presidential election and of how unsuccessful the anti-nuclear lobby has been in the United States. [More…]
1 ) In respect of each of the following categories of naval units, is he able to provide a comparison between the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics showing, where appropriate, (a) the tonnage of the ships, (b) their age and (c) whether conventional or nuclear powered: (i) aircraft carriers, (ii) anti-submarine helicopters cruisers, (iii) gun carriers, (iv) missile cruisers, (v) nuclear powered surface ships or equivalent type, (vi) destroyers, (vii) frigates, (viii) small frigates, (ix) amphibious assaults, (x) amphibious attack, (xi) nuclear submarines, (xii) diesel submarines, (xiii) nuclear powered cruise missile submarines, (xiv) diesel powered cruise missile submarines, (xv) nuclear powered ballistic missile submarines, (xvi) diesel powered ballistic missile submarines, (xvii) operational naval aircraft and (xviii) missiles in all submarines. [More…]
The Government is satisfied that appropriate controls would apply to the shipments under existing contracts, which will be used for electric power generation in Japan, the United States and the Federal Republic of Germany, all of which are parties to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
The handling and disposal of radioactive waste resulting from nuclear power generation lies with the countries concerned and, we are advised, are subject to the strictest regulation and control in these countries within existing technology. [More…]
The Government believes that a strong national safeguards policy for uranium exports should be complemented, at the international level, by Australia continuing to contribute actively to constructive multilateral efforts to strengthen safeguards and restraints on nuclear weapons proliferation. [More…]
Why has the Government not seen fit to take such initiatives itself in view of the increased risk of nuclear war to which the Fox inquiry has now drawn attention in the strongest terms? [More…]
That the Labor Party should continually press for stricter international safeguards and controls over the handling of nuclear materials; [More…]
That if, in Government, the Labor Party is satisfied that the hazards associated with nuclear power have been eliminated and satisfactory methods of waste disposal developed the question of uranium mining be re-considered in the context of full public debate; and [More…]
-This evening I would like to say a couple of a words about the safety of nuclear power and also the results of recent public opinion polls in Australia and the United States of America. [More…]
The recent Fox report referred to the many wildly exaggerated statements made about the risks and dangers of nuclear energy production by those opposed to it. [More…]
Misleading and unfounded propaganda of the anti-nuclear lobby is continuing to confuse and worry the public. [More…]
This anti-nuclear lobby has deliberately made it difficult for the average citizen to make a well-based assessment. [More…]
Yet, with all of that anti-nuclear propaganda, the most recent public opinion poll in Australia- that is, the gallup poll of 5 November 1976- is in line with some of the voting in the United States, about which I will speak a little later. [More…]
The first fact is that 70 per cent of those Australians polled are in favour of nuclear energy. [More…]
Anyway, 70 per cent are in favour of Northern Territory uranium mining; 50 per cent are in favour of encouraging the sale of Australian uranium overseas; and 71 per cent are in favour of Australia developing nuclear power for peaceful purposes. [More…]
The people of this country are not fooled by all of this antinuclear propaganda. [More…]
I think they have made up their minds pretty conclusively to back what I think will be the Government’s decision- I am’ not supposed to be speaking about uranium mines- to go ahead and develop nuclear power plants. [More…]
It should be remembered that a tremendous fear campaign was conducted by the anti-nuclear lobby in the United States. [More…]
Voters in 7 States of the United States, representing about 20 per cent of the population, have now strongly endorsed nuclear energy. [More…]
We were told by the anti-nuclear lobby that our side of the question had no hope of carrying the vote in California. [More…]
Now Arizona, Colorado, Montana, Oregon, Ohio and Washington have rejected all of the nonsense from the anti-nuclear lobby by a majority of about two to one. [More…]
The facts of the safety of nuclear power are quite plain. [More…]
Official United States figures show that the annual death rate in the coal industry is 1 1 times greater than that in the nuclear industry, including mining, that injuries are 7 times greater in the coal industry and that man days lost are 10 times greater. [More…]
Radio active waste has been handled completely safely over the 20 year history of nuclear power production and plans now in hand for handling the waste material are technically sound and feasible and will lead to a continuation of this excellent record as the industry grows. [More…]
Ever since the Teller report 27 years ago in the United States there has been an unparalleled safety record for nuclear power. [More…]
The Fox report is not mainly about mining; it is mainly about the disposal of radioactive waste and the prevention of nuclear proliferation. [More…]
It is for that reason that I commend the emphasis in the Fox report on human safety and survival, and endorse its recommendations for limiting nuclear proliferation and strengthening safeguards in the handling of nuclear material. [More…]
Then he mentioned the second finding, again misleadingly characterised as a ‘recommendation’, that the hazards involved in the operation of nuclear power reactors, if properly regulated and controlled, are: Not such as to justify a decision not to mine and sell Australian uranium ‘. [More…]
There was no mention by the Minister of the crucial third finding, that ‘the nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of nuclear war’. [More…]
As far as the commissioners are concerned the third finding- that the nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of nuclear warcontains their major recommendation: that the questions involved are of such importance that they should be resolved by Parliament. [More…]
The recommendations and findings are overwhelmingly concerned with the hazards of nuclear development. [More…]
Repeatedly the Fox report harks back to the importance of the Treaty on the NonProliferation of Nuclear Weapons. [More…]
And on page 171 of their report they spell out precisely why Australia has a special place in the international nuclear community. [More…]
Australia occupies a very special position in the nuclear scene. [More…]
It has a nuclear research establishment and a small nuclear industry of its own . [More…]
It points the way to a steady, patient, difficult, but none the less urgent course for Australia, one that could well diminish the hazards of the nuclear age, and in time perhaps draw humanity back from the edge of nuclear destruction. [More…]
We must accept, because of the horrors of Nagasaki and Hiroshima, that people are naturally apprehensive about widespread nuclear developments. [More…]
I note that the Fox report comments that a number of wildly exaggerated claims about the risk of nuclear power were made by witnesses. [More…]
The Fox report indicates similarly that the operation of fossil fuel stations is more of a health hazard than the operation of nuclear reactors. [More…]
The first thing we must face in this debate is that uranium and the development of nuclear energy represent the only solution to the world ‘s immediate energy problems. [More…]
Turning to some substantive questions about the nuclear industry, the first recommendation of the Fox report indicates that the mining and milling of uranium in Australia is a safe process. [More…]
In informed debates there is agreement, on both sides of the nuclear power issue, that uranium mining carried out under today’s tight regulations is neither an environmental problem nor a health hazard. [More…]
The second recommendation of the report gives a similar green light to the operation of nuclear power reactors. [More…]
It is in this area that much of the attack on nuclear energy is astray. [More…]
Many people honestly believe that nuclear reactors can explode in the same way as a nuclear bomb. [More…]
That study came up with a quantitative evaluation based on the simultaneous operation of 100 nuclear reactors. [More…]
A person living near one of these plants would face an average probability of being fatally injured in a nuclear accident of one in five billion per year. [More…]
By comparison less than one fatality and less than one injury would be expected annually from a nuclear accident. [More…]
One should also appreciate that nuclear reactor usage is no longer at an experimental stage. [More…]
I stress that there is no necessity for Australia to have nuclear reactors now or in the immediate future. [More…]
The question of the disposal of radioactive waste from nuclear reactors has also been enveloped in ill-informed hoo haa. [More…]
Basically 2 separate questions are involved and one is the short term disposal of nuclear wastes. [More…]
Because of the efforts of the labour movement progress in America will not be strangled due to unwise and obsessive restraints on development of safe nuclear energy. [More…]
Clearly, the development of nuclear power in the rest of the world can continue whether or not Australian uranium is made available. [More…]
It is not essential to have nuclear power stations to produce a nuclear weapons capability. [More…]
Of course it is common sense that any country hell bent on building a nuclear bomb would hardly be deterred by having to obtain uranium at a high price from sources other than Australia. [More…]
I will not subscribe to the view being put by the Minister for Environment, Housing and Community Development (Mr Newman) and the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) that the Ranger inquiry itself constitutes a full examination by the people of the uranium and nuclear industry issue. [More…]
The Austrian Government recently commenced a nationwide discussion of the nuclear issue. [More…]
It only pays lip service to matters of safeguard requirements, the control of Australia’s uranium exports after they leave the shores and, most importantly, nuclear weapons proliferation. [More…]
Their empty statements on safeguards, controls and concerns about nuclear war do nothing to mask their basic concerns with advancing the interests of uranium mining companies, regardless of the social and environmental costs that ordinary Australians may have to pay. [More…]
This Government seems intent on committing Australia to a supplier role in the western world’s nuclear energy industry. [More…]
Firstly, it is used to produce heat to generate electricity; secondly, it is used in the field of medical therapy; and thirdly, it is used to produce nuclear bombs. [More…]
The nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of nuclear war. [More…]
Nineteen countries now have nuclear power stations. [More…]
The question is: Is it safe, is it prudent and is it responsible for this Parliament, such as it is assembled now, to respond to the challenge given directly in the Fox report by agreeing to allow Australia’s uranium to be used at this stage to add to the world’s nuclear proliferation? [More…]
Let me make it perfectly clear that I am not saying that uranium should never be mined or that nations of the world should never use nuclear energy. [More…]
Therefore, in terms of quantity alone, a decision of this Parliament is important to the world’s future course in using or not using nuclear energy as opposed to other forms of energy. [More…]
The cost of producing electricity from nuclear power is now only marginally cheaper, if at all cheaper, than the production of electricity from fossil fuels. [More…]
Secondly, for a nation to involve itself in the high capital cost of building enrichment plants or nuclear reactors, it would need a source of supply from a country such as Australia because of Australia’s stable political background. [More…]
Therefore, what we do with our uranium could have and probably will have a direct effect on the course of the world ‘s nuclear proliferation. [More…]
I now list some of the dangers, risks and future possibilities of nuclear proliferation as documented not by me but by the Fox report. [More…]
The numerous accidents involving faulty function that have occurred in nuclear power stations, together with serious accidents known to have occurred in military installations, give no grounds for complacency. [More…]
Mr Deputy Speaker, I seek leave of the House to incorporate in Hansard 2 pages supplied by the Defence, Science and Technology Group of the Legislative Research Service of the Parliamentary Library concerning the dangers of nuclear accidents. [More…]
We conclude that nuclear material should be supplied to a state only on the basis that its entire nuclear industry is subject to back-up safeguards that cannot be terminated by unilateral withdrawal. [More…]
An attempt by even a small, well trained and armed group to take over a nuclear installation could have a good chance of success. [More…]
The Commission does not feel confident that nuclear facilities would currently withstand determined assaults by terrorist organisations. [More…]
Another threat was sabotage of nuclear plants causing destruction, a radiation hazard to surrounding populations and costly disruption of power systems … an event which has already occurred in Argentina. [More…]
Sir, I conclude on this note: Frankly, I have not been impressed by many of the arguments put forward by the pro-nuclear lobby. [More…]
One of these is that nuclear energy will help the developing nations. [More…]
The Fox report at page 56 clearly illustrates that nuclear energy will not help developing nations to any significant degree because it needs large power stations and large investments which developing nations do not have. [More…]
Sir Philip Baxter says of the pro-nuclear lobby: Let us sell to those nations, knowing that the safeguards in such a sale are, according to Fox, an illusion. [More…]
Sir Philip Baxter goes on: Let us sell to Japan, let us also reprocess nuclear fuel from other countries. [More…]
We could only defend ourselves with the most sophisticated weapons possible, of which nuclear bombs should be an option. [More…]
Sir Philip Baxter says: Let us sell uranium to Japan; let it make nuclear bombs; therefore, because we might be enemies with Japan one day, we must also make nuclear bombs to protect ourselves from Japan. [More…]
One could not but be impressed by the mass of technical detail in the report and the assessment of evidence and the clear picture it provides of the international nuclear industry. [More…]
The report deals carefully with the questions of nuclear proliferation, waste disposal, human safety and associated matters. [More…]
Of course recommendations do not have to be accepted but it is preferable that they be made, particularly by people who, at large public expense- something like $2m in this instance- have been immersed in the complexities of the nuclear question and have had the advantage of taking evidence under oath. [More…]
The Opposition would have enjoyed and should have enjoyed the luxury of some time to consider and determine its attitude to this vital question, to consider the Fox report in the light of public attitudes towards it and the question of the nuclear industry. [More…]
On the broader front of the nuclear debate in Australia, the big danger is that the debate could get bogged down in the relatively minor matter concerning exports under the existing contracts. [More…]
The issue is, as I said earlier, whether Australia should get plugged into the international nuclear industry by allowings its large uncommitted reserves to buttress the expansion of that industry. [More…]
I believe, and the Opposition believes, that at this moment, given what the Fox Commission reveals about the hazards associated with the nuclear industry and given some of the firm statements which were made in the report urging caution and delay, Australia should not, at this stage, commit itself to promote the expansion of the nuclear industry. [More…]
Policy respecting Australian uranium exports, for the time being at least, should be based on a full recognition of the hazards, dangers and problems of and associated with the production of nuclear energy, and should therefore seek to limit or restrict expansion of that production. [More…]
We recognise the importance of these factors, (that is, the impact of development upon prices) and would not contemplate suggesting that a delay be considered if we were not convinced that the hazards associated with the nuclear industry are of overriding national and international significance. [More…]
The nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of nuclear war. [More…]
At this point in time the Government has made no acknowledgment of the dangers and hazards associated with nuclear power mentioned by the Commission throughout the body of its report. [More…]
Let it be made perfectly clear that the Opposition does not support the establishment of new uranium mining capacity in Australia until the nuclear industry has put its house in order. [More…]
In the meantime, as an Opposition and as a future government, the Labor Party will seek to improve the proliferation safeguards applying to the international nuclear industry. [More…]
It will also closely monitor developments in waste disposal technology, the absence of which is now militating against the development of the nuclear industry for electricity generation throughout the world. [More…]
In electricity generation terms we are abundantly rich in energy resources, particularly brown and black coal; so rich that it is difficult to envisage in the medium term the need to develop nuclear power as a source of electricity generation in this country. [More…]
In conclusion, I urge the Government to take heed of the Fox Commission’s call for a full public debate before a decision is taken in respect of the establishment of new uranium mines and not to commit Australia to a role in the expansion of nuclear power which its citizens and their children may regret. [More…]
We have been subjected to the most frightening stories about the storage of nuclear waste. [More…]
The use of uranium in nuclear reactors is the safest method of generating power at a reasonable cost. [More…]
He quotes figures that show that after 20 years’ generation of nuclear power there have been no deaths from any accidents in nuclear power plants, including nuclear powered ships. [More…]
But the deaths resulting from nuclear reactor plants are less than one in 300 million. [More…]
Professional critics of nuclear power imply that a core meltdown would release fission products and produce a catastrophic accident. [More…]
These figures and data have implications for the safety of nuclear powered ships entering harbours. [More…]
If we do not mine and sell our uranium do honourable members think that this decision will have any effect on the world ‘s generation of nuclear power? [More…]
We mentioned earlier an argument that Australia should permanently refuse to supply uranium, or should at least postpone supply, with a view to persuading other countries, by our example, from entering upon or further developing nuclear power production. [More…]
A total renunciation of intention to supply designed to bring an end to all nuclear power industries or all further development of them would in our view be likely to fail totally in its purpose. [More…]
It is nonsense to think that any action which we in Australia might take in the mining and export of uranium will have any significant effect on the world’s nuclear power generating stations. [More…]
World energy consumption over the next 26 years and the sources of energy available to meet this need are critical questions in deciding the future of nuclear power. [More…]
We have available great reserves of coal and supplies of natural gas so that at the present we have no need for nuclear energy ourselves. [More…]
I ask: What has led to an escalation in nuclear power? [More…]
In fact, it is being forced to develop nuclear power. [More…]
Its current share of nuclear power, compared with total electricity power, is 7 per cent. [More…]
At the moment Italy is committed to 3 per cent nuclear power. [More…]
Despite what the recently elected President may say, he may well need to increase nuclear capacity to at least 9 per cent. [More…]
It will develop nuclear power and coal and hydropower. [More…]
In Russia at the moment current nuclear power supplies 1 per cent of the total electric power. [More…]
It appears that the Fox Committee report envisages competition between coal and nuclear power in meeting world energy needs as though one type of power or the other could meet world demands. [More…]
In other words, new coal fired stations rather than increased nuclear capacity could be built to cope with the increased demand for electricity, at least until other sources of energy are fully developed. [More…]
It devotes only 3 pages to the environmental hazards of non-nuclear energy resources and concludes that the environmental hazards of fossil fuel use are severe, particularly in the case of coal. [More…]
exports of steaming coal by Australia could minimise any fuel shortage which would otherwise arise if other countries decide to reduce their reliance on nuclear power below present expectations. [More…]
I do not want to suggest that the U.S. is facing a choice between nuclear fuel and coal. [More…]
I am not greatly concerned in the longer term about the problems of waste disposal and the other problems which arise and are associated with the peaceful use of nuclear energy. [More…]
If nuclear weapons were not associated inextricably with the production of nuclear power I would have no worry, but nuclear weapons are inextricably associated with the production of nuclear power and I find myself quite uneasy about proposals to mine and export uranium and about the use of uranium energy in the world. [More…]
I also believe that if in government the Labor Party is satisfied that the hazards associated with nuclear power can be eliminated and satisfactory methods of waste disposal developed the question of uranium mining could be reconsidered in the context of full public debate. [More…]
First of all it is clear that nuclear byproducts can be stolen and misused. [More…]
Secondly, it is equally clear that a diversion of nuclear byproducts can occur and that the most adequate monitoring systems can fail to observe that diversion. [More…]
Furthermore the diverted products can be used to manufacture nuclear weapons. [More…]
Let me start with the first proposition that I put- the capacity to thieve and misuse nuclear by-products. [More…]
I repeat that I speak as a layman and I believe I speak as many people will in the community who are not persuaded by the extreme positions adopted either by the anti-nuclear lobby in the community or the pro-mining lobby in the community- people who nevertheless when presented with rational argument can feel concerned about the implications. [More…]
Page 152 of the report states: the Commission does not feel confident that nuclear facilities would currently withstand determined assaults by terrorist organisations, lt seems doubtful whether, as the number of facilities increases, it will be possible to provide sufficient defences to render every installation safe against attack by even small numbers of well-armed, trained men. [More…]
Accordingly this limits the opportunity for this sort of theft of nuclear by-products. [More…]
I move now to the worry I have about the possible diversion of nuclear by-products for the manufacture of weapons. [More…]
This makes reactor grade plutonium a less satisfactory material for bombs so far as a nation wishing to develop a nuclear arsenal is concerned, but it may be quite adequate for terrorist purposes . [More…]
Such a weapon could also be of strategic significance in areas of the world without sophisticated nuclear armaments. [More…]
Page 135 of the report shows that the Commission has been told that a nuclear bomb could be made within 10 days. [More…]
The Commission has been told that a nuclear bomb could be made within ten days of acquiring the nuclear material. [More…]
It is concluded that a country with a large reprocessing industry could make many nuclear weapons before being formally detected by accountancy procedures. [More…]
That is the non-proliferation treaty- the inability of safeguards to prevent the transfer of nuclear technology from nuclear power production to the acquisition of nuclear weapons competence; the fact that many nuclear facilities are covered by no safeguards; the existence of a number of loopholes in safeguards agreements regarding their application to peaceful nuclear explosions, to materials intended for non-explosive military uses, and to the retransfer of materials to a third state; the absence, in practice, of safeguards for source materials; the practical problems of maintaining effective checks on nuclear inventories; the ease with which states can withdraw from the NPT and from most non-NPT safeguards agreements; deficiencies in accounting and warning procedures; and the absence of reliable sanctions to deter diversion of safeguarded material. [More…]
Japan currently provides 4 per cent of her fuel production from nuclear power. [More…]
My visit to Britain also allowed me to inform myself of the latest developments in the fields of offshore gas production and uranium enrichment and nuclear fuel processing. [More…]
When we go through the list which His Honour provided in his second report we see companies like Western Nuclear (Aust.) [More…]
1 ) What was the staff component at the nuclear reactor plant at Lucas Heights on (a) 30 June 1976, (b) 30 June 1974 and (c) 30 June 1972. [More…]
Are Australian scientists being sponsored by the Atomic Energy Commission to receive training in the United States of America in general nuclear technology. [More…]
If so, does this training include the processing of nuclear power and the manufacture of plutomom which can be usedin atomic bombs. [More…]
I refer to the recent revelations about the dumping of nuclear waste material at Maralinga in South Australia. [More…]
The then Minister for Supply chose to infer in his answers to questions on 13 and 14 September 1972 that the nuclear wastes in question were radio active debris associated with British atomic weapons testing in the 1950s. [More…]
Mr Avon Hudson who worked at Maralinga during the 1960s has claimed that, in the early 1 960s, the British Government was secretly using the Maralinga atomic test site as a burial ground for waste from nuclear power stations. [More…]
Calder Hall was one of the first commercial nuclear power reactors to come on tap in Britain. [More…]
This is further evidence that nuclear power station waste was involved. [More…]
This is because in atomospheric nuclear tests high level wastes cannot be recovered. [More…]
So, these wastes must have been from spent nuclear fuel. [More…]
Also, the extreme danger of high level nuclear wastes to our environment means that these allegations and claims require a royal commission or, at least, a judicial inquiry. [More…]
-I was very pleased to hear the Deputy Leader of the Opposition (Mr Uren) bring to the attention of Parliament what may or may not be a problem concerning the disposal of nuclear waste. [More…]
I did not rise tonight to talk about that matter, but I think what he has said brings to the attention of the House the very sane policy of the Government, of which I am a member, of ensuring that the whole matter of nuclear power and uranium is looked at very carefully and also in ensuring that the problem of the disposal of waste is carefully considered before the Government makes its final decision. [More…]
All countries should make a firm commitment to promote general and complete disarmament under strict and effective international control, in particular in the field of nuclear disarmament Part of the resources thus released should be utilised so as to achieve a better quality of life for humanity and particularly the peoples of developing countries. [More…]
Obviously it decided to make a substantial sum by selling nuclear reactors, which it did, with great skill. [More…]
I do not think anyone could envisage this at present, except in a situation of world chaos, probably in the aftermath of a nuclear exchange. [More…]
This is what it says about the possibility of a nuclear exchange: [More…]
I think they take the risks of a nuclear exchange very much more seriously than that, and we must look at what our situation would be in the aftermath of such an exchange. [More…]
We have to examine what our defence industrial situation would be in the aftermath of such a nuclear exchange. [More…]
I draw the attention of the House to a fact that we must consider soon, namely, that any future submarines we order almost certainly will have to be nuclear powered. [More…]
If we want to get a new type of submarine it will have to be nuclear powered. [More…]
Dr 0 ‘Neill outlined the various options available to Australia in the type of defence structure most suited to its requirements, ranging from a nuclear deterrent to the use of highly trained irregulars who could be used to harass enemy occupation forces. [More…]
A group of officials led by a senior officer of the Department of Foreign Affairs departed on 22 November for informal discussions on nuclear safeguards matters with government officials and with international organisations in the United Kingdom, Belgium, Austria, the Federal Republic of Germany, Canada, the United States and Japan. [More…]
The discussions will be concerned with international measures which are applied to nuclear material supplied for peaceful purposes to verify its non-diversion to nonpeaceful or explosive uses. [More…]
Is it true that, during the moratorium on nuclear weapons testing between 1958 and 1961, Australia co-operated with the British in conducting secret atomic ‘trigger’ tests at Maralinga and that waste and debris from these tests were buried at Maralinga? [More…]
If this information is true, will he recommend that a royal commission be appointed to inquire into all aspects of such tests and the burial of nuclear waste at Maralinga? [More…]
Let us contrast this, for example, with the dangers of nuclear weapons about which so much pother has been raised. [More…]
At least in the manufacture of nuclear weapons there is the protection that only a skilled team with access to very massive plant can be successful. [More…]
Whereas the nuclear weapon, terrible though it is, is confined in its effects, the mutated organism can be a guided missile because it can seek itself its target in the human body and by infection pass from one to another. [More…]
This investigation has turned up no evidence whatsoever supporting the allegations that radioactive waste was brought from nuclear power stations in Britain for burial at Maralinga. [More…]
washings from British service aircraft which participated in nuclear tests at Christmas Island in 1 957-58 and which later flew to Edinburgh Airfield for cleaning and maintenance. [More…]
nuclear medical waste from the University of Adelaide. [More…]
I refer to its automotive industries, its steel industries, its ship building industries, its nuclear power generation, and its consumer goods industries. [More…]
He has said he fears that if the pro nuclear campaign loses momentum he and other moderates will have a difficult task in preventing the Perth conference from agreeing to a resolution banning all uranium mining. ‘ [More…]
He said, firstly, that the Soviet Union had closed the strategic nuclear gap between the United States and itself. [More…]
In testimony before the United States Senate on 3 1 January 1977 the Joint Chiefs of Staff pointed out that the United States leads in the more important area of nuclear technology and that the United States has a substantial lead over the [More…]
Therefore, I think it is about time that we realised that in this day and age, when there are nuclear submarines that can move from one side of the earth to the other underneath the water without detection by satellites and taking into account the military capacity involved in weapons of this description, it is an exercise in jargon to talk about neutralised areas of peace. [More…]
The stories we have heard about the efforts in Peking to create underground facilities which will protect the population of the capital city against nuclear attack lead me to believe that there is a very serious apprehension in that country. [More…]
However, being pragmatic, I believe that if there is one influence which will prevent the outbreak of nuclear war on this earth it is the doubt as to whether or not anyone will win it. [More…]
The safety of the United States rests upon the maintenance of superiority in nuclear striking power and upon that alone. [More…]
Beneath the nuclear umbrella, the temptation to probe with regional forces or proxy wars increases. [More…]
It was intended to bring our warships and submarines and American nuclear submarines in there for repair. [More…]
To the best of my knowledge the safeguards applying to nuclear material supplied by one country to another depend primarily on the international obligation of the countries concerned in relation to safeguards, including any special arrangements agreed to between them. [More…]
Under such safeguard arrangements for shipment and receipt of the material, arrangements are required to be reported to the International Atomic Energy Agency, which has introduced more intensive measures of reporting and inspection of the materials when it becomes suitable for nuclear fuel and enrichment. [More…]
We know that coal can be liquefied to be used as petroleum; we know that one day solar energy will be developed into a viable source of energy; we also know that major power utilities in the world are developing nuclear power stations which will supply up to one-third of the required electrical power by the late 1980s. [More…]
If we started this very day on a massive program to develop nuclear power, to liquefy coal, to discover more oil, to electrify the railways and to build nuclear powered ships, it would be well into the late 1980s before any real impression was being made on the problem. [More…]
Action must be taken to expand the indigenous energy supply, particularly the conventional sources of oil, natural gas and coal, to consider the use of nuclear energy, to realise greater energy savings through more effective conservation measures and to build stockpiles to buffer the effect of any deliberate supply reductions. [More…]
At the same time, I believe we should continue to monitor the nuclear industry as nuclear power will ultimately be needed in Australia. [More…]
I have been most interested in the views you have expressed on the question of strengthening restraints on nuclear weapons proliferation. [More…]
The importance which you have attached to this accords with my own assessment that there is a need for intensified efforts to reinforce the control regimes necessary to prevent peaceful nuclear development from giving rise to the proliferation of nuclear weapons capabilities. [More…]
I have noted, in particular, the emphasis you have placed on effective control of that portion of the nuclear fuel cycle concerned with spent nuclear fuel, reprocessing and plutonium. [More…]
Australia would certainly want nuclear material deriving from any uranium it may supply to be subject to stringent control. [More…]
The first report of the Environmental Inquiry, which dealt with the more general issues involved in uranium export and nuclear power, stressed the need to ensure that effective restraints exist against nuclear weapons proliferation and it stressed also the need for the fullest and most effective safeguards on uranium exported by Australia. [More…]
The Australian Government will be giving close consideration to these matters in the near future in the context of formulating a national Australian policy on nuclear safeguards. [More…]
In view of Canada ‘s well-known interest in this field and its position as an important nuclear supplier, I am sending a copy of this letter to Mr Trudeau. [More…]
I understand that you will shortly be having discussions with President Carter and that nuclear safeguards and nonproliferation stand high on the agenda. [More…]
As you know, I am deeply concerned over the implications of further nuclear weapons proliferation for our common security and well being. [More…]
This will help to reduce proliferation by giving nations an incentive to place their nuclear facilities under international safeguards and not to acquire sensitive nuclear facilities. [More…]
effects of waste products of nuclear reactors on organic matter and [More…]
new or improved disposal methods of nuclear waste products. [More…]
the effects of waste products of nuclear reactors on organic matter, or [More…]
b) methods for the disposal of nuclear waste products. [More…]
All the Government’s talk about a debate, all its alleged desire for international safeguards and its professed concern for the hazards of nuclear proliferation are a sham. [More…]
On the day the first Fox report was issued, the Minister for Environment, Housing and Community Development (Mr Newman) made a Press statement in which he ignored all the inquiry’s findings on the risks of inadequate safeguards and the dangers of nuclear war. [More…]
It spelt out precisely why Australia has a special place in the international nuclear community. [More…]
Australia occupies a very special position in the nuclear scene. [More…]
It has a nuclear industry of its own. [More…]
Nowhere did the Deputy Prime Minister show any concern for the fundamental issues that uranium and nuclear materials uniquely raise. [More…]
The Government regards it as imperative that nuclear energy development takes place-and it seems inevitable that it wil take place- under an effective international regime. [More…]
The essential concern of the Fox Commission, of the Flowers Royal Commission in Britain, of vast sections of the nuclear industry in America, of the Canadian and American Governments, is to question the idea of inevitability. [More…]
Over 12 months ago Canada declared that it would never again under any circumstances pass to another country nuclear materials or technology which could contribute to nuclear weapons proliferation. [More…]
On 2 1 March one Dr Arthur Matheson, an American scientist brought to Australia by the Australian Uranium Producers Forum, made the startling suggestion that Ayers Rock be used as a repository for nuclear wastes. [More…]
No statement could have done more to alert the public to the difficulties and urgency of nuclear waste disposal. [More…]
The pressure will mount as stores of nuclear waste products grow in coming decades. [More…]
Any new export of Australian uranium should take place only after the Government has developed clear and uncompromising policies towards nuclear safeguards. [More…]
Canadian policy towards nuclear exports has already been enunciated. [More…]
Thirdly, Australia must join with the United States and Canada in obtaining undertakings from recipient countries that the nuclear material they supply shall not be the subject of reprocessing. [More…]
Fifthly, Australia must take urgent steps at home and in cooperation with other countries- to develop waste control and disposal techniques to ensure that the world ‘s human population and environment will not be exposed to the hideous dangers inherent in nuclear waste. [More…]
Mitre Corporation following an exhaustive and expert study of ‘nuclear power issues and choices’ calls upon the United States Government to pursue policies such as those I have just outlined and to seek the co-operation of other nuclear supplier governments to ensure that such policies become universal and effective. [More…]
He also said that Sir Brian Flowers, the former Chairman of the United Kingdom Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution which published in September 1976 its report on nuclear power and the environment, has publicly lamented the lack of rational debate on nuclear power in Britain. [More…]
While it awaits the final report of the Ranger Uranium Environmental Inquiry, the Government has conducted a most thorough preliminary investigation on the whole question of nuclear safeguards, both as they apply in Australia itself and overseas. [More…]
Both Sir Brian Flowers and Mr Justice Fox have lamented the lack of rational debate on nuclear power in Australia. [More…]
Recommendation 8 says that no sales of uranium should take place to any country not party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
Even more important is the genetic effect of pollution from nuclear development. [More…]
Just as frightening is the potential for loss of life and random damage to future generations from nuclear accidents. [More…]
Nuclear accidents are bound to happen, just as they happen in any area of technology. [More…]
The third reason for rejecting the case for uranium mining at this stage is the stimulus it would give to the spread of nuclear weapons. [More…]
The spread of the nuclear industry fed by putting more uranium supplies onto the world market would greatly increase the hazards of nuclear war. [More…]
More countries would have access to plutonium and to the technology needed to make nuclear bombs. [More…]
Delivery systems for nuclear weapons are becoming simpler and cheaper to produce. [More…]
More countries are finding nuclear weapons and their delivery system within their means. [More…]
We cannot reject the threat of nuclear terrorism. [More…]
For all these reasons we reject uranium mining and the stimulus it would bring to nuclear industry, the spread of nuclear technology and the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
Press reports in early June stated that the Japanese Prime Minister, Mr Miki, had indicated that the Japanese Government was not giving any thought to nuclear waste facilities in Australia. [More…]
Certainly, with uranium, the questions of waste disposal and nuclear safeguards must be adequately dealt with. [More…]
Is there going to be a nuclear power industry around the world regardless of whether Australian exports uranium? [More…]
Certainly, with uranium, the questions of waste disposal and nuclear safeguards must be adequately dealt with. [More…]
Is there going to be a nuclear power industry around the world regardless of whether Australia exports uranium? [More…]
The Government regards it as imperative that peaceful nuclear energy development takes place and it seems inevitable that it will take place under an effective international regime. [More…]
My point is simple: I am not necessarily against the use of nuclear energy. [More…]
That this House further takes note of the implications of the Antarctic Treaty freezing existing territorial claims, providing that the Antarctic is to be used for peaceful purposes only (including a total ban on nuclear testing); guaranteed complete freedom of access of scientific expeditions; facilitating international scientific co-operation and preserving Antarctic flora and fauna and the further provision that no new claim or enlargement of any existing claim shall be negotiated whilst the Treaty is in force; and the discussion paper prepared by the previous Administration entitled Towards new perspectives for Australian Scientific Research in Antarctica’ (March 1975- Parliamentary Paper No. [More…]
I am somewhat astonished that the Leader of the Opposition has just discovered the question of nuclear safeguards because, prior to this, the Labor Party’s only attitude was to take note of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. [More…]
The Government has given preliminary consideration to the safeguards to apply to exports of nuclear materials from Australia: that is, the arrangements which need to be made by the Australian Government to ensure that, if Australia supplies nuclear material to other countries for nuclear power generation or other peaceful purposes it is not diverted to non-peaceful or explosive purposes. [More…]
The export of Australian nuclear material under any future contracts will need to be consistent with Australia’s obligation under the Treaty on the Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) and associated arrangements to which Australia is a party. [More…]
These arrangements require the application of safeguards administered by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to material supplied by Australia to all non-nuclear-weapon states. [More…]
They also provide for the application of IAEA safeguards to Australian material should it be re-exported to such countries from nuclear-weapon states. [More…]
At this stage, it has in mind that it will, in negotiating future bilateral agreements, ask that the importing country accept the following provisions in those agreements for the export of Australian nuclear material: [More…]
Provisions fully reflecting Australia’s obligations to ensure the application of safeguards to verify that material supplied to any non-nuclear-weapon state for peaceful purposes is not diverted to any explosive use: [More…]
Provision for the continued application of appropriate IAEA safeguards in non-nuclear-weapon states party to the NPT in the event that safeguards under the NPT should for any reason cease to apply at any time in the future: [More…]
Provision for Australia to reserve the right to apply other safeguards in the event that IAEA safeguards should for any reason cease to apply at any time in the future in non-nuclear-weapon states: and [More…]
The Government expects that a clause will be included in all future commercial contracts for the export of Australian nuclear material, making it clear that transactions are subject to safeguards as agreed between Australia and the importing country. [More…]
The Government wishes there to be no doubt that Australia will continue to support the strengthening of international restraints on nuclear weapons proliferation. [More…]
In line with the recommendations adopted by consensus by all countries which attended last year’s NPT Review Conference, we shall support constructive multi-lateral efforts to encourage the application of IAEA safeguards on all peaceful nuclear activities in importing countries not party to the NPT. [More…]
Australia’s safeguards policy in relation to exports of nuclear materials will be kept under review, to take into account changing circumstances and on-going international efforts to strengthen controls against the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
I was horrified that the suggestion should be made, that nuclear waste could be put, not in the park area, but in this region. [More…]
They will make fatuous statements and, in some cases, grossly evil statements like that of Dr Matheson who suggested the dumping of nuclear waste in Ayres Rock. [More…]
It has also been proposed that the Government or the Atomic Energy Commission should sponsor an Australian tour by Dr Dixie Lee Ray, Governor of Washington State and a leading pro-nuclear figure in the United States. [More…]
It is a serious matter that there should even be talk of the Government or one of its agencies sponsoring a pro-nuclear visitor to Australia. [More…]
If it is the case that it is sponsoring such visits, would it also sponsor visits by critics of nuclear power and by those who advocate the use of other forms of energy, such as solar, wind and thermal? [More…]
The giant General Electric and Westinghouse companies produce 80 per cent of the components of the world’s nuclear reactors. [More…]
Now one of the world ‘s 2 major producers of nuclear reactor components has been given a powerful interest in Austraiian mining. [More…]
The flowthrough from uranium mining to the manufacturers of nuclear reactors is obvious. [More…]
The powerful vested interests of General Electric in nuclear reactors will put pressure for uranium mining on the Government through its links with Utah. [More…]
I would like to emphasise that this debate is not about nuclear power stations in Australia. [More…]
In considering the evidence we have found that many wildly exaggerated statements are made about the risks and dangers of nuclear energy production by those opposed to it. [More…]
What is the present situation as regards nuclear energy? [More…]
What are the alternatives to the use of nuclear energy? [More…]
I have here a satire written by a nuclear scientist headed ‘On the Feasibility of Coal-Driven Power Stations’. [More…]
He is purporting to be looking back from a few thousand years hence at the feasibility of coal stations and he draws the same sort of difficulties and objections to coal power stations that are now being drawn in the community to nuclear power stations. [More…]
We are not proposing to have nuclear power generation in Australia now. [More…]
The handling and disposal of radioactive waste resulting from nuclear power generation lies with the countries which receive uranium from us. [More…]
The figures in the well known Rasmussen report suggest that of 15 million people living within 24 miles of planned and present United States nuclear power stations, the loss through accidents in motor cars would be 4200 killed; from falls 1500 killed; from fire 560 killed; from electrocution 90 killed; from lightning 28 killed and from nuclear power stations a possible 2 killed. [More…]
No death, in fact, has ever occurred as a result of accidents in nuclear power stations. [More…]
It can be seen that the person living alongside a nuclear station is more likely to be killed by a lightning strike than by a power station. [More…]
The President of the United States of America sends his Secretary of State, Mr Cyrus Vance, to Moscow to talk with President Brezhnev about the question of a genuine and worthwhile cutback in the nuclear arms race. [More…]
American-Soviet talks on curbing the nuclear arms race collapsed in Moscow today. [More…]
The Government, I believe, has to abide by the diplomacies of international politics but may I, as an ordinary humble back bencher and a fourth generation Australian with 3 kids, say that unlike the honourable member for Melbourne and some of his colleagues I am extremely concerned by the persistent belligerence and aggression of Soviet Russia and its refusal to talk with the United States of America on a reduction of nuclear arms. [More…]
When we can have a situation in which one super power can simply turn its back on reason and discussion designed to halt the nuclear arms race; when we have a situation in which one super power can thumb its nose at the world, I believe every Australian who is concerned about the future of this country, and the world, has a duty to speak out as I have done tonight, no matter what the honourable member for Melbourne and his pro-communist allies like to say on the subject. [More…]
Four seminars were held under the Agreement as follows: on ‘Fruit Flies’ in Honolulu from 28 November to 2 December 1976; on ‘Plant Response to Salinity ‘ at Riverside, California, from 26 to 28 April 1 976; on ‘Determination of Momentum Wave Function in Atomic Molecular and Nuclear Systems’ at Bloomington, Indiana, from 31 May to 4 June 1976; on ‘Electric Arc Interruption and Power Testing’ held in Sydney from 17 to 21 May 1976. [More…]
One magazine called Assassin- The Secret World of the Killer Elite, asks readers to work out how they would kill the American President and gives instructions and ingredients for the construction of a nuclear bomb. [More…]
That the Labor Party should continually press for stricter international safeguards and controls over the handling of nuclear materials. [More…]
That if, in Government, the Labor Party is satisfied that the hazards associated with nuclear power have been eliminated and satisfactory methods of waste disposal developed the question of uranium mining, be re-considered in the context of full public debate. [More…]
That is, the Labor Party will press for stricter international safeguards and controls over the handling of nuclear waste materials and if in government the Labor Party is satisfied that the hazards of the nuclear industry have been eliminated and satisfactory methods of waste disposal developed, the question of new uranium mining activity would then be reconsidered in the context of full public debate . [More…]
In elaboration, the Labor Party believes that the safeguard regime which exists at the moment is next to useless and that the method of handling and disposing of nuclear waste material is unsatisfactory. [More…]
It is on this basis that the Labor Party is opposed to development of new mining capacity to fuel the developing international nuclear industry. [More…]
If this trend continues Australia’s possible role for the improvement in the nature of nuclear development may be jeopardised. [More…]
On the one hand, uranium mining supporters want to export large quantities or uranium forthwith without first exacting new proliferation safeguard development from the international nuclear community and before any satisfactory resolution of the nuclear waste disposal problem takes place. [More…]
A total renunciation of intention to supply designed to bring an end to all nuclear power industries or all further development of them would in our view be likely to fail totally in its purpose. [More…]
Put another way, Australia, whilst without a nuclear power generation program itself can have an impact upon the development of the international nuclear community. [More…]
It is not in Australia’s interest or the global environmental interest to promote actively the unlimited expansion of nuclear power in the climate of the present uncertainties. [More…]
Nor is it proper for Australia to withold its reserves in perpetuity and wash its hands of the nuclear problem knowing that it could have been a force for good in the future development of this energy industry. [More…]
It is within the power of these 3 nations to reshape the course of nuclear power development. [More…]
It will never succeed if Australia falls over itself to supply uranium in the immediate future, conscious as it is that the nuclear community is in no position to deal with waste disposal adequately and has not yet had the time or the inclination to develop a sound system of safeguards against the proliferation of nuclear weapons from access to nuclear materials. [More…]
But the Administration has taken the important step of enunciating a nuclear policy which disposes of the options of nuclear fuel reprocessing development and fast breeder reactor development. [More…]
This is so because of the massive size of the United States domestic nuclear power program and also the United States nuclear hardware industry as well as the pervasive influence of United States nuclear technology within the West. [More…]
It is through the influence which the United States exercises in the western world monetary system and its defence arrangements that the United States is the pivotal point for change in the direction which the international nuclear industry should take in the future. [More…]
No group of nuclear power utilities or mining companies in the United States or Western Germany or Japan will be able to effect such changes in technology. [More…]
The House will recall that recently a group of United States nuclear power utility representatives visited Australia to study the uranium position. [More…]
Australia can take great advantage of their discomfort by exacting concessions and commitments from them as to the future course of nuclear energy development. [More…]
The Opposition is committed to a policy of opposition to new mining development and the witholding of new uranium exports until it is satisfied that the hazards associated with nuclear industry have been overcome and the important question of waste disposal satisfactorily resolved. [More…]
It reflects the growing concern of the Australian community towards the nuclear industry and the heavy responsibilties that weigh upon Australia with its abundant uranium reserves. [More…]
I feel that this House needs to adopt an individual approach to the matter of nuclear power and the development of nuclear resources within Australia. [More…]
In that regard it would seem that the members of the Labor Party from November last year have committed themselves step after step irrefutably to a course which would deny the capacity of Australia rationally to debate the problems of nuclear power and the development of nuclear energy, and mining within Australia. [More…]
Australia’s energy needs and the total energy situation within Australia cannot be neglected when one comes to consider the importance of nuclear power and the demands that may be made on it. [More…]
Nuclear power concerns many people. [More…]
They are fearful of the repercussions of a nuclear war. [More…]
They are fearful of the repercussions of the difficulties of nuclear waste disposal. [More…]
In this regard, the present Government, indeed the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser)- wrote to President Carter recently and requested President Carter’s active consideration of the matter of nuclear power and the disposal of nuclear waste. [More…]
This will help to reduce proliferation by giving nations an incentive to place their nuclear facilities under international safeguards and not to acquire sensitive nuclear facilities . [More…]
There seems to be some basic agreement on and some expression of concern for the future use of nuclear power between the 3 nations producing uranium- Australia, Canada and the United States of America. [More…]
The nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of nuclear war. [More…]
The growth of the nuclear industry throughout the world brings with it a significant threat to the security of the world. [More…]
The only conditions under which that industry can be permitted to develop are those under which adequate safeguards against the diversion of nuclear materials from peaceful to military uses are established. [More…]
Those 5 features constituted an outline of the safeguards which must apply in order to ensure that the future export of Australian uranium would not contribute to the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
The so-called ‘indicative thinking ‘of the Government on the safeguards which should apply to nuclear materials exported by Australia falls frighteningly short of the Commission’s recommendations. [More…]
The same concern has been central to President Carter’s decision, announced last week, to abandon within the United States the development of a plutonium economy, and to insist that United States nuclear materials and technology will not be supplied to any other country where the result of that action would be the development of fast breeder reactors and an increase in the availability of plutonium. [More…]
Just as it leads uniquely from current power generation to the source material for future power generation, the production of plutonium from uranium brings into existence nuclear weapons grade material and one of the most toxic substances known to humankind. [More…]
The major threat to nuclear non-proliferation is posed by the reprocessing of spent uranium reactor fuels and the breeding of plutonium. [More…]
First, on the technical level, Australia must join other countries in the development of safeguards agreements and safeguards systems which will ensure that uranium is not diverted, at any stage in the nuclear fuel cycle, to the manufacture of plutonium. [More…]
This should range through basic research on nuclear storage to consideration of regional or international storage facilities under international management and control. [More…]
Thirdly, on the level of international relations, Australia must use its influence as a member of the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency to ensure the extension of IAEA inspection of nuclear materials to a 24-hour, around-the-clock regime. [More…]
Under no circumstances should nuclear materials supplied by Australia be permitted to be used without constant surveillance and physical accounting. [More…]
Such a decision would remove from Australia the only significant source of influence it has over attempts to ensure that the proliferation of nuclear weapons does not take place. [More…]
The President of the United States has committed his country to precisely the same kind of control over nuclear materials and technology as the Australian Labor Party has outlined over the last 5 months. [More…]
He has committed the United State to unqualified opposition to the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
He has sought to give the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty its full and urgently needed effect. [More…]
Normally in the case of uranium this question arises because of the dangers of radiation when uranium is used, the dangers of nuclear explosions and breakdowns caused deliberately or by accident when nuclear power is being produced, the dangers of radiation from nuclear waste, especially plutonium, which so far as present knowledge goes cannot ever be eliminated, and the fact that peaceful uses of uranium cannot be separated from the production of nuclear bombs. [More…]
The mining and export of uranium from Australia will inevitably increase the number of nuclear bombs produced and the number of countries which will produce those bombs. [More…]
It is to the credit alone of those who oppose nuclear processing that the acceptance of a threshold dose now underlies radiation protection standards. [More…]
There is nothing Australia can do to reduce the risk of explosion or pollution in other countries, in a nuclear plant, or in transport of radioactive materials by accident or design, but there is something Australia can do to share the costs of radioactive contamination from plutonium wastes- that is to take back the radioactive wastes of the processing of Australian uranium and try to store them away safely for the next 25 000 years. [More…]
But a nuclear reactor is a far greater potential threat than 2 jumbo jets. [More…]
That will become thousands if nuclear reactors proliferate in present circumstances. [More…]
This is the strongest reason of all why there should be a reassessment of the race into nuclear technology. [More…]
The last of the 4 points I have mentioned is the impossibility of separating peaceful uses of uranium from the proliferation and production of nuclear bombs. [More…]
Today more than enough nuclear bombs exist to destroy mankind many times over. [More…]
The world has treated nuclear bombs more as a deterrent than as a weapon since 1945. [More…]
Proliferation of nuclear bombs amongst many nations will not be likely to have that result. [More…]
It is highly probably that the present rate of development of nuclear power will proliferate the possession of nuclear bombs, resulting in an unstable relationship between nations. [More…]
The essence of the case for the development of nuclear power industry lies in the argument that human happiness depends on a constantly or rapidly rising consumption of material goods. [More…]
Yet another essential feature of the case for the development of a nuclear power industry is that shortage of oil, coal and other energy sources demands that nuclear energy must be used. [More…]
It is impossible even if a large pan of the world’s energy supply comes from renewable sources like sun and water; and perhaps nuclear fusion can be included in that. [More…]
The argument that rising consumption standards and nuclear power are all necessary for the poor, especially for the poor in the developing countries, is not a valid one. [More…]
Rapidly rising use of energy, especially nuclear energy, will be concentrated in the hands of those who are rich and powerful already. [More…]
To introduce nuclear energy is going to accentuate all this and exhaust those minerals so much earlier. [More…]
The whole process of new and excessive use of energy, especially nuclear energy, will increase the rate of diminution or exhaustion of the world’s basic minerals. [More…]
Clearly, the development of nuclear power in the rest of the world can continue whether or not Australian uranium is made available. [More…]
The evidence indicates that, if nuclear power programs proceed at the rate projected in 1976, additional uranium production capacity will have to be established in other countries to meet projected demands in the 1980s. [More…]
It would seem that the availability of Australian uranium will have little or no effect on the ultimate development of power generation by nuclear means. [More…]
A total renunciation of intention to supply designed to bring an end to all nuclear power industries or all further developments of them would in our view be likely to fail totally in its purpose. [More…]
Furthermore, many countries throughout the world, including Asia, have firm commitments to develop nuclear power generation. [More…]
I quote from the publication Nuclear Power Developments in Asia and the Pacific: [More…]
According to statistics compiled by the Australian Atomic Energy Commission (AAEC) there were 150 nuclear power plants operating in 19 countries at 30 June and a further 337 units were under construction or on order. [More…]
Thirty countries, including for the first time a number of developing countries, had a firm commitment to nuclear power for energy generation. [More…]
It is my belief that once the CO2 problem becomes widely understood, even given all the uncertainties, it will become the single strongest argument for turning to the nuclear alternative. [More…]
I quote again from Nuclear Power Developments in Asia and the Pacific: [More…]
In 1975 oil supplied 45 per cent of the world’s primary en ergy (including that used to generate electricity), coal 30 per cent and natural gas 1 8 per cent, nuclear energy contributed only 1 . [More…]
Installed capacity of nuclear power stations has grown rapidly since 1970. [More…]
Firstly, there are no plans to introduce nuclear power stations into Australia. [More…]
Therefore, there will be no nuclear wastes created in Australia. [More…]
These activities do not create any nuclear wastes in Australia. [More…]
Nor will any conversion or enrichment of uranium in Australia create any nuclear wastes within Australia. [More…]
The responsibility for the disposal of nuclear wastes resulting from nuclear power generation lies with the countries which might purchase our uranium. [More…]
Conceding that there are proven reasons which would preclude our mining and exporting of uranium, I ask: Will there be a nuclear power industry around the world, including in Russia and China, regardless of whether Australia mines and exports uranium? [More…]
Over 30 countries are already committed to nuclear power generation programs irrespective of Australian uranium. [More…]
I think it only right that all participants in this debate should recognise the genuine concern being rightly expressed by conservationists, for example, about the problems- to an extent, the unknown problems- of nuclear development. [More…]
Let us be clear that the level of danger in the present breed of nuclear reactors is minimal compared with the risk of using fast breeder reactors and the risk of using plutonium. [More…]
I believe that if we force energy short nations into the nuclear club we will be doing something that we should carry on our consciences forever. [More…]
I believe that we have a moral requirement to substitute our wasteful use of fossil fuels with nuclear power in the major developed nations which are the main users of nuclear power. [More…]
A massive increase in the substitution of fossil fuel power by nuclear power would have an immediate market impact on the price of fossil fuel. [More…]
It is extraordinary that so many people in this nation are concentrating on the dangers of going nuclear whereas the indisputable evidence is that the dangers and risks involved in not going nuclear are so much greater. [More…]
Policy respecting Australian uranium exports, for the time being at least, should be based on a full recognition of the hazards, dangers and problems of and associated with the production of nuclear energy, and should therefore seek to limit or restrict expansion of that production. [More…]
welcomes the open and honest discussion of the serious risks and disadvantages associated with the various operations of the nuclear power industry in the Ranger Uranium Environmental Inquiry first report. [More…]
The resolution also called for ‘a significant increase in Australian Government investment and support for research and development into alternative non-nuclear energy sources such as solar, wind, tidal and bio-medical energy. ‘ [More…]
The report also rightly sounds other warnings which are ignored by those in the pro-nuclear lobby who, heedless of the future, would mine uranium on an unlimited scale for the enrichment of a few at the expense of the overwhelming majority. [More…]
The report also refers to the ‘very real risks that the opportunity and the motive for nuclear blackmail will develop within time ‘. [More…]
Fortunately, there are researchers- and we have them here in Australia- who share the Fox report’s serious reservations about the development of nuclear energy. [More…]
That conclusion states: the urgency for the development of nuclear energy has been exaggerated. [More…]
Firstly, nuclear power is not a substitute for oil. [More…]
Secondly, known uranium reserves economically suitable at current planned development rate of nuclear power would last about 30 years. [More…]
If some people have their way Australia would become a super-parking lot for all the world ‘s nuclear waste in exchange for the very short term and extremely dubious advantage of income from the mining and export of uranium. [More…]
These researchers believe that there is every possibility that within a period of IS years to 20 years- and beyond doubt within 30 years to 50 years- electrical power will be able to be generated from the sun for the same cost as generation of electricity from coal or from nuclear power. [More…]
Given the high human cost of a mistake made in formulating nuclear policy the amount involved in pursuing this solar energy development is minute. [More…]
I am told by scientists that solar power today is in the same position that nuclear power was 20 years ago. [More…]
At that time the cost of nuclear generated electricity was about 10c a kilowatt hour. [More…]
It is almost certain that with the development of economies of sale and with a fraction of the research and development program undertaken for nuclear power, solar power will cost less than half of this amount long before coal supplies run out. [More…]
Solar power will be cheaper than either coal or nuclear power. [More…]
I put it to the Minister that the question of disposal of nuclear waste is one to which he should give very serious attention. [More…]
The report also found that current operations of nuclear power stations, properly controlled, are safe by any reasonable standards. [More…]
Even in the great nuclear power stations throughout the world where enriched uranium is used the safety record is unsurpassed. [More…]
The chart shows that in the 100 nuclear power stations in the United States there has not been one fatality. [More…]
Research has shown that 160 nuclear power stations are already operating and there has not been a single death or injury to the public at large as a result of the operations of these stations. [More…]
Nuclear power is the power of the future. [More…]
The denying of access to Aus.tralian uranium therefore can have no effect on the spread of nuclear weapons. [More…]
The Government has no plans to introduce nuclear power stations into this country. [More…]
Therefore, there will be no nuclear wastes created in Australia. [More…]
These activities do not create any nuclear waste in this country nor will any conversion and enrichment of uranium create any nuclear wastes here. [More…]
I may have time later to quote from a letter by Senator Mulvihill which was published in the Australian Financial Review which implied that wastes from uranium mining and wastes from nuclear power stations are the same. [More…]
The Minister for Environment, Housing and Community Development (Mr Newman), who is at the table, when speaking on 1 1 November last in respect of approved sales of uranium said that the handling and disposal of radioactive waste resulting from nuclear power generation lies with the countries concerned, that is, the countries to which Australia exports uranium for electric power generation. [More…]
I should like to refer tonight to a speech made by Sir Brian Flowers late last year in the United Kingdom, when he explained his methodology and approach to his report on nuclear power and the environment. [More…]
One reason is the association with the destructive uses of nuclear energy’. [More…]
We recall ‘The development of reactors to harness nuclear energy for the generation of electrical power stemmed directly from the weapons programs’. [More…]
Against this background the emergence of nuclear power as an alternative energy source for mankind appears providential. [More…]
A Harvard economist, Professor Alan Manne, recently told an audience at Stanford University, California, that substituting coal-fired plants for new nuclear facilities would cause an estimated S000 more deaths annually across the nation by 1985. [More…]
On the other hand, nuclear power introduces environmental risks and problems, and some of these appear unique in their implications for society . [More…]
Also concluded that no case has been made for the potential cancer producing substances of ‘hot’ particles of plutonium absorbed by the lung, a story causing great alarm a couple of years ago because it would probably have meant, if true, the abandonment of nuclear power. [More…]
We also did our best to compare the hazards of nuclear power with other hazards of ordinary and industrial life, and to keep them in perspective. [More…]
I found when I went to California last year at the height of the debate that, as a prospective source of energy, nuclear fission is not what it was when the Californian debate began- and for a fairly obvious reason. [More…]
As the campaign started to mount, Californians began to come to the realisation that more was at stake than just the 3 existing nuclear power plants in California or even the 3 1 that were planned for the next 20 years. [More…]
The battle that developed in California really was between competing scares, if you tike- the fear of nuclear accidents in the future or the fear of an energy shortage and economic retardation virtually immediately. [More…]
For what it is worth, I found when I got there that over 5200 scientists, 9 of whom were Nobel Prize winers, had signed a petition in California in support of nuclear power. [More…]
The other matter to note is the matter of the escalating debate in West Germany against nuclear power, but if one reads the small print carefully one comes to a couple of pertinent observations. [More…]
For the first time the West German Government has started talking about the country’s prospects without nuclear energy. [More…]
The other thing to note is that the trade union movement in Germany, because of an increase in the unemployment factor, is supporting nuclear energy. [More…]
The authors point out that despite all the proposals for alternative energy sources, including nuclear power, by 1985 more than 40 per cent of expected oil production outside the Middle East would have to come from reserves not yet discovered. [More…]
In the case of nuclear power, the authors expect that its contribution to the energy needs of the West will be about 15 per cent. [More…]
This would clearly involve the construction of a large number of nuclear power stations in the next few years, bearing in mind the lengthy period involved in the design and the commissioning of such plants. [More…]
The conclusion to be drawn from the world energy outlook is that even with a greatly increased nuclear program, with reduced energy growth and with the greatest possible expansion in oil and gas production, the Western world will still face an energy deficit after 1990. [More…]
As coal alone cannot fill this gap, there will be an enormous pressure to expand nuclear power production rapidly, particularly after 1980. [More…]
Even quite modest assumptions about the world’s economic growth point to a dependence on energy by the end of the century which can, in my opinion, be met sensibly in the interim, only by recourse to nuclear power. [More…]
On what dates, at what places and with which government officials and international organisations were discussions held on nuclear safeguards matters by the group of officers from the Departments of Foreign Affairs and National Resources and the Australian Atomic Energy Commission between 22 November and 22 December 1976. [More…]
Has the new Prime Minister of India foreshadowed a change in his country’s attitude towards the proliferation and testing of nuclear weapons? [More…]
Research into the effects of waste products of nuclear reactors on organic matter, 0.9 per cent; [More…]
Research into new or improved disposal methods of nuclear waste products, 2.2 per cent [More…]
The honourable member for Isaacs also mentioned the entry of nuclear warships into certain ports. [More…]
I assume he meant the port of Sydney, which refused entry to a nuclear warship. [More…]
Why does he not explain to us that the people who wished to bring the American nuclear warship here had not been able to give the Premier of New South Wales or anybody else for that matter any guarantees that the city of Sydney and the port of Sydney would be safe in the case of accidents. [More…]
by leave- The future course of world nuclear development and the regime of international controls which should apply to such development are currently subjects of great international interest. [More…]
In the past few weeks, for example, there has been an important statement by President Carter on nuclear energy in which he emphasised the need to restrain the spread of nuclear weapons or exposive capabilities without forgoing the tangible benefits of nuclear power. [More…]
Again, at their recent Summit meeting, the Heads of Government of the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, West Germany, France, Japan and Italy committed themselves to increasing nuclear energy to help meet the world’s energy requirements while reducing the risks of nuclear proliferation. [More…]
At the conclusion of the recent Salzburg Conference, the most important international conference held in recent years on all aspects of nuclear power, the Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency referred to the agreement of the meeting that nuclear power was a necessary and irreplaceable source of the future energy supply to mankind for both the short and the longer term. [More…]
It is clear that there is widespread international concern to establish a framework of control within which the benefits which many countries see in the peaceful use of nuclear energy can be safely realised. [More…]
A proliferation of nuclear facilities without adequate protection against diversion of material to nuclear weapons production or nuclear explosives would pose serious threats to international stability and peace, obviously inimical to Australia’s interests and to global and regional security. [More…]
It was for this reason that, in his address to the United Nations General Assembly last September, the Foreign Minister (Mr Peacock) described the strengthening of measures to prevent proliferation of nuclear weapons as a central and fundamental area in which Australia looks and hopes for early progress. [More…]
I make clear from the outset that the term ‘safeguards’ is used here to denote the whole range of measures used to provide assurance that nuclear material supplied for peaceful purposes is not misused for non-peaceful or explosive purposes. [More…]
It would not be desirable for safeguards requirements to be left to ad hoc decision as this would not afford the strong and clear support for international efforts to strengthen controls against nuclear weapons proliferation to which the Government attaches major importance. [More…]
Australia is a potentially significant supplier of uranium, but if we are to play the part which this potential gives us the opportunity to play of contributing effectively to international efforts to strengthen the non-proliferation regime, it is desirable that uranium importing countries and other nuclear supplier countries alike know where Australia stands on the matter of safeguards. [More…]
In the narrow sense, safeguards are systems of containment, surveillance, accounting and inspection of nuclear materials and facilities designed to verify that diversion does not take place from peaceful to non-peaceful or explosive purposes. [More…]
In a broader sense, safeguards for future Australian uranium exports would comprise, as well as the application of international safeguards in this strict sense, the securing from importing countries of adequate assurances regarding the use and control of supplied nuclear material and the conclusion of binding arrangements to give effect to such assurances. [More…]
In both senses, as mechanisms for verification and as controls and conditions for nuclear exports, safeguards arrangements are an evolving structure, continually being strengthened, refined and improved. [More…]
In this regard the Government is pleased that, as recently announced, Mr Justice Fox has agreed to become an adviser to me on policy matters relating to nuclear non-proliferation and safeguards. [More…]
In the case of non-nuclear weapon states- that is to say, all countries other than the 5 existing nuclear weapons powers recognised by the Non-Proliferation Treaty- sales will be made only to countries which are parties to the NonProliferation Treaty. [More…]
Because of these countries’ safeguards obligations under the NonProliferation Treaty this policy will make sure that the entire civil nuclear industry in such customer countries is subject to effective safeguards to verify that nuclear material, whether of Australian or any other origin, is not diverted from peaceful uses. [More…]
The Government is aware that work has recently been under way within the International Atomic Energy Agency on a new system of equally stringent safeguards to cover the entire nuclear industry in non-nuclear weapon states which are not parties to the NonProliferation Treaty. [More…]
‘Regarding existing nuclear weapon states, they are not obliged under the Non-Proliferation Treaty to renounce nuclear weapons or accept international safeguards. [More…]
They retain the right to use nuclear material for weapons as well as for peaceful purposes. [More…]
Even so, Australia would want to have assurance that nuclear material we may supply for peaceful purposes is not diverted to military or explosive purposes. [More…]
We will therefore export only to nuclear weapon states which give Australia this assurance and accept that the uranium we supply be covered by International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards. [More…]
These bilateral agreements will provide a framework for direct and binding assurances by importing countries to the Australian Government in relation to the use and control of uranium supplied by Australia or nuclear material derived from its use. [More…]
The fundamental undertakings the Government will wish to obtain from uranium importing countries in such bilateral agreements are that nuclear material supplied by Australia for peaceful purposes or nuclear material derived from its use will not be diverted to military or explosive purposes and that International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards will apply to verify compliance with this undertaking. [More…]
Fifth, the Government takes the view that nuclear material supplied by Australia or nuclear material derived from its use should remain under safeguards for the full life of the material in question or until it is legitimately removed from safeguards. [More…]
In line with this basic principle the Government has decided that bilateral agreements with non-nuclear weapon states should make provision for so-called fallback safeguards. [More…]
Further, the bilateral agreements should provide for Australia to make alternative arrangements for the safeguarding of nuclear material supplied by us in the event of international safeguards as such ceasing to operate. [More…]
Moreover, the Government feels it is reasonable to ask importing countries who will already accept International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards of comprehensive scope under the Non-Proliferation Treaty, to accept that, at the first fallback level also, international safeguards should apply to all nuclear material not just that portion supplied by Australia. [More…]
Sixth, the Government considers that it would be an unsatisfactory situation for uranium supplied by Australia to one country, or nuclear material derived from its use, to be able to be reexported to a third country without the opportunity for Australia to satisfy itself that adequate controls would apply to the transferred material and that the ultimate destination is acceptable to us. [More…]
This provision will give Australia the means of making sure that our safeguards requirements are met despite any onward transfers of the uranium we supply or nuclear material derived from it. [More…]
This provision is in line with the practice adopted by other nuclear supplier countries. [More…]
The figure of 20 per cent has been chosen as representing a level of enrichment below the practical requirements for a nuclear explosive, while being above the enrichment level required for most peaceful uses, excepting, for example, some research and radioisotope production reactors, for which approval to enrich to the necessary level would need to be obtained. [More…]
Eighth, the Government is aware of the interest of some countries in the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel to meet their anticipated fur.ture fuel requirements, and to facilitate the management of nuclear material following its use in nuclear reactors. [More…]
At the present time the need for reprocessing and the details of an effective control regime for this area of the nuclear fuel cycle are the subject of close study internationally. [More…]
The United States has proposed an international nuclear fuel cycle evaluation program to consider various nuclear fuel cycles in terms of their implications for proliferation control. [More…]
The Government’s view is that, prior to a clearer outcome emerging from this current international activity, it would be premature for Australia to adopt a unilateral position on the detailed conditions under which we might be prepared to agree to reprocessing, if any, of nuclear material supplied by Australia. [More…]
In order to reserve effectively Australia’s position on this matter for the time being we would wish to make provision in bilateral agreements with countries importing Australian uranium that any reprocessing of nuclear material supplied by Australia may only take place with the prior consent of the Australian Government. [More…]
Ninth, the Government would require in future bilateral agreements the assurance from uranium importing countries that adequate physical security will be maintained on their nuclear industries. [More…]
The incorporation of these provisions in the Government’s safeguards policy reflects our concern that total nuclear control should encompass safeguards not just to verify that nuclear material is not illicitly diverted from peaceful uses by national governments or national authorities, but also to protect nuclear material from illegal use by groups or individuals. [More…]
We too consider that it is highly desirable that there should be the widest possible consensus amongst both nuclear supplier countries and nuclear importing countries on the controls to apply to the world nuclear industry. [More…]
The wider the consensus, the more effective these controls will be as a barrier to nuclear proliferation. [More…]
More generally, nuclear supplier countries have a special role and responsibility in the ongoing development of safeguards and Australia will be prepared to participate with them in any constructive efforts to develop a co-ordinated approach. [More…]
At the present time the Government sees a multilateral approach towards safeguards questions as being especially desirable in one specific area as well as in the international nuclear fuel cycle evaluation program already mentioned; we would wish to lend support to the development of an international convention on the physical protection of nuclear material in international transit. [More…]
The policy has been the subject of detailed exchanges of views with other countries- both uranium importers and major nuclear exporters- and relevant international organisations including the International Atomic Energy Agency. [More…]
The policy goes beyond a mere acceptance by Australia of our international obligations as a party to the Non-Proliferation Treaty and constitutes a policy as stringent as that adopted to date by any nuclear supplier country. [More…]
Nuclear Safeguards Policy- Ministerial Stateme.it. [More…]
The House needs to ask the Government why the Prime Minister has brought into the Parliament today a statement about nuclear safeguards when in fact the second Fox report will be presented publicly tomorrow and before the Parliament has a chance to comprehend what is in that report. [More…]
Obviously the development of a sophisticated safeguard regime on nuclear materials would take a number of years to develop because it is the international development of this regime which is important. [More…]
The Prime Minister says that the Government will insist upon agreements with such countries containing clauses ensuring that nuclear materials supplied by Australia for peaceful purposes or nuclear material derived from it will not be diverted to military or explosive purposes and, further, that International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards will apply to verify compliance with this undertaking. [More…]
If the Government wants an example of the failure of such bilateral agreements on uranium, the case of Canadian uranium and nuclear technology being sold to India is a good example. [More…]
The bilateral agreement in that case did not stop the Indians from developing an effective nuclear device. [More…]
That the Labor Party should continually press for stricter international safeguards and controls over the handling of nuclear materials. [More…]
That if, in Government, the Labor Party is satisfied that the hazards associated with nuclear power have been eliminated and satisfactory methods of waste disposal developed the question of uranium mining be reconsidered in the context of full public debate. [More…]
I put on notice here for the American Administration that we regard American policy in the nuclear field as paramount to changes in relation to safeguards and waste disposal. [More…]
In a wide range of discussions we covered American attitudes to nuclear safeguards, nuclear waste products and uranium enrichment. [More…]
Dr Schlesinger confirmed that if Australia developed its resources, we will be able to assume a much more important role in the achievement of more stringent international nuclear safeguards. [More…]
It is estimated that by 1985 20 per cent of America’s electricity will be nuclear generated. [More…]
Furthermore, a fourfold increase in nuclear generation is expected in the 15 years between 1985 and 2000. [More…]
-As the honourable gentleman would know, the Prime Minister made a statement on nuclear safeguards. [More…]
I will be confining my remarks to the ministerial statement about the nuclear safeguards policy. [More…]
Because the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) said earlier in the life of this Parliament that there would be a wide ranging debate on the second report of the Ranger Uranium Environmental Inquiry during the Budget session, I prepared myself only for a speech on the ministerial statement about the nuclear safeguards policy. [More…]
The nuclear safeguards policy has been forced on the Government by 2 factors. [More…]
It is implied that the safeguards of the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty are defective; yet we find when we look closely at these tougher safeguards that nothing has been added which will remove these defects and provide stiffer safeguards. [More…]
The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty cannot prevent the diversion of fissile material to weapons use. [More…]
The nuclear accounting systems at present are inadequate. [More…]
For example, the Federal General Accounting Office of the United States has just revealed that up to 9 tonnes of enriched plutonium and enriched uranium could not be accounted for at privately owned nuclear facilities. [More…]
Anybody with common sense can imagine the nuclear weapons that could be made from that amount of plutonium. [More…]
It is just as naive to suppose that the safeguards will have any effect on those nuclear weapons producers which have signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
With the best intentions, the Australian Government could be contributing to nuclear weapons proliferation. [More…]
The nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of nuclear war. [More…]
We know that if we continue to mine uranium we will accelerate the development of nuclear weapons not only by those nations which already have them but also by other nations which wish to get them. [More…]
It is just as unrealistic to expect that Australia could enforce adequate physical security over nuclear materials. [More…]
Even more farfetched is the implication in the fifth provision of the Fraser Government’s proposal that nuclear material supplied by Australia should remain under safeguards for its full life. [More…]
The full life of nuclear material is at least 300 000 years. [More…]
The future of uranium development and Australia’s policy on nuclear safeguards and nuclear nonproliferation are among the most important issues facing the Government, the Parliament and the people of Australia today. [More…]
Last week the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) made a major and important statement on Australian safeguards and nuclear non-proliferation policy. [More…]
Very clearly the major industrial countries must turn to an increased usage of coal and nuclear energy to satisfy their long term requirements. [More…]
The use of uranium for nuclear electricity generation raises very special problems. [More…]
As the Prime Minister pointed out in his statement to this Parliament on 24 May, clearly there has been an important statement by President Carter on nuclear energy in which he emphasised the need to restrain the spread of nuclear weapons or explosive capabilities without forgoing the tangible benefits of nuclear power. [More…]
Already over 1 80 nuclear reactors are in operation, another 300 are under construction or on order, plus nearly 300 more are in the planning stages. [More…]
But it said that the most serious danger is the possible proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
Surely there can be no doubt that, if Australia were to make its uranium resources available, the strengthening of nuclear safeguards would be greatly enhanced. [More…]
The possibility of premature development of the plutonium economy, with its implications for nuclear proliferation, could be avoided. [More…]
It may be that by supplying some countries we would help to relieve those pressures which can lead to armed conflict, nuclear or non-nuclear. [More…]
Not only would such an attitude by the Labor Party lead to tensions regarding resources but would also contribute to what President Carter and many governments, including the Australian Government, are seeking to avoid, namely, the more rapid development of the plutonium economy with the attendant risk of nuclear proliferation. [More…]
It requires conditions of control and use of Australian uranium over and above just the application of IAEA safeguards, the task of which is to verify that nuclear material is not diverted from peaceful uses. [More…]
Like the United States, we believe that the IAEA should remain a central element in nuclear safeguards systems. [More…]
It constitutes a policy as stringent as that adopted by any nuclear supplier. [More…]
The policy which has been announced provides a firm basis on which we can work with others to strengthen international safeguards regimes in the world nuclear industry. [More…]
I would point out that the Labor Party has made this statement despite the Inquiry saying that a total refusal to supply would place Australia in clear breach of Article IV of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. [More…]
The Deputy Leader of the Opposition (Mr Uren) has alleged that this Government was intent on committing Australia to a supplier role in the Western world ‘s nuclear energy industry and that it has encouraged mining companies to enter longterm contracts for the supply of uranium, including to such countries as Iran. [More…]
For example, will there be a nuclear power industry around the world regardless of whether Australian exports uranium? [More…]
A total renunciation of intention to supply designed to bring an end to all nuclear power industries or all further development of them would in our view be likely to fail totally in its purpose. [More…]
But implicit in the Labor policy is this: The international nuclear industry is unintentionally contributing, as the Fox inquiry suggested, to the risk of nuclear war. [More…]
The Government has stolen the spirit of the Labor safeguard policy and tried to twist it so as to suggest that Labor is trying to put the damper on the development of the international nuclear community by withholding Australian reserves when, in fact, what we have been saying is that time has to be devoted to the development of international safeguards for protection against the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
What we are dealing with here is a regime of safeguards governing a whole gaggle of nations who have moved and are moving into nuclear power. [More…]
I said so in my last major speech in the Parliament on the subject that the policy of the United States is important because of its pervasive influence in the West, in the nuclear industry, in technology, in the monetary system and in global defence. [More…]
These nations are short on resources and because they have progressed in fast breeder technology they will not fall over themselves to suit United States nuclear policy. [More…]
It will be beyond the turn of the century before they proliferate to become a large component of nuclear power generation. [More…]
At that stage there will be a larger market for uranium to fuel conventional nuclear reactors. [More…]
I stress the words ‘ not been prepared ‘- to accept continuous surveillance of nuclear activities by an external authority. [More…]
All I am saying is that the International Atomic Energy Agency is an imperfect instrument in a very imperfect nuclear world and that the basis of the Government’s safeguards policy is too reliant upon the IAEA system of safeguards which is clearly inadequate. [More…]
The Government has trailed the Opposition in nuclear policy all along. [More…]
It has scaled back the proportion of electricity generation attributable to nuclear power from 60 million kilowatts to 36 million kilowatts. [More…]
There will not be a real market for uranium until the middle 1980s because the world did not move into nuclear power policy until the Arab oil boycott in 1 972 forced countries to rethink their energy policies. [More…]
Some moved towards nuclear power. [More…]
That move in some countries has been temporarily held up by environmental objections and the general view that nuclear power is undesirable. [More…]
Many countries in which power rationing is a political reality will move ahead with a proportion of their electricity generation coming from nuclear power. [More…]
It is committed to allocating a proportion of its electricity generation to nuclear power. [More…]
I do not applaud the development of the nuclear industry for one moment. [More…]
But the nuclear horse bolted about 15 years ago. [More…]
Those who have been taking the high moral attitude have talked about the danger of world disaster from the nuclear industry. [More…]
For electrical energy which is a great part of the world’s need there is no quick source available except nuclear power. [More…]
Nuclear power is the cleanest form of power. [More…]
Fossil fuels cause pollution and dangers in a way which nuclear power does not. [More…]
Nuclear power will help us to dissipate that haze. [More…]
But if one adds up the dangers and deaths that we know occur from fossil fuel- in the coal mines, in the transport of fuel and by respiratory disease- we know that they are orders of magnitude greater than even the worst conjectures of the dangers from nuclear power. [More…]
Nuclear power is the safest form of energy available to us. [More…]
If one thinks of the danger of war, and nuclear war, one of the things we can best do to add to that danger would be to deprive the rest of the world of power, of energy. [More…]
There is a dreadful responsibility on those who, in Australia and elsewhere in the world over the last four or five years, have campaigned as they have against the growth of nuclear energy. [More…]
I am not going to go into the motives or the manipulations of those who have campaigned against nuclear power. [More…]
I want to quote from the first Fox report where the commissioners mention that in considering the evidence they found: that many wildly exaggerated statements are made about the risks and dangers of nuclear energy production by those opposed to it. [More…]
There is abundant evidence before us to show that scientists, engineers and administrators involved in the business of producing nuclear energy have at times painted excessively optimistic pictures of the safety and performance, projected or past, of various aspects of nuclear production. [More…]
We agree strongly with the view, repeatedly put to us by opponents of nuclear development, that, given a sufficient understanding of the science and technology involved, the final decision should rest with the ordinary man and not be regarded as the preserve of any group of scientists or experts, however distinguished. [More…]
The first 2 recommendations of the first report are identical in wording after each defines the area of recommendation; in other words, for mining and milling of uranium and for the ordinary operation of nuclear power reactors. [More…]
3, the Commissioners said that ‘The most serious hazard associated with the industry’- that must mean mining as well as nuclear power reactors for, if not, what else?- ‘is that the nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of nuclear war’. [More…]
It was submitted that there were dangers associated with … the production of power in reactors, that there were serious and unresolved problems concerning the disposal of radio-active wastes, that there were risks of terrorist theft and use of plutonium, and that there were increased risks of nuclear war flowing from nuclear proliferation. [More…]
It was contended that the continuing development of the nuclear power industry would produce greater inequality - [More…]
It is possible that, in the future, the operations of a nuclear power industry in a particular country, or the operation of those industries generally, will be found to be more hazardous than now appears. [More…]
But surely this is inherent in the development of nuclear power. [More…]
The most serious danger in our view is that of proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
The Commission feels this threat, despite the extensive precautions taken under the Treaty on the Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and the International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards system, to an appropriate commentary on those 2 systems, one can only note President Carter’s recent actions which tends to suggest that those 2 agreements probably are nowhere near as safe as we believed. [More…]
Even if such action does not succeed in deterring other nations from embarking on a program of nuclear power development, at least some of the ‘existing problems may be more satisfactorily resolved’. [More…]
We see no escape from those disadvantages, serious though some of them may be, if Australia is to participate in the nuclear power industry with a due sense of responsibility to the people of the world and its own people. [More…]
The hazards involved, beyond the immediate technical hazards of mining and ordinary operation of nuclear power reactors, have not been resolved. [More…]
These hazards associated with the nuclear industry may, singly, not be sufficient to suggest uranium should not be mined or exported, but taken together, as they must, they present an overwhelming case at least for postponement of these operations. [More…]
In no way can recommendation 3 or any of the following recommendations be seen as either unrelated to the first 2 recommendations, or supporting the contention that the first 2 recommendations mean mining and export of uranium by Australia should proceed without a full community debate on all the implications of nuclear power. [More…]
We have heard a lot about the needs of the world for energy and so on and how, by depriving the world of nuclear power, we will be depriving the underdeveloped countries of great advantages. [More…]
The sad fact, of course, is that the fruits of nuclear power development as it has been going on thus fargiven the escalating costs and so on, it is difficult to see how the picture will change- go to the developed countries and not to the underdeveloped countries. [More…]
I remember talking to a nuclear physicist about this subject and raising with him my anxieties about nuclear power stations and so on. [More…]
He said: ‘I would live next door to a nuclear power station’. [More…]
That does not mean that I would recommend the building of nuclear power stations’. [More…]
Nuclear power is a different order of danger. [More…]
We need to protect nuclear waste for a mere 250 000 years. [More…]
Can we be sure that 200 years from now the government of the United States will be a safe government that is dedicated to using and caring for the nuclear power industry in the way in which the present Government is dedicated? [More…]
The nuclear power industry may forestall the crisis, if we are lucky, for 40 or 50 years, but what then? [More…]
To continue on this path using nuclear power to aid and abet our greed and our waste of energy resources is simply to put off the day when we will have to face the crunch. [More…]
If we decline to develop nuclear power now we will more readily recognise the limitations of energy facing mankind and face the problem sooner. [More…]
We are not debating whether we should have nuclear power stations in this country. [More…]
We are not debating whether we should store nuclear waste in this country. [More…]
The information we have before us is the first report of the Ranger Uranium- Environmental Inquiry- the Fox report- which deals with the export of uranium and which really comes under 5 headings, namely, the dangers associated with mining and milling, the dangers associated with the operation of nuclear reactors, the dangers associated with the safe disposal of nuclear waste and the 2 key questions of terrorist activities and nuclear proliferation. [More…]
The first is the problem of terrorists getting hold of nuclear ex- plosives. [More…]
It is much more difficult for terrorists to manufacture an effective nuclear weapon than many people imagine. [More…]
Secondly, there is the danger of nuclear proliferation, which is very serious indeed. [More…]
It was misrepresented most recently by the honourable member for Blaxland, who referred to an Indian nuclear explosion. [More…]
There is no denying that India exploded a nuclear device in 1 974 and that at the same time a bilateral agreement between Canada and India was in force, but that has no similarity with what is being proposed now. [More…]
India is not and was not then a party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and the safeguards that applied to India at the time were rudimentary and did not exclude the so-called peaceful nuclear explosion; nor did the agreement with Canada apply International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards. [More…]
In any case, the nuclear materials used were of Indian origin and not of Canadian origin, as claimed by the honourable member for Blaxland. [More…]
It is worth remembering that as an exporter we would have some chance of influencing the situation about nuclear safeguards. [More…]
The safeguards applied to the transfer of nuclear materials are vital to the future of this world. [More…]
On the matter of nuclear proliferation it does not matter one way or the other whether we export. [More…]
The nuclear proliferation will continue just the same. [More…]
But if we become a controlled exporter we can influence significantly the nuclear safeguards throughout the world. [More…]
The next risk is that of nuclear reactors. [More…]
It has been assessed by the Rasmussen Committee that people living beside a nuclear power station are 300 000 times as likely to be killed in a car accident or 8 times as likely to be killed by a thunderbolt as they are by an emission from a nuclear power station. [More…]
If the government of a country, knowing the risks, such as there are, of nuclear power stations, decides that it is in the economic and social interests of its people to import uranium for a nuclear power generation system, have we the right to deny that government the uranium? [More…]
It is true there are dangers in respect of nuclear reactors. [More…]
The first moral question we have to ask is: Have we the right to decide for other countries whether they should use nuclear power generation, or is that a decision for the governments of the countries concerned? [More…]
The second question is: Have we the right to neglect to use our power to improve nuclear safeguards? [More…]
One was that His Honour Justice Fox was to be appointed adviser to the Prime Minister on nuclear and associated matters. [More…]
Criteria were to be applied to the non-nuclear weapons states. [More…]
Uranium would be supplied to nuclear weapon states only if they gave assurances that the International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards standards would be maintained. [More…]
An attempt by a small, well trained and armed group to take over a nuclear installation could have a good chance of success. [More…]
There is a very real risk that the opportunity and routine for nuclear blackmail will develop in time. [More…]
Recently, as is now generally known, an American college student and a British newspaper developed ways of constructing nuclear weapons. [More…]
In addition, a United States based nuclear brokerage house has confirmed that, in 1976, it sold to foreign buyers 1 12 pounds of plutonium- enough for 3 large bombs -in 2 separate transactions. [More…]
The belief that bilateral agreements will prevent the proliferation of the nuclear club is naive and not based on known facts. [More…]
For these corporations only the proliferation of nuclear reactors can save their huge investments. [More…]
In addition, both West Germany and France, with nuclear technology comparable with that of the United States have begun their own sales campaign. [More…]
The decision of President Carter on 7 April this year to halt the development of a plutonium economy has not stopped France or West Germany, nor has it stopped Iran’s search for a nuclear reactor. [More…]
The essence of the problem is not only the halting of fast breeder development but also the complete cessation of the use of nuclear fuel because plutonium- admitted by all to be a greater risk to world peace- can be made from the waste products of water cooled reactors. [More…]
Time magazine has alleged that Israel has 13 nuclear bombs, made using plutonium allegedly delivered by the Central Intelligence Agency from the United States stockpile. [More…]
By the end of this year 5 more military dictatorships will possess nuclear weapons. [More…]
The miners want high prices for their product while the nuclear reactor manufacturers must boost world sales to recoup their investments. [More…]
The fifth point of the Prime Minister’s statement, requiring that all nuclear material be kept under full safeguards for the full life of the material, by implication requires that this protection will continue for 250 000 years. [More…]
There is a whole range of argument in favour of nuclear energy but that is not the real nub of today’s debate. [More…]
At the moment we share a method to feed nuclear reactors at least until the next ice age; that is, to use a new and very abundant fuel, abundant throughout the world and in Australia. [More…]
That is the basic argument for digging and selling uranium, I suppose, but part of today’s debate certainly involves arguments for and against nuclear power. [More…]
There are very good arguments for nuclear development and I think that some of the referendums in the United States have made clear that the people there are not the slightest bit concerned. [More…]
The use of nuclear energy in the developed countries could indirectly help the developing countries, principally by increasing the amount of oil available for their use. [More…]
But he then said, after paying due respect to the need for using a lot of coal, that they could not solve the problem without using nuclear reactors. [More…]
So the very person the Opposition has been quoting with some approval this afternoon has made it quite plain that nuclear reactors are necessary to solve the energy problem. [More…]
By the deployment of nuclear reactors, 16 million barrels of oil a day could be saved. [More…]
If this can be done and if nuclear reactors can be used as part of a means to provide energy, oil prices might no longer rise. [More…]
I want to say a few words about objections to nuclear power. [More…]
It is called The Health Hazards of Not Going Nuclear and is written by Professor Beckman. [More…]
I recommend it to those Opposition members who are genuinely interested in some arguments for nuclear power, instead of promoting the sort of literature that they seem to be quoting constantly against nuclear power. [More…]
Big industrial nuclear reactors, of which there are more than 60 in the United States today, have not harmed a single person. [More…]
Nuclear reactors are cleaner and safer than coal. [More…]
Nuclear reactors are safe when properly controlled and at least in the United States they are safe. [More…]
They really should support nuclear reactors if they are genuine in their desire to cut down pollution because they are the cleanest method of producing electricity. [More…]
It would be quite unfair and improper of me before sitting down not to pay some sort of a tribute to Dr Edward Teller who has had such a great deal to do with the development of nuclear energy since its inception. [More…]
Honourable members might recollect that many years ago there was a tremendous nuclear debate in the United States. [More…]
In any case, Dr Teller was retained by the American Government to give a professional opinion as to whether it ought to pursue nuclear energy in depth. [More…]
Apart from the enormous industrial development and the enormous benefits that civilisation has gained from nuclear power, there is no question that the United States has done the job in preserving the balance of nuclear power in war-like terms. [More…]
In my view the issues have been largely oversimplified and polarised by the minority groups which are emotionally or financially involved so that the Australian public, in effect, has been asked to choose between 2 extremes- unlimited nuclear power for the world or bans on uranium mining. [More…]
The commissioners simply could not convince themselves that the serious problem of nuclear weapons proliferation could be assisted materially by leaving Australian uranium permanently in the ground. [More…]
In spite of this, there are still some who believe that uranium bans will help to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and that the world must now give up the option of nuclear power. [More…]
The turning point in the Australian debate has been the recent announcement of President Carter’s nuclear energy policy. [More…]
It should be made clear to Australians that this policy in effect means firstly, nuclear power will not be abolished world-wide; secondly, the demand for yellowcake will increase because of restrictions on United States fast breeder reactors and reprocessing plants. [More…]
It has a great potential for maximising the effectiveness of nuclear safeguards. [More…]
I find it rather odd that there was hardly any notice taken in Australia of the results of a conference on the transfer of nuclear technology at Persepolis in late April. [More…]
The essential point is that most countries look upon nuclear power as the only route to energy and independence. [More…]
Hence any suggestion that reprocessing and recycling are unacceptable strikes at the very root of this motivation for adopting nuclear power, and naturally is reviewed with alarm. [More…]
They want to make firm plans for a nuclear future now. [More…]
The national investment required to establish a nuclear breeder capability is far too large a development to be made if its ultimate objective is in doubt. [More…]
Many feel that the restriction of reprocessing is not an effective deterrent to nuclear weapons proliferation. [More…]
For example, the message should be made even clearer to uranium buyers that any nuclear explosion set off by countries other than the recognised nuclear powers- that is, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, the United States of America, the United Kingdom, China and France- will result in immediate and permanent cessation of uranium supplies from Canada, Australia and the United States. [More…]
This would cover a situation where, for instance, a uranium buyer ceased to be a member of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
This country’s greatest influence as a major potential supplier of uranium is not with small nuclear powers such as Brazil, Argentina, Pakistan and Korea but with important customers such as West Germany, Italy and Great Britain. [More…]
Small countries conceivably could obtain uranium outside Canada, the United States or Australia for nuclear weapons manufacture. [More…]
The European countries I have mentioned as well as Japan must eventually look to the suppliers’ group to provide fuel for their large nuclear power programs. [More…]
Since these consumer countries are also capable of transferring crucial nuclear technology, such as enrichment plants or reprocessing plants, to sensitive countries, Australia can have an important say in restricting such transfers where necessary. [More…]
Events have prevented to a large degree the hope of nuclear weapons proliferation being entirely stopped. [More…]
The role of South Africa as a possible willing supplier of uranium for nuclear weapons manufacture cannot and ought not to be ruled out in any evaluation of Australian and United States safeguards policy. [More…]
How can Australian yellowcake be traced and checked throughout a country’s nuclear fuel cycle? [More…]
We also know that the major nuclear nations generally need uranium for power production. [More…]
The United States Navy has been nuclearpowered for 2 1 to 25 years. [More…]
Some of the States are 35 per cent nuclear-powered and some of them are 15 per cent nuclear-powered. [More…]
Nuclear power is clean. [More…]
Great Britain itself generates 15 per cent of its power by nuclear means. [More…]
Nuclear power is on the increase. [More…]
There has not been one loss of life in the world since the beginning of the nuclear industry. [More…]
No doubt, great precautions have to be taken by those handling the nuclear product when it is providing power for the sources I have mentioned. [More…]
Calculated caution and sequential development, which apparently would not conflict with economic calculations of the complex factors of supply of and demand for fissionable material for nuclear reactors. [More…]
It was good to hear the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) speak in this House on 24 May when he stated clearly that nuclear safeguards have been under the closest and most careful consideration from the moment that the Government took over the Treasury reins. [More…]
He made it clear that there was international concern to establish a framework of control for nuclear safeguards and that consultations had taken place with the United States of America, Canada and other countries. [More…]
These conditions will cover the entire civil nuclear industries of the importing countries and ensure that uranium meant for peaceful uses is not diverted to military or explosive purposes. [More…]
I am not against nuclear energy being used in the world; what I am against is its being used now and our uranium being sold until the proper safeguards and control of wastes have been demonstrated to us by scientists and by the technologists, and until proper control and regulation can take place. [More…]
The nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of nuclear war. [More…]
This applied when the report was written; there are more now- have nuclear power stations operating at 3 1 December 1 975. [More…]
Looking at some of those countries that have nuclear reactors on order and considering that they are going to have the facility of a nuclear reactor are enough to make any honourable member’s hair curl in view of the calibre of government and morality in those countries. [More…]
It is also interesting to look at some of the types of nuclear reactors some of these haircurling countries have on order. [More…]
One is an American reactor which is light, which performs the function of creating electricity or energy but from which it is difficult or impossible to make a nuclear bomb. [More…]
There is a heavier reactor, made in Canada and other countries, which is more expensive, more efficient, less economic but nevertheless has the capacity of making a nuclear weapon. [More…]
I am not against the use of nuclear energy but I am against its use until the dangers have been solved. [More…]
If we have an easily accessible source of nuclear energy we will use it. [More…]
I am not against the use of nuclear energy but I am against selling our uranium now. [More…]
Let us retard nuclear poliferation for as long as we can until we can ensure that there are adequate safeguards, until we can make absolutely sure that the wastes are safe, that they will not cause cancer and gene mutations in future generations and the other hideous dangers inherent in the use of uranium. [More…]
The nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increase in the risk of nuclear war. [More…]
It was an initiative that electrified the world and that I think certainly changed the whole complexion of the nuclear debate in this Parliament and Australia. [More…]
That is what the statement of the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) of 24 May on the Government’s policy on nuclear safeguards followed on so responsibly and where this Parliament was fulfilling its proper role in deciding what should be happening in Australia. [More…]
The nuclear debate can take place in many ways, but in the end somebody has to decide what is to happen. [More…]
The fact of the matter is that the then President of the United States decided to use nuclear weapons because in his judgment this action would finish the war quickly and save the lives of at least hundreds of thousands of allied servicemen who were fighting in the Pacific. [More…]
His Honour said that ‘the nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of nuclear war and that ‘this is the most serious hazard associated with the industry’. [More…]
I suggest to the House that if we take out the word ‘nuclear’ and read that statement again we will find that the same validity exists, lt would then read this way: ‘The power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of war’. [More…]
Australia is a signatory to the Treaty on the Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. [More…]
A total renunciation of intention to supply designed to bring an end to all nuclear power industries or all further development of them would in our view be likely to fail totally in its purpose. [More…]
Am I to understand that the followers of the honourable member for Werriwa (Mr E. G. Whitlam)- the members of the Australian Labor Party- who led the Government which ratified the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons are now saying to the rest of the world that the decision at that time was not to be taken seriously and that circumstances have developed to make them change their minds. [More…]
At their recent summit meeting the heads of Government of the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, West Germany, France, Japan and Italy committed themselves to increasing nuclear energy to help meet the world’s energy requirements while reducing the risks of nuclear proliferation. [More…]
In other words, the major powers on this earth have said that, if we will put our trust in them, they will be prepared to give guarantees that will make the possibilities of nuclear war far too remote a possibility. [More…]
The other alternative, as we all understand, is to move into the operation of getting nuclear capacity because we are afraid that someone will use it against us. [More…]
I would have thought that there was enough evidence to accept that at least the potential conquerers of this world- the conquerers who might be likely to engage in nuclear war- will go along with the nonproliferation Treaty while its suits them. [More…]
In my judgment it has been properly put forward by my colleagues this afternoon that for 0.4 per cent of the world’s population to start dictating to the rest of the 4000 million people on this earth about their capacity and their right to decide whether they will develop nuclear industries would be entirely wrong. [More…]
As a supplier of the raw material, we must give full consideration to what flows from it- from the raw material to the initial energy production, through the power plant; from the raw material to nuclear weapons; from the initial energy production procedure to the other forms of energy production available; or from the energy production to the use of the material left from that and once more to nuclear weapons. [More…]
In the world news section there appears a heading Australia’s Key Nuclear Role’. [More…]
Australia will be closely associated with important discussions leading up to the international nuclear fuel evaluation program proposed by America ‘s President Carter. [More…]
While Australia will not actually join the exclusive world nuclear club, it will be fully and closely involved. [More…]
Mr Wedgwood Benn has expressed considerable interest in Australia’s announced nuclear safeguards policy, and the article indicated that there was complete agreement that such nuclear safeguards needed to be secure and absolute. [More…]
The Government yesterday delighted environmentalists and exasperated supporters of nuclear power by announcing that Britain will not build a plutonium-burning fast breeder reactor until a full public inquiry on the project has been held. [More…]
One of the matters of particular concern about which the article comments is the long radioactive life of the nuclear waste left after the plutonium has been burned in the reactor and the dangers to a free democratic society posed by the substantial presence of plutonium, which is also the raw material for nuclear weapons. [More…]
If there are absolute and secure safeguards and they still have to have inquiries like that in a country where nuclear power has been used for some time, further doubts must surely arise in our minds. [More…]
7m, that could potentially be used for nuclear weapons- had vanished. [More…]
The purpose was to disguise a secret Israeli purchase of much needed uranium for its French built nuclear reactor. [More…]
It is suggested that assurances were given by the West German Government to allow the purchase to be disguised and that Israel promised West Germany access to its advanced uranium separation process that can be used to produce nuclear weapons. [More…]
Indeed, it really was not a good cover as Morocco is not a member of the European Economic Community and no nuclear material can be shipped outside the Community without a special permit. [More…]
Comment has been made of the likelihood of damage from nuclear power plants. [More…]
I wish to quote from an information paper entitled Third Party Liability for Nuclear Damage issued by the Australian Atomic Energy Commission. [More…]
The safety record of the nuclear industry has so far been excellent. [More…]
For example, in 20 years or so of operating nuclear reactors in the United States, there have been no third party claims arising from the operation of commercial plants. [More…]
Nevertheless, the theoretical studies discussed above indicate a remote possibility of a very costly accident and this is the underlying assumption providing the basis for nuclear liability legislation. [More…]
Some rather irresponsible assertions have been made also about nuclear power stations exploding or the possibility of their exploding. [More…]
One other respect in which I think the Fox report was most inadequate was Japan’s position in the nuclear power generating area. [More…]
Replacement of part of Japan’s proposed nuclear expansion program with an amplified coal-fired power station program, combined with greater emphasis on energy conservation, appears feasible. [More…]
Base-load electricity generated by stations fuelled with imported coal would probably be more expensive than that provided by nuclear stations in many cases. [More…]
However, the evidence indicates that the average capacity factor of some existing nuclear stations in Japan has been low, so the cost of electricity produced by them may be relatively high. [More…]
The Tokai 1 power station is the first commercial nuclear power generating station which Japan has established. [More…]
Nuclear power is seen by the Japanese as an energy source which will lessen her reliance on bulky fossil fuel. [More…]
Thus the Japanese are attracted by the ease with which a year’s supply of, say, nuclear fuel can be stored, providing a buffer against short term disruption of supply caused by regional conflicts and industrial boycotts. [More…]
Another factor which the Japanese see as compelling them towards the development of nuclear power is the problem of atmospheric pollution in their overcrowded cities. [More…]
Japan already has 13 nuclear power generating units in operation with a total output of 7428 megawatts. [More…]
Japan expects to be providing about 20 per cent of her electricity requirements from nuclear sources by the time the present construction program is completed in 1983. [More…]
So for Japan there is no debate about whether to go nuclear- she already has. [More…]
The main debate centres on methods and rates of progress and the siting of nuclear reactors. [More…]
In that respect the debate on nuclear power in Japan is probably like the freeway debate in Australia. [More…]
Public opinion polls in Japan indicate that there is a similar attitude to the development of nuclear power stations. [More…]
I believe that in the case of Japan and, from what I understand, a number of other countries, they already have made a very clear decision that the development of nuclear energy is in their interests. [More…]
Japan would say quite categorically that it is necessary for her own independence from the disruption that can be caused to sources of overseas supply of raw materials for her to have a nuclear generating capacity to supply a reasonable proportion of her electricity requirements. [More…]
So I believe that the situation facing Australia is this: Many countries have made the decision to go nuclear for their power generation requirements. [More…]
If a decision by Australia not to supply uranium would halt nuclear developments throughout the world I would probably be in favour of a moratorium on mining and exporting in order to resolve existing problems. [More…]
However, the situation we face is that Japan and other countries already have gone nuclear. [More…]
This is the real option facing us, not the option of taking a high moral stand by not mining and exporting our uranium and hoping that, in some respect, that will prevent the rest of the world going nuclear. [More…]
Nuclear energy, if it is used to its maximum extent, will delay the inevitable, possibly through most of our lifetimes and a little longer. [More…]
The people whom he is suggesting should not use their technology are the Europeans who are probably more dependent on nuclear power as an energy source at this stage than is the Unites States which has some basic petroleum supplies of its own. [More…]
The key problem is whether nuclear energy can be used with reasonable safety to mankind itself. [More…]
It is all right to say that the Japanese have made a decision to move into the area of nuclear power generation. [More…]
The nuclear energy field is not an area into which we should rush. [More…]
At this stage no technology is available to us which can guarantee that we can protect future generations from the after effects of that nuclear waste. [More…]
We should be looking at the specific consequences of accelerating the expansion of nuclear power generation at this stage without taking the trouble and the time to examine whether or not better conditions and circumstances and much higher levels of safeguards can be made available. [More…]
I remember a prime minister not long ago saying as part of his policy speech that we would construct a nuclear power station in Australia during the next few years. [More…]
Certainly the nuclear power station has not been built. [More…]
-This is a cognate debate on nuclear safeguards policy, the uranium industry and the Ranger Uranium Environmental Inquiry. [More…]
The first of the matters being considered in this cognate debate is Australia ‘s nuclear safeguards policy. [More…]
That refers to the safeguards for the export of uranium or its by-products- in the near future in the context of formulating a national Australian policy on nuclear safeguards. [More…]
He mentioned containment, surveillance and the accounting and inspection of nuclear materials. [More…]
I remember attending a lecture some years ago by Professor Linus Pauling, who had the backing of some ten or twelve nuclear physicists in the United States. [More…]
Australia has extensive deposits of uranium at a time when the world faces the need to make fundamental changes in its supply and use of energy resources, when there is growing concern for the environment in which we live, and when there is anxiety over the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
I must say that speakers in this debate from both sides of the House have comprehended many of these issues, drawing them together in a consideration of nuclear safeguard policies, the potentiality of the uranium industry itself and the reports of the Ranger Uranium Environmental Inquiry. [More…]
The Government for some time has recognised the desirability of describing a comprehensive policy on nuclear safeguards. [More…]
It is Australia ‘s contribution to international efforts to strengthen measures to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
President Carter’s Nuclear Non-Proliferation Policy Act of 1977 sent to Congress on, I think, 21 April defines export conditions relating to reprocessing as: a requirement that no fuel exported from the United States be reprocessed without the prior approval of the United States. [More…]
Australia supports the United States, Canada and other like-minded countries in constructive efforts to strengthen nuclear safeguards and reduce the risks of nuclear non-proliferation. [More…]
A copy of the fact sheet issued by the White House on 27 April on President Carter’s Nuclear NonProliferation Policy Act of 1977 is available from me for anybody who might want it. [More…]
As set out in the Government’s statement of 1 1 November following the First Report of the Ranger Uranium Environmental Inquiry, the Government is satisfied that appropriate controls would apply to the shipments under these contracts which will be used for electric power generation in Japan, the United States and the Federal Republic of Germany, all of which are parties to the Treaty on the NonProliferation of Nuclear Weapons. [More…]
The material will be processed to uranium hexafluoride in the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States which are parties to the nuclear non-proliferation Treaty and which require stringent safeguards on the material processed. [More…]
For example, on the question of waste, a committee of my Party in this Parliament recently had before it Dr Hardy of the Atomic Energy Commission, who was said to be a pro-uranium man very strongly in favour of nuclear energy as a source of power, and I believe he is. [More…]
I believe that in making those submissions he strengthened the case against the sale of uranium for nuclear energy purposes. [More…]
We must remember that nuclear energy can fill a gap of only 20 years. [More…]
In other words, when petroleum starts to run out there will be a 2-decade gap which nuclear energy will fill. [More…]
I believe that the result of this debate will be to force countries to inject more capital investment into finding alternatives for petroleum and nuclear energy and to investigate sources of power such as solar energy. [More…]
It should do this instead of introducing into the Parliament papers such as the one presented by the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) on 24 May 1977 headed ‘Government policy on nuclear safeguards’, which is basically window dressing to give him an excuse for further mining and to allow Australia to enter into further contracts for the sale of uranium to countries for nuclear purposes. [More…]
Professor Arndt points out that the present antinuclear campaign, which in Australia concentrates on opposition to mining and export of uranium, is clearly in this tradition of conscience radicalism. [More…]
What is not discussed by such people are the benefits, the need to go nuclear or, in fact, the risks of not going nuclear. [More…]
The alternative proposition with respect to uranium is that nuclear fuel is much safer and much cleaner, and that has been demonstrated very adequately to be the fact. [More…]
It is fascinating that the people who are opposing the use of nuclear power and the mining of Australian uranium are by their very actions forcing the power hungry nations of this world into a technology which uses hardly any uranium at all but which is desperately dangerous. [More…]
I do not believe that this is a real case against nuclear power. [More…]
It is held out to us that if Australia does not develop its uranium resources, if we do not supply this fuel for nuclear power stations, it will dramatise the situation and encourage the rest of the world not to do likewise. [More…]
There would be only one effect of moral suasion, assuming that it were successful, and that would be to further diminish the relative strength of the Western democracies against the totalitarian nations which are proceeding apace with nuclear power. [More…]
Here we have on 2 scores the position being put by the Labor Opposition in this House and by the anti-nuclear campaign around this nation and benefiting a group of people who are in a very interesting situation in this world. [More…]
Exactly the same situation exists in relation to nuclear power. [More…]
I was one of the few who worked with the honourable member for Mackellar, Mr Wentworth, in a group of members who were interested in the whole of the nuclear problem facing the nation. [More…]
It is now 20 years since I first went to Calder Hall in Cumberland and with a nuclear scientist went through one of the earliest British reactors. [More…]
I do not think anybody should underestimate the fact that there has been only one nuclear accident in Britain. [More…]
On the other hand, it is not wise for people to build up fears and terror concerning the nuclear age in which we are all living whether we like it or not. [More…]
When we talk about uranium and nuclear fission and energy the immediate thought in the minds of many people is death and destruction. [More…]
At this moment France has 10 commercial nuclear reactors in operation. [More…]
Some people are astounded when I tell them that Switzerland with only 3 very powerful commercial nuclear reactors is producing 1 7 per cent of its electricity. [More…]
Honourable members should not suppose that the Soviet Union and other countries are not also using commercial nuclear reactors to produce electricity. [More…]
I do not wish to take the time of the House to read out the name of every country but there are 1 70 commercial nuclear reactors generating electricity in operation at present. [More…]
As a nation, we will not allow the export of our uranium to other countries unless we are quite satisfied that we will take full part in every international organisation in the whole of the nuclear energy field. [More…]
The nuclear non-proliferation Treaty is something with which we can do our very best. [More…]
I am certain that the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) is making quite certain on his journey that our voice in the control and inspection of nuclear equipment and material will be one of our great achievements in the closing years of this century. [More…]
We are at a wonderful moment in time in a completely new era of a nuclear world. [More…]
When we are making international agreements concerning nuclear equipment and this sort of material it should be possible for the 2 front benches to come together and make certain that we do not at a later date let down all our friends, neighbours and the world by ratting on a treaty that we have already negotiated. [More…]
1 ) What methods are used to dispose of radioactive waste from the Atomic Energy Commission’s nuclear reactor at Lucas Heights. [More…]
1 ) I am advised that radioactive wastes from nuclear reactors at Lucas Heights are disposed of in conjunction with other radioactive wastes from the Australian Atomic Energy Commission ‘s research establishment as follows: [More…]
What plans exist in his Department for the evacuation and protection ofpersons and property in the areas surrounding the Atomic Energy Commission nuclear reactor at Lucas Heights. [More…]
What plans exist in his Department for the evacuation and protection of persons and property in the areas surrounding the Atomic Energy Commission nuclear reactor at Lucas Heights. [More…]
1 ) Can the Minister say whether nuclear physicists at the Australian National University have decided to abandon a major solar energy project as being too practical and simple for a university. [More…]
Can the Minister also say whether the Australian National University has instead decided to reserve its funds for research into pure science such as nuclear physics and diffusion research. [More…]
5 ) If so, is this a reaction to the pro-nuclear lobby. [More…]
In the context of these largely energy-imposed difficulties, particularly for the nonoilproducing developing countries, I cannot forbear from making a reference to the importance to those countries of the development of nuclear power for electricity generation to meet their expanding energy needs. [More…]
They obtain that benefit whether or not they themselves enter into nuclear power for electricity generation. [More…]
Secondly, they establish nuclear plants in the countries themselves. [More…]
Many have done so, and on an increasing scale- witness Iran, as I have said, and its obtaining of five nuclear power stations. [More…]
Both stressed the importance of nuclear power to meet their future energy needs and expressed the hope that Australia would be a future supplier of uranium to them. [More…]
The report also deals with the nuclear problem. [More…]
It is obvious to all concerned that if nuclear weapons were used in that area the result could well be a world wide nuclear conflict. [More…]
Everything possible must be done by all nations, including Australia, to restrict any possible development of nuclear proliferation in that area. [More…]
It could equally be a war with horrific nuclear weapons. [More…]
I should like to take this opportunity to announce that Mr Justice Fox, with my concurrence, has accepted an invitation to participate in the initial meeting of an International Consultative Group on Nuclear Energy which has been established by the Rockefeller Foundation and the Royal Institute of International Affairs. [More…]
The Group is conceived as a small, informal and unofficial body of highly qualified people convened to assess the current and prospective patterns of nuclear development in the light of pressures imposed not only by energy demand but also by environmental and security factors. [More…]
It has flowed from four fundamental considerations: the need to reduce the risk of nuclear proliferation; the need to supply essential sources of energy to an energy deficient world; the need to protect effectively the environment in which mining development will take place; the need to ensure that proper provision is made for the welfare and interests of the Aboriginal people in the Alligator Rivers region and of all other prople living in the region and working on the development projects. [More…]
Since then I have appointed Mr Justice Fox as adviser to the Government on nuclear nonproliferation and safeguards matters. [More…]
It looked at both the world-wide and the local regional environmental issues associated with the mining and export of uranium: the issues of nuclear weapons proliferation and nuclear safeguards; the contribution of nuclear power to world energy requirements; the economic implications of uranium export for Australia. [More…]
On nuclear power reactors, the Inquiry concluded: [More…]
The hazards involved in the ordinary operations of nuclear power reactors, if those operations are properly regulated and controlled, are not such as to justify a decision not to mine and sell Australian uranium. [More…]
On waste disposal from nuclear power stations, the Inquiry concluded: [More…]
On the possibility of nuclear terrorism, the Inquiry concluded: [More…]
In our view, the possibility of nuclear terrorism merits energetic consideration and action at the international level. [More…]
The Government is satisfied that the specification of standards of physical security by the International Atomic Energy Agency constitutes the basis upon which national governments can provide strong protection against nuclear terrorism. [More…]
A total refusal to supply would place Australian in clear breach of Article IV of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty and could adversely affect its relation to countries which are parries to the NPT. [More…]
Article IV of the Treaty obliges Australia to cooperate in the production and usage of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. [More…]
The proliferation of nuclear weapons was, in the Inquiry’s view, the most serious hazard associated with the nuclear power industry. [More…]
The Government, having considered the Inquiry’s report and all the other evidence before it, has decided that the goals of limiting the proliferation of nuclear weapons, and alleviating the world’s energy problems are best served by Australia agreeing now to the export of uranium. [More…]
The Government well appreciates the concern some people feel about nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. [More…]
As a biologist I should have preferred that there had never been developed the military and industrial exploitation of nuclear power. [More…]
But we cannot absolve ourselves from the necessity of making decisions on nuclear energy by wishing that it had never been developed. [More…]
I believe that a majority of thoughtful people accept the inevitability for at least an interim period, of large scale use of nuclear energy in most parts of the world. [More…]
Things being as they are, nuclear power generators will be needed for the next twenty, or perhaps fifty, years in most of the developed countries, with Japan and Sweden in particular need. [More…]
I venture to say that were it not for that sense of responsibility, were it not for our wish to strengthen Australia’s voice in the moves against the proliferation of nuclear weapons, were it not for our obligation to provide energy to an energy deficient world, we would not have decided to export uranium. [More…]
Nuclear energy is the only readily available alternative most countries have to meet their essential need for electrical energy in the wake of the oil crisis. [More…]
One hundred and eighty-four nuclear power units are in operation in 20 countries, with a capacity of 88,000 megawatts of electricity- four times Australia’s total electrical capacity. [More…]
Many more nuclear power units are under construction or on order. [More…]
There is a need for nuclear energy for peaceful purposes in a number of countries poorly endowed with fossil fuels; [More…]
There is a world wide growth of the nuclear industry; [More…]
Because of their concern about uranium supplies, some countries are turning to those nuclear technologies involving reprocessing and the fast breeder reactor which would achieve the more effective use of available uranium but which would increase the risk of nuclear weapons proliferation. [More…]
In this situation we are in a special position of influence and have a corresponding moral responsibility to maximise protection against nuclear weapons proliferation by responding to the needs of many countries for adequate assurances of uranium supplies. [More…]
By taking the decision to export uranium, Australia can slow the movement towards the use of plutonium as a nuclear fuel and lessen the attendant risks of nuclear weapons proliferation. [More…]
Nuclear energy is the only viable alternative most countries have available to meet their essential need for electrical energy in the wake of the oil crisis. [More…]
At the present time 184 nuclear power units are in operation in 20 countries with a capacity of 88,000 megawatts of electricityfour times Australia’s total electricity generating capacity. [More…]
There are 2 14 nuclear power units now under construction in 27 countries. [More…]
This means 500 nuclear power units, with a total generating capacity of 381,000 megawatts, are either in operation, under construction or on firm order in 34 countries around the world. [More…]
Installed nuclear capacity is now projected to increase to at least one million megawatts and perhaps 1.9 million megawatts by the year 2000. [More…]
The commitment to nuclear power is not confined to developed countries. [More…]
There are five nuclear power units in operation in developing countries, 20 under construction, six on order and 60 planned. [More…]
Nuclear energy is not illusory. [More…]
Very substantial quantities of uranium are required to fuel the nuclear reactors in operation and in prospect. [More…]
Annual uranium requirements necessary to satisfy the projected growth in nuclear power are about 90,000 short tons of uranium oxide in 1985, 140,000 short tons in 1990 and 200,000 short tons in the year 2000. [More…]
Clearly there has to be a substantial expansion in uranium production in the world if the requirements for nuclear fuel and energy are to be met. [More…]
The fact that nuclear energy usage for electric power generation has proceeded in other countries without access to Australian uranium, and will continue, in no way relieves Australia of its responsibilities as an energy rich nation. [More…]
The Ranger Inquiry suggested that a Marketing Authority could also administer nuclear safeguards. [More…]
The application and administration of nuclear safeguards on the import, export and handling of nuclear material in Australia will remain the responsibility of the Minister for National Resources and the Minister for Foreign Affairs. [More…]
The Minister for National Resources will retain the powers he presently exercises over the control and administration of commercial and nuclear safeguards aspects of development. [More…]
The Inquiry recommended that a national energy policy should be developed and reviewed regularly; that steps should be taken to institute full and energetic research programs into liquid fuels and energy sources other than fossil fuels and nuclear fission; and that a program of energy conservation be instituted nationally. [More…]
The First Report of the Ranger Inquiry recommended that uranium exports be subject to the fullest and most effective safeguards to ensure that nuclear materials are not misused. [More…]
The Inquiry recognised that effective nuclear safeguards are an essential element in the regulation and control of the nuclear industry. [More…]
The second finding of the Ranger Inquiry was that the hazards involved in the ordinary operations of nuclear power reactors, if properly controlled and regulated, are not such as to justify a decision not to mine and sell Australian uranium. [More…]
The disposal of nuclear waste and the potential environmental problems which this could pose have been matters of public concern. [More…]
The responsibility for disposing, in an environmentally responsible manner, of waste arising from nuclear power generation in countries abroad, is a matter for those countries which generate electricity by nuclear means. [More…]
The Government will continue to seek expert advice and to follow with interest work on this matter now in progress in a number of countries, and has indicated its willingness to participate in the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation. [More…]
As the Prime Minister has said, the issue of nuclear waste disposal has been examined by a number of eminent independent authorities including the British Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution, the Ford Foundation and the Ranger Inquiry. [More…]
None of these authorities has concluded that the use of nuclear energy should be abandoned because of problems associated with waste disposal. [More…]
We are convinced that nuclear wastes and plutonium can be disposed of permanently in a safe manner. [More…]
The Ranger Inquiry made it clear that it did not consider the present nuclear waste situation was such as to justify Australia wholly refusing to export uranium. [More…]
Processes have already been developed to solidify nuclear wastes into a glass-like material. [More…]
The Ranger Inquiry expressed concern that nuclear activities should be properly regulated and controlled. [More…]
The decision commits Australia to the renewed export of uranium regardless of the contribution of the nuclear power industry to the proliferation of nuclear weapons and the risk of nuclear war. [More…]
Yet the package- it was literally a packagepresented to the House failed utterly to deal with the central questions involved in uranium mining and the global nuclear industry- the questions raised by the Fox Commission; questions of immense gravity for Australia and the human race. [More…]
The reports of the Fox Commission have been recognised around the world as the most thorough and concerned study yet published on the use of fissile materials and the nuclear industry. [More…]
The nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of nuclear war. [More…]
The Commission thus identified the problem of the proliferation of nuclear weapons as the fundamental problem to be solved before, not after, any decision by Australia to renew the export of uranium. [More…]
That data and the Commission’s findings demonstrated that present international nuclear safeguards against the diversion of uranium supplied for peaceful purposes into military or explosive purposes are wholly inadequate. [More…]
The Fox Commission was equally emphatic on the second great danger posed to human beings and our environment by the use of nuclear materials. [More…]
This is the problem of the disposal and storage of nuclear wastes. [More…]
The statements by the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) and the Acting Foreign Minister (Mr Sinclair) are absolutely contradictory on the matter of nuclear safeguards. [More…]
The Government’s attitude towards the question of nuclear non-proliferation has thus been reduced to ‘sell now, worry later’. [More…]
Governments and communities are more aware today than ever before of the fearful problems involved in the nuclear industry. [More…]
For the Government too a most important facet of the uranium issue has been need to translate Australia’s objective of restraining proliferation of nuclear weapons into a detailed policy for the marketing of uranium- [More…]
Where is the commercial advantage in the proliferation of nuclear weapons? [More…]
Where is the moral responsibility in making the prevention of the proliferation of nuclear weapons secondary to- again I quote the Acting Foreign Minister-a detailed policy for the marketing of uranium? [More…]
As President Kennedy once put it bluntly, such risks in the nuclear age would leave us all ‘with ashes in our mouths’. [More…]
The key to preventing the spread of nuclear weapons is the provision of safeguards against the diversion of peaceful nuclear activities to military purposes. [More…]
In particular, the Director-General reported that systems of accounting and control of nuclear materials were inadequate. [More…]
The United States itself has reported some 8,000 lb of special nuclear material unaccounted for. [More…]
That is enough material for at least 200 nuclear weapons. [More…]
Furthermore, last March I called for Australia to decide as a matter of policy that it would not supply nuclear material to countries which intended to reprocess it. [More…]
One of the devices used by this Government to justify the dicisions announced today is the claim that Article IV of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty obliges Australia to export uranium. [More…]
Article IV establishes an obligation for parties to the Treaty to co-operate in the further development of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. [More…]
In any case, whatever specific obligations may be established in Article IV, they are secondary to the basic obligation of the Treaty as a whole- that no state should ever undertake any activity, including the export of uranium, under circumstances where that activity could contribute to proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
The Acting Foreign Minister then went on to make a series of further claims about Australian safeguards policy in relation, for example, to the diversion of Australian uranium by nuclear weapon states, the ‘loopholes’ in existing safeguards agreements, the ease with which states can withdraw from the NPT, the absence of reliable sanctions to deter diversion of safeguarded material and, finally, the overall effectiveness of IAEA safeguards. [More…]
Negotiations to this effect have continued for a decade- they have taken much longer than anybody expected 10 years ago- and resulted, only a few months ago, in the entry into force of a framework agreement between IAEA, Euratom and the seven non-nuclear states in the European Economic Community. [More…]
It can apply to 300 nuclear facilities in the EEC, but not a single facility attachment has yet been achieved under that safeguards agreement which took 10 years to achieve- many times as long as was expected when the negotiations were first undertaken. [More…]
The international community is now at the early stage of agreement on a program of evaluation of the nuclear fuel cycle. [More…]
This is the vital time in which the contemporary scope of the nuclear problem can be identified and in which the gaps in the safeguards systems can be closed. [More…]
This is the worst possible time for Australia to increase the amount of available nuclear materials. [More…]
Yet in its rush, the Fraser Government is destroying a critical opportunity for change in international relations and in the world nuclear industry. [More…]
In a world that has become deeply and properly conscious of the need to preserve the environment and its responsibility to future generations, the nuclear industry offers an unprecedented threat. [More…]
The by-product of the nuclear generation of electricity, and of course of nuclear weapons, is the production of radioactive wastes of fearful toxicity. [More…]
There is growing concern around the world over the safety of nuclear reactors and in particular the inadequacy of nuclear storage and waste disposal procedures. [More…]
The technology of nuclear waste disposal is as yet wholly inadequate to meet the threat posed by nuclear wastes. [More…]
The threat is not diminishing; it increases daily as the size of the nuclear industry increases. [More…]
Research into the safe storage and disposal of high level nuclear wastes is underway in a few countries. [More…]
The responsibility for disposing, in an environmentally responsible manner, of wastes arising from nuclear power generation in countries abroad is a matter For those countries which generate electricity by nuclear means. [More…]
It is true that a number of countries have selected the option of generating some of their electricity by nuclear means. [More…]
There is growing awareness that the benefits of nuclear technology have fallen far short of the early hopes. [More…]
Nuclear generation of electricity is now being seen as the bridging technology between fossil fuels and the new technologies at present under development, such as solar energy. [More…]
The Prime Minister carefully omitted Sir MacFarlane ‘s statement that nuclear technology holds grave dangers for mankind and was at best a bridging technology. [More…]
It will not take an interest, still less a responsibility, in that source of energy whose shortage is said to justify turning to nuclear energy. [More…]
The nuclear energy age will not last for half a century. [More…]
It has done this in the absence of procedures to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons and in the absence of any national energy policy. [More…]
The thousands of words spoken by Government Ministers this afternoon made not one dent in the reality of the questions of uranium and the global nuclear industry. [More…]
1 ) commitments by customer countries to apply effective and verifiable safeguards against the diversion of Australian uranium from peaceful nuclear purposes to military nuclear purposes; [More…]
2 ) international safeguards which will ensure that the export of Australian uranium will not contribute to the proliferation of nuclear weapons and the increased risk of nuclear war; [More…]
1 ) commitments by customer countries to apply effective and verifiable safeguards against the diversion of Australian uranium from peaceful nuclear purposes to military nuclear purposes; [More…]
2 ) international safeguards which will ensure that the export of Australian uranium will not contribute to the proliferation of nuclear weapons and the increased risk of nuclear war; [More…]
We say that there will be no commitment of Australian uranium to the nuclear fuel cycle until our conditions are satisfied. [More…]
Further, our policy refers to the unresolved problems associated with the mining of uranium and the development of nuclear power. [More…]
These are the proliferation of nuclear weapons and the increased risk of nuclear war and the dangers to human life and the environment of radioactive waste. [More…]
The nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of nuclear war. [More…]
Not only are we threatened by the spread of nuclear weapons with South Africa getting the bomb, but soon Egypt also will have it. [More…]
That is the madness of the spread of nuclear weapons. [More…]
Nor is there the slightest convincing sign that any effective way has been found to store nuclear waste. [More…]
The statement by the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) that existing technology is adequate for the safe storage of high-level nuclear waste is completely false. [More…]
Because there are no safeguards against proliferation and no safe ways of storing nuclear waste, Government policy fails to meet the third arm of the Labor Party’s policy. [More…]
Therefore, we cannot make any commitment to the world nuclear cycle and the final section of our policy must be applied. [More…]
I believe that if we read what the Leader of the Opposition said tonight- we know that he, along with other honourable members opposite, has doubts about the way in which he has been dragged along to support the Labor Party’s policies- we will see that the only area in which he is able even to mount some arguments that one could regard as tenable is in relation to international safeguards and the question of nuclear non-proliferation. [More…]
I ask honourable members opposite who raised questions about nuclear non-proliferation and suggested that terrorists might be able to obtain plutonium and make bombs to consider these simple propositions. [More…]
I want to raise one other important matter- to me it is the most important matter- about the debate over nuclear power and over the choice of resources that might be developed to give us power. [More…]
The book is on the hazards of not going nuclear. [More…]
It attempts to evaluate the nuclear power cycle as against, say, coal. [More…]
Every form of development of resources has dangers associated with it, but the one thing we do know now is that the dangers of the nuclear path are not necessarily as great as the dangers of some of the other paths that we have followed and have not been prepared to examine critically. [More…]
The consequences of nuclear power are global. [More…]
The Labor Party national platform makes it clear that there should be no commitment of Australia’s uranium deposits to the world’s nuclear fuel cycle until the problems of the proliferation of nuclear weapons and the disposal of highly radioactive wastes from nuclear power plants have been solved. [More…]
It is a policy of delay and a policy of using Australia’s uranium resources as a lever to ensure that uranium consuming countries develop adequate non-proliferation safeguards that will work and that the nuclear industry has in fact developed the technology to dispose of nuclear waste. [More…]
The Labor Party policy in government was developed before Australians had the benefit of information contained in those reports which outlined the hazards of nuclear power and the need for proper and adequate methods of control of these hazards. [More…]
It is pertinent that the nuclear power industry has been ongoing as a commercial industry for over 25 years and yet there are no adequate safeguards to prevent the proliferation of weapons nor are there adequate waste disposal techniques. [More…]
The disposal of nuclear waste and the potential environmental problems which this could pose have been matters of public concern. [More…]
The responsibility Tor disposing, in an environmentally responsible manner of waste arising from nuclear power generation in countries abroad, is a matter for those countries which generate electricity by nuclear means. [More…]
In other words, the Government is simply washing its hands of this matter and while the Opposition agrees that nuclear waste should not be dumped in Australia, it believes that in the interests of mankind a solution to this problem must be found before exports are allowed from Australia. [More…]
It is not good enough for the Government to say as it does that the problem of nuclear waste has been examined by a number of eminent independent authorities. [More…]
Nor is it good enough to say that processes have been developed to solidify nuclear wastes into glasslike substances. [More…]
Further evidence of the Fraser’s Government’s failure to come to grips with the immense problems associated with nuclear power development is contained in the policy with regard to the development of uranium mines. [More…]
Australia’s decision on uranium, announced today will help to secure the benefits of nuclear power for the nations of the world. [More…]
The Fraser Government’s decision will promote the peaceful uses of nuclear energy and ensure that it is safely used with minimal risk of damage to man and his environment. [More…]
We have reached a point of no return along the course of nuclear evolution, bearing in mind the benefits of nuclear power and the risk that expanded use may cause increased proliferation. [More…]
Uranium mining and nuclear power generation are demonstrably safe by any reasonable standards. [More…]
Already 160 nuclear power stations are operating and after 2,000 power station years of operation there has not been a single death or injury to the public at large. [More…]
Indeed, 180 new nuclear power stations are being built currently and another 160 are on order. [More…]
By the year 2000 nearly 50 per cent of all electricity generated in the world will be from nuclear power stations. [More…]
There has been some debate on the safety of nuclear power stations. [More…]
The world’s first nuclear power station was opened by Her Majesty the Queen at Calder Hall in the United Kingdom in 1956. [More…]
These have acquired a total of 2,000 years of nuclear power station operation without there being a single death or injury to the public at large. [More…]
The risk of a nuclear reactor accident does cause some concern and although there has not been a single death to date it is reasoned that a death might occur. [More…]
Similarly although no one can say that there will never be a serious accident at some time in the future in a nuclear power station, the probability is very small in as much as a person has 20 times as big a chance of being killed by lightening. [More…]
In fact nuclear power stations have proved so safe that certain insurance companies in the United States lowered their rates by 20 per cent from 1 January 1975 because on their account there had been no claims for injury or damage to the public or to property. [More…]
In weighing the overall health hazard presented by nuclear reactors it is appropriate to compare nuclear plants with coal burning power plants. [More…]
Adverse health effects from coal power are greater than those from nuclear power. [More…]
This comparison points up the relative safety of nuclear reactors. [More…]
Fossil fuel power stations pollute the atmosphere far more than do nuclear reactors. [More…]
I think that the timely export of Australian uranium will decrease the risk of further proliferation of nuclear weapons and will support and strengthen the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty. [More…]
Having said that, I believe that a much more substantial influence when considering this issue is the defectiveness of safeguards in relation to re-processing, storage and disposal of waste from nuclear power generation units and the very clear possibility that waste products from nuclear power generation units can be misappropriated and used in the proliferation of nuclear weaponry. [More…]
It is indisputable, in my view, that nuclear energy is seen by many people as proposing an important solution, it is said by some, in a bridging way to the energy needs of the world. [More…]
For instance, at the present time Switzerland generates about 17 per cent of its electricity requirements from nuclear power generation, Belgium 15 per cent, the United Kingdom 10 per cent, the United States 8 per cent, and so on. [More…]
The fact is that at the present time nuclear power generation does make a significant contribution to total power generation requirements. [More…]
For all that, however, I cannot help but feel much greater discouragement at the prospects which arise when one considers the defects in the reprocessing systems around the world, the serious shortcomings of storage, the complete absence of any effective disposal system and, most daunting of all, the real possibilities referred to in some detail in the first Ranger report that waste product can be diverted for the manufacture of nuclear weaponry. [More…]
All of this sums up to potentially serious problems in terms of the capacity of some country at some future time, in the absence of effective safeguards being established, to divert waste to the manufacture of nuclear weapons. [More…]
We ought to recollect that paragraph 14 of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty provides for the withdrawal of nuclear materials from Treaty cover for nonweaponry military purposes. [More…]
Indeed it is highly illogical to have a safeguards system of accountancy and surveillance which is designed to provide some assurance that states are not misusing nuclear materials for weapons-making purposes if any state is able to escape even this limited control mechanism by a mis-statement of its intentions. [More…]
One of course is the mining of uranium in Australia; one is the possible use of nuclear power in Australia; and the other is what happens if Australia is used for the storage of nuclear waste. [More…]
Australia has little need for the use of nuclear power plants simply because we are blessed with an abundance of coal. [More…]
As the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) stated today and as he has stated repeatedly, Australia will not be used as a storage country for other people ‘s nuclear waste. [More…]
When we talk about the abundance of coal in Australia it is rather interesting to note the fact that because of this abundance of coal throughout the eastern States it would be uneconomical for nuclear power stations ever to be used. [More…]
As is outlined in the speech delivered by the Deputy Prime Minister (Mr Anthony) today nuclear energy is the only viable alternative that most countries have available to meet their essential needs of electrical energy in the wake of the oil crisis. [More…]
At the present time 184 nuclear power plants are in operation in 20 countries- [More…]
The Deputy Prime Minister goes on to say, when dealing with this program of nuclear power stations: [More…]
There are 214 nuclear power units now under construction. [More…]
This will expand the number of countries with nuclear power stations to twenty-seven. [More…]
This further expands the number of nuclear units throughout the world. [More…]
There is a vast number of nuclear power stations operating and under construction. [More…]
I guess that, in terms of the world’s reserves of uranium, although Australia is an important supplier of uranium, had we made a decision not to mine uranium, it would have had no effect whatsoever on the world’s use of and projection into nuclear power stations. [More…]
I was rather staggered by the fact that the hundreds of people working there- top scientists, people who really know about uranium and nuclear energy, responsible people- just cannot understand what all the flap is about. [More…]
We are exposed daily to hundreds of activities with many times greater risks and danger than nuclear power. [More…]
It surely must pave the way for Australia to lead the world in nuclear guidelines. [More…]
Between 1966 and 1975 in the United States of America, Argentina and France there were no fewer than 12 attacks on nuclear installations or facilities involving commando groups using well placed bombs, in some instances causing millions of dollars of damage. [More…]
In the same period 128 hoaxes and threats to nuclear installations or facilities were received in the United Kingdom and the United States of America. [More…]
In the same period there were hundreds of incidents of vandalism and sabotage at nuclear facilities in the United Kingdom and the United States of America, including arson attempts, the smashing of equipment and the severing of cables. [More…]
From 195 7 to 1976 there were 15 known security breaches at nuclear installations and facilities in the United Kingdom, the [More…]
These must be balanced against the risks and problemsforemost among them is the problem of containing the spread of nuclear weapons- on the other hand. [More…]
We are talking about the nuclear power industry. [More…]
The nuclear power industry is about nuclear power stations for the generation of electric energy, to light and power homes and to provide power for industry. [More…]
Nuclear power stations differ from conventional power stations only in this respect: The uranium reaction generates the heat which boils the water which provides the steam which drives the turbines which create the electricity. [More…]
The nuclear power industry is part of the stuff of everyday life in the United States, the United Kingdom and Europe. [More…]
As other speakers have pointed out, about 10 per cent of America’s electric power is produced this way from 59 commercial nuclear power stations scattered around the country. [More…]
It is anticipated that the amount of electric power produced by nuclear power stations in the United States will increase to about 20 per cent in 1985 and will reach as high as 50 per cent by the year 2000. [More…]
The proportion of Switzerland ‘s electric power which is generated by nuclear power stations is about 1 8 per cent. [More…]
What I am underlining- I hope it will not be thought that 1 am labouring the obvious- is that this debate is not about a new thing that may or may not come to be but is about an already important, growing and, indeed, essential source for meeting the world’s ever-increasing requirements of energy; in the industrial West, in Japan where nuclear power is especially important because of the minimal power resources of that country and, as I stress again, to meet the energy requirements of the developing countries and especially the non-oil producing developing countries. [More…]
The world development of nuclear power as an alternative energy source acts as a restraint on the further increase of oil prices. [More…]
In this way the developing countries benefit whether or not they themselves enter into nuclear power for electricity generation. [More…]
Secondly, of course, they have established and are establishing nuclear plants in those countries themselves. [More…]
However, these are still only ‘promised’ at this time, whereas nuclear power is a proven and viable energy source. [More…]
Of course, these essentially economic advantages for the world community of nations as well as Australia have to be balanced against the noneconomic problems and risks associated with the nuclear power industry. [More…]
Of the problems and risks associated with the nuclear power industry, the most serious, the dominant, is the problem of containing the proliferation of nuclear weapons and thus the horrific threat of nuclear war. [More…]
The essential point, as I have stressed previously, is that the nuclear power industry is already established throughout the world on a very large scale and is here to stay. [More…]
As previous speakers have pointed out, there are at this present time 184 nuclear power stations in operation in 20 countries. [More…]
That makes a total of 500 nuclear power units in operation, under construction or on order in 34 countries around the world, including, as I said previously, developing countries. [More…]
In the context of this established global nuclear power industry Australia, as the possessor of 20 per cent of the world’s low grade uranium, has a manifest responsibility to contribute to the very substantial quantities of uranium needed to fuel the industry. [More…]
As a major exporter, and standing with the United States of America and Canada in the stringent implementing of safeguards, Australia can contribute to the application of effective nuclear safeguards and to the avoidance of the misuse of nuclear materials and thus the containment of nuclear proliferation. [More…]
If the containment of the proliferation of nuclear weapons is the overriding concern to be balanced against the advantages of the development of the nuclear power industry, perhaps the second major difficulty is the issue of the safe disposal of radioactive waste. [More…]
We are scared of radiation, so let them eat the cake of nuclear-free poverty. [More…]
He was one of the counsel for my Government before the International Court of Justice in the French nuclear tests case. [More…]
The first Fox report made it absolutely clear that the key basis of concern that it had about uranium mining and export was the problem of nuclear proliferation. [More…]
The policy contained four so-called safeguards- firstly, the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons; secondly, the International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards; thirdly, bilateral agreements; and, fourthly, participation in multilateral efforts to strengthen safeguards. [More…]
Without inspection there can be no monitoring of any diversion of plutonium for nuclear weapons manufacture. [More…]
In short, 1 the safeguards administered by the IAEA are a thorough, technically sophisticated, impartial and international means of verifying that nuclear material in a country’s peaceful nuclear industry is not diverted to nuclear weapons. [More…]
It was one of a very good series of articles entitled: ‘The Nuclear Nightmare’. [More…]
Theoretically, an IAEA inspector would notice that weapons-grade material is missing from a nation’s nuclear energy stocks. [More…]
The process must work quickly and efficiently, if it is to work at all, because skilled technicians need only a few days or weeks at the most to turn some nuclear materials into a bomb. [More…]
They install specially designed robot cameras that periodically take pictures of a nation’s nuclear fuel storage areas, pictures that might reveal a diversion attempt. [More…]
The research officer for the Fox inquiry has also expressed grave reservations about nuclear weapons proliferation since the Government has made its decision about this matter. [More…]
Turning first to the international aspects and the questions of controlling nuclear weapons proliferation, the Government’s argument that this objective would be furthered by the export of Australian uranium seems to depend chiefly on the fact that this is in accord with the policy announced by President Carter on 7 April last. [More…]
Indeed, there is a grave problem in existence as to how the world is going to cope with the issue of nuclear waste. [More…]
They are the need to reduce the risk of nuclear proliferation; the need to supply essential sources of energy to an energy deficient world; the need to protect effectively the environment in which mining development will take place; the need to ensure that proper provision is made for the welfare and interests of the Aboriginal people in the Alligator River region, and of all other people living in the region and working on the development projects. [More…]
Nuclear energy is the most available alternative, and Australia, having excellent deposits, will be expected to supply those less fortunate nations. [More…]
Radio-active wastes derive from the fission process in nuclear power plants which produces split atoms and releases neutrons. [More…]
The core of the modern nuclear power plant contains several hundred tons of nuclear fuel, about one-third of which is replaced each year. [More…]
Pending a decision on reprocessing in the US and in other countries, high level radio-active wastes from several nuclear programs are contained in the spent fuel rods which are stored in water at the various reactor sites. [More…]
It has been estimated that by the year 2000 all civilian nuclear power wastes together from the United States would fit into a single solid cube of 60 feet on an edge. [More…]
We believe that nuclear wastes can be disposed of permanently in geological formations in such a way that there is very little prospect of material escaping into the environment. [More…]
The assessment by Mitre has also taken into account nuclear waste products such as plutonium and radium whose activity does not decrease as rapidly as those I have mentioned earlier. [More…]
Nuclear opponents claim that plutonium is the ‘most toxic substance known to man’ and that a quantity of plutonium of the size of an orange would be sufficient to give every member of the human race lung cancer. [More…]
The toxicity risk from buried long life nuclear wastes is associated rather with radium 226, which is one of the nuclear decay products, than with plutonium. [More…]
Another point made by the opponents of nuclear power is that plutonium may be dispersed by terrorists. [More…]
‘Plutonium’ has become an emotionally charged word used by the opponents of nuclear power to trigger fear in the public mind. [More…]
I am sure that we all have been reassured by the National Country Party’s expert adviser on nuclear waste disposal. [More…]
I am not suggesting that those matters ought not to have been looked at, but what worries the Australian population at large is the potential effects of uranium, the potential effects of the byproducts of uranium mining, and the potential effects of the use of nuclear energy on the health of the people of this country and people overseas. [More…]
I assure the Government that, as will become plain later in my speech, I am not a committed anti-nuclear energy man. [More…]
I turn now to the question of nuclear industry. [More…]
There are people not only on the other side of the House but also on our side who argue that nuclear industry will be too expensive and that we should not get involved in uranium mining. [More…]
I do not share the view that nuclear energy will become too expensive and impossible to use in view of the alternatives; but, if this were so and it turned out that nuclear industry would never get off the ground, that is an argument in favour of uranium mining because if it is a mineral that will never be used we might as well sell it now, if we are satisfied about the safety aspects, because it will be worthless in the future. [More…]
I refer now to the use of nuclear energy. [More…]
If nuclear energy is necessary for many countries in the world, and that is the argument of the Government, and if this energy form is to be successful, there is no reason not to delay the mining of uranium. [More…]
If the rest of the world wants our uranium and if we are confident that nuclear energy will be the energy form that will be used for the next 30 to 50 years, why should we not wait until we are completely satisfied about the safeguards associated with many aspects of uranium use? [More…]
I was taken to one of the nuclear power stations at a place called Latina, south of Rome. [More…]
We looked to the Fox report for advice on the issue of nuclear weapons proliferation, nuclear safeguards and waste disposal, and the role of nuclear power in meeting future world energy requirements. [More…]
These are the need to reduce the risk of nuclear weapons proliferation; the need to supply essential sources of energy to an energy deficient world; the need to protect effectively the environment in which mining development will take place; and the need to ensure that proper provision is made for the welfare and interests of the Aboriginal people and all other people working on development projects. [More…]
On nuclear power reactors the inquiry concluded: [More…]
The hazards involved in the ordinary operations of nuclear power reactors, if those operations are properly regulated and controlled, are not such as to justify a decision not to mine and sell Australian uranium. [More…]
On waste disposal from nuclear power stations the inquiry concluded: [More…]
On the possibility of nuclear terrorism the inquiry concluded: [More…]
In our view, the possibility of nuclear terrorism merits energetic consideration and action at the international level. [More…]
The Government is satisfied that the standards of physical security by the International Atomic Energy Agency constitute the basis upon which national governments can provide strong protection against nuclear terrorism. [More…]
A total refusal to supply would place Australia in clear breach of Article IV of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty and could adversely affect its relation to countries which are parties to the NPT. [More…]
Article IV of the Treaty obliges Australia to cooperate in the production and use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. [More…]
Australia became a party to the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty when the previous Labor Government gave it ratification in January 1973. [More…]
This proliferation of nuclear weapons was in the inquiry’s view the most serious hazard associated with the nuclear power industry. [More…]
We believe that the goal of limiting proliferation of nuclear weapons while at the same time easing the world’s energy crisis is best accomplished by Australia agreeing to provide uranium for peaceful purposes and under the most stringent conditions. [More…]
The simple fact is that nuclear energy is the only readily available alternative most countries have to meet their essential need for electrical energy in the wake of the oil crisis. [More…]
By deciding to allow sales of uranium for peaceful purposes Australia can reduce the movement towards the use of plutonium as a nuclear fuel and lessen the attendant increased risks of nuclear weapons proliferation. [More…]
Despite the fact that Japan will build another 29 nuclear power stations by 1985 and given the escalation in her energy requirements by that time it is projected that Japan will still be 65 per cent dependent on Middle East oil in 1985. [More…]
I can only envy Australia ‘s good fortune in having no need for nuclear power until the 1990s or later. [More…]
I believe that a majority of thoughtful people accept the inevitability, for at least an interim period, of large scale use of nuclear energy in most parts of the world . [More…]
With application of the best current techniques to ensure safety for the workers, environment protection, regard for Aboriginal land rights, and an obligation to rehabilitate areas damaged by mining, one can accept the (Fox) report’s conclusion that there is no adequate reason why Australian uranium should not be mined and supplied at the world price to those countries that have elected to develop nuclear power and can be trusted. [More…]
In fact it is only through our role as a major supplier of uranium for peaceful purposes that Australia ‘s voice on this most vital problem of international affairs, nuclear weapons proliferation, will be heard. [More…]
It is the best chance we will ever have of ensuring that nuclear weapons do not come within the armoury of still more nations. [More…]
At that stage, I suppose, most of us thought: Power, yes; nuclear weapons, no. [More…]
Some 20 years ago in this country some testing of nuclear weapons was undertaken at Maralinga and the waste was buried there. [More…]
There are other hazards associated with nuclear energy. [More…]
Of course, all sorts of difficulties are involved, but if we spent as much money on the development of solar power as we do on research into nuclear energy I am sure we would produce a much more satisfactory result. [More…]
I support the amendment moved by the Leader of the Opposition (Mr E. G. Whitlam) which states that this House rejects the Government’s precipitate decision and sets out our requirements: Commitments from customer countries, international safeguards to ensure that our uranium will not contribute to nuclear war, and an assurance that the Aboriginal people will not be disadvantaged. [More…]
The important thing to note is that these debates are taking place more than a generation after the first use of nuclear energy, regrettably a use which was for the purpose of war and killing. [More…]
These debates are taking place also more than two decades after nuclear energy was first used commercially for the peaceful purpose of electricity generation and more than two decades after Australian uranium was first mined and exported. [More…]
Over that lengthy period of time there has been a great and continuing debate throughout many countries about the issue of nuclear power. [More…]
Japan is interested in moving into nuclear power and enriched fuel. [More…]
The Conference totally rejected a motion to halt uranium development for 12 months while a full scale government inquiry into nuclear technology was conducted. [More…]
Over the past two decades there has been a dramatic development in nuclear technology. [More…]
Secondly, more and more governments over the whole spectrum of political persuasions have come to the decision that the development of nuclear energy for peaceful purposesthat means essentially the generation of electricity- is essential if the world’s energy requirements in the 1980s, the 1990s and beyond are to be met without hardship, deprivation and starvation to many millions of people irrespective of race, colour or creed. [More…]
As a result, 34 countries now either already have or are about to have 500 nuclear power units, with a total electricity production capacity 20 times that of Australia’s capacity. [More…]
Many of these countries already rely significantly on nuclear power for their electricity generation- for example, Switzerland, 1 8 to 20 per cent; West Germany, 1 5 per cent; Sweden, 13 per cent; Britain 10 per cent; the United States, 9 per cent; and Japan, 8 per cent. [More…]
Therefore, the nuclear powered electricity generation industry is already a well established industry in many countries. [More…]
At the moment we are not talking about acquiring our own nuclear reactors and using nuclear power to generate our own electricity, although I believe that in time we may well need to give and should give careful consideration to these aspects. [More…]
The risk of proliferation of nuclear weapons appears to be the major risk in the future development of nuclear power. [More…]
If one looks at world power politics one will see clearly that most of the super powers are interested in nuclear energy, nuclear fission and nuclear bombs because that gives them added muscle. [More…]
All of them would be prepared to say that we would be better off without nuclear power but not one is prepared to say that it will be the first. [More…]
The Chinese leaders quite properly say that they will continue nuclear testing because their enemies have nuclear weapons and they cannot deny themselves that technology. [More…]
Bearing in mind the number of nuclear reactors in the United Kingdom, the findings of the Rowers report related to plutonium as the big issue. [More…]
There should be no commitment to a large program of nuclear fission power until it has been demonstrated beyond reasonable doubt that a method exists to ensure the safe containment of long-lived highly radioactive waste for the indefinite future. [More…]
With respect to general nuclear policy for the United Kingdom, it said: [More…]
The abandonment of nuclear fission power would, however, be neither wise nor justified. [More…]
The question of the safe disposal of the waste products of the generation of nuclear power for peaceful purposes does not now arise in Australia. [More…]
In the main they are the ones who are very interested in nuclear power and our ability to supply uranium. [More…]
Meantime the EEC commission has approved two papers to complete its review of the EEC’s nuclear energy policy. [More…]
These papers, which will now be submitted to the EEC council, amount to a sharp rebuff for President Carter’s attempt to slow down the development of some sorts of nuclear technology. [More…]
… the commission is pressing ahead because national governments feel the need to develop nuclear energy as fast as possible, despite increasing public opposition, especially in Germany . [More…]
They are certainly more significant, but must be seen in parallel with those of both the International Atomic Energy Agency and the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
It is also worth noting, because it is of considerable importance, that as a result of the Australian Government’s decision to proceed with the mining and export of uranium Australia has been invited to join with the United States and other countries who are already in the nuclear fuel cycle program in the development of evaluation techniques which will be a further step towards ensuring that more adequate safeguards are constantly being developed. [More…]
In terms of the problems we face with energy needs, it is worth remembering that the future demand for uranium depends essentially on the rate of growth in electricity consumption throughout the world and upon the requirements of electricity which are to be supplied by nuclear plants. [More…]
I seek leave to incorporate in Hansard a table showing a forecast of world nuclear power capacity. [More…]
The strange thing we have not noticed in this debate is that the other section of the world, namely the Soviet Union and its satellites, which are also well along the road to nuclear development, have not been brought into this debate. [More…]
I would like to make five other points which are of tremendous relevance to the development of the nuclear uranium industry in Australia. [More…]
How is it that a mere two and three years ago the then Government could not get into the nuclear industry fast enough? [More…]
The facts of the early 1960s and the facts of the early 1970s about uranium and the nuclear power industry are no longer the facts in the late 1 970s. [More…]
First the nuclear energy industry is capital intensive. [More…]
this means that a nuclear energy program will provide no solution for one of the major problems of developing countries- unemployment . [More…]
For although developing countries do need cheap energy, their need is not as great as the developed countries and they have other, more pressing problems to cope with … a nuclear energy program would be an expensive luxury. [More…]
One of the signatories to the letter noted from his attendance at the 1975 Review Conference of the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty that it was only the affluent developing countries which evinced any real interest m nuclear power. [More…]
He found remarkably little enthusiasm for nuclear energy programs among the poorest of the developing countries. [More…]
Third, any country (developed or developing) which begins a nuclear energy program is inevitably enmeshed in the web of multinational corporations . [More…]
Fourth, nuclear technology is among the most complicated of all forms of technology . [More…]
Additionally, a nuclear energy program would require an extensive electricity grid and this, too, would be expensive and complex to introduce. [More…]
It is notable that India, probably the poorest developing country with nuclear aspirations, has apparently developed no major programs for nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. [More…]
India’s example leads to the fifth reason: The threat of the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
Additionally, given the political instability of some developing countries, a nuclear energy program could be easily disrupted by guerrillas opposed to the government. [More…]
Finally, developing countries need ‘soft’ intermediate technology- the very opposite of nuclear energy programs, which require, for example, a system of looking after nuclear waste for thousands of years. [More…]
It has been claimed that it takes a lot of skill and probably a lot of money to process the material from a nuclear reactor in order to produce a bomb. [More…]
In assessing the benefits and hazards of nuclear power, one of the more important things we had to determine for ourselves was the risk of diversion of plutonium from power reactors for use in nuclear bombs. [More…]
However, a member of the public submitted to us as an exhibit a book entitled Nuclear Theft- Risks and Safeguards. [More…]
We had to obtain additional evidence on this subject and did so, finally concluding that ‘the evidence points strongly to the conclusion that very destructive nuclear explosive devices can be made from reactor grade plutonium produced in power reactors operated normally. [More…]
As honourable members probably now know, the validity of this conclusion has since been confirmed in public statements by representatives of the United States Energy Research and Development Administration and the United States Nuclear Regulation Commission. [More…]
The May 1974 Indian nuclear explosion, the sale by West Germany of a uranium enrichment and a reprocessing plant to Brazil, and the sale by France of a reprocessing plant to Pakistan- [More…]
were among the events which finally alerted a previously apathetic world to the coupling between peaceful nuclear technology and the capability to produce nuclear weapons. [More…]
The Club’s aim is to minimise the risk of diversion of nuclear technology . [More…]
to the production of nuclear explosives. [More…]
Those countries have agreed to adopt guidelines for the control and export of certain nuclear materials. [More…]
The Club was set up after the establishment of the International Atomic Energy Agency and its safeguards and after all the talk about how we will control the diversion of nuclear material for the purpose of making bombs. [More…]
Clearly, the London Club members- that is most of the countries with nuclear technology capable of producing bombs- do not believe in the safeguards which the Government so proudly proclaims will ensure that nothing terrible happens. [More…]
The very existence of the London Club is an admission of the failure of the Treaty on the NonProliferation of Nuclear Weapons to establish a viable non-proliferation regime. [More…]
One advantage of the London Club is the membership of France, a major nuclear exporter conspicuously absent from the NPT. [More…]
Mr Uren told a reporter he condoned this violence on the grounds that it was a small price to pay in the fight against nuclear warfare. [More…]
Also he accuses this Government of being committed to the export of uranium regardless of the contribution the nuclear power industry can make to the proliferation of nuclear weapons and the risk of nuclear war. [More…]
The Opposition’s attitude is surprising in view of the fact that communist countries have a commitment to nuclear power, Russia and China are now in the nuclear energy business. [More…]
Yet there is a complaint about the use of nuclear energy in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, America and elsewhere in the free world. [More…]
I immediately refute the claim of the honourable member for the Northern Territory (Mr Calder) that technology exists to dispose of nuclear waste. [More…]
Uranium and the development of nuclear power stations was an issue at that election. [More…]
How do honourable members opposite explain away opposition in France to the expansion of nuclear technology? [More…]
How do they explain away the development in West Germany, one of the most industrialised nations, of the campaign against continued use of nuclear power? [More…]
They are leading the movement in West Germany against the development and continued expansion of nuclear technology. [More…]
If in each of those nations public concern and fear is developing about a continued expansion of nuclear technology then surely in Australia we should be re-examining all the factors involved in the mining and usage of uranium and the disposal of nuclear waste. [More…]
commitments by customer countries to apply effective and verifiable safeguards against the diversion of Australian uranium from peaceful nuclear purposes to military nuclear purposes, [More…]
international safeguards which will ensure that the export of Australian uranium will not contribute to the proliferation of nuclear weapons and the increased risk of nuclear war, [More…]
In the iterim we have seen an extensive media campaign mounted by the Uranium Producers Forum in an attempt to convince people that there are no real dangers involved in the use of uranium, that it is just another energy source, or in the disposal of nuclear waste: that the mass of the people will benefit from uranium by increased employment opportunities, by social welfare benefits and economic activity. [More…]
One of the most serious problems in the debate is the disposal of nuclear waste. [More…]
The disposal of nuclear waste and the potential environmental problems which this could pose have been matters of public concern. [More…]
The responsibility for disposing, in an environmentally responsible manner, of waste arising from nuclear power generation in countries abroad, is a matter for those countries which generate electricity by nuclear means. [More…]
However, the Prime Minister went one step further in his national broadcast on 28 August when he said in relation to nuclear waste disposal: [More…]
He has deliberately sought to misrepresent the true position regarding the disposal of nuclear waste. [More…]
Like the Minister for Environment, Housing and Community Development, the Prime Minister emphasised that Australia would not store nuclear waste. [More…]
As I said earlier, we are prepared to take the money from the sale of uranium but we are not prepared to accept any responsibility for the disposal or neutralisation of the nuclear waste from the use of uranium. [More…]
It is said that Japan must have nuclear energy if Japan is to survive. [More…]
Certainly Japan would like to buy nuclear energy but what Japan is really seeking to do is to diversify on the one hand her types of energy and on the other hand the sources of those various types of energy. [More…]
Nuclear energy happens to be one of those types of energy. [More…]
There are 11 nuclear power stations in Japan, only three of which are operative. [More…]
They are: The need to supply essential sources of energy to an energy-deficient world; and the need to reduce the risk of nuclear proliferation. [More…]
The fact is that nuclear power is essential during the next few decades at least. [More…]
I think it is important that the Government’s nuclear safeguards policy be restated, not only for the benefit of a confused Opposition but also for the benefit of those in the community who have not yet grasped the comprehensive nature of our safeguards policy. [More…]
Briefly, the Government’s safeguards policy is an eleven-point program which requires: Continual review and improvement of international safeguards standards; the considered selection of customer countries according to strict and comprehensive criteria of eligibility; the application of International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards; the prior conclusion of bilateral agreements to ensure that nuclear material supplied by Australia is used for peaceful and non-explosive purposes; the provision of fall-back safeguards to cover the possibility of IAEA safeguards at some time ceasing to apply in a customer country; prior Australian consent to re-export; prior Australian consent to enrichment of Australian uranium beyond 20 per cent uranium 235; Prior Australian consent to reprocessing; adequate physical protection of the nuclear industries in customer countries; the inclusion of safeguards implementation provisions in commercial contracts; and Australian contribution to constructive multilateral efforts to strengthen safeguards. [More…]
But, as the Prime Minister said on 24 May, the wider the consensus amongst nuclear supplier and nuclear importing countries concerning controls to apply to the world nuclear industry, the more effective these controls will be as a barrier to nuclear proliferation. [More…]
But this is not to say, as the Leader of the Opposition said on 4 September, that the present international nuclear safeguards are ‘completely inadequate ‘. [More…]
The Leader of the Opposition seems to regard the delay in implementing the EURATOM/IAEA agreement, which provides for the safeguards obligations assumed by the nonnuclear weapon states of EURATOM when they ratified the Treaty on the Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, as proof positive of the general ineffectiveness of the Agency safeguards as a whole. [More…]
The Leader of the Opposition has also claimed that international safeguards do not apply to the 300 nuclear facilities in the EURATOM countries. [More…]
These nuclear facilities are fully covered by the EURATOM system- an independent and effective safeguards system of long standing. [More…]
The Minister overlooked the fact that the very dangerous by-product of the use of uranium for power production is plutonium, which becomes the core for nuclear weapons. [More…]
There is a danger, a threat and a risk not just to the Australian community but to the whole world community in the use of this nuclear material. [More…]
Firstly, the nuclear industry has been in existence for 20 or more years. [More…]
A large amount of nuclear waste has already accumulated. [More…]
Huge numbers- 200 or 300 or more- of nuclear plants are already operating and more are planned. [More…]
A world wide nuclear war could develop out of the energy situation because of economic deterioration. [More…]
On the other hand, the wrongful use of nuclear power could in its own way also lead to war. [More…]
The Australian Government’s nuclear proliferation safeguards have been described by the American President as being the strongest determined. [More…]
We are told that we will not have nuclear power in this country. [More…]
I turn now to reactors, the use of nuclear fuel and the dangers through explosion or leakage of radioactive waste materials. [More…]
The rapid spread of nuclear weapons constructed from nuclear fuels increases the dangers inherent in the expanding police powers necessary to protect the various stages of the nuclear fuel cycle. [More…]
As with the nuclear industry elsewhere in the world, its beginnings were rooted in military application. [More…]
Exploration in Australia began at the request of the United Kingdom Government which wanted uranium for its nuclear weapons program. [More…]
Following the 1963 treaty on the testing of nuclear weapons, due in my view to the dangers of radioactive fallout of strontium 90, Linus Pauling, a leading American physicist, pointed out that some 7,000 to 10,000 American children had died as a result of leukaemia during the period that these tests were being carried out. [More…]
I believe that it was one of the major factors that contributed to the great powers ceasing to explode nuclear weapons in the atmosphere. [More…]
Linus Pauling was supported by an additional 12 prominent American nuclear scientists who agreed with his research and findings. [More…]
One can quote out of context all sorts of things relating to cancer and leukaemia but if one tracks down the authenticity of those comments one finds that they are not connected in any way with the problems of uranium and nuclear energy. [More…]
Leaving that to one side, one must admit that there is concern in the community about this matter of nuclear energy, where we are going as a nation and where the world is going in relation to energy sources. [More…]
In fact the Leader of the Opposition presented a very faulty proposal comprising five points that Australia should adopt for the control of uranium and nuclear fuels. [More…]
The only way in which we are going to influence world opinion on the question of proliferation and nuclear waste is to withhold the necessary uranium until such time as science and the governments which utilise uranium have faced up to the issue. [More…]
It draws attention to the fact that no answer has been found to the fundamental issue of the disposal of nuclear waste. [More…]
In effect he put forward the latest proposal for disposing of nuclear waste. [More…]
It was suggested in the Press only this morning that nuclear waste should be buried in the deepest part of the Atlantic Ocean. [More…]
Therefore I challenge them to answer this statement in the document ‘Nuclear Safeguards’ which sets out the policy of safeguards which this Government has adopted. [More…]
‘This is a policy of great stringency’- this is the point- ‘more rigorous than that adopted to date by any nuclear supplier country but following a very similar approach to that of the United States and Canada’. [More…]
The fall in demand for nuclear energy in Europe, Japan and the United States is well known. [More…]
The reality is that throughout the industrialised countries nuclear power programs are being cut back. [More…]
This is happening for two reasons, the first being that a growing number of citizens are opposed to nuclear power in those countries. [More…]
In Spain last month 200,000 people turned up at an anti-nuclear rally. [More…]
In West Germany nearly two million people belonged to anti-nuclear groups. [More…]
The opposition in Germany has become so important that the Social Democratic Government will soon announce a moratorium on nuclear power station construction. [More…]
Secondly, there is the uneconomic nature of nuclear power. [More…]
The reduction in nuclear power programs can be seen in figures illustrating nuclear capacity in the member countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development in 1985. [More…]
He compared a vehicle that runs off the road- and that is that- with the development of nuclear energy whereby isotopes have been developed over a period of time, some of them previously unknown isotopes that could have terrible and horrific consequences without proper technological advances to satisfy the safety requirements of this country. [More…]
Those two great nuclear physicists who held opposing points of view debated publicly much the same matter as we are now discussing. [More…]
Needless to say, Teller convinced me then, and he convinces me now, of the absolute necessity to develop nuclear power as a help to mankind in its ceaseless struggle against nature. [More…]
The last 20 years of safety in the nuclear industry show the enormous benefits that nuclear power has been able to bring, and they show also why it is that nuclear power needs our uranium. [More…]
Nuclear energy was well enough proven everywhere else and it seemed to me that we were wasting a lot of time in going on with the inquiry. [More…]
Hazards to members of the public and the general environment arise at all stages of the nuclear fuel cycle. [More…]
On nuclear weapons proliferation, he said much the same thing: … a total renunciation of intention to supply designed to bring an end to all nuclear power industries or all further development of them would in our view be likely to fail totally in its purpose, if the purpose were simply to draw international attention to the dangers of and associated with the industry, that purpose might be achieved, but it is most unlikely that any worthwhile action would result. [More…]
The world must replace oil requirements with nuclear energy and other developments of new alternative fuels. [More…]
If the diminishing of oil resources leads to an energy shortage, obviously in the chain of events nothing will solve our problem, except nuclear energy. [More…]
In all common sense we have no alternative except to turn to nuclear energy. [More…]
Even some of the countries favoured by the honourable member for Melbourne have nuclear energy. [More…]
If the world is to depend on nuclear power stationsthere are enormous increases in these- we are in the market to supply them with the fuel. [More…]
exports of steaming coal by Australia could minimise any fuel shortage which would otherwise arise if other countries decide to reduce their reliance on nuclear power below present expectations. [More…]
As far as the electric utilities are concerned, Carter’s policy could just as logically be called a nuclear policy. [More…]
Costs of nuclear and coal electric power generation are close enough and uncertain enough that they might be considered substantially the same. [More…]
It appears that there is a nuclear coal trade off where the economics may make little difference where the decision between the two and the proper mix of the two may depend therefore on an assessment of the environmental and social costs and risks associated with them. [More…]
As I understand it Nigeria is already on the way to developing a nuclear capacity because at this time it has no alternative. [More…]
Some 500 nuclear electricity power stations are now operating. [More…]
We have heard from members of the Opposition about nuclear waste. [More…]
The truth is that nuclear waste can be controlled. [More…]
If members of the Opposition want to talk about the added burden of radiation they should consider that the added burden of living in Canberra, 2,000 feet above sea level, is 100 times as great as the added burden projected from the worst kind of nuclear proliferation. [More…]
The truth is that nuclear energy is the safest and cleanest method of producing electric power yet devised by man. [More…]
The dangers are 100 times more lethal in a coal fired station than they could be in the worst nuclear station. [More…]
The truth is that nuclear energy is the safest and cleanest form of power yet devised and those who are saying to the contrary are either ignorant or badly motivated. [More…]
It is true that in the nuclear process there is a danger of proliferation. [More…]
What is not said is that the program for nuclear power adds nothing at all to that danger, which is a dreadful danger and already exists. [More…]
Let us try in every way to improve our nuclear devices, to go into fusion as well as into fission. [More…]
I would like to speak very briefly about the oil position because this is a crucial matter particularly since many of those countries which depend on oil are looking for nuclear power as the only possible substitute. [More…]
It is not very long ago since the Arab nations- I refer particularly to the Iraqis- were going out on a campaign to prevent nuclear and other alternative sources of energy being developed so as they could put up their oil prices. [More…]
In the short time that remains to me I want to talk about two mysteries that arise in this nuclear debate. [More…]
The first one is: Why has there been this world wide orchestration of opposition to nuclear power? [More…]
It is no coincidence that so many people who are concerned with the nuclear protest here in Australia have left wing links. [More…]
It is a clear contrast with the situation in Russia and other communist countries where nuclear development forges ahead all the time. [More…]
Only a few years ago the Opposition was supporting nuclear development enthusiastically so why has it changed its tune? [More…]
Iraqis were trying to sprag nuclear development throughout the world and throughout Australia. [More…]
Without doubt the honourable member is the best informed member of this Parliament on the question of nuclear energy. [More…]
Firstly, it is nonsense to suggest that nuclear energy is a permanent answer to the world ‘s energy crisis. [More…]
If we were to rely upon nuclear energy to produce all the energy that we are now consuming, the whole of the uranium resources of the world would produce less than 10 years supply of energy. [More…]
Then we would be left without any energy at all from nuclear sources. [More…]
We ought not to be bothering about nuclear energy because there is no answer yet to the question of how to deal with the radioactive waste from it. [More…]
I am certain that we are more likely to get the answer to fusion than we are to find some safe way of storing the radioactive waste from nuclear energy. [More…]
They know damned well that the Third World has not the resources to provide nuclear reactors to get nuclear energy. [More…]
Those countries cannot even buy enough coffee to make a cup of coffee for themselves let alone provide nuclear reactors. [More…]
He told us eloquently how there had to be a shift from the present sources of energy and of power to the utilisation of nuclear energy and nuclear power. [More…]
In all the statements which were made in Perth and from the statements which have been made subsequent to the Perth meeting it is quite clear that the ban on uranium mining and upon the development of nuclear power was to be long term and was to be permanent. [More…]
Every opportunity is taken to cry and to complain that uranium and nuclear energy offer nothing. [More…]
This was so beautifully and clearly pointed out by the honourable member for Hawker when he said that uranium mining, the development of nuclear power and the use of uranium as a source of power in Nigeria just had to be, otherwise Nigeria would have gone back to a camel economy. [More…]
All the high level waste in the world which would be available in the foreseeable generation of nuclear energy would fill only this chamber. [More…]
The background paper titled ‘Health and Safety Aspects of Nuclear Power Generation’ which was published with the documents outlining the Government’s decisions quotes from the British Royal Commission on Environmental Pollutionthe Flowers Commission. [More…]
It deals particularly with this issue of nuclear waste disposal and contains the terse sentence: [More…]
We have described in Chapter VIII the problems associated with the management and disposal of highly radioactive wastes arising from the nuclear fuel cycle. [More…]
Such waste will remain active over immense time scales, and unless continuously isolated will present dangers to our descendants long after nuclear fission technology has ceased to be used as a source of energy. [More…]
We believe that a quite inadequate effort has been devoted to the problems of longterm waste management, and that there should be no substantial expansion of nuclear power until the feasibility of a method of safe disposal of high level wastes for the indefinite future has been established beyond reasonable doubt. [More…]
An item from the Nordwest Zeitung dated 10 August- as recent as that- carries an account of movement within the coalition parties in Germany on this very question of nuclear energy. [More…]
As is clearly shown in the terms of the amendment moved by the Leader of the Opposition, the Opposition opposes the Government’s precipitous decisions on this issue, principally on the questions of safeguards from consumer countries, nuclear weapon proliferation and waste disposal. [More…]
The honourable member for Lilley went on from talking about the requirements for nuclear energy in the developed industrial world to refer to the so-called Third World. [More…]
The argument then that nuclear power is necessary because the poor need energy for lighting, heating, industrial uses and transport looks like a balm to uneasy consciences when it is realised that nuclear power cannot serve vast and scattered rural populations because the prior demands of privileged elites and of urban skilled work forces in poor countries are locked into the existing political power systems. [More…]
Uranium and nuclear energy mean nothing to developing countries. [More…]
Current plans show that they expect to get less than 10 per cent of their energy needs from nuclear energy this century. [More…]
Nuclear energy is high cost energy. [More…]
Japan is interested in moving into nuclear power and enriched fuel. [More…]
The previous speaker for the Opposition gave figures on which countries are not now proceeding with the development of nuclear energy. [More…]
It is interesting to note what Sir Brian Flowers, Chairman of the United Kingdom Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution, said in a report on the nuclear power industry published last September. [More…]
One reason for this is certainly the association with the destructive uses of nuclear energy . [More…]
The development of reactors to harness nuclear energy for the generation of electrical power stemmed directly from the weapons programs. [More…]
Sir Brian went on to say that in many people’s minds these historical facts are sufficient to make the whole concept of nuclear power deeply distasteful. [More…]
He has stated clearly that attitudes related to nuclear power tend to be emotional rather than rational. [More…]
Why have 40 nations with nuclear power programs demanded uranium? [More…]
Forty nations with a total population of 2,000 million people have announced nuclear power programs. [More…]
China is reported to have announced its intention to develop nuclear power for peaceful use. [More…]
Why have 40 nations throughout the world decided upon nuclear power programs? [More…]
Prior to 1973 about 25 nations had embarked on nuclear power programs. [More…]
The United Kingdom has been using nuclear power since the early 1950s. [More…]
By 1975, 34 countries had announced nuclear power programs. [More…]
In 1976 Cuba, Peru and New Caledonia, to name a few, also announced plans for nuclear power. [More…]
By 1976 the 20-year old nuclear power industry throughout the world had installed a capacity of nuclear power stations four times the total of all power stations in Australia or 40 times the capacity of Western Australian power plants. [More…]
To sum up, currently more than 40 nations with 2,000 million people have decided that they need nuclear power and will need uranium to fuel their stations. [More…]
In the document given to honourable members opposite so that they could speak in this chamber little reference was made to the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
Apart from the honourable member for Mackellar who spoke about it for three seconds and said that it was an enormous problem, no other honourable member opposite mentioned the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
In the very near future Brazil will have the ability, with the aid of the West German technology, to build a nuclear weapon. [More…]
Those scientists from Germany, France, Italy, the Scandinavian countries and the United Kingdom, together with scientists from Russia, had been working on nuclear energy in the early 1930s. [More…]
The military said: ‘We want to keep a complete monopoly on nuclear weapons because we are the only country that is going to have them.’ [More…]
All the skirmishes like the Korean war and all the Middle East conflicts in the not too distant future may well be fought with nuclear weapons. [More…]
When the former Prime Minister of Israel was asked whether that country possessed nuclear weapons he said: ‘All I can say is that we will not be the first to use them.’ [More…]
Israel, Egypt, Brazil, all the European countries, India, China, the Soviet Union, the United States of America, all the countries in eastern Europe if the Russians allow them to build the same sort of nuclear reactors, will have the ability to build nuclear weapons. [More…]
They are going to fight against the export of our uranium because it will tie us in to a world in which there is a proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
If 40 countries have nuclear weapons there is 40 times the chance that war will break out with the use of nuclear weapons, and we will be playing a part in it. [More…]
There has not yet been any government decision to start building nuclear reactors in Australia. [More…]
I ask honourable members opposite to consider how desperately a lot of those countries with irresponsible governments do not need the technology to be able to build nuclear weapons. [More…]
Honourable members opposite will be asking them to vote in support of the Government so that more countries in the world will have nuclear bombs. [More…]
Give a regime nuclear weapons and try to change it. [More…]
Obviously that regime will use its nuclear weapons. [More…]
Obviously South Africa will have the ability in the not too distant future to build nuclear weapons. [More…]
They are desperately concerned about the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
Would honourable members opposite stay there and put up their hands tonight knowing that the Arab states and Israel had nuclear weapons and that the next time that war breaks out in that part of the world they could well be used? [More…]
Would honourable members opposite put up their hands and say that the South African regime or some Latin American states could have nuclear weapons? [More…]
The Labor Party does not agree with what the Soviet Union is doing in the proliferation of nuclear reactors throughout eastern Europe. [More…]
We do not agree with the proliferation of nuclear reactors throughout western Europe. [More…]
It was a conservative government that was elected in Sweden, and part of its platform was to stop the spread of nuclear energy development in that country. [More…]
He said would it not be terrible if South Africa had a nuclear capacity? [More…]
Egypt is already committed to nuclear power. [More…]
The facts are that the bulk of the terror countries that are being held over our heads as countries that present a threat to us either already produce immense amounts of uranium or are already well and truly committed to programs of nuclear power. [More…]
Of course, it is all very well for the honourable member for Port Adelaide to say he does not support the fact that the Eastern Bloc countries are well and truly on the way to a very strong nuclear construction program. [More…]
Let us look at what is hap- pening behind the Iron Curtain, or, as theonourable member for Port Adelaide would like to call it, the ‘nuclear curtain’. [More…]
Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics already have major nuclear power plants in operation while Hungary, Poland, Rumania and Yugoslavia have a commitment to nuclear power and are proceeding with that commitment. [More…]
In fact the Government’s policy on nuclear safeguards is more stringent that that recommended by the Ranger inquiry. [More…]
I found it fascinating that the honourable member for Grayndler (Mr Antony Whitlam) should have said that this Government’s policy of proceeding with the supply of uranium for nuclear power purposes will do nothing to benefit the underdeveloped nations of this world. [More…]
In other words, those underdeveloped nations which depend solely on fossil fuels, particularly oil, would have access to those fuels at a cheaper price than would have been the case had the Western world not gone nuclear. [More…]
We have also had church groups writing and attacking our side for having raised the point that the Third World clearly will benefit, not directly but indirectly in terms of the price of their fuel, as a result of the Western world going nuclear and as a result of Australia providing a cheaper source of uranium for nuclear power stations than would otherwise be available. [More…]
Do they really believe that the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty is worth the paper it is writ- i ten on? [More…]
I am not necessarily against the mining of uranium or the use of nuclear energy. [More…]
There is no suggestion that we should set up nuclear power stations in this country. [More…]
There is no suggestion that we should store nuclear wastes. [More…]
A minor point which has been raised- I think by the honourable member for Grayndler (Mr Antony Whitlam) and others- is that uranium and nuclear power are not of great importance to Third World countries. [More…]
It is unlikely that many of the undeveloped countries will use nuclear power generation. [More…]
If the Western world shifts emphasis to nuclear power that will release other fossil fuel sources- oil and coal- for use by the undeveloped world. [More…]
If Japan forgoes its present nuclear power generation program the immediate effect will be a rapid rise in the price of coal. [More…]
But there are some problems associated with nuclear power generation as the honourable member for Hotham (Mr Chipp) and others have mentioned. [More…]
The first matter, mentioned with great force but not, I think, with great accuracy by the honourable member for Port Adelaide (Mr Young), is the question of nuclear proliferation. [More…]
It is a fact that the present Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons is seriously defective. [More…]
Three of the nuclear powers- China, France and India- are not members. [More…]
The Fox report suggests and common sense also dictates, that our export of uranium will have no effect on nuclear proliferation. [More…]
The cost of nuclear weapons and their delivery systems is so great that the cost of the associated uranium is trivial. [More…]
If all else failed it would be economical to get some sea water to produce nuclear weapons. [More…]
Australia, by its export or failure to export uranium, can have no effect on the problem of nuclear proliferation except that by exporting we do have some leverage to tighten up these admittedly defective standards. [More…]
After all, America and Russia between them have nuclear weapons capable of destroying the world several times over. [More…]
By the way, it is most unlikely that terrorists will be capable of raiding a nuclear power station, carrying away spent fuel rods which weigh about 20 tons, setting up their own processing plant at a cost of about $3 billion and making themselves a nuclear weapon. [More…]
Again, there are problems concerned with nuclear power stations. [More…]
What the average person receives from all past nuclear explosions amounts to 40. [More…]
What the average person receives from all existing nuclear power stations amounts to less than 0.06. [More…]
As the honourable member for Hotham says, one can say that 0.06 from all existing nuclear power stations when compared with 1,000 from normal background radiation is virtually nothing. [More…]
There is also a minor problem locally from the nuclear power stations. [More…]
These stations have been exhaustively examined and suffice it to say that a person living alongside a nuclear power station- which, by the way, is a local risk and there is no intention of setting them up herewould be 200 times as likely to be killed by a thunderbolt as he would by any radiation from that station. [More…]
All the waste from all American nuclear power stations could be stored in this chamber. [More…]
I submit that the decision whether to use nuclear power is a local decision, to be made by the local community based on its assessment of the risk and the advantages to that community. [More…]
The main thrust of President Carter’s policy is to stop the reprocessing of spent nuclear cores from existing reactors and the introduction of fast breeder reactors because they involve the use of plutonium. [More…]
I find on one side nuclear physicists and scientists who tell me one thing. [More…]
On the other side I find the same type of peoplenuclear physicists, scientists and environmentalistswho tell me the other. [More…]
I would rather wait until I have assurances on things such as the storing of nuclear waste and the elimination of risk of gene mutation, because I think they are serious problems. [More…]
Ultimately they will run out, and ultimately we will make a difference as to whether they will have nuclear power. [More…]
Perhaps I should not mention what I am going to mention now but it is something about which I am concerned because the question was raised earlier about the possibility of nuclear war breaking out in the Middle East. [More…]
I do not think there is any doubt that both the Arab countries in the Middle East and Israel have nuclear weapons. [More…]
If we are contributing towards that situation by providing uranium which enables nuclear weapons to spread and proliferate I think we should stop doing so immediately. [More…]
Accordingly, on 2 June this year when this House was debating the nuclear safeguards policy which had been announced by the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) I made a speech in which I outlined some of the conclusions to which I had come. [More…]
If a decision by Australia not to supply uranium would halt nuclear developments throughout the world i would probably be in favour of a moratorium on mining and exporting in order to resolve existing problems. [More…]
Many countries already have gone nuclear in their power generation programs. [More…]
As a biologist I should have preferred that there had never been developed the military and industrial exploitation of nuclear power. [More…]
I believe that a majority of thoughtful people accept the inevitability for at least an interim period, of large scale use of nuclear energy in most parts of the world. [More…]
Things being as they are, nuclear power generators will be needed for the next twenty, or perhaps fifty, years in most of the developed countries, with Japan and Sweden in particular need. [More…]
They are countries which have made a decision to develop a nuclear power generating program on grounds that are not necessarily relevant to Australian minds but are very relevant to the circumstances faced by those countries. [More…]
Let me outline two factors which were obviously very influential in the decisions which Japan has made over a number of years to develop a significant capacity to generate electricity from nuclear power generators. [More…]
Therefore one of the attractions of nuclear energy to Japan is that she can stockpile or store quantities of uranium very readily. [More…]
That is clearly one advantage of nuclear energy to Japan. [More…]
Therefore it is Japan’s resolve to develop a significant proportion of her electricity power generating capacity from nuclear sources. [More…]
Japan believes that if she has some part of that capacity supplied from nuclear sources, some from furnaces fuelled by fossil fuels and some from hydro-electric power, and then tries to diversify the sources of supply of uranium and of the fossil fuels as far as possible she will have provided the greatest possible guarantee against disruption to the sources of supply of any one of those fuels from any one part of the world. [More…]
So clearly the generation of power from nuclear sources is an important part of Japan’s policy to remain self-reliant and to insulate herself from troubles in the rest of the world. [More…]
A second reason for Japan favouring a nuclear power generation program is an environmental one. [More…]
In the context of that problem it sees nuclear power generation as offering a great advantage because furnaces which are fuelled by fossil fuels- by oil and by coal- have the disadvantage of adding enormously to the air pollution problem, an enormous problem in a small country geographically, such as Japan is, with such a huge population. [More…]
Therefore the Japanese see the development of nuclear energy as contributing to the solution of her air pollution problems. [More…]
So Japan is a very good example of a country which has made a decision to go nuclear in her power generation program for reasons which are very good to that country. [More…]
I think all honourable members on this side of the House admire the sorts of comments that have been made by the honourable member for Hawker (Mr Jacobi) in a number of speeches that he has made over a period of months on the energy question and in the nuclear debate. [More…]
I suggest that the choice we face is not the choice between stopping nuclear developments or encouraging them by mining and exporting our uranium. [More…]
I suggest that what we are really faced with is a choice between allowing nuclear developments to occur in an unsatisfactory way, as they are occurring at present throughout the world, or of using our position as a responsible supplier of energy resources to bring about greater stability, greater certainty and greater responsibility in nuclear developments throughout the world. [More…]
The Commission pointed out the risks of inadequate safeguards in regard to nuclear waste and the dangers of nuclear war. [More…]
Apparently this Government hangs its hat on the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty and its associated safeguard agreements. [More…]
Australia occupies a special position on the nuclear scene. [More…]
More than IS months ago Canada declared that it would never again, under any circumstances, pass to another country nuclear materials or technology which could contribute to nuclear weapons proliferation. [More…]
It goes beyond it in these respects: The customer non-nuclear weapon states must be parties to the nonproliferation treaty involving International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards and accept our additional safeguards requirements under the bilateral treaties which they must enter into with us; existing nuclear weapon states must agree that Australian uranium will not be used for military purposes and be covered by IAEA safeguards. [More…]
I really find it quite odd that somebody who claims not to want proliferation of nuclear weapons- I admit the claim and I could not conceive of anyone in this House wanting that to happen- and to have the common objective of wanting to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons should suggest that Australia should behave as though we were on the moon or on another planet and not part of this world. [More…]
The vital and important work that Mr Justice Fox is doing now on behalf of the Government and the people of Australia, as adviser on the way that Australia can best lend its efforts to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons, could not have anything like the effect that it will have. [More…]
We believe that a quite inadequate effort has been devoted to the problems of long term waste management and that there should be no substantial expansion of nuclear power until the feasability of a method of safe disposal of high level wastes for the indefinite future has been established beyond reasonable doubt. [More…]
We have described in Chapter VIII the problems associated with the management and disposal of highly radioactive wastes arising from the nuclear fuel cycle. [More…]
Such wastes will remain active over immense time scales, and unless continuously isolated will present dangers to our remote descendants long after nuclear fission technology has ceased to be used as a source of energy. [More…]
It appears at page5 of the paper headed ‘Health and Safety Aspects of Nuclear Power Generation’ and at page 4 of the document ‘UraniumYour Questions Answered’. [More…]
In other parts of the Flowers report, indicating a view very similar to that indicated in the Fox report, the Commission had indicated that the present state of knowledge certainly was not one which should cause people to put aside the further development of” nuclear power for peaceful purposes. [More…]
Will Australia’s policies on uranium development and export be affected in any way by recent discussions and decisions at the British Trade Union Congress on nuclear energy recently reported in the Australian Press? [More…]
-Attention has been drawn to reports dated 10 September that the annual conference of the British Trade Union Congress advocated an expanded nuclear program. [More…]
I further note that the Trade Union Congress, as that report indicated, backed a full scale demonstration of fast breeder reactors on grounds that there might be a shortage of uranium and that therefore countries dependent on nuclear energy for peaceful purposes would need to conserve what supplies of uranium were available to them. [More…]
It also shows that in the United Kingdom responsible unions, having a considerable number of facts available to them, having a very large number of their members dependent upon energy from nuclear supplies, recognise that countries of Europe need uranium for the development of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. [More…]
These two matters together emphasise why the ready availability of Australian uranium is important in order to slow down the move towards fast breeder reactors, if that is possible, and to slow down the move towards the plutonium economy, as well as to give Australia the strongest possible voice in the world forums against nuclear proliferation and in favour of proper waste disposal as modern scientific and technological knowledge now makes possible. [More…]
In fact, the operations of the nuclear industry around the world have a proven record which is such that all the advice to this Government shows that no member of the public has ever been injured through the operations of a nuclear generator. [More…]
But I make this point about high level liquid wastes stored in America: First, a distinction has to be drawn between those wastes which have accrued from military processes in producing weapons and those which have accumulated as a result of commercial operations of nuclear reactors. [More…]
The facts of the matter are that only about 600,000 gallons of high level wastes have come from commercially operated nuclear plants and these are stored completely safely. [More…]
One of the few long term projections that the Premier of South Australia grabbed hold of and shook around on several occasions was requests of this Government and I believe of the Whitlam Government to use some source of nuclear power so that desalination methods could be adopted to help the entire State of South Australia to get quality water, if a sufficient quantity could be obtained. [More…]
One of the things that the people are saying- I think that it is a very sensible thing for them to be saying- is that if we had not reached the stage in our technology at which it was possible to produce a nuclear bomb, it would have been a darned good thing. [More…]
I should like to know whether the honourable member believes that in the next 500, 1,000 or 2,000 years-well within the half life of most toxic nuclear fuels- if we do not mine uranium there could not be somebody who, with a shortage of oil, would say: ‘We want that uranium from Australia’? [More…]
If we get plugged into the international nuclear system the consequences will be around for thousands of years. [More…]
Because nuclear technology in the world is still in the infancy stage, blunders from peaceful development of uranium must take place; they will take place. [More…]
Time is needed so that we can study all the hazards of nuclear development? [More…]
Generally the second Fox report was honest also about the grave environmental hazards associated with all aspects of the nuclear industry. [More…]
Many people do not realise that in at least 25 countries, and probably more, sufficient knowhow and fissile material already exist for the manufacture of nuclear weapons, albeit in small numbers. [More…]
Another fact forgotten by many anti-uranium proponents is the significant number of nuclear warheads already in existence. [More…]
There are at least two means by which an Australian moratorium on uranium exports might actually worsen the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
Although nuclear facilities may not be immediately needed in the host countries, the exploring countries are likely to offer technology as they are in Brazil for power reactors, together with enrichment and reprocessing plants, in return for a generous slice of whatever uranium is found. [More…]
Whilst it is difficult to gauge the exact effectiveness of an Australian uranium moratorium on nuclear weapons proliferation and terrorism there could well be a beneficial indirect leverage possible on suppliers of sensitive nuclear technology who themselves need large supplies of cheap uranium for power reactors. [More…]
But the question is whether a blanket 2-year to 5-year export ban with its across the board effect on all consumers can be more useful than the Government’s announcement that those nuclear nations not agreeing to improved safeguards and restricted technology transfer would selectively miss out on short term and long term supplies of our cheap uranium. [More…]
The latter course has the advantage of being more credible, of establishing Australia as a nuclear fuel supplier accepted with respect in the world’s decision making uranium forums, of being more effective against dissident countries such as France and of reflecting our international energy responsibilities. [More…]
I believe that a majority of thoughtful people accept the inevitability, for at least an interim period, of large-scale use of nuclear energy in most parts of the world. [More…]
Things being as they are, nuclear power generators will be needed for the next 20, or perhaps 50, years in most of the developed countries, with Japan and Sweden in particular need. [More…]
Here in Australia only recently has the average Australian begun to think seriously about the benefit and the costs of the use of nuclear energy and is obviously still a long way from being able to make an informed decision about it. [More…]
Yet the Fraser Government has already committed Australia to supporting actively the spread of nuclear power throughout the world. [More…]
At the biennial national conference in Perth in July this year the Australian Labor Parry decided on an indefinite moratorium until the problems associated with the nuclear industry are solved. [More…]
My belief is that the Government’s account of uranium usage is a vast distortion of the true facts about nuclear power. [More…]
The nuclear industry claims that most of the opposition to the spread of nuclear power stems from an emotional, stupid reaction- some sort of mindless fear of growth and technology. [More…]
The industry, the Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister (Mr Anthony) and Mr Bjelke-Petersen would have people believe that the anti-uranium lobby consists of nothing but young revolutionaries who are badly misinformed about the true facts of nuclear power. [More…]
The anti-nuclear movement has always been able to call upon some of the best nuclear brains around, partly because much of the opposition to nuclear power has arisen from within the industry, from scientists and engineers who knew exactly the implications of what they were doing and the weaknesses of the machines which they were designing and building. [More…]
Any person who doubts the quality of the opposition to nuclear power in Australia should read the transcript of the Ranger uranium inquiry. [More…]
In the remainder of the time allotted to me, I would like to give a brief account of the true state of affairs of nuclear power, not the coloured version that the Fraser Government has so far given the Australian people. [More…]
From all appearances, it is very unlikely that nuclear power will ever be of any real significance in the world energy picture. [More…]
-From all appearances, it is very unlikely that nuclear power will ever be of any real significance in the world energy picture. [More…]
At present nuclear power stations provide a little over one per cent of the world’s statistically recorded energy consumption. [More…]
If all the energy that goes unrecorded, particularly in the poorer countries, were added to energy consumption statistics, nuclear energy would be even less significant. [More…]
Even if the most aggressive proposals for the development of nuclear energy come true, nuclear energy will provide about only 5 per cent of the world’s energy by the year 2000. [More…]
Nuclear energy will be on the way out at the same time as oil, having provided only a tiny fraction of our energy needs, and absorbed an immensely unequal proportion of valuable capital. [More…]
In West Germany, France, Sweden, Switzerland, the United States of America and Japan, strong and increasing opposition to nuclear power has combined with economic difficulties to cause severe cutbacks in nuclear construction programs. [More…]
The nuclear power programs of France and West Germany have almost ground to a halt while in Holland anti-nuclear demonstrations have been growing rapidly. [More…]
Spain is now examining hydro-electric alternatives to nuclear power while Norway has cancelled its projected nuclear power program altogether. [More…]
In the United States of America orders for nuclear reactors have dropped from 30 reactors to two in the last few years, and in Japan the cutback is of the order of 50 per cent because of problems with the inefficiency of nuclear power generation. [More…]
In regard to dangers from the use of nuclear power, the work of the Fox Commission in Australia and the Flowers Commission in Britain has made it clear that the dangers of world trade in plutonium are so great that we should avoid it, if at all possible. [More…]
They confirm that it is possible for a small group of people with some nuclear and metal working knowledge to make a bomb if they have sufficient plutonium. [More…]
They confirm that the international treaties designed to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons are very weak. [More…]
They confirm that the civilian nuclear power industry has contributed to the spread of weapons. [More…]
They confirm that there have been accidents in reactors and nuclear power plants and that these have been potentially very serious. [More…]
These are all things which those opposed to nuclear power see as reasons for discontinuing it. [More…]
In regard to the potential benefit of nuclear power to the poorer countries, it appears that because of the immensely capital intensive and centralised nature of nuclear energy this source of energy will be irrelevant to the real needs of poorer countries. [More…]
How could a developing country with a population of SO million people afford the $17 billion needed to produce and distribute nuclear-generated energy to its people? [More…]
Nuclear energy is only a temporary source of power at best. [More…]
These are the facts about nuclear energy and its alternatives and not the one-sided half truths that the Fraser Government has been telling the Australian people. [More…]
The honourable member for Sydney (Mr Les McMahon), who has just spoken, pointed out that not many nuclear power stations are operating in the world today. [More…]
It is interesting to note the resolution on nuclear energy adopted by the English Trade Union Congress on 8 September at its annual congress at Blackpool, England. [More…]
That Congress supports the balanced development of the country’s energy resources including coal, gas and nuclear power. [More…]
To maximise the contribution of an expanded and socially acceptable nuclear program which is consistent with the maintenance of a safe environment in terms of solving problems of health and security which may arise. [More…]
But nuclear reactor power stations have been a fact of life in England since 19S4. [More…]
Before proceeding further I seek leave to have incorporated in Hansard the Trade Union Congress resolution on nuclear energy. [More…]
We visited the Hartlepool nuclear reactor power station in the north of England. [More…]
This one nuclear power station, with 2 reactors, will produce 1 ,200 megawatts of electricity. [More…]
Honestly, I do not think that honourable members on the Opposition side have a real conviction that nuclear power stations are a risk or a danger. [More…]
They wanted to make sure that the operation of a nuclear power station would be safe. [More…]
England, a country with a population of about 54 million and an area of land less than the size of Victoria, has 21 nuclear power stations in operation at present and is planning to build many more. [More…]
This station will add to the existing system of nuclear power stations and I say for the benefit of the honourable member for Sydney- it will produce 3 per cent of the total power for England. [More…]
The English people know, the trade unionists know, the English Government knows that despite all the oil that may be found in the North Sea a serious energy shortage will be experienced in the next six or seven years if these nuclear power stations are not available. [More…]
This country is in a nuclear age whether we like it or not. [More…]
We cannot put our heads in the sand and say ‘Outside Australia you can have a nuclear age but it will not happen in this country.’ [More…]
We do not have nuclear power. [More…]
Throughout the world today there are more than a dozen countries which have nuclear power stations. [More…]
It is a funny thing that honourable members on the Opposition side have not often admitted that the communist countries have nuclear power. [More…]
They do have nuclear power. [More…]
When all these nuclear power stations are completed in the next few years they will be producing 400,000 megawatts of electricity. [More…]
There are plans on the boards to increase the present number of nuclear reactors fourfold. [More…]
This country, and every other country of a democratic nature, has political opponents causing opposition to the selling of uranium and the use or nuclear power stations. [More…]
The real problem facing democracy today is whether we can create a society that will live m a nuclear power world. [More…]
We are going to see a nuclear power world. [More…]
A report produced by the Canadian Atomic Energy Commission stated quite clearly that the risk of 1,000 people being killed by an accident with a nuclear reactor is about one-ten thousandth of the risk of that number of people being killed as a result of the failure of a dam or a reservoir. [More…]
Much has been said about the problem of nuclear waste but let us look at the real facts. [More…]
If Australia’s total power requirements from this day to the year 2000 was produced by nuclear reactors- that is 20,000 megawatts a year from now to the year 2000- the resultant high level solid waste, the stuff that everybody is so terribly frightened of, could be contained in a room measuring 50 feet square by 16 feet high. [More…]
The world is expected to be producing 400,000 megawatts of energy by means of nuclear power stations when they are operating at full bore and that will result in only 1,000 cubic feet of waste a year. [More…]
It is about time that the people started to look outside the boundaries of Australia to find out what is happening in the nuclear world and what has been happening since 1954. [More…]
But for the next 20 to 50 years there will be a heavy requirement for energy and this requirement can only be met by nuclear power. [More…]
This Government is taking a positive step towards ensuring that we play our part in the development and functioning of the nuclear world in which we live today. [More…]
1 ) commitments by customer countries to apply effective and verifiable safeguards against the diversion of Australian uranium from peaceful nuclear purposes to military nuclear purposes; [More…]
international safeguards which will ensure that the export of Australian uranium will not contribute to the proliferation of nuclear weapons and the increased risk of nuclear war; [More…]
The Fraser Government is trying to mislead Australians in regard to the nuclear fuel cycle with half truths and talk of future economic bonanzas. [More…]
Let us turn to some of the half truths which the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) spoke in his remarks about the disposal of nuclear waste. [More…]
We have made it very plain that we do not think it appropriate, we don’t think it responsible to let Australian uranium go on the world market until there, are in operation safe methods of storing or disposing of the nuclear wasteThere are not at the moment. [More…]
Yes, that’s true, but the big problem, I believe, now, is the storage and disposal of the nuclear waste- I think that is the unresolved issue. [More…]
If the IAEA said that there were adequate safeguards to monitor the storage and the disposal of the waste, the radioactive waste, from nuclear power generation. [More…]
Technology is now available for the safe treatment, conditioning and storage of essentially all the hazardous radioactive waste products from the nuclear fuel cycle. [More…]
-Of course, the Leader of the Opposition is sensitive on this matter because in a statement made a short while ago he indicated that there were some problems in relation to nuclear proliferation and that the safeguards there might not be adequate, but last night the ground seemed very much to be shifted. [More…]
Technology is now available for the safe treatment, conditioning and storage of essentially all the hazardous radioactive waste products from the nuclear fuel cycle. [More…]
Technology is now available for the safe treatment, conditioning and storage of essentially all the hazardous radioactive waste products from the nuclear fuel cycle. [More…]
Some of the complexities one must take into consideration are: Our contractual commitments-obligations which were entered into prior to 1972, which the Whitlam Government said would be honoured and which we said would be honoured; our commitment to the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty; the handling of waste material; the further proliferation of nuclear material around the world; the codes of mining and the safety of people involved in the milling of uranium; the environment; national parks; and Aboriginals. [More…]
The first was the action of the French in protesting against a suggestion that the South African Government was going to manufacture a nuclear weapon. [More…]
Many of them have power programs which are based on the development of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. [More…]
A delegation was in this Parliament yesterday from a country where the need for nuclear power for peaceful purposes would be very greatly and very seriously recognised. [More…]
In a report by Des Power from London in an AM broadcast this morning, the transcript of which is headed ‘International Atomic Energy authority spokesman says technology exists for safe nuclear waste disposal’, the following question was asked: [More…]
Quite clearly the International Atomic Energy Agency does not believe that the development of nuclear power for peaceful purposes should be held up while further work is done in relation to the matter of waste. [More…]
The nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of nuclear war. [More…]
Would the Prime Minister agree that our uranium could be used for the spread of nuclear weapons and that there are no known adequate safeguards available in the world against the spread of nuclear weapons? [More…]
-Other parts of the Fox reports also state that one of the main elements in the Australian Government’s decision should be the result that will flow from that decision in relation to nuclear proliferation. [More…]
The nuclear power industry for peaceful purposes does exist. [More…]
There will be increasing moves towards the introduction of nuclear power for peaceful purposes. [More…]
If Australia does not supply, certainly a voice for sense and sanity against proliferation of nuclear weapons would be removed from world forums. [More…]
It concerns the disposal of nuclear waste or, as he puts it, ‘nooclear’ waste. [More…]
Does he agree with the evidence given on behalf of the Australian Atomic Energy Commission to Senate Estimates Committee A last week that the disposal of nuclear waste by processing on an industrial basis has not been economic to date and that the actual carrying out of disposal on a commercial basis has not been attempted because it has not been economic and is not economic even today. [More…]
The Leader of the Opposition manages to confuse the question of nuclear waste disposal on a number of issues. [More…]
He has ignored the difference between high level liquid waste from reprocessing plants and the solid spent nuclear fuel from nuclear power reactors and also the difference between commercial nuclear wastes and military wastes. [More…]
They are not related to the use of uranium to produce electricity in commercial nuclear power stations. [More…]
There have been practical demonstrations of high level waste management arising from reprocessing of spent commercial nuclear fuel. [More…]
For ultimate waste disposal the process comprises two steps: Firstly the solidification and vitrification of the liquid wastes arising from reprocessing of spent nuclear power station fuel; and secondly disposal of the vitrified solids in deep geological formations. [More…]
My question which is directed to the Prime Minister deals with nuclear waste. [More…]
Is he aware that, particularly in the United States, in the private sector the nuclear wast situation is a grave problem? [More…]
Through the nuclear suppliers group and the fuel cycle evaluation which has been sponsored by the United States we will be able to add very significantly to the forces that will work towards the best possible regime of non-proliferation and waste control. [More…]
My question to the Prime Minister refers to the Prime Minister’s continual assertions that a proven technology exists to safely dispose of nuclear waste. [More…]
Will it not be the case that if President Carter’s policy is implemented the United States and any other country which it can influence to its point of view will not be able to use the vitrification process to dispose of its nuclear waste? [More…]
In order to understand whether it is the Government or the Opposition that is morally correct in its nuclear policy, one has to examine motives. [More…]
The motive of the Government in its painstaking deliberations over a nuclear policy has been to make the right decision for Australia and the world. [More…]
In particular, great regard has been given to the questions of Aboriginal rights, the safety of mining and milling, the operation of reactors, reprocessing, enrichment, disposal of waste products and the spread of nuclear weapons. [More…]
In the context of Government motivation and the morality of the decision to mine and export, I seek to canvass once more the question of nuclear proliferation. [More…]
In the last year attention to the possible spread of nuclear weapons has been gaining increasing predominance both as an aspect of the nuclear debate and as a world issue. [More…]
Late in 1976 a report of the authoritative Stockholm International Research Centre stated that within nine years 35 nations will possess the capability to produce their own nuclear weapons. [More…]
Nonsignatories of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty included in that group were Pakistan, Brazil, Argentina, South Africa, Cuba, Spain, Egypt, Switzerland and Turkey. [More…]
Surely there can be no doubt that, if Australia were to make its uranium resources available, the strengthening of nuclear safeguards would be enhanced. [More…]
The possibility of premature development of the plutonium economy, with its implications for nuclear proliferation, could be avoided. [More…]
By making a determined stance in conjunction with the United States and Canada, remembering that Australia and these two countries hold more than half of the world’s reasonably assured reserves of uranium we can foster the peaceful development of nuclear energy as the principal solutions to the world’s current and foreseeable energy problems. [More…]
To us, the danger of nuclear proliferation is more important than economic advantage. [More…]
Where was their concern then for their moral obligation to help prevent the spread of nuclear weapons? [More…]
After the horrors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, with the genuine concern of people over nuclear wastes and nuclear proliferation members of the Opposition have decided to set themselves up as peddlers of fear. [More…]
The greatest hope the Labor Party has of whipping up fear and violence is for it to pit Australian against Australian in a referendum in which it would manipulate genuinely worried but ill-informed voters with its new found nuclear lies. [More…]
I would have hoped that Australia was a sensible and rational economic community and that we might have acknowledged that with nuclear energy there was arospect and a hope of redressing the balanceetween the haves and the have nots. [More…]
On the other hand, I would not suggest that those who already have nuclear power or the disposition to use it are the ones to be most trusted with it. [More…]
Hopefully nuclear power will be used for peaceful purposes but, deplorably, there is the possibility that it may be used for non-peaceful purposes. [More…]
I suppose that one of the great risks of nuclear power is that some small power, given the opportunity, can start something that will not stop where it starts. [More…]
He said that he deplored the fact that his country of birth, or that part of it to which he still subscribes- West Germany- had recently arranged to sell to Brazil the potentiality to develop nuclear power presumably for destructive as well as peaceful purposes. [More…]
Professor Titterton, Professor of Nuclear Physics at the Australian National University since 1950, in a letter to the Canberra Times in September of this year, stated: [More…]
Twenty countries already have nuclear power stations and are steadily increasing their investment in this vitally important power source. [More…]
A further 14 are currently building their first nuclear station. [More…]
All have looked at the waste problem and have decided that it poses no impediment to the development of the nuclear industry. [More…]
As I understand the situation, at the present time there are some 184 nuclear power units in operation in 20 countries. [More…]
In all there are about 500 nuclear power units either in operation, under construction or on firm order in 34 countries. [More…]
Hazards to members of the public in the general environment arise at all stages of the nuclear fuel cycle. [More…]
The hazards involved in the ordinary operation of nuclear power reactors, if those operations are properly regulated and controlled, are not such as to justify a decision not to mine and sell Australian uranium. [More…]
Similarly in the United Kingdom it has been estimated that, in the year 2000 when threequarters of their electricity will bie generated by nuclear power, the total land area occupied by interim liquid storage tanks and ponds containing waste canisters will only be 1.7 hectares - [More…]
The Ranger inquiry in its first report stated that proliferation was the most serious danger in the nuclear industry. [More…]
It was also stated in the Fox report that if Australia were not to export her uranium, this would have little if any impact on the projected expansion of the nuclear power industry. [More…]
Accusation after accusation has been made by Government supporters during this debate about the Labor Party’s inconsistency in relation to nuclear power and the mining and sale of uranium. [More…]
In 1947 the then Prime Minister, Mr Chifley, first guided the thinking of Australians towards nuclear power. [More…]
At no stage during the years has the Labor Party been against nuclear technology. [More…]
The only thing that we have done during the whole of the debate on nuclear energy in Australia has been to insist that environmental safeguards and normal safety procedures should be well and truly established- that the waste, the rubbish that lasts for years and years, should be disposed of with safety to the community. [More…]
I remind the House that in 1969, with a loud blast of trumpets, an announcement was made that a nuclear prototype reactor would be built at Jervis Bay. [More…]
At that stage the honourable member for Mackellar was a proponent of nuclear weaponry. [More…]
Will he make available the reports on the (a) (i) geological, (ii) hydrological, (iii) hydrographical, (iv) meteorological, (v) ecological and (vi) environmental investigations carried out at each of the sites considered for the building of a nuclear power station and (b) ability of each site to dispose of the radioactive and thermal waste from the proposed reactor. [More…]
Secrecy shrouded every move in the proposed development of a nuclear power station at Jervis Bay. [More…]
The same secrecy, the same evasiveness, the half truths are still around now when we talk about nuclear power and the rnining and export of uranium. [More…]
Let me revert to 1969 because I think that many honourable members in this House and many people in the media ought to direct their attention back to the years between 1969 and 1972 to see just how consistent the Labor Party has been in its policies on nuclear energy in Australia. [More…]
I repeat that at no stage have we in our policies ever been opposed outright to the development of nuclear technology. [More…]
Because of the reluctance of the Government in 1969-70 to provide the community with information about nuclear technology at Jervis Bay I moved, during consideration of the estimates for the Department of National Development on 1 October 1970, the following amendment: [More…]
That the proposed expenditure be reduced by $10 as an instruction to the Government that a select committee of this House should be appointed to inquire into and report on the uses of nuclear power in relation to- [More…]
the effects of the establishment of a nuclear power station upon the environment; [More…]
the desirability of establishing a nuclear power station at this time pending the outcome of further technological developments taking place elsewhere. [More…]
This was an important debate-at least according to people it is an important debate now- on nuclear power and nuclear technology. [More…]
The Government cannot take the risk with nuclear technology that it is prepared to take. [More…]
The real reason that Prime Minister McMahon, the Prime Minister of the day, cancelled the project was that the experts- the same experts who are being quoted now in relation to the disposal of nuclear wastecould not decide on the type of reactor that was required; did not know what environmental effects it would have on Jervis Bay; had no idea where the waste was to be disposed of. [More…]
The project was cancelled for the very simple reason that nuclear technology was then, as it still is now, a dangerous concept. [More…]
The present Government is doing the same sort of thing in relation to nuclear energy. [More…]
I reiterate that at no stage has the Australian Labor Party been totally opposed to the development of nuclear technology, nor has it been opposed to the rnining or export of uranium. [More…]
We established the Fox inquiry in order to find out the dangers associated with the development of nuclear technology. [More…]
I ask honourable members opposite to answer me this question: Where do they intend to place the rubbish that comes from the nuclear reactors? [More…]
You are trying to scare the Australian nation into believing that it is unsafe to use simple atomic or nuclear reactors for energy. [More…]
I should say that honourable members opposite simply do not comprehend the change that has taken place in the nuclear world. [More…]
The Australian Labor Party has come forward and protested about nuclear reactors. [More…]
Since 1966 experiments have been conducted with regard to the disposal of nuclear waste. [More…]
If members of the Labor Party wanted to attack the world they would say that the nuclear authorities or agencies had failed to supervise the waste material sufficiently. [More…]
To pretend that the science of this world does not know about the control of nuclear waste is to show the most appalling ignorance. [More…]
Which honourable member has seen how the French deal with their nuclear waste? [More…]
The more I listen to honourable members opposite, the more I am convinced that they simply have not made any effort to study the way in which overseas countries deal with nuclear waste. [More…]
Could any honourable member opposite tell me what is the main way they deal with nuclear waste? [More…]
All they are interested in is trying to scare the pants off the Australian people into believing that the use of nuclear energy is a terrifying operation. [More…]
I know, they are saying that babies in 10 years dme will have 10 heads because someone has stood on a nuclear pile buried somewhere. [More…]
Firstly, there is the need to reduce the risk of nuclear proliferation. [More…]
There is, in my view, an inevitability that nuclear power generators will be needed at least between now and the end of this century if the developed world is to maintain its standard of living and if the under developed world is also to be developed. [More…]
I cannot be so idealistic, as much as I would like to be and as much as I applaud those who choose the alternative lifestyle, as to believe that developed people will voluntarily and peacefully allow their lifestyles to be reduced without enormous problems even though there are grave and risky costs for them in pursuing the nuclear path in order to obtain their benefits. [More…]
All these countries and more have a commitment to nuclear power. [More…]
There is a realisation that some of the grave problems have been taken too lightly in the headlong rush to nuclear development. [More…]
Certainly the international economic crisis which has overtaken the world and the increased technical problems associated with nuclear reactors have reduced the present demand for nuclear generated electric power. [More…]
It is my honest conviction that without some almost miraculous technological breakthrough which we cannot envisage at present, the increasing commitment to nuclear power will continue, although it Will slow down. [More…]
Only two parties campaigned at the last Swedish election for the termination of nuclear development- the Centre Party, formerly known as the Agrarian Party, and the Communist Party. [More…]
The Centre Party is now in power only because of the gains of the Swedish Liberal Party with which it is now in coalition and which did not oppose nuclear power. [More…]
But there is no immediate economic gain in any way in rushing headlong, without a pause, into nuclear development. [More…]
We want to prevent nuclear proliferation. [More…]
Most of us think that there is a regrettable inevitability about the development of nuclear power and most of us recognise the valuable economic benefits which can in the long run accrue from the successful development of all our mineral exports, not only uranium. [More…]
They relate to the likelihood of nuclear proliferation, to the inadequacies of high level plutonium waste disposal and to the dangers of terrorist activities in the transport of plutonium around this globe. [More…]
I do so in the hope that the Government will, in a responsible and proper manner, develop throughout Australia during the next decade a strong nuclear power industry. [More…]
The honourable member talked about nuclear power in the hands of the wrong people. [More…]
The honourable member for Adelaide (Mr Hurford) talked about making the planet a safer place and the development of the nuclear industry within Australia. [More…]
Nations that are well along the nuclear road include Argentina, Belgium, Bulgaria and Canada. [More…]
I went over one of the Canadian nuclear power stations at Lake Erie in 1969 when I was a member of an Australian parliamentary delegation to that country. [More…]
Other nations that are operating nuclear power stations include Czechoslovakia, France, West Germany, East Germany, India, Italy, Japan, The Netherlands, Pakistan, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. [More…]
Are these nations to be considered sinister because they are prepared to use nuclear power? [More…]
Countries like Austria, Brazil, Finland, Hungary, Mexico, the Republic of Korea and Taiwan have nuclear power reactors under construction. [More…]
I think it is a rational and reasonable thing to believe that these people, having decided to pursue the road to nuclear energy, Will conduct themselves in a responsible manner. [More…]
The mining and export of uranium means inevitably the proliferation of thermo-nuclear bombs. [More…]
The proliferation of thermo-nuclear bombs means inevitably the use of those bombs. [More…]
Acceptance of the process of uranium and of thermo-nuclear bombs, which are an inevitable part of it, is the ultimate insanity of human history. [More…]
There is no safe level below which we can be sure that cancer and mutations do not result from the nuclear process. [More…]
The nuclear process is involved in that, wherever people have been in close proximity to it, and cannot possibly be avoided. [More…]
It is the science which in the decontamination chambers and steel claws of nuclear power plants has finally dehumanised industry. [More…]
It is the science that will eventually justify the use of thermo-nuclear bombs. [More…]
How could one tolerate the acceptance of thermo-nuclear bombs as a legitimate means of defence? [More…]
Also it will be required to balance the nuclear component in electricity generation. [More…]
When was it decided that the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation should take place. [More…]
Mr Justice Fox’s primary role will be to represent Australia overseas in international endeavours to secure a strengthened nuclear non-proliferation regime. [More…]
He will represent the Government at international forums and in other initiatives dealing with nuclear nonproliferation and nuclear safeguards. [More…]
After the Inquiry completed its final report in May 1977, Mr Justice Fox, on my request, pursued inquiries overseas relating to nuclear non-proliferation and safeguards. [More…]
He has recently returned from this overseas visit during which he consulted more than 200 people representing overseas agencies and individual interests in various countries, amongst others the European Economic Community, Sweden, Austria, Brazil, the United States, Canada and Japan, regarding safeguards against nuclear weapons proliferation and has reported to me on those discussions. [More…]
I regard Mr Justice Fox’s advice as important in enabling the Government to pursue the most effective policy against the spread of nuclear weapons which is a matter of great international concern and the most effective arrangements to remove the international instability associated with the spread of sensitive nuclear technology. [More…]
It is clear from what he has told me that there is developing a greater international awareness of the importance of preventing proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
One of the most important is the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation which is being undertaken on the initiative of the President of the United States. [More…]
It will evaluate all parts of the present nuclear fuel cycle with the aim of strengthening technology against diversion of nuclear materials to weapons use. [More…]
It will also examine how the nuclear power industry might best be structured to procure this result and to operate in the safest possible manner. [More…]
Mr Justice Fox’s leadership will ensure that Australia will contribute to the International Fuel Cycle Evaluation to the maximum extent that its international position and technical expertise in nuclear matters will permit. [More…]
The appointment demonstrates the tremendous concern which the Government has for problems relating to nuclear weapons proliferation and its determination which I hope will be shared by all honourable gentlemen in this House to do everything possible to ensure the safest possible safeguards arrangements around the world. [More…]
by leave- It is important that Australia should be represented at the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation which is having its opening meeting later this month. [More…]
It is important that Australia should be represented at and should participate in all international conferences and efforts to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
Australia’s embassies make many and varied decisions in relation to various aspects of economic and financial trade matters, trade aid, human rights, international law and nuclear safeguards. [More…]
As I have indicated already, at the moment we have a number of important negotiations in train, including those concerned with the sugar agreement, access for beef, fishing zones, nuclear pokey and other trade areas. [More…]
1 ) Following a proposal made by President Carter in his statement on nuclear power policy on 7 April 1977 the Heads of Government of the United States, the United Kingdom, the Federal Republic of Germany, France, Italy, Japan and Canada decided at their meeting in London on 7-8 May 1977 to launch an urgent study to determine how best to fulfil the purposes of using nuclear energy to help meet the world’s energy requirements while reducing the risks of nuclear proliferation. [More…]
They decided that a preliminary analysis of this question should be undertaken and that this should include study of the terms of reference of an International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation. [More…]
Conzinc Riotinto knows that with the continuing world-wide cut-backs in the nuclear power industry, the real profits in the future will be from coal, not from uranium or nuclear power. [More…]
Has the Prime Minister seen, or been given a report on, a British Broadcasting Corporation film entitled The War Game shown to members of Parliament and staff last week which deals with the horrors of a nuclear attack and its aftermath and public apathy beforehand? [More…]
-The Government has always been active in international forums designed to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
I think it is worth noting that the Soviet Union in these particular matters continues to spend 12 per cent to 14 per cent of its gross national product on defence, not only for direct offensive weapons of a great variety but also for the construction in very large measure of strategic nuclear shelters for a large part of the Soviet population. [More…]
Now it wishes to add nuclear weapons to an already over-stocked arsenal. [More…]
This Bill was foreshadowed in the statement to Parliament by the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) on 6 October when he announced the Government’s decision to appoint Mr Justice Fox as Ambassador-at-Large, to represent Australia overseas in international endeavours to secure a strengthened nuclear non-proliferation regime. [More…]
It is a great pity that during the term of his appointment he will be unavailable for judicial service but his contribution towards our endeavours to secure a strengthened nuclear non-proliferation regime will, I am sure, more than make up for this. [More…]
-I ask the Treasurer whether he is aware that insurance policies have had incorporated in them since 1966 a nuclear exclusion clause which reads: [More…]
1 ) Nuclear weapons material. [More…]
Ionising radiations or contaminations by radioactivity from any nuclear fuel or from any nuclear waste from the combustion of nuclear fuel. [More…]
For the purpose of this exlusion only, combustion shall include any self-sustained process of nuclear fission. [More…]
Does this indicate that insurance companies have some reservations about the possibility of nuclear disaster? [More…]
Will the Government ensure that people’s property and more importantly their lives are covered should a nuclear accident occur? [More…]
I can well see the danger involved in exposing many of our parliamentarians to some of the scientists who try to push Parliament into spending large amounts of money on their particular interests at any particular time, whether it be solar energy, nuclear energy or whatever. [More…]
I feel that many of the comments that are made in the debates in this chamber on such issues as nuclear energy are, to put it at its lowest, highly debatable from a scientific point of view. [More…]
The most efficient machines of defence are, of course, nuclear but we are presently excluded from having them for a number of reasons which I will not canvass. [More…]
I am discounting the long range nuclear missile attacks because that is a different environment. [More…]
They are people who can see the dangers to their society and mankind that are the consequences of fuelling the nuclear industry and nuclear war. [More…]
-This Bill relates to His Honour Mr Justice Fox who has been appointed AmbassadoratLarge to assist the nation in respect of matters relating to nuclear energy and the proliferation of nuclear problems. [More…]
Britain today generates 1 1 per cent of its power from nuclear sources. [More…]
It was the first country in the world to embark on a nuclear power program. [More…]
First, the General Secretary of the Electronics Union in Britain, in supporting the development of Britain’s nuclear energy industry last month, said that death from starvation, cold and wars of conquest would be the fate of the world if energy supplies ran out. [More…]
If that is not good enough, honourable members should check with Joe Gormley, the British miners’ leader, who added that an anti-nuclear energy motion would ‘send us back to the jungle’. [More…]
It was not based on greed or the expansion of nuclear war, as is the Government ‘s uranium policy. [More…]
I have no doubt that the overwhelming majority of Australians would sooner have a government that was actively involved in this arena, arguing not only for the safety of Australia but for the safety of the world, than a government that pretended that these activities did not exist- that nuclear power for peaceful purposes did not exist- and pretended that it could just live a life on an island continent and ignore the rest of the world. [More…]
So, the Deputy Leader of the Opposition attacked him, tried to denigrate the safeguards policy of the United Kingdom and tried to denigrate the safety of the long and proven nuclear power for peaceful purposes program in the United Kingdom. [More…]
The suggestion that the British Government would secretly supply nuclear material to Israel to build a nuclear weapon is scurrilous in the extreme. [More…]
But to date no negotiations have been entered into on a bilateral agreement with Japan on the possibility of amending the existing nuclear co-operation agreement of 1 972. [More…]
In his speech at the planning conference for the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation program, the Ambassador-at-Large indicated that we would be exploring the possibility of the internationalisation- I think that was the word used-of reprocessing plants. [More…]
The implications for Australia’s policy on uranium production and nuclear safeguards of the views of Mr Justice Fox released yesterday. [More…]
There have been many doubts and heartbreakings about the nuclear energy program and the whole matter of the atom. [More…]
A nuclear war, if one should ever come, could destroy not just the whole fabric of our society but indeed the whole fabric of the world. [More…]
Unhappily there is now no watertight proposal which can prevent the possibility of nuclear war. [More…]
All we can do is reduce the probability of nuclear war. [More…]
That policy, which Mr Justice Fox said was now becoming ambiguous, had two main points: Firstly, the prohibition of the processing of the nuclear fuel from reactors and, secondly, the suspension of the program for what is known as fast breeders or power breeders which make more fuel than they consume. [More…]
First it is said that the Carter policy has been counterproductive because it is raising resentments among other countries which want to produce their own nuclear programs. [More…]
There is no doubt, as Mr Justice Fox has said in the conference which has been reported, that other countries are resentful of what the United States is doing and they think that this is spragging their own nuclear development and doing them harm. [More…]
If nuclear energy is denied to the world there will be an energy crisis and a starvation crisis and all the tensions which can lead to war. [More…]
Honourable members should not think for one moment that in the ultimate consequence there is no possibility of a nuclear weapon being drawn. [More…]
A policy which denies nuclear energy is a policy of making nuclear war. [More…]
I know that a number of wellintentioned but rather ill-informed people are going around saving that by cutting out a nuclear program of peaceful development some kind of security is being given against nuclear war. [More…]
The people who are against a nuclear program are in point of fact the warmongers, although their intentions in many respects may be good. [More…]
There is no restriction upon mining and supply of uranium which can give the slightest security against the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
-Before the suspension of the sitting I was saying that no denial of uranium would possibly prevent the dangers of the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
Furthermore, no attempt to stop the development of nuclear power will be in the slightest way effective in stopping the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
This is the dreadful danger which certainly overshadows every other kind of nuclear danger. [More…]
It is so much greater than any other nuclear danger that in comparison the others are really not worth talking about I remind the House that countries such as France, Communist China, South Africa and Israel, which are now believed to have nuclear weapons capacity, did not get that capacity in any way through nuclear power. [More…]
Indeed, if one is talking about nuclear weapons, one is not bound to plutonium. [More…]
I can assure the House that anybody who thinks that by stopping the mining of Australian uranium or by stopping the development of nuclear power he is thereby impeding the processes of proliferation of nuclear weapons is very much astray. [More…]
It is much more than that Those people are acting in a way which makes nuclear war more likely to occur. [More…]
They are perhaps a little foolish, thinking that they know more than they do, but what they are doing when they go out on a campaign to stop nuclear energy is making nuclear war more likely to occur. [More…]
If we deny to the world nuclear power, if we deny to it energy, we are going to have the tensions created by starvation and the elements that make for war. [More…]
I know- this report of Mr Justice Fox makes it very plain- that no system is or can be watertight in regard to nuclear material. [More…]
We have to think out the best system which gives us the best chance of avoiding nuclear war. [More…]
He says firstly that although the plans of President Carter are not without their doubts, difficulties and ambiguities, nevertheless we should try to make them work as far as possible and to help President Carter in his efforts to prevent nuclear weapon proliferation and prevent nuclear war. [More…]
Secondly, if we are to have a proper plan to give nuclear energy to those people who will starve without it- the world s population is doubling every 35 years- we will have to make available the necessary uranium for the nuclear energy program to proceed. [More…]
The plan is directed to what we want, namely, the security of the world from nuclear war. [More…]
If the kind of nonsense that has been spoken by the Opposition is allowed to proceed, all that will happen is that we will be putting the world into nuclear anarchy. [More…]
I agree with the remarks made by the honourable member for Mackellar, particularly when he said that a policy, I think he put it, of denying nuclear energy was a policy leading towards nuclear war. [More…]
To do so is to deny the reality that nuclear power is now adopted as a growing, major and significant force of energy in the world. [More…]
On Tuesday I quoted the General Secretary of the Electronics Union in Britain who, in supporting the development of Britain’s nuclear industry, said that death from starvation, cold and wars of conquest would be the fate of the world if energy supplies ran out. [More…]
Joe Gormley, the well known and oft quoted British miners’ leader said that an anti-nuclear energy motion would ‘send us back to the jungle’. [More…]
The Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) has said, nevertheless, that the wider the consensus amongst nuclear supplying and nuclear importing countries concerning controls to apply to the world nuclear industry, the more effective these controls will be. [More…]
We have never said that we live in the perfect nuclear world. [More…]
There is no doubt that United States policy has already made extremely important headway with the opening of the international nuclear fuel cycle evaluation program- a major Carter initiative to which we are contributing and in which we are playing an active role. [More…]
-The nuclear debate is of extreme importance. [More…]
He referred to Egypt, Iran, Pakistan, India, Argentina and the Philippines, all of which in my view want to have their own nuclear power stations and do what they want with the by-products of those stations with no restrictions whatsoever including in some cases acquiring nuclear weapons. [More…]
Let us look at the phoney approach of the Fraser Government to contracts with Britain and the phoney Fraser Government so-called nuclear safeguards. [More…]
The nuclear safeguards policy which the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) announced on 24 May has already been shot to pieces. [More…]
It provides that in bilateral agreements between Australia and countries importing uranium the Australian government shall insist that any reprocessing of nuclear material supplied by Australia should take place only with the consent of the Australian Government. [More…]
There have been no new orders to power stations, nuclear or otherwise, in the United Kingdom for at least five years and there are unlikely to be any for several years in the future. [More…]
Let us look at the question of reduced nuclear power demand. [More…]
Over the past decade official expectations of the contribution that nuclear energy will make to world energy consumption for the rest of this century have been moving steadily downwards. [More…]
For example, at page 46 of the first Ranger report, using August 1976 figures, it is predicted that for the OECD countries, at least 400,000 megawatts of electricity would be nuclear generated by 1987. [More…]
In January 1977 the OECD’s World Energy Outlook gave a comparable projection of 325,000 megawatts of nuclear generated electricity in 1985. [More…]
In other words, there has been a decline of 44 per cent in the projected 1985 levels of nuclear generated power in a period of less than one year. [More…]
This decline in nuclear generated electricity projections must continue. [More…]
We are concerned about the many unresolved problems that now exist within the nuclear fuel cycle world. [More…]
The first two paragraphs of the Labor Party’s policy on uranium state that we recognise that the provision of Australian uranium to the world nuclear fuel cycle creates problems relevant to Australian sovereignty, the environment, the economic welfare of our people, and the rights and well-being of the Aboriginal people. [More…]
Labor believes that, having regard to the present unresolved economic, social, biological, genetic, environmental and technical problems associated with the mining of uranium, the development of nuclear power should not continue at this stage. [More…]
The implications for Australia’s policy on uranium production and nuclear safeguards of the views of Mr Justice Fox released yesterday. [More…]
In Australia there appears to be little possibility of generating electricity from nuclear power before 1990. [More…]
At present, neither the Commonwealth nor the State governments and their instrumentalities have any intentions to proceed to nuclear electricity generation. [More…]
New South Wales, Victoria, and Queensland have abundant reserves of low cost coal, and as yet nuclear generation cannot be justified on economic grounds. [More…]
Of course there were issues which could have justified inquiries- the Concorde coming to Australia, the wood chip industry on the South Coast of New South Wales, the nuclear powered warship or submarine coining to Australian waters and the Omega base in Victoria. [More…]
I wanted to see that the world would sieze the opportunity for nuclear disarmament before proliferation. [More…]
Now we wait for the hatching of that dreadful nuclear egg and we wonder what will come out of it. [More…]
How many nuclear facilities are in operation in each member-country of the European Community? [More…]
European Communities Information Research and Development pamphlet 9/77 states that in 1976 there were the following numbers of nuclear installations in the civil nuclear industries of the nine member States of the European Atomic Energy Community (EURATOM): 35 preparation and frabrication plants 71 power reactors 117 research reactors 13 reprocessing plants 211 research centres, laboratories, stores, enrichment plants and others. [More…]
The figures for the numbers of nuclear installations are at present available publicly only on a European Communities basis, rather than on a national basis, because of the role of the [More…]
European Atomic Energy Community in relation to the nuclear industries in the nine member States. [More…]
The subsidiary arrangements, including facility attachments, to be concluded under the Safeguards Agreement, define the technical procedures for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to implement its safeguards on a permanent basis in the seven non-nuclear-weapon States of the European Atomic Energy Community. [More…]
Pending finalisation of the subsidiary arrangements, the IAEA is applying safeguards to nuclear facilities in the seven non-nuclear-weapon States of the European Atomic Energy Community by means of ad hoc safeguards inspections under the terms of the Safeguards Agreement [More…]
As I said on 22 July, the Government wants to see early resolution of the subsidiary arrangements between the European Atomic Energy Community authorities, the national Governments of the seven non-nuclear-weapon States that are members of the Community and the International Atomic Energy Agency. [More…]
Instead, the Government seems dazzled by the grand salesmanship of the multi-national giants who stand to lose thousands of millions of dollars if nuclear power development continues to be delayed, as it has been recently by President Carter who is awaiting further assurances of safety and economy. [More…]
These super salesmen have sold the Government the idea that it is its duty to developing nations to promote this highly monopolised, this administratively tyrannical alternative to nuclear power, but in fact it is the most developed, the most centralised and industrialised nations which are planning this technology and have started to use it for their own advanced economies. [More…]
I suppose a few people might have noticed that a satellite driven by nuclear power came down in Canada. [More…]
How many people in Australia actually noted that a satellite driven by nuclear power came down in Canada? [More…]
Did any members of the Opposition rush to the Russian Embassy and say: ‘I say, trade unions and all the rest of it; you are actually putting into outer space nuclear-powered satellites without our knowing ‘. [More…]
Was any protest made throughout the nation at the Soviet Union actually having in outer space a satellite driven by nuclear power? [More…]
The Chinese take nuclear war very seriously indeed. [More…]
In Melbourne I went aboard the Jeanne d’Arc which is a French assault boat- I suppose nuclear. [More…]
The honourable member for Holt, in what I referred to as unfair criticism of the Soviet Union in this chamber yesterday, said such things as: ‘I hear no member of the Opposition protesting to the Soviet Embassy in connection with the Soviet nuclear powered satellite which came down in Canada’. [More…]
I am pleased, and I believe that every honourable member of the House should be pleased that the Russian satellite that came down in Canada caused no harm by way of nuclear contamination. [More…]
He emphasised as long as he was here the security of Australia and more recently he was as much responsible as anybody here for making nuclear energy and everything associated with it far more acceptable to the people here and to people outside this place. [More…]
There is also the Campaign Against Nuclear Energy. [More…]
In my own State where there is unemployment as a result of the closure of certain nickel mines due to world conditions there is a possibility of some of those unemployed people being employed in the same area with a pilot uranium plant, but we find that the Campaign Against Nuclear Energy is organising to smash, to stop and to destroy this project completely. [More…]
Most honourable members will remember the problems that arose recently in New Zealand as a consequence of a visit to that country by a United States of America nuclear vessel. [More…]
-This week a British Government inquiry recommended that a major nuclear fuel reprocessing plant should be built at Windscale. [More…]
British Nuclear Fuels Ltd has acknowledged the decision as ‘a complete vindication of our proposals ‘. [More…]
These proposals, in fact, are based on an interest in $ 1,500m worth of nuclear fuel reprocessing contracts from Europe and Japan. [More…]
As elsewhere, commerical interests take priority in the nuclear industry. [More…]
As far as Australia is concerned, this recommendation is another nail in the coffin of attempts to control the spread of plutonium and the potential to make nuclear weapons. [More…]
If the inquiry’s recommendation is accepted by the British Government, it will undermine current attempts to assert multilateral control of the dangerous aspects of nuclear power. [More…]
The International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation still has several years to run before firm conclusions are reached about methods to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons via the nuclear energy industry. [More…]
Clearly, any British decision to go ahead with this part of the nuclear fuel cycle will seriously undermine whatever goodwill and good intentions remain in regard to the strengthening of nuclear safeguards. [More…]
The evidence presented to the Windscale inquiry illustrated just how serious a problem is posed by the so-called ‘peaceful’ nuclear industry. [More…]
The technical circumstances surrounding the possible establishment of a nuclear fuel reprocessing plant in Britain are also serious. [More…]
We on this side of the Parliament will maintain our opposition to the nuclear industry, surrounded as it is with unresolved environmental and security problems. [More…]
-I refer the Prime Minister to the announcement last week that the inquiry in the United Kingdom headed by Mr Justice Parker has recommended in favour of the establishment of a nuclear fuel reprocessing plant at Winscales. [More…]
I ask the Prime Minister whether a decision by Great Britain to implement this proposal would seriously undermine the current international nuclear fuel cycle evaluation discussions in which Australia is a participant and which are expected to continue for several years. [More…]
In comparison with federal expenditure on nuclear energy research, for example, funding of solar energy research is scandalously inadequate. [More…]
Nuclear technology in the United States has had 25 years intensive development under enormous government subsidy to reach the point where it can build commercially viable reactors to produce electricity which is anyway competitive in an economic sense, whereas solar energy has, with only a few years subsidy, at a fraction of that provided by the government for nuclear technology, improved from its position of a little over a decade ago where it was thought capable of fulfilling only a few per cent of energy requirements, at 10 times the cost, to the stage where it can now clearly produce the major proportion of heating requirements at costs which are competitive and may soon fall below the costs of electrical heating. [More…]
These conditions related to proliferation, terrorism, safeguards in relation to nuclear weapons, the existence of proven safe ways of disposal and/or storage of radioactive wastes, environmental concerns and the rights of Aborigines. [More…]
In his statement on signing the Bill into law, President Carter left absolutely no doubt as to the importance of nuclear power as a source of energy for the United States and for other countries. [More…]
At the same time he emphasised, as the Australian Government has continuously emphasised, the imperative need to press ahead in efforts against nuclear weapons proliferation. [More…]
He referred to the importance of adequate nuclear fuel supplies for countries accepting non-proliferation and safeguards requirements. [More…]
As succinctly as possible, the Act gives a central role to encouraging universal adherence to the Non-Proliferation Treaty, lt specifies conditions that will be required for nuclear exports from the United States. [More…]
These include, of course, the application of International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards of indefinite duration and cover all peaceful nuclear activities in nonnuclear weapon states, the prohibition of nuclear explosive uses, the maintenance of adequate physical security, and United States consent to re-transfer, et cetera. [More…]
The United States will be renegotiating its existing bilateral agreements with customers for its nuclear exports to incorporate the tighter conditions provided for in the legislation. [More…]
Our own negotiating position will be strengthened by the shared aims of our two governments in this important area of nuclear safeguards. [More…]
He pointed to the guidelines established by the nuclear suppliers group and to the commencement of the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation. [More…]
-I direct my question to the Minister for Foreign Affairs and refer him to a Press report on 5 April in which the outgoing Australian Ambassador to the Philippines, Mr Nutter, was quoted as saying that a nuclear safeguards agreement with the Philippines is near completion. [More…]
I ask: Is it a fact that negotiations with the Philippines on nuclear safeguards fail to recognise the need to ensure safety in the location of the reactors? [More…]
To how many other countries has Australia referred nuclear safeguard agreements? [More…]
The policy imposes stringent conditions on the sale of uranium to ensure that it is not diverted to nuclear weapons. [More…]
The questions of proliferation of nuclear weapons, the risk of diversion of nuclear materials from peaceful uses and the problem of safe disposal of radioactive wastes were considered. [More…]
The opportunity is also being taken to strengthen and clarify the legislative basis for the application of nuclear safeguards within Australia in accordance with the agreement between the International Atomic Energy Agency and Australia in connection with the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. [More…]
I now turn to the matter of nuclear safeguards. [More…]
As all honourable members would be aware, Australia ratified the Treaty on the NonProliferation of Nuclear Weapons on 23 January 1973. [More…]
By ratifying this most important international instrument, Australia undertook, amongst other things, not to manufacture or acquire nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices and to accept safeguards applied by the International Atomic Energy Agency covering all nuclear material in all peaceful nuclear activities within Australia, under our jurisdiction or carried out anywhere under our control. [More…]
Accordingly, and pursuant to the Treaty, Australia subsequently entered into an agreement with the IAEA for the application of nuclear safeguards in Australia. [More…]
The legislative base for the control of nuclear materials in Australia is Part III of the Atomic Energy Act 1953, headed ‘Control of Materials’. [More…]
This Part of the Act gives the Minister power to control nuclear material and the Act provides for regulations to be made to that end. [More…]
At present, all nuclear material which is required to be inspected by the IAEA is located within the Atomic Energy Commission. [More…]
Furthermore, following the announcement by the Prime Minister on 24 May 1977 of Australia’s policy on nuclear safeguards to apply to exports of Australian uranium, Australia will be entering into government to government bilateral agreements with customer countries. [More…]
Section 38 of the Act presently provides that the regulations may prohibit or authorise the prohibition of certain activities in relation to nuclear materials, except under and in accordance with a licence. [More…]
The object of this Bill is to establish mechanisms for protecting the health and safety of the people of Australia, and the environment, from possible harmful effects of nuclear activities in Australia. [More…]
We noted particularly the very specialised nature of the nuclear industry, the likelihood of potential hazards involved in the nuclear fuel cycle and the limited extent of the nuclear industry in Australia at present. [More…]
After considering all these factors carefully, the Government decided to regulate and control nuclear activities in Australia by codes of practice and to legislate to enable such codes to be approved following consultation with the States and the [More…]
It will enable governments to ensure that the nuclear industry in Australia is so regulated as to afford the utmost protection to the people and the environment. [More…]
They include standards to be observed, practices and procedures to be followed, and other measures, such as licensing and supervision, relating to nuclear activities. [More…]
I should emphasise that this legislation is concerned with the health and safety of people, and the environment, as distinct from safeguards, the purpose of which is to ensure that nuclear material in peaceful use is not diverted to nonpeaceful purposes or to nuclear weapons. [More…]
We have established a national system of accounting for and controlling nuclear material as required by the Non-Proliferation Treaty and by our safeguards agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency. [More…]
Clause 11 authorises the making of regulations, to carry out, give effect to, or secure the observance of, the code in a State or Territory where, in the opinion of the Governor-General, the law of that State or Territory does not regulate or control nuclear activities in the manner prescribed in the code of practice. [More…]
Should an unforeseen situation arise as a result of a nuclear activity, which is not regulated or controlled by a Commonwealth, State or Territory law, and which is likely to affect health, safety or the environment, the GovernorGeneral will have power, under clause 13 of the Bill, to authorise the appropriate Federal Minister to act to control hazards associated with the situation. [More…]
Orders made under the provisions of this clause have effect only in relation to situations likely to affect health and safety, or the environment, that arise from nuclear activities, as denned in the Bill. [More…]
Mr Deputy Speaker, I do want to stress that the provisions of clause 13 apply only when no Commonwealth, State or Territory law exists to control a potentially hazardous situation arising from nuclear activity, as denned in this legislation. [More…]
It is responsible environmental legislation that will provide for the development of protection measures in respect to nuclear activities in Australia. [More…]
The function of the Uranium Advisory Council shall be to advise the Minister for Trade and Resources with regard to the export and use of Australian uranium, having in mind in particular the possible hazards, dangers and problems of and associated with the production of nuclear energy; and the development of the uranium mining industry in Australia, including exploration. [More…]
Australian uranium industry; a nuclear scientist; a medical practitioner or health physicist; an environmentalist with experience in natural resource development; an economist with experience in natural resource development; and an expert in national and international affairs or law. [More…]
In reaching our decisions on uranium development we had special regard to the issues of nuclear non-proliferation and world energy requirements. [More…]
As regards the former, it is very clear that only by developing our vast uranium resources can Australia play a real role in strengthening nuclear safeguards and preventing any ill-considered rush to plutonium based energy systems. [More…]
Only as a major potential exporter of uranium is Australia in a position to command attention and exert influence in the direction of more stringent nuclear safeguards systems. [More…]
The United States of America, Canada and other nuclear supplier countries have in recent times taken initiatives to strengthen nuclear safeguards. [More…]
Australia, in its position as a major potential uranium exporter, strongly supports such nuclear non-proliferation and safeguards initiatives. [More…]
For Australia to achieve progress in the direction of more stringent nuclear safeguards in such negotiations, it needs to be abundantly clear that we intend to develop our nuclear resources and play a positive and active role in international nuclear developments. [More…]
Australia’s standing in international nuclear forums also has been enhanced by our decision to proceed with development. [More…]
The International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation is a major international initiative in regard to nuclear nonproliferation and the use of nuclear power for peaceful purposes. [More…]
Mr Justice Fox, Australia’s Ambassador- At-Large on Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Safeguards, is fully engaged in Australia’s effort at INFCE. [More…]
Australia has been elected to the very important position of Co-Chairman of Working Group 3 of INFCE dealing with the major questions of fuel supply assurances in the context of nuclear nonproliferation. [More…]
In addition to the contribution Australia is making at INFCE, we also have participated for the first time in a working group under the auspices of the Nuclear Suppliers’ Group on the subject of multi-labelling. [More…]
The Nuclear Suppliers’ Group brings together 15 of the world’s major nuclear exporting countries. [More…]
It has developed common guidelines for the safeguards to be applied to nuclear exports, and Australia has accepted these guidelines. [More…]
The invitation to Australia to join the working group on multilabelling is a further recognition of our increased significance in international nuclear affairs. [More…]
In the wake of the world energy crisis many countries have no viable alternative energy source other than nuclear power. [More…]
Already nuclear energy is a fact of life in many countries and there are firm commitments and proposals to install nuclear capacity on an increasingly significant scale so as to provide urgently needed supplies of electrical energy. [More…]
There are now 194 nuclear power units operating in 2 1 countries with a capacity of over 95,000 megawatts of electricty. [More…]
There are 213 nuclear power units under construction in 27 countries. [More…]
This means that nuclear power units with a total generating capacity of 388,000 megawatts are either in operation, under construction or on firm order in 34 countries throughout the world. [More…]
This is a total of 814 nuclear power units in operation, under construction, on firm order or planned. [More…]
There is a significant potential demand for Australian uranium to fuel the existing and planned nuclear energy requirements of other countries. [More…]
This is underlined in recent reports of the Nuclear Energy Agency of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. [More…]
The Nuclear Energy Agency estimates that world uranium reserves, including those of Australia, are 2.145 million short tons and that the cumulative demand to 1997 is 2.3 million short tons. [More…]
Since the announcement of Australia ‘s decision to proceed with further uranium development a number of countries, including the United Kingdom, the Philippines, the United States, West Germany, France, Finland and Japan, have registered their desire to secure uranium from Australia for their nuclear power programs. [More…]
Australia’s involvement in the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation is not a policy. [More…]
There is no expose by the Minister of the Nuclear Suppliers’ Group guidelines which he now says the Government has accepted. [More…]
Waste disposal is a major stumbling block to the development of nuclear power in the world. [More…]
It is one which gives members on this side of the House most concern about the course of nuclear power. [More…]
In the United States some States are considering the passage of legislation- some may already have passed it; my memory may not serve me correctly on this- to prohibit the further expansion of nuclear power in those States until the problem of waste disposal is solved. [More…]
Only one person that the Minister mentioned as being a member of the Uranium Advisory Council would seem to have any qualifications whatsoever to deal with the question of nuclear safeguards and arms control legislation and limitation. [More…]
If one goes through the list one sees mentioned the Australian religious community, the Aboriginal community, a national voluntary environmental organisation, the Northern Territory community, the Australian Council of Trade Unions, a person with experience in energy matters, the Australian uranium industry, a nuclear scientist, a medical practitioner or health physicist, an environmentalist with experience in natural resource development, an economist with experience in natural resource development, an expert in national and international affairs or law. [More…]
The last person mentioned would be the only person which we could in any way believe to be qualified to deal with other countries on the question of arms control and the development of nuclear safeguards and enshrining those, either in multilateral agreements or with Australia in bilateral agreements. [More…]
I will now deal with the question of the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation. [More…]
That part of the Minister’s speech dealing with the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation entirely misled the Parliament. [More…]
Participation in the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation means nothing in itself. [More…]
Our participation as an observer in the Nuclear Suppliers Group Working Party on multiple labelling is an activity but it is not a policy. [More…]
The Minister mentioned the Nuclear Suppliers Group but there is no articulation by him of the kind of guidelines to which he says the Government has agreed. [More…]
The Minister’s assessment is unrealistic and, by his own admission, it includes 307 nuclear power stations which are presently at the planning stage. [More…]
Given the fall away of growth in the gross national product in the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development countries, as well as the problems of siting nuclear power stations and the environmental backlash against them, it is very likely that those projections will not be met. [More…]
The Australian Atomic Energy Commission has forecast a drop of 36 per cent in world demand for Australian uranium because of delays and revisions to nuclear power programs. [More…]
We have also supported the International Atomic Energy Agency proposal for a convention requiring States to take strong action against any crime including terrorist activity, involving nuclear materials or facilities. [More…]
The Government is particularly concerned to see the Special Session promote nuclear arms control objectives, in particular the strengthening of the non-proliferation regime and the achievement of a comprehensive nuclear test ban treaty. [More…]
Is he aware of the results of studies by Dr Thomas Mancuso and Dr Alice Stewart on the medical records of United States nuclear industry employees? [More…]
As has been noted in an Australian Financial Review article, Iran is a party to the Treaty on the Nonproliferation of Nuclear Weapons. [More…]
Iran has a safeguards agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency covering all of its nuclear activities. [More…]
This is the latest in a series of negotiations with other countries on nuclear safeguards. [More…]
-The two most serious problems in the nuclear fuel cycle with which the Australian Labor Party is concerned relate to the disposal of nuclear waste and the impossibility at the present time for the Australian Government to ensure that Australian uranium will not be used in the manufacture of nuclear weapons. [More…]
It stated that there are some 265 million gallons of high-level liquid waste from the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel. [More…]
I repeat: There is no known way to dispose of nuclear waste. [More…]
Ten million years is quite a long time, probably longer than nuclear waste would remain harmful to human life, but we certainly are talking about a period of some half a million years. [More…]
This is the type of geological situation in which honourable members on the other side of the chamber tell us nuclear waste can be stored for half a million years. [More…]
In the final few minutes available to me I wish to speak about the other matter that I raised earlier, that of the prevention of the use of AusTralian uranium to proliferate nuclear weapons. [More…]
It is said that we will sell only to countries which have signed the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, which have accepted the International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards procedures and with whom we have reached a bilateral agreement and that the present nuclear nations will be required not to use Australian uranium to manufacture weapons. [More…]
The point I am making about the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty is that any nation can bale out of it on three months’ notice. [More…]
There are in the words of the Deputy Prime Minister (Mr Anthony) ‘194 nuclear power units operating in 21 countries’. [More…]
According to the IAEA reports, instruments are located at key points in the country’s nuclear fuel cycle and the results are compared with that country’s accounting records. [More…]
Because of that shortfall, the Department of Energy, the socialist brothers of the Opposition, has only one conclusion to make, and that is that nuclear electricity generation is the only alternative to make up that shortfall in the next 25 years. [More…]
The Government has failed to separate the contradictory roles assigned to the Australian Atomic Energy Commission with respect to nuclear safeguards. [More…]
Nothing has happened in Australia or overseas of late that can provide any comfort to those concerned with the problems of nuclear powerquite the contrary. [More…]
Reports from the United States General Accounting Office last September, from a task force which reviewed nuclear waste management for the United States Department of Energy in February and from the United States Congress Sub-Committee on Environment, Energy and National Resources, have all reiterated in the strongest possible terms the absence of technical and regulatory procedures for satisfactorily dealing with high level radioactive waste. [More…]
As far as nuclear diversion is concerned, no progress has been reported towards overcoming this problem. [More…]
In fact, in February of this year the Chairman of the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission wrote: the International Atomic Energy Agency Special Safeguards Implementation Report indicated that a country’s agreement to subject its nuclear activities to IAEA safeguards does not necessarily assure that adequate material control and accounting measures are applied in all cases. [More…]
It is therefore possible, that the NRC could approve the export of nuclear materials to countries in which the IAEA is having implementation problems without the NRC knowing it. [More…]
Thirdly, there have been plenty of initiatives, plenty of proposals, but no guarantees that we are rid of the problem of nuclear weapons proliferation. [More…]
The International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation- the Carter Initiativehas several years to run before any reports are due. [More…]
Meanwhile, the decisions and recommendations in favour of uranium reprocessing in European countries, the refusal of France and West Germany to reconsider the sale of reprocessing technologies, the refusal of India to ratify the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty all undermine the INFCE talks. [More…]
The nuclear industry has done little of late to put its house in order. [More…]
The Bill provides no recognition of the gravity of the nuclear problem, other than to provide ibr the premature development of Australia ‘s uranium deposits. [More…]
Uranium mined and exported under the authority of this Act during the 1950s and 1960s was destined for nuclear weapons use. [More…]
The Act also enables the AAEC to conduct nuclear research, both for civilian and military purposes. [More…]
Nuclear weapons are condemned by both sides of this House. [More…]
The amendments proposed in this Bill to section 34 of the Act specifically include reference to Australia’s nuclear safeguards obligations. [More…]
Only a Government completely insensitive to international and Australian public concern about nuclear proliferation could propose in 1 978 the establishment of such a blatant conflict of interests. [More…]
Clearly, there should be a separate statutory authority to administer nuclear safeguards, as has been the case in the United States now for 3 years. [More…]
Both the Atomic Energy Act and the associated Approved Defence Projects Protection Act could be used in a heavy-handed attempt by the Government to repress the opposition to uranium mining and to stifle public discussion of the hazards, dangers and unresolved problems of the nuclear industry. [More…]
The Commission would retain its authority to engage in uranium and nuclear energy research, development and exploitation for defence purposes. [More…]
This part concerns the control of materials related to nuclear energy, that is, ‘prescribed substances’. [More…]
The Minister, in his second reading speech has explained the second of these by pointing out the need to ensure that exports of Australian uranium are covered by adequate nuclear safeguards. [More…]
The Bill serves to worsen rather than to relieve the contradictions concerning the involvement of the Commission by making it the agency effectively responsible for nuclear safeguards. [More…]
The Government has taken a responsible attitude to follow through the safeguards and the obligations of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
As the circumstances now exist within Australia we are fulfilling completely the obligations of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
The Opposition seems to be putting forward the proposition that while Australia need not agree with or observe the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty, we should impose its requirements upon other countries. [More…]
Surely honourable members opposite cannot seriously argue that we should not fulfil the obligations of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in the way in which uranium is handled. [More…]
I wish to bring to the attention of the House the closing remarks made by Sigvard Eklund, the Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, at the International Conference on Nuclear Power and its Dual Cycle. [More…]
I feel that we also share the responsibility for having failed to convey to the peoples of the world the message that nuclear energy represents no larger, and indeed often smaller, risks than many other technologies that have been accepted by modern society. [More…]
The Comecon countries- the bloc of communist countries in Europe- intend to pursue nuclear power as an energy source. [More…]
It is very clear that only by developing our vast uranium resources can Australia play a real role in strengthening nuclear safeguards and preventing any ill-considered rush to plutonium based energy systems. [More…]
We were profoundly disturbed at what that inquiry found- the complete lack of any method of permanently disposing of long-lived radioactive wastes, ineffective technical and institutional means of preventing the civilian atom becoming the military atom, and the frightening prospects of nuclear terrorism. [More…]
Over the past year fundamental problems have continued to beset the nuclear industry. [More…]
Why has the Government not demanded similar provisions for the safe, permanent disposal of nuclear wastes? [More…]
Questions surrounding the permanent disposition of nuclear wastes have not yet been resolved. [More…]
Last September, the United States General Accounting Office reported that it had found: gaps in Federal laws and regulations governing the storage and disposal of nuclear waste; geological uncertainties and natural resources trade-offs encountered when selecting ‘ permanent ‘ disposal locations; overly optimistic schedules for demonstrating the safety of . [More…]
In February this year, the report of a United States Department of Energy task force which reviewed nuclear waste management made it clear that current United Sates plans for waste disposal needed revision, and that the necessary technical data did not exist to enable the safe ultimate disposal of reactor wastes. [More…]
Just three weeks ago, the Environment, Energy and Natural Resources Sub-Committee of the United States Congress published its findings on the costs of nuclear power. [More…]
neither the Federal Government nor the nuclear industry has prepared reliable cost estimates for the ultimate disposal and perpetual care of radioactive wastes and spent nuclear fuel. [More…]
Only four days after these facts were made known, the Government of California rejected a proposal to build a large nuclear reactor because its wastes could not be safely dealt with. [More…]
With childlike innocence it still offers nuclear power- fuelled by Australian uranium- as a universal panacea. [More…]
By May 1977, the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission was predicting for 1985 a nuclear capacity only 60 per cent of that predicted in March 1976. [More…]
Unofficial projections made last May by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development of nuclear capacity by 1985 were just over half those given to the Ranger inquiry in 1976. [More…]
The optimistic nuclear estimates of the Australian Atomic Energy Commission, produced in its latest annual report, are one-sixth down on the estimates it made for the Ranger inquiry, only a year earlier. [More…]
This is the reality of the nuclear power industry. [More…]
The OECD ‘s world energy outlook gives four reasons for the international community’s diminishing enthusiasm for nuclear power. [More…]
From the point of view of cost, the best that can be said is that sometimes in some places, nuclear electricity is marginally cheaper than coal and oil fired electricity, provided- and this is an important proviso- the costs of nuclear waste disposal, nuclear reactor decommissioning and perpetual care, all of which are unknowns, are ignored. [More…]
Put quite simply, nuclear power has failed to live up to the promises made on its behalf. [More…]
The first Fox report confronted me, as it did all Australians, with the very real possibility that Australian uranium could well end up as nuclear weapons in the hands of other governments or terrorists. [More…]
How then can this Government, in the words of the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) during last year’s election campaign, ‘guarantee that Australian uranium will not end up in nuclear weapons’. [More…]
Evidence given to the British Windscale inquiry last September by a consultant to the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission revealed that the United States has successfully exploded a device using this material. [More…]
But in February this year the Chairman of the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission, in a letter to the US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, said the Commission could not adequately assess the effectiveness of safeguards and security measures in countries to which the US sent nuclear materials. [More…]
These provisions exist only because the Act was framed to cover uranium mining and nuclear research with military motivations. [More…]
It was framed during the Cold War when it was more acceptable to promote the military use of nuclear power. [More…]
Furthermore, the Government plans not only to continue with the Austraiian Atomic Energy Commission as a partner in the Ranger venture, but also to strengthen the role of the Commission in the development and administration of nuclear safeguards. [More…]
The two functions were separated in the United States three years ago, with the division of the United States Atomic Energy Commission into the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Energy Research and Development Administration. [More…]
The promotion and regulation of nuclear power present a conflict of interest if undertaken by the same body. [More…]
If the Government does intend to get into these fields, and thus make it more difficult for Australia to withdraw from the nuclear industry in the future, it should say so now. [More…]
The Government has been altogether too coy about whether it plans to establish a hexaflouride conversion plant and an enrichment plant in Australia, and thereby lead Australia even more deeply into the nuclear industry from which retreat would become impossible. [More…]
It is much less sensitive to the need for a sound, safe nuclear policy. [More…]
The protagonists of the slogan ‘Solar not Nuclear’ are dealing in fiction not facts. [More…]
I explain by saying that when the heavy elements break down in fission they give out energy, as in a nuclear power station. [More…]
The several areas that the Opposition is concerned with are environment, Aboriginal land rights, radiation hazards, nuclear explosions, terrorist activity and waste disposal. [More…]
The opposition to uranium did not tell us that coal-fired power stations give off radioactivity which has a longer life than the emission from nuclear power stations. [More…]
Nor did they tell us that there is more radioactivity in whisky, milk, salad oil and tap water than there is from nuclear power stations. [More…]
Compare this with sitting alongside a nuclear reactor for 10 years. [More…]
The Opposition has endeavoured to make the word nuclear synonymous with bomb. [More…]
A nuclear explosion in a nuclear power station is absolutely impossible- I repeat, absolutely impossible. [More…]
For a bomb or nuclear explosion one needs U235 enrichment to 90 per cent. [More…]
No one would worry about separating U235 from the rods of a nuclear power plant and concentrating them. [More…]
India made a nuclear device but not from material obtained from its power station. [More…]
The Swedish defence department estimates that it takes between 30 and 40 high calibre experts many years and an expenditure of millions of dollars to produce a nuclear bomb. [More…]
For some years there have been isolated calls for the elimination of nuclear power stations, just as there is still the odd call to replace motor cars with rickshaws or horse-drawn vehicles. [More…]
He stated that we claim that the nuclear industry is synonomous with the bomb. [More…]
The nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of nuclear war. [More…]
I wish to goodness that honourable members opposite would stop pushing out their pious propaganda and understand the connection of nuclear weapons with the nuclear industry. [More…]
They are to commit Australia’s uranium to the world nuclear fuel cycle; to mine and sell off the uranium as quickly as possible; and to control the growing Australian opposition to uranium mining. [More…]
This Government does not give a damn about the dangers associated with nuclear power. [More…]
It does not give a damn about the growing and frightening risk of nuclear war that is part and parcel of the spread of nuclear energy generation facilities, which is spelt out in the third finding on page 185 of the first Fox report. [More…]
Of course, this Government has been under pressure from nuclear reactor manufacturers, particularly the Westinghouse Corporation and the General Electric organisation. [More…]
The Government does not give a damn that one of the customers it is courting at present- the Philippines- has come by its nuclear reactor by very dubious means and has located that reactor in the Philippines at very close proximity to four active volcanoes. [More…]
It rather likes the idea that the sovereignty of the Australian people is threatened by tying Australia into the world nuclear fuel cycle, which is controlled at its key points by ruthless commercial and political interests which do not hesitate to move into countries and to crush popular opposition to their commercial ambitions. [More…]
The rank and file members of the Labor Party all over Australia have expressed their concern about the unresolved problems of uranium mining and nuclear power. [More…]
They know that there is no way that we can be sure that Australian uranium, once it leaves the ground, will not find its way to a nuclear weapon during the 250,000 years fife of the plutonium it contains. [More…]
It is clear to President Marcos, to his Atomic Energy Commission and to the Westinghouse Corporation that they should not count on Australian uranium to fuel their reactors or to fuel their other ambitions over the 30-year life of a nuclear power facility. [More…]
We heard him claim that nuclear power is essential to meet the world energy needs and that no alternative sources of energy exist. [More…]
Several years ago I said that the world was crazy to go nuclear when coal was available . [More…]
Moreover, in 1974 the Labor Government had not looked in depth at all aspects of the commitment of Australia’s uranium to the world nuclear fuel cycle. [More…]
Opposition to nuclear power has grown enormously in Australia. [More…]
The answer lies in the extremely repressive provisions of that Act, drawn up in the climate of the Cold War when the allies were still developing their nuclear weapons strategy. [More…]
It wants to make a mockery of the regulations of the uranium industry by putting the Australian Atomic Energy Commission in charge of the regulation of uranium mining while at the same time it is clearly very active in promoting things nuclear. [More…]
They want to construct nuclear-fired power stations throughout their country in order to prevent this great problem. [More…]
Indeed, in the history of uranium use throughout the world, including the manufacture of nuclear weapons, there has been a known loss of only three lives and that was in the United States of America. [More…]
For the last 2 1 years America has had nuclear powered submarines which have been successful in both peacetime and wartime. [More…]
The nations of the world know the dangers of nuclear war. [More…]
It is against this background of growing needs that the role of nuclear power must be assessed. [More…]
In the short term nuclear power offers no immediate substitute for oil, gas and electricity production and represents for many countries deficient not only in hydrocarbons but also in coal resources a substantial alleviation of their dependence on imports. [More…]
In the longer term uranium holds out to the world a technologically mature solution to the increasing energy needs and places a safety net under future development of mankind, for the ultimate potential of solar energy remains difficult to assess and nuclear fusion is still a very important matter. [More…]
It is true that the present objectives of many nations in nuclear power development have become lower than they were a few years ago. [More…]
In the United States of America some states are using nuclear power for generation of electricity and for power plants to the order of 35 per cent. [More…]
In the country as a whole the use of nuclear power for power-generating needs varies from 10 per cent to 35 per cent. [More…]
For the world as a whole the indicated ranges of nuclear power capacity are of the order of 200,000 megawatts for 1980, 900,000 megawatts for 1990 and 1,300,000 megawatts for the year 2000. [More…]
The share of nuclear power which is today less than 10 per cent of electricity and less than 3 per cent of primary energy will grow to some 35 per cent of electrical energy and 15 per cent of primary energy by the turn of the century, that is by the year 2000. [More…]
Some arguments have been advanced that since we are dealing with such relatively modest fractions of total energy needs, nuclear power might be indefinitely deferred and conventional fuels might take up the slack until all doubts and uncertainties are removed. [More…]
Even the present rninimum nuclear objective would result in a saving of 1.5 billion to two billion tons of oil per year by the year 2000, which is more than half of present total world oil consumption. [More…]
If nuclear power is to provide a general insurance against energy shortages beyond the end of the century, it must rest on a solid basis of experience. [More…]
Development of reactors for high temperatures would permit nuclear power to go beyond electricity graduation. [More…]
Hence the nuclear policies of these countries are bound to be different. [More…]
For instance, as I mentioned in a speech last year concerning nuclear policy, the Japanese are conducting experiments to distil uranium yellowcake from sea water. [More…]
It has been a problem, but the latest techniques indicate that the waste from nuclear stations can possibly be used for fertilisers, chemicals and medicine. [More…]
There has not been the loss of one life caused by nuclear experiments throughout the world. [More…]
There was, in this country, great enthusiasm and great hope for positive benefit from the development of nuclear physics and engineering. [More…]
The adoption of the Atomic Energy Act by Australia coincided with a significant shift in international approaches to the control of nuclear industry and the avoidance of nuclear proliferation. [More…]
In the immediate aftermath of World War II it was proposed in the United States of America in what is known as the Baruch Plan that nuclear energy and nuclear weapons should be internationalised. [More…]
This proposal was not adopted and instead the United States sought to achieve control by monopoly of nuclear secrets, by terminating all nuclear co-operation with other countries and by government monopoly of domestic atomic energy activities. [More…]
In 1953 the United States reversed this policy because it no longer had a monopoly of nuclear weapons. [More…]
The Soviet Union and Great Britain had tested nuclear weapons. [More…]
The International Atomic Energy Agency was established and a policy of international co-operation adopted so that by cooperation, rather than by monopoly, nuclear industry could be controlled. [More…]
It has become increasingly evident in the 1970s that the approaches adopted in the 1950s are no longer sufficient to control the nuclear industry. [More…]
When the IAEA, and the ‘Atoms for Peace’ program were set up in the early 1950s, part and parcel of the transfer of nuclear equipment, material and technology was the adoption of a set of safeguards to see that equipment transferred was not diverted to military use. [More…]
In Australia, as elsewhere, for several decades nuclear knowledge and the control of nuclear knowledge rested in the same set of nuclear expert hands. [More…]
However, in the late 1950s and the 1960s, a second stream of political concern for nuclear arms control emerged. [More…]
Until the mid-1970s, however, this was not to have a full impact on the established national and international machinery for nuclear industry development and transfer. [More…]
The first achievement of the arms control stream was the Partial Test Ban Treaty of 1963 which banned nuclear testing everywhere but underground. [More…]
This was followed by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty of 1 968 which established two classes of State. [More…]
These were the nuclear weapon States- those that had already conducted tests- and non-nuclear weapon States. [More…]
The former undertook not to transfer control or possession or skill for weapons to non-nuclear weapon States and the latter undertook not to become nuclear weapon States. [More…]
There have been no major new multilateral treaties to control nuclear proliferation since then; that is for over a decade. [More…]
In the wake of the NPT, nuclear supplier countries established some guidelines in what is known as the Zangger Committee, after Mr Zangger, the Committee’s Swiss Chairman. [More…]
By the mid-1970s, and particularly with the 1974 Indian test explosion, the nuclear industry stream was confronted by the patent inadequacies of the 1950s IAEA Statute safeguards system. [More…]
In the Nuclear Suppliers Group it sought to extend the habits of cooperation built in by the Zangger Committee to a more extensive system of control over transfer of sensitive nuclear technology. [More…]
By this time, some serious rethinking had been taking place in relation to the domestic nuclear industry. [More…]
It was responsible for nuclear research. [More…]
It was responsible for making nuclear weapons. [More…]
The nuclear power industry was characterised by the same ‘shell be all right’ approach to safety, security and spent fuel problems that we have become accustomed to hearing from the Government. [More…]
A Nuclear Regulatory Commission, with an independent, quasi-judicial status was established. [More…]
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission makes the rules and makes the decisions. [More…]
The advocate of nuclear power no longer polices itself. [More…]
If it now is proposed that Australia will become a country involved in nuclear industry on a larger scale, in Australia and through exports, it is appropriate that we must find a more up-to-date basis for action than the basis adopted in 1 953. [More…]
No projection suggests any early need for Australia to have a nuclear power generation capacity, but our concerns and responsibilities will be at least as great as those of the USA if uranium should be exported. [More…]
Moreover, while the United States continues to have a nuclear weapon program, Australia, by treaty commitment, will have no such program. [More…]
When the Australian Atomic Energy Commission was established it was given responsibility for all fields of nuclear energy and for cooperation with the States in the discovery and mining of uranium ores. [More…]
Its establishment under the defence power of the Constitution reflected the close relationship of the defence and civil nuclear programs. [More…]
In fact, many of those involved in setting up the AAEC had been involved with allied nuclear defence activities and the Manhattan project. [More…]
By 1969, as well as resisting Austraiian signature of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the Commission was urging the establishment of such a reactor at Jervis Bay. [More…]
It is now fully accepted that such reactors pose a major nuclear weapon proliferation risk. [More…]
Such a reactor was used by India to produce material for its 1974 nuclear test. [More…]
Commission sought for Australia an independent approach to nuclear industrial and defence capability. [More…]
There was always a residue of thought in Government which said that if we could get to the stage of producing nuclear power . [More…]
and wouldn’t be able to get assistance from the other countries to produce nuclear weapons, it was urged on us that we would be able to achieve the threshold between production of plutonium for a civil and military operational use. [More…]
My purpose in setting this out is to indicate clearly that the Atomic Energy Commission has a history of blind-alley research and dedication to nuclear energy options without regard for reality. [More…]
The whole nuclear industry is subject to questions of safety, security and economics. [More…]
Secondly, we could have a nuclear safeguards, safety and security commission. [More…]
I also said that we need a nuclear safeguards, safety and security commission that would have independent status, would not be subject to ministerial direction, and would report to the Parliament. [More…]
It is interesting to note that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in the United States and the proposed Atomic Energy Safety Commission in Japan reflect some of the considerations to be taken into account- at present Japan is in the process of splitting the functions into two on the basis of being able to get the safeguards required- bearing in mind the large differences between the activities in those countries and in Australia requiring regulation. [More…]
The proposal that we now have is half-baked and demonstrates the overall shallowness and dangers of the Government’s approach to nuclear issues. [More…]
One of the real fears that people have about nuclear power is that not only are there safety and safeguards considerations to worry about but that in both uranium exporting countries and countries that use nuclear power there are very real threats to civil liberties. [More…]
Amongst other things he made reference to Sir Marcus Oliphant, who until recently was Governor of South Australia and one of Australia’s very distinguished scientists in the nuclear field. [More…]
Reference was made to the Nuclear Guidelines Committee and to the test in India of a nuclear device for peaceful purposes. [More…]
In those circumstances I think there is some reason to believe that the nuclear industry being developed in India has been demonstrated to be for peaceful purposes. [More…]
He talked about the reactor at Jervis Bay and the fact that India had used a similar reactor for the production of the material from which the explosion of the nuclear device was arranged some years ago. [More…]
I understand, for example, that Australia’s reason for moving away from the concept of a nuclear reactor was directly related to the enormous cost of such a venture. [More…]
He talked of the danger of nuclear war. [More…]
My friend the honourable member for Ried indicating much misery and much disturbance at the potentialities of the nuclear industry, did not see fit to make any reference to the development of that industry in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. [More…]
I noted only the other day in the newspapers that a distinguished serviceman of the United Kingdom was making statements in Peking which appeared to be acceptable to his hosts, to the effect that having regard to the threat of a nuclear war the People’s Republic of China and the United Kingdom should be seen as standing side by side against a potential adversary which he went on to name as the USSR. [More…]
I say to those concerned about people and the threat of terrorism that reference to terrorists, nuclear industry and nuclear weapons is manifestly absurd. [More…]
Weapons are available which offer a greater degree of terror than nuclear weapons. [More…]
Previous Opposition speakers on this cluster of uranium Bills have made it clear that there are alternatives to nuclear power; that there are alternatives to a headlong and hellbent development at all costs. [More…]
On the matter of international conspiracy I could warn people just as strongly about international companies, combines or consortia which are committed at all costs to recouping what is in fact a multi-billion dollar investment in nuclear power. [More…]
Most of the contracting companies stand to sustain a loss in the order to billions of dollars if the winding down of nuclear power stations, which has started already in the United States- at least the stations are in a waiting position- continues. [More…]
In addition, it should be cheaper than nuclear power; it would be well within the production capabilities of Australia, which nuclear power generation certainly is not; it would be more amenable to flexibility of siting and power storage to compensate for weather and seasonal fluctuations; and it would be more economically adaptable to evolution from a small generation complex to a large scale one. [More…]
It would be far more adaptable than nuclear power generation, which has no adaptability of that kind at all. [More…]
If there is a power crisis we need to develop this alternative which is, I repeat, more promising than nuclear power because it is cleaner, cheaper and much better proved than the technology to cope with nuclear power waste disposal and security for which we are still waiting. [More…]
These would inevitably be much higher if there was no nuclear fuel to exploit. [More…]
The second objection is that the apparent availability of abundant nuclear fuel is a major disincentive to developing a national energy policy, recognising the need for energy conservation and implementing, for example, the policies recommended by the American Physical Society in a very important book- a basic book- The Efficient Use of Energy, which was published in 1975, especially the concept of ‘energy analysis’ and what they call’ second law efficiency’. [More…]
1 ) Have some New South Wales hospitals rejected on quality grounds use of the Australian produced nuclear byproduct, technetium-99 used to explore the spread of cancer in brain tumour patients. [More…]
This problem is presently being studied by a working party of nuclear medicine specialists from Sydney hospitals and the AAEC. [More…]
Professor K. W. Kemper of the Florida State University visited Dr T. P. Ophel of the Australian National University (ANU) to conduct research in nuclear reactions on the ANU Pelletron Accelerator, from 15 January 1977 to I August 1977. [More…]
These three Bills- the Environment Protection (Alligator Rivers Region) Bill, the National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Amendment Bill amending the National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act 1975 and the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill- are based on recommendations of the second Ranger Uranium Environmental Inquiry, better known as the second Fox report. [More…]
As is well known, the second report dealt specifically with the effect of the Ranger proposals in the Alligator Rivers region whereas the first report had dealt with the larger question of uranium mining, including the dangers of mining and milling, the operation of nuclear reactors, the problems associated with the safe disposal of nuclear waste, the dangers of the diversion of fissile material for terrorist purposes and the dangers of the diversion of fissile material for nuclear weapons, that is, the problem of nuclear proliferation. [More…]
In the mining and milling of uranium- and this is not at the stage where it is likely to be made into some sort of nuclear weapon, we are talking only about the mining and milling of it- we have reached the point where the project is already part of the defence system. [More…]
The final Bill in this cognate debate, the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill 1978, has almost been aborted at its birth. [More…]
Basically, what this Bill provides is codes of practice to govern nuclear activities in Australia with regard to the health and safety of people, and the environment. [More…]
It does not concern itself with nuclear safeguards, which should be governed by our Safeguards Agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency, and by the Atomic Energy Act. [More…]
An earlier draft of the Bill, which we were successful in getting a copy of, provided that there would be an Environment Protection (Nuclear Activities) Advisory Council, which would draft proposed codes for the Minister, who would then hold a public inquiry on the proposals and allow public comment. [More…]
It is not as though we are talking about nuclear weapons or the likelihood of terrorists stealing the yellowcake or anything like that. [More…]
-The three Bills which we are debating- the Environment Protection (Alligator Rivers Region) Bill 1978, the National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Amendment Bill 1978 and the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill 1978- form a package of Bills now before the House. [More…]
But, taken together, they deal with the need to make an early start on the mining and development of our uranium resources, whilst at the same time ensuring adequate protection of the environment of the Alligator Rivers Region, protection of the rights and legitimate interests of the Aborigines in the region, protection of the safety of persons engaged in the uranium industry, and the development of adequate safeguards to prevent proliferation of the nuclear armament industry. [More…]
As the Deputy Prime Minister said recently in this chamber, there are now 194 nuclear power units with a capacity of more than 95,000 megawatts operating in 21 countries. [More…]
There are 213 nuclear power units under construction in 27 countries. [More…]
This means that nuclear power units with a total generating capacity of 388,000 megawatts are either in operation, under construction or on firm order in 34 countries throughout the world. [More…]
-I join in the debate on this group of Bills- the Environment Protection (Alligator Rivers Region) Bill, the National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Amendment Bill and the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill. [More…]
I have an uneasy feeling that perhaps the first two Bills might better have been debated together and the Bill relating to nuclear codes have had a section to itself. [More…]
I think perhaps I should advert to the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill first. [More…]
It is not my intention to go through the variety of reasons that have caused me to form that opinion because they are very wide ranging, including a fear of the use of the material for nuclear weapons. [More…]
Minister for Environment, Housing and Community Development (Mr Groom) commented that the Bill will enable governments to ensure that the nuclear industry in Australia is so regulated as to afford the utmost protection to the people and the environment. [More…]
In fact, one knows that they are drawing back from involvement with nuclear power. [More…]
This Bill, in comparison with related Bills such as the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill, clearly shows that there is a direct intrusion into local Northern Territory matters whereas the latter Bill largely equates the position of the Territory with that of the States. [More…]
In previous correspondence the South Australian Government has pointed out a number of areas particularly in the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill and the amendments to the Atomic Energy Act. [More…]
It is of little wonder that the State governments are denouncing this package of legislation, particularly the amendments to the Atomic Energy Act and the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill. [More…]
The Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill abrogates responsibility for the actual administration of these Codes to the States, but it does not spell out how they should perform their duties. [More…]
How is it suggested that they should perform their duties on nuclear codes administration? [More…]
Nuclear safety codes are either a State matter or they are not. [More…]
I believe that the Bill itself is deficient in failing to provide machinery for full consultation with the States in formulating proper controls for nuclear activities. [More…]
I point out that the Australian Government has strict obligations under the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty. [More…]
Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty imposes upon Australia, I am afraid that under those circumstances the Federal Government would have an obligation to override the wishes of the State Government. [More…]
On the contrary it is to deal generally with standards, practices and procedures with respect to nuclear activities which, as such, are outside Commonwealth legislative power. [More…]
We are talking about the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill, and it is the preparation of the codes provided for in that Bill that is important. [More…]
That is why it is called the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill. [More…]
Let us consider just one area that has been a matter of considerable political controversy in the uranium debate, and I refer to the disposal of nuclear waste. [More…]
We do not feel that the technology has been developed to a stage where we can safely dispose of nuclear waste. [More…]
Yet within the definitions clause of this Bill there are provisions that enable the Commonwealth to make Australia a nuclear waste dumping ground. [More…]
On the question of the disposal of nuclear waste, it is open to the Government of the day to reach - [More…]
If the honourable member looked at the definition of ‘nuclear activities’ he would see that it refers to possession, acquisition, abandonment or disposal of any prescribed substance. [More…]
If he then looked at the definition of ‘prescribed substance’, if he could understand it, he would see that it includes nuclear waste. [More…]
What we are being asked to approve in this legislation is a concept whereby the Government can initiate nuclear dumping in Australia by way of regulation. [More…]
Equally, it is not satisfied in regard to the disposal of nuclear waste. [More…]
He does not have to convince a State government that needs to be convinced about the incipient dangers involved in the whole process of nuclear energy, a State government that does not want to become involved in the proliferation of nuclear weapons, a State government that is not convinced by whatever evidence this Government says it has in respect of waste disposal. [More…]
I refer to the question of what ultimately will happen to local waste disposal- not overseas at the end of the nuclear fuel cycle- but here in Australia. [More…]
My Government has decided to accept this recommendation but to go further and, together with the States, to establish by legislation a uniform national Code which covers all aspects of mining and milling of uranium as well as any future nuclear activities. [More…]
I agree with the honourable member for Marybyrnong (Dr Cass)- I have not seen all the alternative codes and I have not seen the final Code proposed by the Government- when he said that the likelihood is that we will get better environment protection nuclear codes from a Federal government than we will from individual State governments. [More…]
The object of this Act is to make provision, within the limits of the powers of the Parliament, for protecting the health and safety of the people of Australia, and the environment, from possible harmful effects associated with nuclear activities in Australia . [More…]
I wish to refer to an article written by Sir Mark Oliphant who was Professor of Nuclear Physics at the Australian National University for a long time. [More…]
There is, however, growing concern over the long-term safety of all involved with nuclear energy, from the mining of uranium to its use as a source of energy. [More…]
proposed codes of practice for regulating or controlling nuclear activities in Australia (including codes of practice to replace existing codes of practice approved by orders under sub-section 8(1); and [More…]
These comments relate also to the next amendment through which the Opposition hopes to set up an Environment Protection (Nuclear Activities) Advisory Council which will help in drafting codes of practice. [More…]
-The purpose of the amendment to clauses 11 and 13 of the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill is to postpone the application of those clauses to the States until a date to be proclaimed. [More…]
I think that this proposal to defer and delay two important segments of the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill, namely clauses 1 1 and 13, makes a complete mockery of the legislation. [More…]
I believe the attitude of the French in conducting nuclear tests in the Pacific was completely irresponsible. [More…]
the health or safety of persons, or the environment, is likely to be harmed by a situation resulting from a nuclear activity that exists in a State or Territory; and [More…]
has effect in relation to nuclear activities mentioned in paragraph 12 (2) (a); [More…]
has effect in relation to nuclear activities to the extent that the order is necessary or convenient for carrying out the obligations of the Commonwealth under, or the exercise by the Commonwealth of rights under, agreements or arrangements between Australia and other countries, agreements or arrangements between Australia and international organisations or decisions of international organisations; and [More…]
1 ) Where a situation exists where the health or safety of persons, or the environment is likely to be harmed by a nuclear activity that exists in a State or Territory and the laws of the Commonwealth (other than this section) and of the State or Territory do not make provision for protecting the health or safety of persons likely to be affected by that situation or for protecting the environment in so far as it is likely to be affected by that situation, the GovernorGeneral may, by order, authorize a Minister, during the period that the order remains in force, to give such directions and take such action as, subject to sub-section (2), are strictly necessary to control and eliminate hazards associated with the situation. [More…]
At the start it talks about the health or safety of persons being likely to be harmed by a situation resulting from a nuclear activity, but the situation is not defined. [More…]
The situation could be anything at all arising from a nuclear activity. [More…]
All these things could happen if he says that this is a situation resulting from a nuclear activity. [More…]
By all means make that the subject of the order, but not the question of whether the Governor-General is satisfied that the health or safety of persons is likely to be harmed by a situation resulting from- they are the offensive words- a nuclear activity or whether the Minister is going to make an order. [More…]
If the test is whether the Governor-General was satisfied that the health or safety of persons was likely to be harmed by a situation resulting from- those words cannot be defined- a nuclear activity, we then have to consider whether the order or the regulations were made on a valid basis. [More…]
Then in clause 13, an allembracing clause, the Government says that where the Governor-General is satisfied or where a Minister makes an order that will be the end of the situation where it applies to results of nuclear activity. [More…]
I am saying that if a person objects to the fact that an order was made against him because somebody said that a situation arose from a nuclear activity it should be tested in a court. [More…]
If the honourable member for Mitchell (Mr Cadman) did not want to leave his home in spite of the fact that there was some danger in a situation resulting from a nuclear activity, I ask him to what court he would go to test the position and to argue whether that order was made on a valid basis. [More…]
I have been silenced by the Government Whip each time despite the historic nature of the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill which was alluded to by the Minister for Environment, Housing and Community Development (Mr Groom) when he introduced it. [More…]
I inform the House that the Opposition opposes the Environment Protection (Northern Territory Supreme Court) Bill, for the reason that we proposed amendments to the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill that would have created jurisdiction for a federal court in respect of the matters dealt with in this Bill. [More…]
The Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill should have been amended to provide for the Federal Court to deal with these matters. [More…]
Certainly there are grounds for having more than ordinary secrecy in legislation relating to atomic energy passed in the shadow of a nuclear war or even a cold war. [More…]
The amendment is in the terms used in the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill, which was debated earlier today, to provide that the Houses of the Parliament will have an opportunity to disallow a proclamation. [More…]
It was explained to them that a decision on Australia’s prior consent in relation to reprocessing was not possible pending the outcome of international discussions including the discussions at the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation in which Mr Justice Fox and the Australian delegation are playing, as I believe, such a constructive role. [More…]
It is more important that the world be assured that the trade in uranium will not be a destabilising force, a force that would undermine the present nuclear non-proliferation regime and move us from a safer world. [More…]
I understand that the United States of America and Iran have also been negotiating on nuclear safeguards and that prior consent on reprocessing has been a significant issue in those negotiations. [More…]
I ask the Prime Minister a question which follows the reply he gave concerning Iran nuclear safeguards. [More…]
Is the Deputy Prime Minister aware of the following statement reported to have been made on 1 8 February by Keicchi Ito Director of the Japanese Defence Bureau: ‘If in the future we should hypothetically, cease to be a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty, then we can own nuclear weapons within the constitutional limits. [More…]
Is it a fact, as reported, that high Japanese officials openly discuss the hypothetical possibilities should Japan discard the nuclear proliferation restraint? [More…]
If so, can the Minister inform the House how the Australian Government’s back-up safeguards obligations would override the perceived national interest of a nation which had decided to withdraw from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in order to develop its own nuclear weapons? [More…]
I am not aware of the statement to which the honourable member has alluded and which, in his own words, is a hypothetical proposition, that Japan withdraw from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
Japan, having suffered the effects of a nuclear device, is probably more concerned than is any other country in the world to see established a world regime which will prevent the proliferation of nuclear material. [More…]
For the United Kingdom, the Department draws one important conclusion: It will be inevitable that the United Kingdom will have to resort to nuclear generation by the end of the century. [More…]
-I must say at the outset of what will have to be a succinct answer to a series of questions dealing with an intricate matter that we do not start from the assumption that countries will seek to breach their important treaty obligations to us or to the International Atomic Energy Agency, or under the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty. [More…]
Furthermore, the IAEA safeguards themselves involve periodic reports of a state’s holdings of nuclear material; inspections of material and checks of documents and records; and techniques of containment, for example, locks, safes and surveillance, including automatic cameras. [More…]
Finally, countries which have invested heavily in nuclear power reactors and which are coming to rely on that power generating capacity will obviously attach the greatest importance to the security of supplies of fuel. [More…]
For example, after 1 985 France is expected to be dependent on nuclear power for 60 per cent of its electrical power generating capacity. [More…]
In this way our willingness to make Australian uranium available to meet world energy needs, but subject to stringent safeguards, makes an important contribution to international nuclear non-proliferation. [More…]
Ultimately the most important objective to which Australia is contributing by this policy and by its parallel high level of activity on nuclear arms control issues is an international environment in which no country could seriously contemplate the nuclear weapon option. [More…]
We have also reaffirmed our joint determination to maintain the most stringent safeguards against nuclear proliferation. [More…]
Let us look at what the Minister had to say on nuclear energy, nonproliferation and disarmament- nothing new. [More…]
For example, the Fraser Government is out of step with the United States on human rights, Indian Ocean arms control, and nuclear nonproliferation policy, to name only three areas where it claims close identity with American policy. [More…]
Australian officials (in Europe) now accept that the political, economic and technical problems facing Europe’s nuclear industry are such that there are no short-term advantages to be gained and plenty of penalties to be incurred by crude attempts at resources diplomacy . [More…]
I direct my question to the Minister for Trade and Resources and I refer him to submissions by the Philippines Atomic Energy Commission to the International Atomic Energy Agency that since the Philippines is in a volcanic belt and has no stable salt rock formations, the long-term storage and disposal of its nuclear waste will depend on the establishment of an international burial site. [More…]
Will the Minister assure this House that his Government will not allow Australia to become an international burial ground for nuclear waste and will not allow nuclear waste derived from any Australian uranium used in the Philippines to be dumped in Australia? [More…]
Can the Minister inform the House where the nuclear waste from the Philippines will be stored and by what means? [More…]
At the last General Assembly meeting we co-sponsored resolutions on the comprehensive nuclear test ban, on the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks negotiations and on nuclear non-proliferation. [More…]
In fact the resolution on the comprehensive nuclear test ban was supported for the first time ever by both the United States and the Soviet Union. [More…]
Of course even to the most bereft minds opposite it ought to be obvious that one cannot achieve a successful nuclear test ban unless one has the support of both super powers. [More…]
Finally, our decision to allow the export of uranium under stringent safeguards was taken in the context of our support for nuclear arms control objectives. [More…]
That report said that the nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of nuclear war and that this is the most serious hazard associated with the industry. [More…]
I ask: What journalist in the Press Gallery has made an anaylsis of the Australian Government’s claim that the problem of nuclear waste disposal has been solved? [More…]
For instance, the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) made a statement indicating that the whole question of nuclear waste had been solved? [More…]
But, at the same time, he put forward the proposition that Australia, in its nuclear safeguards proposal, would not allow the reprocessing of nuclear waste. [More…]
What journalist in the Gallery has written or examined the nuclear waste dilemma or examined in Press articles the government’s false claim. [More…]
Have members of the Press Gallery made any real analyses of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the Australian Atomic Energy Commission and the parts that they play in the whole matter of nuclear power? [More…]
The third recommendation of the first Fox report stated that the nuclear power industry is connected with the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
In what way did the Deputy Prime Minister (Mr Anthony) answer a question this morning from the honourable member for Fraser (Mr Fry) about the nuclear waste from the volcanic island in the Philippines? [More…]
Since that time significant areas of consultation and cooperation have opened up between Australia and France and continue to develop steadily, including our relationship with the European Communities, nuclear matters, cultural relations, defence exchanges and our interests in the South Pacific, Antarctica, the Middle East and Indochina. [More…]
Has the Australian Atomic Energy Commission conducted any studies into nuclear waste disposal or storage in Central Australia. [More…]
Does the Government have any knowledge of any private companies which may have conducted studies into nuclear waste disposal or storage in Central Australia; if so, which Commonwealth Government Departments have knowledge or oversight of these research projects. [More…]
1 ) Did he state in reply to a question without notice on 14 March 1978 dealing with nuclear fuel reprocessing, that if the United Kingdom does proceed with a reprocessing plant at Windscale it does not run counter to the fuel cycle evaluation program or the Australian Government’s nuclear safeguards policy. [More…]
Did he also say that President Caner’s more recent actions have been moving in the same direction; if so, will he give details of where President Carter made his public statements reversing his policy of opposition to the reprocessing of nuclear fuel waste. [More…]
The International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation (INFCE) is studying how nuclear power could help to meet the world’s energy needs without compromising nonproliferation objectives. [More…]
It is a firm condition of the supply of Australian uranium that we retain the right of prior consent to any reprocessing of nuclear material derived from that uranium. [More…]
On 10 March President Carter signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Act passed by Congress, which legislates for safeguards provisions similar to the Australian safeguards policy which I announced in this House on 24 May 1977. [More…]
My own concern was initially prompted by the appointment late last year of Mr Justice Fox as Ambassador-at-Large on nuclear matters. [More…]
However, it is not obvious that a judge should be appointed Ambassador-at-Large on nuclear matters or as Director-General of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation, or a member of boards such as the National Advisory Council for the Handicapped. [More…]
We know that internationally the nuclear power industry is in grave difficulties because of the cancellation of proposals for new nuclear power stations. [More…]
If some countries do go ahead with the fast breeder, the amount of uranium now needed to drive conventional nuclear power stations may not be needed. [More…]
As a consequence, even nuclear component companies like General Electric and Westinghouse of the United States, which supply 90 per cent of the world nuclear component industry, are in difficulties. [More…]
Even the cost of building a nuclear power station is becoming so expensive that it is becoming extremely difficult to meet. [More…]
The real costs in the nuclear power industry must be considered. [More…]
Instead of the cost of enrichment being paid for and subsidised as a part of the war machine, the real economic cost will have to be borne by the nuclear power stations and it will make nuclear power so much more uneconomic compared with other forms of power generation. [More…]
The real cost of the disposal of nuclear waste must be taken into account. [More…]
What will be the cost, even if we find a safe way to dispose of nuclear waste? [More…]
What will be the cost to store nuclear waste for at least a quarter of a million years? [More…]
What did the Prime Minister say when dealing with this question of nuclear waste? [More…]
He said that there was no problem in storing nuclear waste. [More…]
At the same time he said that the Government’s policy was opposed to reprocessing of nuclear waste. [More…]
Those who know anything about this issue know that the first thing to do with the so-called waste disposal proposition- vitrification- about which the Prime Minister said there is no problem, is to reprocess your nuclear waste. [More…]
But the Government has said that it is against reprocessing of its nuclear waste, so even if it sells our uranium to any country it has not agreed at this stage to allow reprocessing. [More…]
Therefore there is no answer to the question of nuclear waste disposal. [More…]
Recently a congressional committee brought down a report which warned against the dangers of nuclear waste. [More…]
Yet our Prime Minister says the problem of nuclear waste has been solved. [More…]
These are going to be tremendously costly economic problems for those people who want to continue with nuclear power stations, if they can. [More…]
-I accept your guidance, Mr Deputy Chairman, but in the whole question of nuclear relationships everything is interconnected and the whole purpose of the Supervising Scientists is to try to make the environment a better place to live in. [More…]
All I am saying is that interrelated with the environment is the fact that the third recommendation of the Fox report was that the nuclear power industry and uranium mining was interrelated with the whole question of the proliferation of nuclear weapons, and that in itself is a threat. [More…]
one of its ordinary roles is the promotion of uranium mining and nuclear development generally. [More…]
A central depository be established in Australia for the storage of hazardous long-lived radioactive waste materials, other than those arising in the generation of nuclear power; [More…]
) Is he able to say which bodies are responsible for (a) nuclear energy research and development and (b) the regulation and safety aspects of the use of nuclear energy in (i) the United States of America, (ii) the United Kingdom, (iii) West Germany, (iv) Japan, ( v) France and ( vi) Canada. [More…]
Nuclear Regulatory Commission. [More…]
Nuclear Installations Inspectorate, which reports through the Healthand Safety Commission. [More…]
Institute for Nuclear Protection and Safety within the Atomic Energy Commission. [More…]
The functions were separated in October 1974 with the creation of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Energy Research and Development Agency (ERDA). [More…]
We believe, however, that the Special Session should also play a major role in promoting nuclear arms control objectives. [More…]
I place on record again that when the Labor Government was in office from 1972 to 1975 it ratified the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
I want to raise the aspect of nuclear non-proliferation and the question of export of uranium, whether Australia can monitor what happens to those exports and whether adequate safeguards exist. [More…]
I advert now to some information that has come to me relating to the submission made by the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission to the Chairman of the United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations. [More…]
Recently, however, the IAEA’s Special Safeguards Implementation Report indicated that a country’s agreement to subject its nuclear activities to IAEA safeguards does not necessarily assure that adequate material control and accounting measures are applied in all cases. [More…]
It is therefore possible that the NRC could approve the export of nuclear materials to countries in which the IAEA is having implementation problems without the NRC knowing it. [More…]
The NRC is the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. [More…]
Let me advert now to nuclear non-proliferation. [More…]
In the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons there are two concepts contained in articles 1 and 2. [More…]
Article 1 talks about the nuclear weapon state and refers to an undertaking not to transfer to a non-nuclear weapon state any recipient nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosives or to assist or encourage it to manufacture or otherwise to acquire nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices. [More…]
Article 2 states that each nonnuclear weapon state undertakes not to receive the transfer from any transferor whatsoever of nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosives. [More…]
It is clear that we could well be creating a nuclear weapon state, namely, the recipient of our uranium oxide. [More…]
United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission is very concerned about that matter and says that there can be no guarantees given unless the use of uranium can be policed effectively and properly, why are we not equally concerned? [More…]
Why cannot the details of the nuclear safeguards agreements that we are proposing be public information? [More…]
The littoral and hinterland States of the Indian Ocean, at their forthcoming meeting, should, inter alia, reach agreement on measures, such as a commitment to settle outstanding disputes by peaceful means, the renunciation of nuclear weapons and the maintenance of a reasonable military balance among themselves, in order to promote conditions of security within the Indian Ocean region. [More…]
This has been reflected within the Department of Foreign Affairs by the creation of a new Nuclear Affairs Division to handle nuclear arms control, non-proliferation and safeguards issues. [More…]
On 25 November last year the Minister for Foreign Affairs (Mr Peacock) made a statement to the media on nuclear arms control. [More…]
The Government is particularly concerned to see the Special Session promote nuclear arms control objectives, in particular the strengthening of the non-proliferation regime and the achievement of a comprehensive nuclear test ban treaty. [More…]
Another measure of its importance is that it will engage for the first time all the nuclear weapons states and other militarily important powers in the international dialogue on arms control and disarmament. [More…]
The Government’s decision to allow the export of uranium from new mines under stringent safeguards was taken in the context of its support for international nuclear arms control efforts; in particular for universal adherence to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and the strengthening of the international nonproliferation regime; to obtain a cessation of nuclear testing in all environments; and to encourage the superpowers to continue the strategic arms limitation talks negotiating process towards nuclear disarmament. [More…]
The Foreign Minister’s statements at the last two sessions of the General Assembly, which are public documents and set out Australia’s position, identified these three areas of international effort as the central issues of nuclear arms control. [More…]
Under the NPT, the nuclear weapons states have undertaken to pursue negotiations in good faith on effective measures relating to the cessation of the nuclear arms race. [More…]
This obligation is one facet of a three-cornered bargain on which the Treaty rests: Nuclear powers undertake to negotiate towards mutual nuclear disarmament; non-nuclear powers forswear nuclear weapons and accept safeguards on their nuclear industries; and countries in a position to do so undertake to co-operate in the peaceful development of nuclear energy. [More…]
The importance of the Treaty lies as much in the international climate against proliferation which it sustains, as in the safeguards which it applies to the peaceful nuclear industries of its members. [More…]
Although a number of potential nuclear weapon states remain outside the Treaty, as the trend towards its universal acceptance continues, the more difficult it will become for any state to contemplate the acquisition of nuclear weapons or withdrawal from the Treaty. [More…]
It offers something tangible, that is, access to our uranium for those countries which are prepared to renounce nuclear weapons by becoming parties to the Treaty. [More…]
At last year’s General Assembly, the documents of which are again public documents, Australia was instrumental in efforts to secure the adoption of a single nuclear test ban resolution, supported by the overwhelming majority of the Assembly, and for the first time, by the United States and the Soviet Union. [More…]
A comprehensive test ban treaty now under negotiation between the United States, the Soviet Union and Britain would be an important barrier both to the spread of nuclear weapons and to the expansion of existing arsenals. [More…]
I note that President Carter has said that an ultimate decision on production and deployment of a new weapon- the neutron bombwould be influenced by the degree to which the Soviet Union shows restraint in its conventional and nuclear arms programs and force deployments. [More…]
In the Government’s view, further progress in the SALT negotiations between the United States and the Soviet Union to limit their respective nuclear arsenals is crucial to wider nuclear non-proliferation efforts. [More…]
Countries which have renounced the nuclear weapons option by ratifying the NPT expect superpower arms limitation as a quid pro quo. [More…]
At the 1977 Session of the General Assembly, we co-sponsored, for the first time, the resolution on SALT which called on the superpowers to reach agreement on qualitative limitations and substantial reductions of their nuclear arsenals. [More…]
It goes without saying that the success of arms control efforts in the nuclear sphere is closely linked to satisfactory international controls on the utilisation of nuclear power for peaceful purposes. [More…]
Over 30 countries have now embarked on nuclear power generation programs. [More…]
Thirdly, the major suppliers of nuclear equipment and technology, commonly known as the Nuclear Suppliers Group, have, over a two-year period from 1975 to 1977, drawn up new guidelines on the control of exports. [More…]
Finally, the stringent nuclear supply policies which Australia, along with the United States and Canada, has adopted are an important contribution to the effort to ensure that world energy requirements can be met while minimising the risk of proliferation. [More…]
As a result of an American initiative, the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation Study has been launched. [More…]
Australia’s Ambassador-at-Large on nuclear non-proliferation, Mr Justice Fox, has established an office in London and is maintaining an active monitoring program. [More…]
The Government’s hope is that this study will open the way to new international regimes in the management and operation of the nuclear fuel cycle, which will greatly reduce the risk of nuclear proliferation for the future. [More…]
What is important is to add further to international confidence, to assist effective and full cooperation in the peaceful development of nuclear energy. [More…]
Leaving aside the questions of nuclear arms control, which are of course of over-riding importance, Australia has participated actively in international discussions aimed at establishing prohibitions or restrictions on the use of certain categories of weapons which may have indiscriminate effects, or which may cause unnecessary suffering, particularly to civilian populations. [More…]
Through the Government’s statements of policy last year on nuclear issues, in the Foreign Minister’s own statements at the United Nations and in the media and in answer to questions in the Parliament the Government has sought to direct public attention to its efforts. [More…]
His own speech concentrated unduly on what is admittedly a very important area, the uranium and nuclear arms debate. [More…]
On 25 November 1977 the Foreign Minister (Mr Peacock) issued a Press statement on nuclear arms control. [More…]
On his instructions, the Australian delegation had cosponsored resolutions on a Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, Nuclear Non-Proliferation and the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT). [More…]
These issues, as he had emphasised in two successive addresses to the General Assembly, were central to progress in nuclear arms control. [More…]
The Government has also joined in renewed international efforts to strengthen the nonproliferation regime, including the important International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation - which was mentioned by the honourable member for St George. [More…]
I first saw the horrors of nuclear warfare in January and February 1946 when I was in Japan and viewed the ruins of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. [More…]
I have never forgotten that sight and, were it possible, I would support in the strongest possible terms the banning of nuclear weapons. [More…]
On 27 February 1970, Australia signed the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty. [More…]
At the last General Assembly meeting we co-sponsored resolutions on the comprehensive nuclear test ban . [More…]
In nuclear powered attack submarines, in 1964 they were very close- 23 in the United States Navy and 22 in the Soviet Navy. [More…]
However, in 1978 the United States has 68 nuclear powered attack submarines and the Soviet 88. [More…]
We find it very strange that the situation which has now been created under this Bill, which the Government put forward as one of its major forms of protection for the Australian people, is that nuclear codes will in effect be governed by the desires and wishes of the State which wants to have the weakest possible codes. [More…]
I repeat what I said to the Minister: This Bill is now a complete farce because there is no way in the world the Government can now impose a nuclear code which has any guts in it, any toughness, any restrictions on the States’ rights. [More…]
5 we see that it relates to clause 11(10) which deals with the capacity of the Commonwealth now to make regulations governing nuclear codes which cannot take effect unless the Governor of the State has requested the Governor-General to make regulations for carrying out or giving effect to, or for securing the observance of, that code of practice in the State. [More…]
What the Opposition is saying is that this Government is now seeking to pass amendments to the nuclear codes legislation- it is not simply talking about occupying the field- to the effect that unless any State government makes a request to the Commonwealth nuclear codes will not be brought into operation. [More…]
This Government is not worried about nuclear codes or the protection of the environment. [More…]
This Government says: ‘Of course we are concerned about the problems of safety in the handling of nuclear substances’. [More…]
But it is so concerned about those things that there will be a nuclear code only if a State government asks the Commonwealth. [More…]
The Commonwealth Parliament is saying: ‘Of course we will have a nuclear code for Queensland but only if the Government of Queensland wants it. [More…]
We will have a nuclear code for Western Australia but only if Sir Charles Court and his good friend Lang Hancock want it’. [More…]
There will be a code in those States only if those gentlemen say they will have a nuclear code. [More…]
Now, in order to get uranium mining started before the wet season, the Government has adopted a position which completely contradicts and subverts any concept that the Commonwealth will be not the exclusive power but the paramount power in determining nuclear codes. [More…]
Nuclear codes will be needed because this legislation involves substances which will be a threat to every worker who handles them. [More…]
This Government, because what it is really concerned about is the whole question of uranium mining, has said: ‘Righto, the Commonwealth chooses not to be the paramount authority and the real power for decision-making in respect of nuclear codes will rest with the States’. [More…]
Anyone who believes that the mining companies will not be the final arbiters and determinants of what constitutes an effective nuclear code, in terms of their interest and the way they perceive their interest, is not looking at either the reality or the history of this matter. [More…]
This is absolutely typical of their philosophical stand on the uranium mining question, particularly in respect of the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill that we are now debating. [More…]
Between August 1977 and 10 April this year there was no relationship between the Commonwealth and the States on this matter of nuclear codes. [More…]
What do nuclear codes mean? [More…]
Nuclear codes in relation to nuclear activities mean: [More…]
the use of any substance, mineral or matter referred to in sub-paragraph (c) (i) or (ii), including, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, use in the production of nuclear energy; [More…]
Prescribed substance embraces plutonium and all actinides as well as the fission products which make up nuclear waste. [More…]
We in this chamber are now giving the States the right to determine that they can in fact have control over nuclear waste- a matter that will have enormous implications for the whole of this country not for a few years but for at least a quarter of a million years. [More…]
What are nuclear activities? [More…]
The fact is that ‘prescribed substance ‘ does mean nuclear waste. [More…]
Conference recognises that the provision of Australian uranium to the world nuclear fuel cycle creates problems relevant to Australian sovereignty, the environment, the economic welfare of our people, and the rights and well-being of the Aboriginal people. [More…]
Labor believes, that having regard to the present unresolved economic, social, biological, genetic, environmental and technical problems associated with the mining of uranium and the development of nuclear power and in particular- [More…]
to the proven contribution of the nuclear power industry to the proliferation of nuclear weapons and the increased risk of nuclear war; [More…]
the absence of procedures for the storage and disposal of radioactive wastes to ensure that any danger posed by such wastes to human life and the environment is eliminated, it is imperative that no commitment of Australia ‘s uranium deposits to the world’s nuclear fuel cycle should be made until: [More…]
Clause 11(1) states, in effect, that where the Governor-General says that the laws of a particular State or Territory are not adequate to provide for nuclear codes for environment protection then the Governor-General- in other words the Commonwealth Governmentshould take the lead and should provide for the imposition of codes. [More…]
One can imagine the situation of somebody going to the United States or to the Australian Atomic Energy Commission and saying that there will now be a universal approach on nuclear codes. [More…]
They might say that we ought to get the views of local government on nuclear codes. [More…]
If it does not work out it could cause great harm, not just for this nation but perhaps for the whole human race- I mean if the whole question of control of nuclear waste and nuclear controls is not reconciled. [More…]
I shall quote from my own speech: 1 agree with the honourable member for Maribyrnong (Dr Cass)- when he said that the likelihood is that we will get better environment protection nuclear codes from a Federal government than we will from individual State governments. [More…]
I am one of those who believe that nuclear mining is inevitable, though I oppose it at the present time. [More…]
The object of this Act is to make provision, within the limits of the powers of the Parliament for protecting the health and safety of the people of Australia, and the environment, from possible harmful effects associated with nuclear activities in Australia, and this Act and the regulations shall be construed and administered accordingly. [More…]
It refers to nuclear activities being carried on by or on behalf of the Commonwealth or an authority of the Commonwealth for the purpose of trade or commerce with other countries or among the States, to nuclear activities carried on for purposes related to defence, to activities carried on by foreign corporations, by trading corporations formed within the limits of the Commonwealth and to activities carried on in, or in connection with, a Territory or carried on in the territorial sea of Australia. [More…]
I meant by that that it would be risky for them if we did not impose those nuclear codes. [More…]
I shall tell the Minister of their recommendations in respect of nuclear energy. [More…]
-I do not think the Committee needs to be reminded that we are talking about the constitutional obligations and the constitutional rights that the Commonwealth has in regard to nuclear codes. [More…]
I was simply making the point that just as civil aviation was not covered constitutionally in 1901- the time when the Wright brothers were experimenting with aeroplanes- neither was nuclear energy. [More…]
The growth of nuclear physics making possible the application of nuclear energy for practical purposes is a phenomenon of the present century and, alone, this would explain the absence of any reference to it in the Commonwealth Constitution. [More…]
There was no reference to this whole question of nuclear energy in the Commonwealth Constitution. [More…]
By reason of its various constitutional powers, notably with respect to defence and overseas trade, the national Parliament is not without some effective legal powers at the present stage of nuclear development in Australia. [More…]
Expected developments in the use of nuclear energy for constructive and destructive purposes will, however, reveal serious deficiencies in Commonwealth legal power, particularly if it should be sought to promote a self-contained integrated nuclear power industry serving the needs of industry and national development as well as defence. [More…]
So the Committee recommends that the Commonwealth Parliament should be empowered by Constitutional amendments to make laws with respect to the manufacture of nuclear fuels and the generation and use of nuclear energy and to iodising radiations. [More…]
Under clause 13 the Government, where the provisions of nuclear codes did not cover adequately what we would like to cover- the health of the people and the environment- could move in and virtually take control. [More…]
First, we bring in legislation to provide a national nuclear code - [More…]
We say that we want to have a nuclear code drawn up and will consult the States, but if they do not accept what we provide we will still impose those powers, because we must have a national code. [More…]
What is the point of this whole exercise of nuclear code legislation? [More…]
I should emphasise that this legislation is concerned with the health and safety of people, and the environment, as distinct from safeguards, the purpose of which is to ensure that nuclear material in peaceful use is not diverted to nonpeaceful purposes or to nuclear weapons. [More…]
I simply refer to clause 13 to remind the honourable member for Robertson that the right of the Governor-General only accrues when he is satisfied that the health or safety of persons or the environment is likely to be harmed by a situation resulting from nuclear activity that exists in a State or Territory, and where there is not already legislation enacted to cover the situation. [More…]
Firstly, there is the assault upon civil liberties, and secondly, we are utterly and completely opposed to uranium mining at this stage because there is no known way to dispose of nuclear waste, and because the safeguards- such as the international atomic energy agency safeguards that the Government is depending upon, and also bilateral agreements and signatories to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty- are just not sufficient to guarantee that Australian uranium will not be used in the manufacture of nuclear weapons. [More…]
Does sub-clause (6) really mean that if a real nuclear hazard did develop- one could easily imagine it, I will put forward a hypothetical situation in a moment- the States could override the Commonwealth, override the wishes of the workers and order that uranium mining could go ahead and must go ahead? [More…]
That is what I think it means, because sub-clause (6) provides that an order made under sub-section ( 1 ) in relation to a situation resulting from nuclear activity shall not authorise a Minister to give directions that have effect in a State or to take any action in a State unless the Governor of the State has requested the Governor-General to make an order. [More…]
The members of the Opposition say that the Minister has backed down and been stood over, firstly, by the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly on the Environment Protection (Alligator Rivers Region) Bill, and secondly, he has been stood over by the States with regard to the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill. [More…]
Opposition supporters only have to read the amendments that have already been dealt with to find out that consultations must take place before the establishment of nuclear codes. [More…]
I just want to make it perfectly clear that the legislation clearly provides that the States will have the power of veto in respect of nuclear codes. [More…]
I am concerned about the implications of the nuclear codes. [More…]
I read from the document on nuclear activities when we dealt with an earlier amendment. [More…]
In the third recommendation of the first Fox report it was stated that the nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of nuclear war. [More…]
Labor believes that having regard to the present unresolved economic, social, biological, genetic, environmental and technical problems associated with the mining of uranium and the development of nuclear power . [More…]
On the amendments that it has accepted thus far, if the States do not agree with the Government on the nuclear codes, it is conceding their right to have what may be in the Government’s eyes inadequate codes. [More…]
If the Governor-General thinks that they may be harmed due to some nuclear activity and if he thinks that the laws of the Commonwealth, other than as provided in this clause, and the laws of the State or Territory do not make provision for protecting the health or safety of persons or the environment, under the original legislation he could require certain regulations, but under this amendment the States will be allowed to slip out from under. [More…]
It seems to me to be a very odd situation that when this Bill was introduced into this chamber- presumably it had been discussed in the party room of the Liberal Party and had received approval- what the Government was contemplating and endorsing in principle and what every honourable member on that side of the chamber voted for was a Bill which not merely gave the Commonwealth the right to prepare and develop nuclear codes but gave it that right exclusively. [More…]
We also asked the chamber to endorse a proposal that until such time as the States were satisfied on the hazards and dangers associated with uranium mining and nuclear activities the Commonwealth could not compel any State to mine. [More…]
We say that there ought to be real and effective consultation because we believe that the Commonwealth has the major duty in this matter and ought to be the paramount authority in drafting nuclear codes. [More…]
The amendment before the Committee virtually says that the responsibility for formulating a nuclear code will really rest with the States. [More…]
Is it not a fact that a large company which wields tremendous influence and resources can say to a State: ‘Of course we will come in and do something, but we are not too happy about the standards of your nuclear code. [More…]
The problem which the Government is creating for itself in its determination to go ahead and to get mining under way before the wet season sets in, irrespective of the hazards and irrespective of the problems which that can create for Australia, is such that it is now prepared to throw away any responsibility in terms of operating as a paramount power in the formulation of a nuclear code. [More…]
Does the Minister really believe- I do not believe it for one momentthat, given the history of that State, it is going to say simply: ‘Yes, we will accept what the Commonwealth gives us by way of a nuclear code’? [More…]
I can assure the honourable member that Australia will join actively with other countries at the Special Session in a search for ways to eliminate the risk of nuclear war and to curb the spiralling levels of conventional arms. [More…]
The provisions of the Antarctic Treaty of 1959 relating to the prohibition of weapon testing, nuclear explosions and the disposal of radio-active waste material extend throughout Antarctica. [More…]
The Partial Test Ban Treaty of 1963 prohibits nuclear weapon testing in outer space, as well as in the atmosphere and under water. [More…]
States party to the 1967 Outer Space Treaty undertake not to place in orbit around the Earth any objects carrying nuclear weapons, or install such weapons on celestial bodies, or station such weapons in outer space in any other manner. [More…]
Consider some strictly hypothetical illustrations, say, the installation of intercontinental ballistic missile launch sites on Australian soil or permanent nuclear submarine facilities as has already been suggested by the Leader of the Opposition in an interview. [More…]
In October 1973, North West Cape was also one of the principal stations involved in putting United States strategic nuclear forces on alert. [More…]
Our policy clearly recognises the important role Australia must play in moves against the proliferation of nuclear weapons and the strengthening of nuclear safeguards. [More…]
Australia has announced a stringent policy of nuclear safeguards to govern future export contracts and we are proceeding to implement that policy through the negotiation of comprehensive bilateral safeguards agreements with other countries. [More…]
We are also taking an active role in all of the major international forums where nuclear non-proliferation and safeguards are discussed. [More…]
Mr Justice Fox is continuing to serve our country in this important area as Australia’s Ambassador-at-Large on nuclear non-proliferation and safeguards. [More…]
Australia ‘s policy is based squarely on our recognition of Australia’s obligations as a country well endowed with energy resources to make those resources available to other countries, many of which have no real alternative, in the wake of the world energy crisis, than to turn to nuclear energy as a means of supplying electricity to their peoples. [More…]
In considering exports we will have regard to the principles I have already stated, some of which I now repeat briefly, namely: The orderly development of Australia’s uranium resources; making supplies of uranium available to other countries for use in the generation of electricity and for other peaceful purposes; ensuring adherence to the policies of Australia in relation to the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons and the application of safeguards against the use of uranium other than for peaceful purposes.. [More…]
It will also be necessary that the Minister determine in advance that the contracts which the uranium producers propose to enter into for the sale of their uranium to overseas buyers contain appropriate terms and conditions consistent with Australian Government nuclear safeguards policy. [More…]
Mr Justice Fox, who was referred to by the Minister in his statement on the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation, does not engage in the substance of negotiatons with other countries. [More…]
The International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation began in October 1977, but we have not had any report from the Government since that date on what it had to say at that evaluation or what conclusions have so far come from it. [More…]
The decisions in relation to nuclear codes in particular and also the environmental standards to be set will be made by the States and not by the Australian Government. [More…]
ensuring adherence to the policies of Australia in relation to the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons and the application of safeguards against the use of uranium other than for peaceful purposes. [More…]
The nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of nuclear war. [More…]
The situation is that this Government has not faced up to the fact that while it mines uranium without the appropriate safeguards on the world scene, it is contributing to a nuclear war. [More…]
The other question that remains unresolved is that of nuclear waste disposal. [More…]
The Deputy Prime Minister and the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) say that the problem of nuclear waste disposal has been solved. [More…]
The honourable member for Blaxland (Mr Keating) asked about the Government’s policy in regard to reprocessing nuclear waste. [More…]
In the early stages, it said that it would support President Carter in his policy which was against reprocessing nuclear waste. [More…]
But the Government knows that if it stands by that decision, and it does not allow reprocessing, there is no way of storing the nuclear waste. [More…]
This system of storing nuclear waste by vitrification is an untried system. [More…]
In no way would uranium mining or a nuclear power industry assist in the liquid fuel crisis. [More…]
We can point to the OECD estimates on nuclear generation of electricity in OECD countries for 1985. [More…]
At that time the estimates predicted that 600,000 megawatts of nuclear generated electricity would be needed by 1985. [More…]
There is also the unresolved problem about proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
There is the unresolved problem of nuclear waste disposal. [More…]
Sir John Hill, the Chairman of the British Atomic Energy Agency, visited me this week to bring me up to date with activities in Britain relating to the nuclear fuel cycle but principally to find out what progress has been made in Australia with the development of uranium and the prospects of future exports of uranium. [More…]
In Britain today there are 28 nuclear reactors in operation. [More…]
Some 13 per cent of British power now is being produced from nuclear operations. [More…]
Although Britain has very significant gas and oil deposits its selection of nuclear power as part of its overall energy production is a recognition of the important part that nuclear energy can play. [More…]
It is unfortunate that members of the Australian Labor Party do not seem to be able to get in step with some of their colleagues in the United Kingdom who obviously recognise the important contribution nuclear power can make to Britain’s energy requirements. [More…]
Alas, Labor Party supporters apparently are going to remain influenced by some of the ossified views of their party, and I think that while they retain this attitude to nuclear energy they must slowly lose the respect not only of other countries but also they will continue to lose the respect of the Australian people who recognise the important contribution nuclear power can play in supplying energy to the rest of the world. [More…]
Did he hear a radio news report today in which Sir Charles Court was reported as saying that the Yeelirrie uranium deposit in Western Australia would be developed before Ranger because there will be no bureaucratic interference, and that Western Australia is planning for the installation of a nuclear power reactor? [More…]
Does he approve the development of the Yeelirrie deposit and has the Federal Government approved, or is it likely to approve, the construction of a nuclear power station in Western Australian. [More…]
Regarding a nuclear reactor in Western Australia, there was no time put on this proposal. [More…]
The statement, as I heard it, was that Western Australia will have a nuclear reactor or nuclear power, and I suppose that is quite a possibility in the future. [More…]
It relates essentially to the military reprocessing and enrichment plants of the nuclear weapons states which, under the terms of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, are not required to be subject to International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards. [More…]
The international discussion among nuclear weapons states which the Prime Minister has endorsed could lead to a recommendation that these states agree to convert these facilities to peaceful uses and place them under safeguards. [More…]
International agreement in this sphere would place a limit on the quantity of fissionable material available to the nuclear weapons states for weapons production. [More…]
Thus it would be a more effective way of halting the nuclear arms race. [More…]
It would be a further barrier to the spread of nuclear weapons to additional countries by preventing the development of untested nuclear weapons. [More…]
The suggestion of an early discussion of this proposal is therefore entirely consistent with the well-established Australian policies of support for the cessation of all nuclear testing in all environments and support for measures which will eventually lead to nuclear disarmament. [More…]
In answer to a question I previously asked in this House the Minister for Foreign Affairs stated that the projections for France relating to the use of nuclear sources for electrical energy were that by 1985 France would be 60 per cent dependent on nuclear energy for generating its electrical power. [More…]
In view of this startling revelation, is the Minister in a position to inform the House of comparative figures for other industrialised nations regarding the use of nuclear energy in the future? [More…]
There is no doubt that in a number of countries the use of nuclear power is becoming more and more significant. [More…]
There is no doubt that a country reliant upon nuclear power for its energy needs obviously would have the greatest reluctance to place its sources of supply and its nuclear industry in jeopardy. [More…]
There are safeguards to check that nuclear material in peaceful use is not diverted to the manufacture of weapons. [More…]
With respect to the detail of the figures for which the honourable gentleman has asked, I refer him to a document entitled Nuclear Fuel [More…]
Cycle Requirements, which was published by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Nuclear Energy Agency and is dated February 1978. [More…]
This document contains projections on a regional basis, which show for example that by 1985 on present trends the nuclear share of electrical capacity in OECD member countries will be 20 per cent in Europe, 1 7 per cent in America, 14 per cent in the Pacific region and 18 per cent on average. [More…]
In other words, already there is a very significant dependence on nuclear energy in order to meet the needs of the economies of most of the countries of the OECD group. [More…]
If we include non-OECD countries, the share of nuclear energy in the electrical capacity of the world is estimated at 16 per cent by 1985. [More…]
Of course, outside those figures the Soviet Union and other eastern European countries also have large nuclear power programs. [More…]
Figures for those countries, while not included in these figures, could well lead to an indication that the percentage share of nuclear energy in electrical capacity will be greater than the 16 per cent to which I referred a moment ago. [More…]
So it can be seen that the extent to which Australia can get its uranium exported and contributing towards this generation of nuclear energy is significantly going to help the power needs of an energy-hungry world. [More…]
I said that nuclear fissionable material is either highly enriched uranium or pure plutonium and that the Government had hitherto said that it wished to approve all such enrichment or reprocessing but that the Prime Minister had said that, from this point on, he would have a complete prohibition. [More…]
In his speech to the United Nations the Prime Minister said that Australia welcomed the prospect of a Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty and that ‘such a treaty would be reinforced by an international agreement to halt production of fissionable material for nuclear weapons’. [More…]
My wife and I were taken for a walk for two and a half miles under the city of Peking to observe and see at first hand China ‘s defence in the event of a nuclear war. [More…]
In addition Australian policy requires that ownership of uranium be retained by Australia until full IAEA safeguards apply and that bilateral agreements with importing countries provide for adequate physical protection of those countries nuclear industries. [More…]
Australia supports the development of an international convention on the physical protection of nuclear material in international transit. [More…]
Task Force on Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Safeguards (Question No. [More…]
Who are the members of the expert multi-disciplinary task force on nuclear non-proliferation and safeguards established by the Government last November. [More…]
The permanent membership of the task force on nuclear non-proliferation and safeguards comprises officers of the Depanments of Foreign Affairs, Prime Minister and Cabinet, and Trade and Resources, and the Australian Atomic Energy Commission. [More…]
1) Is the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation in which Australia is a participant considering the possible establishment of international nuclear waste repositories. [More…]
Has the possibility of the establishment of an international nuclear waste repository in Australia been discussed at International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation meetings or during bilateral discussions between Australia and potential customer countries for Australia ‘s uranium. [More…]
1 ) Working Group 7 of the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation (INFCE) is considering two alternative cases concerning the management and disposal of spent nuclear fuel, namely: [More…]
Foreign policy concerns of the Holy See under Pope Paul included: Disarmament and the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons; improvement of social welfare; assisting the development of the poorer countries; evolution of relations with Marxist regimes; and a desire to expand official communications with the communist, Islamic and Asian world to ensure maintenance of freedom of Christian observance. [More…]
In respect of any future shipments of Australian uranium to the Philippines, which country will (a) carry out the conversion of Australian yellowcake to uranium hexafluoride, (b) enrich the uranium hexafluoride, (c) carry out fuel fabrication, (d) accept the spent fuel rods for reprocessing, (e) accept the recycled plutonium and uranium and (f) accept the nuclear waste. [More…]
1 ) Has his attention been drawn to the United States report on Nuclear Power Costs prepared by the Environment, Energy and Natural Resources Sub-committee of the United States Congress House Government Operations Committee which stated that radioactive waste is a significant and growing problem, that at least 3,000 metric tonnes of spent nuclear fuel are now being stored at commercial reactor sites with an additional 1 7,000 metric tonnes expected to accumulate in the next decade and yet there is still no demonstrated technology for permanently and safely disposing of this waste. [More…]
If so, what is the reason for the Government’s assertion that the problems of nuclear waste disposal have been solved. [More…]
Will the Government indicate in detail the method of safe long term disposal of nuclear waste upon which it purports to rely. [More…]
Details of the status of technology and management of high level waste arising from the spent nuclear fuel are contained in Atomic Energy in Australia, Vol. [More…]
The Australian family has been the nuclear one, not the Italian style or Japanese style extended or threegenerational one. [More…]
Our children leave the home as soon as they are able, to begin their own nuclear families. [More…]
The agreement between the Government of Australia and the Government of the Republic of Finland Concerning the Transfer of Nuclear Material between Australia and Finland signed on 20 July 1978, together with a letter sent to the Leader of the Finnish Delegation which negotiated the agreement; [More…]
the agreement between the Government of Australia and the Government of the Republic of the Philippines Concerning Co-operation in Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy and the Transfer of Nuclear Material signed on 8 August, together with a letter sent to the Leader of the Philippines’ Delegation which negotiated the agreement; [More…]
the exchange of letters constituting the interim Agreement between the Government of Australia and the Government of the United States of America on Peaceful Nuclear Cooperation, of 8 August 1978. [More…]
An undertaking that nuclear material supplied by Australia will not be diverted to military or explosive purposes; [More…]
the application of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards, which provide an international check against diversion of nuclear material; [More…]
fall-back arrangements to ensure continued safeguarding of this nuclear material should IAEA safeguards for any reason cease to apply; [More…]
a requirement for Australia’s prior consent for high enrichment or reprocessing of nuclear material supplied by Australia. [More…]
provisions ensuring that adequate physical security will be maintained, to guard against theft or other illegal use of nuclear material by groups or individuals; and [More…]
all of these safeguards and controls are to cover nuclear material derived from Australian uranium so long as it remains in a form relevant from the point of view of safeguards; that is, until it has been consumed or diluted to the point where there is no practical possibility of it being useful for the purpose of making a nuclear weapon. [More…]
We do not, of course, start from the assumption that countries with which we make nuclear safeguards agreements will seek to breach them, or their obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, or their obligations under safeguards agreements with the IAEA. [More…]
The prospect of an interruption of supply is a very serious deterrent and sanction for a country dependent on outside supplies of fuel for its nuclear power industry and reliant on nuclear power for an important portion of its electric power. [More…]
The Agreement itself specifies nuclear non-proliferation considerations, as well as Finland’s energy requirements and need for efficient and proper waste management, as factors which would have to be taken into account by Australia in considering any request for approval to reprocess. [More…]
Obviously we would not permit reprocessing of Australian supplied material if the conditions and arrangements were not fully satisfactory from the point of view of nuclear nonproliferation. [More…]
This is inherent in the guidelines of the Nuclear Suppliers Group which were published in February 1978. [More…]
Nevertheless, honourable members will see that both are equally effective in meeting the requirements of Australia’s nuclear safeguards policy. [More…]
In terms of the Government’s nuclear safeguards policy, the important point to note is that the accompanying letter in no way detracts from the obligations accepted by the Philippines towards Australia. [More…]
Moreover they are the standards set out in the guidelines of the Nuclear Suppliers Group. [More…]
In the first place it signifies the decision by the two governments to renegotiate their existing nuclear co-operation agreement of 1956 with a view to bringing the safeguards therein up to the standard required by their current policies. [More…]
In the case of the United States, that is the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Act of 1978. [More…]
Honourable members may recall that a similar interim agreement between Canada and the United States in November last year opened the way for the successful conclusion of Canada’s negotiations with Japan on nuclear safeguards. [More…]
In the Agreement, the United States spontaneously pays tribute to ‘Australia’s leadership role in preventing nuclear proliferation’. [More…]
The Government’s nuclear safeguards policy is not only a highly responsible policy for the prevention of the proliferation of nuclear weapons; it is also an eminently practical and internationally workable policy which is already demonstrating that it is successful. [More…]
Anyone who has spoken to people in the United States who are interested in nuclear technology, non-proliferation and safeguards will know that the United States Congress itself solemnly debated in advance the type of safeguards agreement which it would approve. [More…]
For example, there was a problem with the nuclear explosion in India, which was unexpected. [More…]
It has been said that the draft agreement- that is not this one but any one- is seriously defective in the terms of what we know it to be, as published in the Sydney Morning Herald, in the way that it lays down the circumstances under which fuel reprocessing can be permitted, namely, that it can be permitted on taking into account ‘the relationship of the request to legitimate energy needs, the applicable controls and safeguards and the need to avoid stockpiling of strategic nuclear material in a way that could increase the risk of proliferating nuclear explosive capabilities’. [More…]
Leningrad has a nuclear capacity. [More…]
Both the letter and the preamble to the agreement point out that this agreement, especially inrelation to reprocessing, is conditional upon the outcome of International Fuel Cycle Evaluation studies plus unspecified new international arrangements and institutions- for example, the nuclear non-proliferation review. [More…]
-The point I want to make is that in our view there is no guarantee that the export of our uranium will not mean the proliferation of nuclear material. [More…]
In all honesty the Government would have to admit that the Australian people must have some misgivings about the attitude of France to nuclear explosions. [More…]
He said that he did not hear of the recent underground nuclear explosion in the Pacific. [More…]
With the greatest respect to the French, they could not care less about the Australian public when it comes to nuclear safeguards. [More…]
As far as they are concerned, it is not in their best interests to cany out nuclear tests anywhere near French territory. [More…]
Although the Minister for Foreign Affairs is usually pretty vocal about these matters, I notice that he did not have much to say, if he said anything at all, about the French nuclear explosion of recent weeks. [More…]
What will happen to the world if people start to use our uranium to manufacture nuclear weapons? [More…]
No constituents in any electorate in Australia represented by members of the Government parties would be prepared to take back the nuclear waste. [More…]
The fact is that there has been a great proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
There is no such thing as a non-explosive nuclear material; it is explosive. [More…]
The actions taken by the Government in the uranium field in the past three months have contributed nothing to nuclear non-proliferation. [More…]
This is not a budgetary decision by the Opposition; it is a decision motivated entirely by its unwillingness to see any development of Australia’s uranium deposits- a development which will greatly strengthen our balance of payments, which will provide energy for peaceful purposes to energy starved countries, and which will give us an opportunity to exercise our influence in those councils of the world grappling with the problems of nuclear proliferation and safeguards. [More…]
Nowhere is this Government’s eagerness to advance the interests of big interests more blatant and more contemptuous of the interests and wishes of the Australian people than in its attempts to fix up things for the mining companies and the energy monopolies with the commitment of Australia’s uranium deposits to the world nuclear fuel cycle. [More…]
In its rush to override the wishes of the Aboriginal people and to sweep aside the large and growing opposition in the Australian community to uranium mining and export, the Government is desperately trying to lock Australia into the world nuclear fuel cycle. [More…]
He is doing all that he can to prevent Australia developing a nuclear industry. [More…]
Those countries seem to be moving as fast as they can towards the development of nuclear industries and they do not seem to be very concerned about the welfare of their citizens during that process. [More…]
One wonders whether the real motives of people seeking to prevent the development of a nuclear industry in Australia can be given the closest scrutiny. [More…]
In the medium time scale we will be using the nuclear power of uranium and thorium and [More…]
This Government appreciates that nuclear power is a necessity, especially for energy poor countries. [More…]
We also should have nuclear power stations covering all future increases in mainline power and replacing oil, gas and coal burning stations as soon as possible. [More…]
Newport power station in Melbourne should be a clean, non-polluting nuclear station. [More…]
I hope that this Government will encourage both private enterprise and the instrumentalities to look to having all future power stations nuclear. [More…]
Which countries (a) havebeen supplied with Australia’s model nuclear safeguards agreement and (b) have furnished comments on the agreement to the Government. [More…]
With which countries has Australia commenced negotiating the terms of a nuclear safeguards agreement. [More…]
Has any country agreed to the inclusion of a provision in a bilateral safeguards agreement with Australia that any reprocessing of nuclear material supplied by Australia may only take place with the prior consent of the Australian Government. [More…]
Australia’s model nuclear safeguards agreement has been given to potential customer countries for Australian uranium and to a number of other countries which have expressed interest in it. [More…]
1 ) Has the Government held any discussions with the Canadian Government regarding nuclear non-proliferation safeguards since the announcement of Australia’s safeguards policy. [More…]
In addition to visits by Australian officials in June and December 1977 for discussions with Canadian officials on nuclear safeguards there have been frequent exchanges through diplomatic channels and between delegations to international conferences. [More…]
Mr Justice Fox, Australia’s Ambassador at Large for nuclear non-proliferation matters and safeguards, has visited Ottawa for discussion on three occasions since May 1977. [More…]
Which countries have been sent copies of the model nuclear safeguards agreement. [More…]
With which countries has Australia entered into a bilateral nuclear safeguards agreement. [More…]
and (5) Since 24 May 1977 nuclear safeguards agreements have been concluded by Australia with Finland and the Republic of the Philippines. [More…]
There are of course nuclear co-operation agreements in force between Australia and several other countries which contain safeguards provisions and which were concluded prior to the new policy. [More…]
1 ) Has his attention been drawn to the report on Nuclear Power Costs prepared by the Environment, Energy and Natural Resources Sub-Committee of the United States House Government Operations Committee which stated that radio-active waste is a significant and growing problem with at least 3,000 metric tonnes of spent nuclear fuel now being stored at commercial reactor sites and an additional 17,000 metric tonnes expected to accumulate in the next decade, and that there is still no demonstrated technology for permanently and safely disposing of this waste. [More…]
If so, how is this finding reconciled with the Government’s assertion that the problems of nuclear waste disposal have been solved. [More…]
Will the Government indicate in detail the method of safe long term disposal of nuclear waste upon which it relies. [More…]
1 ) Are there any proposals before the Government concerning the building of nuclear power stations in Australia. [More…]
If so, will he state (a) the number of proposals under consideration, (b) the locations of the proposed nuclear power stations, (c) the estimated costs involved for each station, and (d) details of any proposal which the Government has accepted in principle. [More…]
Does the Government have to give approval before any nuclear power station is built in Australia; if not, in which areas can these power stations be built. [More…]
Yes; to the extent that implementation of any proposal for the development of a nuclear power station would be subjectto approvals required under relevant Commonwealth legislation, including legislation relating to imports. [More…]
1 ) Has his attention been drawn to reports of studies by Professor Alice Stewart of the causes of death of workers exposed to low levels of nuclear radiation at the Hanford nuclear plant in Washington, USA. [More…]
Will he ensure that the results of this recent study of the effects on human health of low levels of nuclear radiation are taken into account in the formulation and implementation of radiation protection standards for workers in the uranium industry. [More…]
1 ) Has his attention been drawn to reports of a study by Dr Thomas Najarian of the medical records and causes of death of nuclear workers, exposed to low levels of nuclear radiation, at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in New Hampshire, USA. [More…]
Will he ensure that the results of this recent study of the effects on human health of low levels of nuclear radiation are taken into account in the formulation and implementation of radiation protection standards for workers in the uranium industry. [More…]
1 ) Can he say whether a submission from the Department of Engineering Physics of the Australian National University to the Senate Standing Committee on National Resources in May 1976 expressed the view based on extensive theoretical investigation, analogous commercial experience and promising experimental confirmation that (a) a prototype solar powered energy transfer and storage system can be made to work at costs comparable to those of existing isolated towns’ electricity generation, (b) it should be cheaper than nuclear power, (c) it would be well within the production capabilities of Australia and (d) it would be more amenable to flexibility of siting, power storage to compensate for weather and seasonal fluctuations, and more economically adaptable to evolution towards large scale basic power production than the central tower solar power systems now being developed in the United States, so that by the time large scale units are developed it may already be cheaper than existing alternatives and save Australia ‘s fossil fuels for export and other valuable uses. [More…]
If so, did the submission rightly claim that (a) Australia does not have the resources to develop nuclear fission or fusion energy and (b) these energy sources are too costly and large for most isolated or under-developed communities. [More…]
What funds from (a) the Australian Government or allied sources and (b) other sources have been allocated in Australia specifically to (i) this project and (ii) atomic (A) fission and (B) fusion research in case of development of nuclear power generation in Australia. [More…]
The submission made many broad speculative statements about the future comparative economics of solar power systems versus nuclear fission and fusion systems. [More…]
See (5) below, (ii) For information on Commonwealth support for nuclear research see page 56 of the Twenty-fifth Annual Report of the Australian Atomic Energy Commission 1976-77. [More…]
It is not the half lives of the nuclear activation products produced in the structural materials of the reactor that is the issue but the total activity of the components. [More…]
I understand at least one nuclear power station at Elk River in the United States has been totally decommissioned and dismantled. [More…]
On 24 May 1977 the Prime Minister made a statement to the House of Representatives, setting out the Government’s policy on nuclear safeguards. [More…]
Honourable members opposite will stir up the trade union movement, the academics and anybody else to try to frustrate the Government’s desire to develop uranium in the interest of this nation and in die interests of people in other parts of the world who are working to proceed with the nuclear age. [More…]
Examples of more specific areas of interest, covered by the above broad guidelines are: increase in effectiveness of the methods and techniques for exploration and for the assessment of reserves of petroleum, coal and other fossil fuels; improvements in production, processing, transportation, storage and utilisation of Australian coals; the production of liquid fuels including methanolfrom coals, natural gas and oil shale and production of ethanol from agricultural materials; methods to conserve energy in transportation, in industry and in the design of buildings; utilisation of the various forms of renewable energy, particularly solar energy; relevant aspects of nuclear energy and nuclear fuels; research into solar electricity, magneto hydrodynamics, and other advanced energy technologies; environmental aspects of energy production and use. [More…]
The Minister for Foreign Affairs (Mr Peacock), in his statement to the Parliament on 24 August last, when tabling agreements with the Republic of Finland and the Republic of the Philippines concerning the sale of our uranium, again repeated that Australia will sell uranium only to those nation states that are prepared to accept their obligations under the Treaty on the Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. [More…]
It is essentially upon that Treaty that Australia has to rely in the hope that Australian uranium is not eventually used for the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
It is not good enough for those of us who are concerned about the fact that there are too many nuclear weapons in the world simply to accept without argument that, as a nation producing uranium, we can simply rely upon the operations of the International Atomic Energy Agency and upon treaties to limit the use of Australian uranium in the production of nuclear weapons. [More…]
In the final analysis, whether a nation determines to become a nuclear power in its own right is essentially a decision which it takes in terms of its view of its own self-interest. [More…]
But in 1976 it had only 44 field agents to examine the world’s nuclear activities and the vast majority of its funds- that is, 80 per cent- went to ‘promotional activities’. [More…]
Having regard to the serious inadequacies that have been thus far exposed by the Fox report and other serious commentators, it is simply not good enough for this Government to assert that IAEA safeguards of themselves provide any real basis against nuclear proliferation. [More…]
It is perfectly true that the Indian explosion, made possible by United States and Canadian aid, was one of the major events which affected the formulation of United States policy on nuclear proliferation in recent years. [More…]
Others were a $25m French deal to supply Pakistan with a re-processing plant giving it easy access to plutonium and therefore bombs, and a West German agreement to provide Brazil with a complete nuclear industry for $ 8,000m which entailed even greater risks. [More…]
It is true that these sales reflect the intense competitiveness of international nuclear markets. [More…]
The competitiveness of the nuclear power industry and the huge financial stakes involved mean that countries are tempted to compete with each other by relaxing safeguards for customers or offering highly sensitive technology such as re-processing or enrichment technology. [More…]
That was precisely what occurred when West Germany won an agreement to provide Brazil with a complete nuclear industry for $8,000m. [More…]
Germany was able to win an order for eight nuclear reactors by offering the re-processing technology that its only serious competitor, the Westinghouse Electrical Corporation, could not meet due to the United States policy which prohibits the overseas sale of reprocessing plants. [More…]
The fact of the matter is that in order to chase the quick dollar by the sale of uranium this Government has endeavoured to minimise the risks and the problems involved in nuclear proliferation. [More…]
Having regard to the history of nuclear proliferation and the obvious difficulties in terms of real politics of trying to make a nuclear proliferation treaty work, the Minister does himself no service and the people of Australia real disservice when he oversimplifies and avoids the real problems posed by the sale of Australian uranium and its potential significance in expanding the nuclear arsenal that already threatens the future of mankind and life on this planet as we know it. [More…]
There are crucial issues such as nuclear safeguards, the law of the sea and Antarctica to be dealt with. [More…]
When will he inform the House of the Government’s intentions to promote alternatives to nuclear energy as asked in some of the questions referred to in part ( 1 ). [More…]
When will the honourable gentleman provide the Parliament with information regarding Australia’s approach to the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation? [More…]
It did not take any notice of the Borrie report, of the nuclear family, as it is termed, and the fact that families will be smaller. [More…]
Those people in Australia who say that we should not be developing uranium should get out of their Rip van Winkle state of mind and realise that we are living in a nuclear age, that any country which has uranium is developing it and that those countries which are looking for alternative sources of energy will have to rely heavily on nuclear power. [More…]
-The honourable gentleman would know that as a result of the Fox Ranger Uranium Environmental Inquiry the Government has instituted a number of measures to make sure not only that we contribute as fully as we can to international safety through nuclear safeguards but also that we fulfil to the utmost obligations within Australia. [More…]
We are also, of course, having discussions with the States in relation to nuclear codes for industry to make sure that nuclear-related activities are undertaken in an absolutely safe manner. [More…]
When this country acceded to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty, the first requirement which was cast upon the country was to enter into an agreement regarding safeguards with the International Atomic Energy Agency. [More…]
How many persons have objected to the use of their taxation contributions for nuclear research. [More…]
No record can be found in the Australian Taxation Office of any taxpayer having objected to the use of taxation contributions for nuclear research. [More…]
The USEPA standards promulgated in 1977 refer to exposure of members of the public to radiation in the environment from the normal operation of the US nuclear power cycle. [More…]
Since 1956 the Australian Radiation Laboratory has been responsible for monitoring radioactive fallout throughout Australia arising from atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons. [More…]
The survey is to determine genetic and bone-marrow doses to the Australian population from medical, dental and chiropractic radiology, radiotherapy and nuclear medicine. [More…]
Will a national nuclear waste dump be established to provide for the disposal of other similarly contaminated material. [More…]
In order to ensure that there will be co-operative development of uniform nuclear codes of practice to cover such matters as the management of waste from the mining and milling of uranium ores throughout Australia, the Commonwealth passed the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Act in May 1978. [More…]
As Australia has, at this stage, no plans for developing a nuclear industry generating high level radio-active wastes the question of disposal of such wastes does not arise. [More…]
Mr Barnard said that to the best of his recollection he had been informed that there was radioactivity at Maralinga as a consequence of nuclear tests but he is quite certain - [More…]
What was the purpose of nuclear experimentation at Maralinga in which discs of plutonium were explosively shattered? [More…]
Were these tests directed to the development of highly advanced nuclear weapons? [More…]
Were they carried out in breach of the spirit of an international ban on nuclear testing? [More…]
I have received a categorical assurance that there was no breach of the moratorium at that time, that there was no nuclear explosion at that time and that the tests that were conducted were nuclear experimentations designed to determine what difficulties would have been postulated by, say, a nuclear weapon being involved in a fire or being subjected to severe stress. [More…]
Beyond that I would say to the honourable gentleman that I think that this issue would be covered by me in particular when I make that statement; but I would seek to emphasise to the Leader of the Opposition and to the House that, as advised, there is no evidence whatsoever that the United Kingdom Government at the relevant time in any way breached the nuclear moratorium. [More…]
-In today’s edition of the Australian Financial Review, in Mungo MacCallum ‘s column ‘From the Gallery’ under the headline ‘Labor’s Maralinga attack very non-nuclear’, the following paragraph appears: [More…]
The Opposition’s attack was decidedly less than nuclear. [More…]
by leave- In the 1950s a series of nuclear tests was conducted in this country by the United Kingdom Government. [More…]
Investigation has turned up no evidence that nuclear waste from power stations in Britain- or from any other country- was buried at Maralinga or anywhere else in Australia. [More…]
There were not 800 tonnes of nuclear waste buried at Maralinga, nor anything remotely approaching that amount. [More…]
There were subsequently some experiments on radioactive substances related to nuclear weapons technology but no further atomic explosions. [More…]
I emphasise those words because the Melbourne Age newspaper, commenting editorially today, had some difficulty distinguishing between an atomic explosion qua atomic explosion and nuclear experimentation. [More…]
It is a matter of regret that men who were members of Whitlam Labor governmentsgovernments led by Mr Whitlam and administrations which professed a close interest in nuclear matters- must realise the untruth of some of the rumours and misinformation and sheer fabrications that have appeared on this subject yet they have chosen to remain silent. [More…]
This important matter, which is essentially one of longterm environmental management, has become confused and distorted by several unfounded allegations, in particular that an unexploded nuclear weapon is buried at Maralinga; that radioactive waste was brought from British nuclear power stations and buried at Maralinga; and that about 800 tonnes of nuclear waste material, including plutonium, is buried at Maralinga, which is what the South Australian Minister for Mines and Energy was reported on 20 December 1976 to have said. [More…]
The radioactive debris at Maralinga is derived from three sources- British nuclear tests and experiments carried out in that area some fifteen to twenty-five years ago; washings from British service aircraft which participated in the nuclear tests at Christmas Island in 1957-58 and which later flew to Edinburgh airfield for cleaning and maintenance, and nuclear medical waste from the University of Adelaide. [More…]
While it is true that some 800 tonnes of rubble are buried in 21 pits, this contains some 20 kilograms of plutonium and it is a mistake to describe it all as ‘nuclear waste material’. [More…]
You referred also to the ‘moratorium’ during which the British Government, along with the U.S. and Soviet Governments, accepted a self-imposed obligation to refrain from the testing of nuclear weapons. [More…]
This lasted from September 1958 until September 1961, when, you will recall, the Soviet Government resumed testing of nuclear weapons. [More…]
No atomic devices were exploded during the moratorium on nuclear weapons testing between 1958 and 1 96 1 , and no unexploded nuclear device was buried. ‘ [More…]
1 ) What steps have been taken to verify the allegations by Dr John Coulter and Mr Avon Hudson on the radio program AM on 2 and 3 December 1976 that the British Government had flown radio-active waste including plutonium from nuclear power stations in Britain to Maralinga, where it was secretly buried at night. [More…]
This investigation has turned up no evidence whatsoever supporting the allegations that radio-active waste was brought from nuclear power stations in Britain for burial at Maralinga. [More…]
Washings from British Service aircraft which participated in nuclear tests at Christmas Island in 1957-58 and which later flew to Edinburgh airfield for cleaning and maintenance. [More…]
Nuclear medical waste from the University of Adelaide. [More…]
Is it true that, during the moratorium on nuclear weapons testing between 1958 and 1961, Australia co-operated with the British in conducting secret atomic ‘Trigger’ tests at Maralinga and that waste and debris from these tests were buried at Maralinga? [More…]
If this information is true, will he recommend that a royal commission be appointed to inquire into all aspects of such tests and the burial of nuclear waste at Maralinga? [More…]
Can he provide a full list of all nuclear explosions which have taken place in Australia giving the date, the size, location and purpose of each. [More…]
The purpose of each explosion was related to the development of a British nuclear deterrent. [More…]
debris from British experiments 15 to 25 years ago; washings from British service aircraft which participated in nuclear tests at Christmas Island (in the Pacific) in 1957-58; and nuclear waste from the University of Adelaide. [More…]
These actions now mean that all the former nuclear weapons test sites in Australia are receiving close attention. [More…]
Yet another of the matters which this Government has had under active consideration- and one which lay behind Cabinet’s recent deliberations- relates to Australia’s obligations under the agreement signed with the International Atomic Energy Agency consequent upon our accession to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
I remind honourable members opposite that the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty was ratified by the Labor Government and the accession to that Treaty was an act of the Whitlamled Government of the time. [More…]
The point is that by exhuming the burial, Australia would be obliged to enter the plutonium it contains on the inventory of fissionable materials in Australian territory which Australia maintains with the IAEA under its obligations deriving from the nuclear non-proliferation treaty. [More…]
Doubts cast on nuclear dump. [More…]
to improve the nuclear waste safeguards. [More…]
So it is understood that Dr Farrands found that the radioactive waste, although emitting no radiation at ground level, was buried in a way which was not adequate by today’s nuclear standards. [More…]
Apart from nuclear explosions, there were some minor experiments. [More…]
It was to be a very secret matter indeed and it was to be on the basis of the latest technology for triggering nuclear devices by using a small nuclear reaction, not a full explosion. [More…]
There are nuclear scientists who are not interested in the general political management of Australia. [More…]
They want to see atomic weapons or nuclear proliferation because that is their particular bent. [More…]
In the statement yesterday issued by the British High Commission there is reference to the fact that ‘experimentation’, if not nuclear explosions, occurred up to 1963. [More…]
The Minister is prepared to go on record and say that there was nothing wrong with that, that it did not really amount to a nuclear explosion, that it did not amount to experimenting with a triggering device which might detonate a larger bomb. [More…]
Where is the Government’s policy on the issue of nuclear proliferation and the problems of waste? [More…]
The Government is selling to the world the natural oxide from which plutonium is created, from which nuclear wastes are created. [More…]
The nuclear scientist, Titterton, however, has said that it did not exist. [More…]
We have nothing like the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in the United States, which is composed of two scientists and two others and which investigates, on an independent basis, the nuclear activities of the government and its departments. [More…]
We put that to the Government on 3 May as being a reasonable approach that would get the Government off the hook from the point of view of its mistakes or its inability to understand a report to the Parliament as to what was happening as regards nuclear waste, plutonium and general activities. [More…]
Mr Killen will soon provide details of nuclear waste buried at Maralinga … Mr Killen is also expected to reveal for the first time the extent and nature of weapons testing at Maralinga. [More…]
We need a government with an understanding of environmental and safety issues; a government with a policy as to how to control nuclear waste disposal. [More…]
The Government has a moral responsibility to have the same sort of Nuclear Regulatory Commission as the United States. [More…]
That all words after ‘That’ be omitted with a view to substituting the following words: this House censures the Government for its incompetence and failure to adopt responsible nuclear policies and its misleading and contradictory statements about British atomic weapons tests and forthwith calls upon the Government to appoint an independent committee of inquiry to report upon- [More…]
the need to establish a nuclear safeguards, safety and security commission. [More…]
There are serious questions concerning the health of Australian citizens, especially Aboriginals, concerning Australia’s sovereignty and whether the Australian Government always has been kept informed of events on Australian soil, concerning the hazards of waste which remains at Maralinga and the cost to Australian taxpayers of policing the nuclear waste for 300,000 years, the time it will take before it loses its toxicity. [More…]
The Government’s earlier slick assurances about nuclear wastes, nuclear safeguards and the health risks of radiation are even less convincing when we examine the record at Maralinga. [More…]
So many problems are still unresolved in relation to the whole nuclear business. [More…]
On 14 September 1972 in this House the Minister for Supply was asked a question by Mr Barnard concerning whether nuclear wastes had been brought from Britain for dumping at Maralinga. [More…]
If we now look at the answer given on 16 February 1977 by the Minister for Defence to a question on notice from E. G. Whitlam we find that he revealed that the waste from Christmas Island nuclear tests which resulted from washings of the British aircraft that flew to Edinburgh airfield in South Australia, were buried at Maralinga. [More…]
“No request by the British to bury, in Australia, waste from their nuclear establishments has been made and certainly no such permission has ever been given. [More…]
“Of course we have never produced nuclear weapons or bombs in Australia. [More…]
No request by the British to bury in Australia waste from their nuclear establishments has been made and certainly no such permission has ever been given. [More…]
Of course we have never produced nuclear weapons or bombs in Australia. [More…]
1) What steps have been taken to verify the allegations by Dr John Coulter and Mr Avon Hudson on the radio program AM on 2 and 3 December 1976 that the British Government had flown radioactive waste including plutonium from nuclear power stations in Britain to Maralinga, where it was secretly buried at night. [More…]
This investigation has turned up no evidence whatsoever supporting the allegations that radioactive waste was brought from nuclear power stations in Britain for burial at Maralinga. [More…]
washings from British service aircraft which participated in nuclear tests at Christmas Island in 1957-58 and which later flew to Edinburgh Airfield for cleaning and maintenance. [More…]
nuclear medical waste from the University of Adelaide. [More…]
Penney reached independantly the same definition as I did regarding the one-point safety tests, namely, that so long as the total explosive force (of HE and nuclear charge) is due predominantly to the HE explosion and the nuclear reaction is just observable by instruments, this should be called an experiment and not a weapons test. [More…]
Lord Penney referred to the explosions as small nuclear tests. [More…]
That Committee was shown to be a group of nuclear hawks. [More…]
It consistently supported French nuclear tests in the Pacific and said that they presented no health risk. [More…]
It is the extreme secrecy of the Liberal-National Country party governments and the gross negligence of the nuclear hawks which advise them which has left future generations of Australians with the legacy of Rum Jungle and now of Maralinga. [More…]
Nuclear experimentation at Maralinga ended in 1963, after which is was decided to decontaminate the site. [More…]
As far as the Australian Atomic Energy Commission is concerned they are perfectly able to solve the problem of the disposal of nuclear waste on their own. [More…]
The third point raised by the Opposition is that we need to establish a nuclear safeguards, safety and securities commission. [More…]
Again, the Opposition has simply chosen to ignore the fact that the Australian Safeguards Office, which has already been established, is the body which in fact dictates how the Australian Government is to maintain standards acceptable to the Australian Atomic Energy Agency and other international bodies, to maintain standards in accordance with the nuclear non-proliferation treaty and other agreements. [More…]
According to new criteria of the International Atomic Energy Agency- the IAEA- which the Whitlam Administration agreed to accept in 1974, the Government has been required to examine all records of previous nuclear experiments to see whether any contaminated material was buried in Australia in relation to which the new and very rigid criteria of the IAEA could perhaps apply. [More…]
An allegation has also been made by the honourable member for Reid and others that perhaps Great Britain breached the moratorium on nuclear explosions in the atmosphere. [More…]
There is no evidence that he has put forward, there is no evidence that any member of the Opposition has put forward this evening, to demonstrate that any nuclear experiments conducted after the completion of nuclear tests in the atmosphere breached in any sense the moratorium on nuclear explosions. [More…]
The British Government has stated that no atomic devices were exploded during the moratorium on nuclear weapons testing between 19S8 and 1961. [More…]
Maralinga-Emu area and concealed the explosion from every one of the many Australian scientists, officials and servicemen who were present but how is it then that at every single nuclear test over those years many Australians were present as scientists, servicemen and organisers of the explosion sites? [More…]
What did these 15 Ministers, including the honourable member for Reid (Mr Uren), with his fierce, passionate interest in nuclear matters, do? [More…]
They acceded to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in 1974. [More…]
The Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty refers directly to the International Atomic Energy Agency with all of its requirements. [More…]
The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty was acceded to and signed with all the palaver in the world. [More…]
The Australian Safeguards Office came into existence following the accession to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and the IAEA agreement. [More…]
In view of the events at Maralinga and the problems now of high and low grade nuclear waste disposal, will the Deputy Prime Minister inform the House what progress has been made in any joint discussion with other countries concerning the establishment of an uranium enrichment plant and also a vitrification and calcination plant for waste disposal in Australia? [More…]
Does he not agree that these two plants would give Australia much better control over her own uranium supplies exported throughout the world, keep Australia in the forefront of atomic science for energy and medical needs, and also demonstrate to the world our deep concern about the disposal of our own nuclear waste? [More…]
Does the Australia-Finland Nuclear Safeguards Agreement provide that uranium which would be exported from Australia on contract to Finland cannot be used in nuclear reactors outside Finland, or in nuclear weapons manufactured by a third party. [More…]
Does the Australian Government require that any uranium exported on contract to Finland must undergo conversion, enrichment and fuel fabrication only in a country with which Australia has signed a bilateral nuclear safeguards agreement. [More…]
Does the Australian Government require that the reprocessing of nuclear fuels made from uranium exported on contract to Finland must not be performed in any country with which Australia has not signed a bilateral nuclear safeguards agreement. [More…]
1 ) Article VII of the Australia/Finland nuclear safeguards agreement gives the Government the means of ensuring that any re-transfer of nuclear material supplied by Australia can take place only with the prior written consent of Australia. [More…]
In accordance with the Prime Minister’s policy statement of 24 May 1977 this means that the Government will be able to ensure that its safeguards requirements will continue to be met in any onward transfer of uranium supplied by Australia or nuclear material derived from it. [More…]
This will provide assurances that it will not be used for the manufacture of nuclear weapons. [More…]
These arrangements will have to include the return to Finland, or to another country with which Australia has at that time a bilateral safeguards agreement, of quantities of nuclear material equivalent to the supplied nuclear material. [More…]
Australia has reserved its position on the conditions under which it might be prepared to agree to reprocessing pending the outcome of current international studies, including the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation (INFCE). [More…]
The Government’s nuclear safeguards policy only allows the export of uranium to nuclear weapon states which give Australia an undertaking that nuclear material we supply for peaceful purposes will not be diverted to military or explosive purposes and that such material will be covered by International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards. [More…]
In the case of non-weapon states, Government policy limits uranium exports to parties to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
The Treaty commits such states not to manufacture, test or stockpile nuclear weapons. [More…]
As explained by the Prime Minister on 24 May 1977, there will be no uranium exports under new contracts to any country unless and until there is a bilateral agreement in force which provides that nuclear material supplied by Australia for peaceful purposes or nuclear material derived from its use will not be diverted to military or explosive purposes and that International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards will apply to verify compliance with this undertaking. [More…]
Is he able to say on which days during 1978 nuclear weapons tests were conducted by France at Mururoa Atoll. [More…]
When did the Australian Government become aware that France had conducted nuclear weapons tests at Mururoa Atoll in 1978. [More…]
Did the Australian Government protest to the French Government for its conduct of this series of nuclear tests; if so, when and by what means. [More…]
The detection and identification by seismological means of nuclear tests of low explosive yield is extremely difficult. [More…]
Australia receives information about suspected nuclear tests from a number of sources, both Australian and foreign, public and confidential. [More…]
Examination of all this information leads us to believe that there were two French undergound nuclear tests in the South Pacific before 24 April 1978, another on 20 July 1978, and a further test a week later. [More…]
We have reason to believe that this is the total number of French underground nuclear tests to date in 1978. [More…]
France, together with the other nuclear weapon states, is well aware of Australia’s strong opposition to nuclear weapons testing in all environments. [More…]
It is not our practice to protest to France, or for that matter to any other nuclear weapon state, about each underground nuclear test. [More…]
The Guidelines were voluntarily adopted by the fifteen leading suppliers of nuclear equipment and technology including the United States, Canada, major member states of Euratom, Japan, the Soviet Union and other east and west European countries. [More…]
The Guidelines represent a statement of the points in the nuclear export policies of the countries concerned which are common to all of them. [More…]
and (3) For this reason the Guidelines do not provide for sanctions against breaches by members of the Nuclear Suppliers Group nor for conditions under which countries could be ‘permitted’ to withdraw from the Nuclear Suppliers Group. [More…]
Do the export guidelines of the Nuclear Suppliers Group prohibit or restrict the export of (a) nuclear fuel reprocessing technology, (b) uranium enrichment technology (c) weapons-useable material and (d) the transfer of related technical information. [More…]
Are any transfers of these types being undertaken by members of the Nuclear Suppliers Group. [More…]
Do the transfers fall within the Nuclear Suppliers Group conditions. [More…]
The Guidelines specify restrictions on nuclear exports which participating governments intend to apply to such exports. [More…]
and (5) Information is not available on all such transfers, but on 1 1 January 1978 the major exporters of nuclear material, equipment and technology notified the International Atomic Energy Agency that they would act in accordance with the principles contained in the Nuclear Suppliers Group guidelines. [More…]
For example in December 1976 France announced that it would henceforth not authorise the export of reprocessing plants; in June 1977 the Federal Republic of Germany made a similar announcement; and the United States Nuclear Non-Proliferation Act of January 1978 imposes stringent limitations on nuclear exports. [More…]
Has the Government received any communication from the United States Government concerning proposals to establish a nuclear waste repository on an island in the Pacific. [More…]
In the medium time scale we will use the nuclear power of uranium and thorium and solar power, though it is limted in the overall situation. [More…]
The sooner we see nuclear power stations in Australia the better. [More…]
Some further items that fit in the general run of expenses associated with the overall nuclear energy program include capital works for the Australian Atomic Energy Commission- again under the Atomic Energy Act- for which $1.25m, only $1 1 1,000 more than was appropriated last year, is to be provided. [More…]
More and more, the true costs of the nuclear industry are being exposed. [More…]
Honourable members opposite may laugh, but what will be the cost of policing that nuclear waste for the next 300,000 years? [More…]
What are the real costs of enrichment and waste disposal to the nuclear power industry? [More…]
As far as I am concerned, the whole of the nuclear power industry in the Western world, which we can do something about, should be stopped. [More…]
All citizens of the world should be able to protest against it, and I am sure that eventually world opinion will stop the nuclear power industries in even the communist world as well as in the noncommunist world. [More…]
The whole question of nuclear waste is unresolved. [More…]
I shall give figures on some of the estimates, or the guesstimates, of the need for nuclear power. [More…]
It was suggested back in 1970 that Organisation for Economic Co-opertion and Development countries alone would need 600,000 megawatts of nuclear generated electricity annually by 1985. [More…]
Order after order for nuclear generating plants is being cancelled in the United States. [More…]
The orders are failing and in fact the nuclear component industry is under threat. [More…]
The nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of nuclear war. [More…]
Every time I quote this finding and try to tell the Government of the interrelationship of urnaium mining with the nuclear power industry and nuclear weapons it does not want to hear about it. [More…]
We have said that the problems of waste disposal and the proliferation of nuclear weapons are still unresolved. [More…]
Nuclear waste disposal is such a problem that the United States of America at present has 74 million gallons of toxic liquid waste from its testing of nuclear weapons in the atmosphere with which it does not know what to do. [More…]
Therefore at this stage there is no way at all, in the United States, of resolving the problem of nuclear waste. [More…]
On the one hand the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) has said that the problem of nuclear waste has been solved with what is called vitrification. [More…]
But to use this system of vitrification as a solution to the nuclear waste problem the waste first must be reprocessed. [More…]
Therefore this again would add to the spread of nuclear weapons. [More…]
1 ) Did the Ambassador-at-Large for Nuclear Affairs submit a report to the Government concerning safety aspects of the nuclear power plant which is under construction in the Bataan province of the Philippines. [More…]
) Can he say if there has been opposition to construction of the nuclear power plant by citizens of the Bataan province; if so, has he taken any steps to investigate whether human rights violations have occurred during the planning or construction of the plant. [More…]
I am advised that a group called the Movement of Concerned Citizens of Bataan has expressed opposition to construction of the nuclear power plant. [More…]
Has his attention been drawn to reports of increased incidence of malignant disease in workers and residents in and near nuclear power stations, related statistically to the length of time in the area and proximity to the plants. [More…]
I ask: Is it a fact that nuclear energy is amongst the cheapest of all forms of electricity generation? [More…]
In view of that, what is the present position in respect of nuclear energy development in other countries? [More…]
It is well accepted in countries overseas that nuclear energy is cheaper, cleaner and safer than oil-fired or coal-fired power stations. [More…]
It showed that the cost of producing nuclear power in the United Kingdom is half that of producing power from oil or coal and it is helping to give Britian a major advantage. [More…]
The rest of the world is going with the nuclear development. [More…]
If a project such as I suggest were implemented- it could be done at minimum cost- that would make available to the people of the Northern Territory a fish that it could not be suggested was contaminated by mercury or, as may happen later, by nuclear waste in our coastal waters. [More…]
British trawlers are forbidden to trawl for fish off certain parts of Scotland because of the nuclear contamination that exists. [More…]
There are also a number of world conferences which are significant, such as the United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea, the United Nations Water Conference, the International Conference on Developments in Nuclear Power and the Nuclear Fuel Cycle, the United Nations Conference on Desertification, the Review Conference on the Sea-bed Treaty, and the United Nations Conference on Technical Co-operation among Developing Countries. [More…]
Secondly, the report underlines the particular contribution which Australia made to the consideration of questions of nuclear arms control. [More…]
The Final Document of the Session brought out a number of points on nuclear arms control issues which the Prime Minister addressed in the Australian statement. [More…]
Recognition of the need for undertakings by all states in regard to nuclear non-proliferation objectives and for all nuclear transactions to be under effective international safeguards; the importance of substantive measures of nuclear disarmament by the existing nuclear weapon powers both as an objective in its own right and as an inducement to strengthening the existing non-proliferation regime; the urgent requirement for a comprehensive nuclear test ban and a new SALT agreement; and the desirability of a cessation of production of fissionable material for weapons purposes by the nuclear powers as a step towards scaling down the arms race. [More…]
I believe that two major issues which should be addressed urgently by the Committee on Disarmament are a comprehensive nuclear test ban treaty and a convention banning chemical weapons. [More…]
But has the Prime Minister raised the question of India’s nuclear weapons program? [More…]
It has not advanced a coherent and comprehensive nuclear non proliferation policy. [More…]
Since then he has no doubt resumed dreaming of trips overseas, particularly at Christmas time, to Jamaica, Montego Bay, New Delhi and Washington- anywhere he can think of where he will no doubt restore the resolve of the Western alliance, establish the new international economic order and get India to join the nuclear free zone. [More…]
It would make sure that neither party could gain a benefit over the other through lack of knowledge or early warning devices in relation to nuclear war. [More…]
It is basically a nuclear bomber and that probably accounts for some of the sensitivity of the honourable member for Corio (Mr Scholes) earlier on. [More…]
He knows that it is a nuclear bomber. [More…]
We all know that it is a nuclear bomber. [More…]
It is perhaps useful in some respects to try to transform these nuclear bombers into reconnaissance aircraft but I would prefer to go to the logic of the situation and complete the equipment. [More…]
Some of these are nuclear and some are rocket propelled. [More…]
Our nearest neighbours- South Africa, India, China and the United States- all have nuclear weapons. [More…]
The sooner this country is equipped with its full defence equipment, part of which should be nuclear, the better it will be. [More…]
I must start off by saying, of course, that my side of the chamber totally opposes the arming of the FI 1 ls with atomic weaponry and that we adhere to all that is said with respect to nuclear non-proliferation. [More…]
They are the Environment Protection (Alligator Rivers Region) Act, The National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Amendment Act and the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Act. [More…]
However the direction in which Australia should move from this point is very much open to dispute- is it to a nuclear strike force, a long range conventional maritime strike force, a ‘200 mile moat’, Fortress Australia’, or any combination of these? [More…]
1 ) Has the Government been approached by other countries or international organisations or groups for its views on or participation in the building of a spent nuclear fuel storage centre in the Pacific region. [More…]
The World Peace Council can proudly list its achievements as failure to protest about the Berlin Wall, failure to protest about the invasion of Hungary and Czechoslovakia and its rather dubious protest about nuclear testing, forgetting altogether that the Soviet Union is perhaps the greatest nuclear tester of all. [More…]
Has the Government adopted or does it intend to adopt the United States Environment Protection Agency Standards promulgated in 1977 relating to the exposure of members of the public to radiation in the environment from the normal operation of the nuclear power cycle; if not, why not. [More…]
These standards apply specifically to discharges from nuclear power stations of which there are none in Australia. [More…]
However, if at some future time a nuclear power station is established here, the relevance of the U.S. standards will be considered when establishing appropriate standards. [More…]
I read with interest the other day that the Finnish nuclear reactor is provided by the Russians who are also providing the enriched fuel. [More…]
Will he give an undertaking that any nuclear safeguards agreement covering the sale of Australian uranium to European countries will include a mandatory provision for Australia ‘s prior consent for reprocessing or retransfer of nuclear material derived from Australian ore. [More…]
The Government’s policy on nuclear safeguards was announced by me on 24 May 1977, and remains unchanged. [More…]
I also refer him to his announcement on 20 July of the conclusion of a nuclear safeguards agreement with Finland, with a supplementary exchange of letters known as the Fernandez letters. [More…]
The latest amendment to the Atomic Energy Act reveals more clearly than ever before that the Government’s single-minded strategy to lock Australia into the international nuclear fuel cycle and to repress the opposition of any citizen who threatens that strategy. [More…]
We will continue to oppose uranium mining while the serious economic, social, biological, genetic, environmental and technical problems associated with the development of nuclear power remain unresolved. [More…]
We are opposed to this Bill because it is another desperate attempt to lock Australia into the international nuclear fuel cycle which is controlled by the largest transnational corporations in this universe. [More…]
How can one solve the problem of the threat of the spread of nuclear weapons? [More…]
The nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of nuclear war. [More…]
This phoney Government really wants to make a fast buck, and it does not care about the spread of nuclear weapons or about the future of the human race. [More…]
They know that their dream of a uranium bonanza is rapidly fading as people all over the world are questioning the unsolved problems and saying no to nuclear power. [More…]
They know that the nuclear industry is being forced to account for the hidden and sometimes unknown costs of uranium enrichment, waste disposal and the decommissioning of nuclear reactors. [More…]
They know that the nuclear industry will not pay those costs. [More…]
Japan has revised its nuclear capacity for1985 from 60 gigawatts to 49 gigawatts and then to 35 gigawatts. [More…]
The trend in Japan is against nuclear power. [More…]
The leader of the trade union movement in West Germany told the leader of the trade union movement in Australia, Mr Bob Hawke, that the trade union movement in West Germany was reassessing its attitude to nuclear energy. [More…]
Of course, the main reason the Shah wanted it was for his nuclear weapons program, not for nuclear energy. [More…]
The last government was forced to cut back drastically on its nuclear energy plans. [More…]
The trend throughout the world is away from nuclear power. [More…]
This was starkly demonstrated in Austria recently when the majority of people voted against future nuclear energy. [More…]
We have to keep in mind that when they voted against it they had an investment in a nuclear power station of over $500m. [More…]
Yet in a referendum the people of Austria rejected nuclear power because they did not know the unknown, the problem of how to store nuclear waste and other nuclear material in the world. [More…]
We are in the nuclear age, whether we like it or not. [More…]
Our Prime Minister has said that we can place safeguards on the export of our uranium to these countries so that it is used for power production purposes and not for nuclear warheads. [More…]
The honourable member for Reid mentioned nuclear warheads in other countries. [More…]
Every nation of any standing has access to nuclear power and nuclear warheads and missiles. [More…]
In Great Britain nuclear power provides 15 to 20 per cent of the power generated. [More…]
In the United States of America, 15 to 20 per cent of power in the various States is generated from nuclear power from uranium and there have been very few accidents. [More…]
America from nuclear power generation. [More…]
The United States Navy has operated vessels on nuclear power for 21 years without any damage or accident at all. [More…]
And those problems included the possible misuse of plutonium and a failure to implement satisfactorily nuclear waste disposal techniques. [More…]
Breaches of nuclear safeguards arrangements, because they are quite separate from the authority to mine, cannot cause the interruption of mining. [More…]
Yet a draft bilateral nuclear safeguards agreement is already in international, though not national, circulation, and final versions have been adopted with two countries. [More…]
On close examination of this legislation, it becomes clear that the present Government seeks to bind future governments to detailed authorities to mine uranium, issued under section 41 of the Atomic Energy Act, regardless of any changes which take place in the nuclear industry. [More…]
Of course, the most troublesome environmental problem associated with uranium is the need to dispose safely and securely of the large quantities of radioactive waste generated by the use of uranium in nuclear reactors. [More…]
The Government’s attitude in proposing this Bill is consistent with its record of either making the false claim that the problem has been solved or of reverting to a position based on faith that it will be solved- soon enough and to the satisfaction of all responsible authorities so that Australian nuclear waste will never cause the slightest harm. [More…]
The most recent joint International Atomic Energy Agency-Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development working party Report entitled ‘Uranium Resources, Production and Demand’ revised downward its nuclear power growth forecasts by up to SO per cent for the year 2000. [More…]
The reasons include the failure of nuclear electricity to demonstrate the economic advantages claimed on its behalf, and future cost uncertainties. [More…]
Soaring costs of nuclear power projects far beyond the originally estimated limit have led to great difficulties, to disappoinment, controversies, and even to the cancellation of projects. [More…]
This has happened also among countries and companies with some experience in nuclear technology. [More…]
It appears to be even more difficult for inexperienced countries and companies to control the costs of a nuclear project unless they buy a standard nuclear unit from an experienced supplier which means little participation of the local manufacturing and engineering capacity. [More…]
In the same month, the Environment, Energy and Natural Resources Sub-committee of the United States Congress published its findings on the costs of nuclear power. [More…]
Neither the Federal Government nor the nuclear industry has prepared reliable cost estimates for the ultimate disposal and perpetual care of radioactive wastes and spent nuclear fuel. [More…]
After 30 years of nuclear power development, technology to dismantle a large commercial reactor has not yet been demonstrated, and the costs of dismantling such a reactor are still unknown. [More…]
Capital construction costs of nuclear plants, as well as fuel costs have risen dramatically. [More…]
America in nuclear weapons was uppermost in the minds of those concerned. [More…]
With all the talk that comes from honourable gentlemen opposite, they still have not produced one substantial scientific paper which they can assert with any confidence to the people of Australia that the problems of nuclear proliferation have been solved. [More…]
Is there one single scientific document they can produce which says that the problems of nuclear proliferation have been solved? [More…]
Of course not, and that is known by those who are involved in the science and technology of nuclear proliferation, in the problems that bedevil the Carter Administration as it endeavours desperately to fight off the demands of the nuclear power industry and contain the problems. [More…]
The nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to the increased risk of nuclear war. [More…]
Has one single piece of evidence been produced by which the Prime Minister or any of his colleagues can say: ‘I am pleased to announce to the House that we have now got agreements which indicate that the problems of nuclear proliferation no longer exist*? [More…]
There is still the problem of nuclear waste disposal. [More…]
One point he made was that all the nonsense and all the specious arguments that have been produced in this House by the Government in terms of nuclear waste disposal are scientific nonsense. [More…]
It is no answer to the many Australian citizens who believe in principle that Australian uranium ought not to be mined until we have solved the problems of nuclear proliferation. [More…]
-I table the text of Australia’s model bilateral nuclear safeguards agreement and seek leave to make a statement. [More…]
-This is the document that was sent to potential customer countries for Australian uranium late last year as a basis for negotiations with them on nuclear safeguards. [More…]
Model Nuclear Safeguards Agreement- Ministerial statement, 24 November 1 978. [More…]
There is not much point in attacking the Soviet Union on the basis of having bugging devices here as though it is a pleasant exercise and in the same context not telling anything about nuclear safeguards arrangements with that country from the point of view of uranium supplied to Finland. [More…]
As a result of a recent report by the United States House of Representatives Committee on International Relations, we know that some study was apparently taking place in relatively recent years on the possibility of nuclear weapons being produced in Korea. [More…]
This related particularly to the intention of Korea to purchase nuclear reprocessing equipment from France. [More…]
The things which have been done by this Government in the uranium field over the last year contribute nothing to nuclear nonproliferation. [More…]
The problem still exists and continues to expand as nations acquire more nuclear industry and more nuclear material. [More…]
1 ) What is the current level of Commonwealth Government expenditure for research in the following areas: (a) solar energy, (b) coal conversion, (c) wind energy, (d) wave and tidal energy, (e) oil shale energy, (f) nuclear energy and (g) other forms of energy. [More…]
1 ) Is he able to say why information on staff numbers involved in nuclear fuel cycle research are not made public by overseas organisations. [More…]
Why does he refuse to disclose staff numbers working on aspects of nuclear fuel cycle research at the AAEC. [More…]
and (2) The identification of the number of people engaged on particular aspects of nuclear fuel cycle research is of potential commercial value. [More…]
Nuclear Safeguards (Question Na 2542) [More…]
1 ) In connection with the nuclear safeguards agreement between Australia and the Philippines signed on 8 August 1978, will Australian yellowcake attract full International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards at the time of shipment. [More…]
As the agreement makes clear, both the Philippines and Australia accept International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards on all nuclear material in all peaceful nuclear activities within their territory, under their jurisdiction or carried out under their control anywhere. [More…]
The nature of the IAEA safeguards accepted by Australia and the Philippines as they apply to different forms of nuclear material are set out in IAEA document 1NFC1RC 153 (available in the Parliamentary Library) and require, in the case of yellowcake, notification to the IAEA of shipments and receipts of material [More…]
and (3) Under the INFCIRC 153 safeguards system, the safeguards measures applied to uranium hexafluoride once it leaves the plant or process stage in which it has been produced, and enriched uranium produced from it, include physical inspection and measurement of holdings of nuclear material by IAEA inspectors to verify the materials accounts submitted to the IAEA. [More…]
This system is required to be applied in all non-nuclear weapon states party to the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty (NPT). [More…]
In addition three nuclear weapon states- the United States, Britain and France- have signed safeguards agreements with the IAEA, although the agreements with the United States and France have yet to enter into force. [More…]
Primary responsibility for management of nuclear wastes and of former nuclear test sites rests with the Minister for National Development. [More…]
Security measures are in accordance with the IAEA standards on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material as published in IAEA document INFCIRC/225 (Corrected). [More…]
J. Ikenberg, Nuclear Materials Accountant Responsible for ensuring adequacy of nuclear material records and accountancy in Australia, for compilation and submission of nuclear material accountancy reports to IAEA, for advising on and implementation of safeguards requirements in relation to uranium exports. [More…]
Attended IAEA seminars on state systems of accounting for and control of nuclear material m 1975-76-77. [More…]
J. Bellinger, Assistant Nuclear Materials. [More…]
Accountant Assists the Nuclear Materials Accountant [More…]
Applied nuclear physics. [More…]
Six years of nuclear materials accountancy with Central Electricity Generating Board, UK. [More…]
Has the Atomic Energy Commission made any proposals to him to conduct research on matters other than those related to the nuclear fuel cycle. [More…]
When were any washings from British service aircraft which participated in nuclear tests at Christmas Island (a) transported to Maralinga and (b) buried at Maralinga. [More…]
Washings from British service aircraft which participated in nuclear tests at Christmas Island were transported from Edinburgh Airfield to Maralinga at various times during 1959 and 1960 and the last burials at Maralinga were made in October 1960. [More…]
1 ) Is he able to say how many nuclear power reactors are in operation in South Korea and what is their total generating capacity. [More…]
Is he also able to say (a) how many nuclear power reactors are forecast to be in operation in South Korea, (b) what is the forecast total generating capacity of those reactors and (c) what is the forecast annual demand for uranium for South Korea during (i) 1980, (ii) 1985, (iii) 1990, (iv) 1995 and (v) 2000. [More…]
1 ) Is he able to say how many nuclear power reactors are in operation in West Germany and what is their total generating capacity. [More…]
Is he also able to say (a) how many nuclear power reactors are forecast to be in operation in West Germany, (b) what is the forecast total generating capacity of those reactors and (c) what is the forecast annual demand for uranium for West Germany during (i) 1980, (ii) 1985, (iii) 1990, (iv) 1995 and (v) 2000. [More…]
1 ) Is he able to say how many nuclear power reactors are in operation in Canada and what is their total generating capacity. [More…]
Is he also able to say (a) how many nuclear power reactors are forecast to be in operation in Canada, (b) what is the forecast total generating capacity of those reactors and (c) what is the forecast annual demand for uranium for Canada during (i) 1980, (ii) 1985, (iii) 1990, (iv) 1995 and (v)2000. [More…]
1 ) Is he able to say how many nuclear power reactors are in operation in Switzerland and what is their total generating capacity. [More…]
Is he also able to say (a) how many nuclear power reactors are forecast to be in operation in Switzerland, (b) what is the forecast total generating capacity of those reactors and (c) what is the forecast annual demand for uranium for Switzerland during (i) 1980, (ii) 1985, (iii) 1990, (iv) 1 995 and (v) 2000. [More…]
1 ) Is he able to say how many nuclear power reactors are in operation in Italy and what is their total generating capacity. [More…]
Is he also able to say (a) how many nuclear power reactors are forecast to be in operation in Italy (b) what is the forecast total generating capacity of those reactors and (c) what is the forecast annual demand for uranium for Italy during (i) 1980, (ii) 1985, (iii) 1990, (iv) 1995 and (v) 2000. [More…]
However, for nuclear tests conducted within Australia by Britain the most stringent safeguards to the health of personnel were implemented at every level. [More…]
1 ) Is he able to say how many nuclear power reactors are in operation in the United States of America and what is their total generating capacity. [More…]
Is he also able to say (a) how many nuclear power reactors are forecast to be in operation in the USA, (b) what is the forecast total generating capacity of those reactors and (c) what is the forecast annual demand for uranium for the USA during (i) 1980, (ii) 1985, (ii) 1990, (iv) 1995 and (v) 2000. [More…]
1 ) Is he able to say how many nuclear power reactors are in operation in France and what is their total generating capacity. [More…]
Is he also able to say (a) how many nuclear power reactors are forecast to be in operation in France, (b) what is the forecast total generating capacity of those reactors and (c) what is the forecast annual demand for uranium for France during (i) 1980, (ii) 1985, (iii) 1990, (iv) 1995 and (v)2000. [More…]
1 ) Is he able to say how many nuclear power reactors are in operation in Finland and what is their total generating capacity. [More…]
Is he also able to say (a) how many nuclear power reactors are forecast to be in operation in Finland, (b) what is the forecast total generating capacity of those reactors and (c) what is the forecast annual demand for uranium for Finland during (i) 1980, (ii) 1985, (iii) 1990, (iv) 1995, and (v)2000. [More…]
Will the Uranium Advisory Council be asked to comment on the bilateral nuclear safeguards agreements negotiated by the Australian Government. [More…]
Has his attention been drawn to the statement made on the ABC program This Day Tonight on 14 October 1978, by a radio operator living in the Monte Bello Islands that he wasn’t aware until recently that any radioactivity remained on the island and had often handled materials remaining from the British nuclear weapons tests which were conducted on the island. [More…]
The camp set up by the company employing the men is approximately two miles from the nearer of the two points above which the land-based nuclear devices were exploded Le., the ground zeros. [More…]
Was the Government advised by Westinghouse Corporation that it had received construction permits for the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant Project from the Philippines Atomic Energy Commission when only conditional work authorisations had been granted. [More…]
1 ) Is he able to say how many nuclear power reactors are in operation in the Philippines and what is their total generating capacity. [More…]
Is he also able to say (a) how many nuclear power reactors are forecast to be in operation in the Philippines, (b) what is the forecast total generating capacity of those reactors and (c) what is the forecast annual demand for uranium for the Philippines during (i) 1980, (ii) 1985, (iii) 1990, (iv) 1995 and (v) 2000. [More…]
1 ) Is he able to say how many nuclear power reactors are in operation in the United Kingdom and what is their total generating capacity. [More…]
Is he also able to say (a) how many nuclear power reactors are forecast to be in operation in the UK, (b) what is the forecast total generating capacity of those reactors and (c) what is the forecast annual demand for uranium for the UK during (i) 1980, (ii) 1985, (iii) 1990, (iv) 1995 and (v) 2000. [More…]
1 ) Is he able to say how many nuclear power reactors are in operation in Iran and what is their total generating capacity. [More…]
Is he also able to say (a) how many nuclear power reactors are forecast to be in operation in Iran, (b) what is the forecast total generating capacity of those reactors and (c) what is the forecast annual demand for uranium for Iran during (i) 1980, (ii) 1985, (iii) 1990, (iv) 1995 and (v) 2000. [More…]
On what date and by what means during or after nuclear testing at Maralinga were previous South Australian Governments informed of the presence among items of stored waste of a discrete mass of plutonium weighing half a kilo. [More…]
1 ) What reports relating to Maralinga and other nuclear test sites in Australia does he expect to receive from departments, advisory bodies or other parties referred to in his statement of 1 1 October 1978 (Hansard, pages 1718-23). [More…]
1 ) Is he able to say bow many nuclear power reactors are in operation in Austria and what is then- total generating capacity. [More…]
) Is he also able to say ( a) how many nuclear power reactors are forecast to be in operation in Austria, (b) what is the forecast total generating capacity of those reactors and (c) what is the forecast annual demand for uranium for Austria during (i) 1980, (ii) 1985, (iii) 1990, (iv) 1995 and (v) 2000. [More…]
1 ) Is he able to say how many nuclear power reactors are in operation in Japan and what is their total generating capacity. [More…]
Is he also able to say (a) how many nuclear power reactors are forecast to be in operation in Japan, (b) what is the forecast total generating capacity of those reactors and (c) what is the forecast annual demand for uranium for Japan (i) 1980, (ii) 1985, (iii) 1990, (iv) 1995 and (v) 2000. [More…]
-The answer to the honourable member’s question is as follows: (1), (2) and (3) I refer the honourable member to data published by the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency/International Atomic Energy Agency entitled ‘Uranium Resources, Production and Demand- December 1977’ and data published by the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency entitled Nuclear Fuel Cycle Requirements and Supply Considerations through the Long-Term- February 1978’ and Annual Reports of the AAEC. [More…]
1 ) Is he able to say how many nuclear power reactors are in operation in Sweden and what is their total generating capacity. [More…]
Is he also able to say (a) how many nuclear power reactors are forecast to be in operation in Sweden, (b) what is the forecast total generating capacity of those reactors and (c) what is the forecast annual demand for uranium for Sweden during (i) 1980, (ii) 1985, (iii) 1990, (iv) 1995 and (v)2000. [More…]
Nuclear Physics, IBM 1800 $100,000; HP 2100 $286,000; DEC KA10 $349,000. [More…]
2400 (Hansard, 17 November 1978, page 3066), concerning the dates and places of all above ground and underground nuclear explosions carried out during the last three years. [More…]
The Council has a Technical Standing Committee on Technology of Nuclear Energy, which has expertise in this field. [More…]
Establishment of a Nuclear Waste Repository in the Pacific (Question No. [More…]
With reference to Senator Carrick ‘s answer to Senator Mulvihill ‘s question without notice in the Senate of 19 September 1978, regarding the establishment of a nuclear waste repository in the Pacific, in what respect is a regional repository for spent nuclear fuel a different concept from a nuclear waste repository. [More…]
In his reply Senator Carrick drew a distinction between a spent fuel repository and a nuclear waste dump. [More…]
The latter implies final and permanent disposal of either spent nuclear fuel or separated high level waste. [More…]
Is he able to say what is (a) the number or nuclear power plants and (b) the nuclear electricity generating capacity of plants (i) in operation, (ii) under construction, (iii) planned or on order and (iv) planned or on order and subsequently cancelled or deferred during the last5 years in (A) the Soviet Union, (B) Eastern Europe, (C) Cuba and (D) the People’s Republic of China. [More…]
Is he able to say what is (a) the number of nuclear power plants and (b) the nuclear electricity generating capacity of plants (i) in operation, (ii) under construction, (iii) planned or on order and (iv) planned or on order and subsequently cancelled or deferred during the last 5 years in (A) Europe, (B) the United States of America and (C) other western countries. [More…]
Is he able to say what is (a) the number of nuclear power plants and (b) the nuclear electricity generating capacity in plants (i) in operation, (ii) under construction, (iii) planned or on order and (iv) planned or on order and subsequently cancelled or deferred during the last5 years in third world countries. [More…]
1 ) Is he able to say which nuclear installations in Europe, the United States of America, the United Kingdom and Japan are presently reprocessing spent oxide nuclear fuel derived from light water reactors on a commercial scale. [More…]
Is he able to say whether there are any proposals to vitrify spent oxide nuclear fuel derived from light water reactors on (a) a commercial or (b) a pilot scale without reprocessing in Europe, the United States of America, Japan or the United Kingdom. [More…]
The plant at La Hague, France, iscurrently the only installation reprocessing spent oxide nuclear fuel from light water reactors on a commercial scale. [More…]
1 ) Is he able to say what is the mass of (a) spent oxide nuclear fuel derived from electricity producing light water reactors and (b) spent natural uranium metal fuel derived from electricity producing gas graphite reactors, which was or is expected to be (i) reprocessed and (ii) vitrified during (A) 1976, (B) 1977, (C) 1978 and (D) 1979 at the Nuclear Fuel Reprocessing plant at (AA) Marcoule, France and (BB) La Hague, France. [More…]
What is the mass of (a) spent oxide nuclear fuel derived from electricity producing light water reactors and (b) spent natural uranium metal fuel derived from electricity producing gas graphite reactors which was or is expected to be produced in France during (i) 1976, (ii) 1977, (iii) 1978 and(iv) 1979. [More…]
What measures have been taken or are proposed for the permanent disposal of any vitrified nuclear waste which has been produced in France. [More…]
What is the average activity of radioactive decay of (a) spent oxide nuclear fuel derived from electricity producing light water reactors and (b) spent natural uranium metal fuel derived from electricity producing gas graphite reactors. [More…]
How many natural uranium gas graphite nuclear power stations are under construction, planned or on order in Europe, the United Kingdom, the United States of America and Japan. [More…]
Is the Australian Atomic Energy Commission acting on the assumption that nuclear power will be in use in one or more States by the mid-1990s. [More…]
If so, which States does the Commission assume will be using nuclear power by this date. [More…]
It is a matter for the relevant Governments to determine whether nuclear power is a viable option for electricity generation. [More…]
The Commission provides technical advice to Governments when requested to permit consideration of the nuclear option. [More…]
1 ) What special nuclear materials are expected to be purchased by the Australian Atomic Energy Commission during 1978-79. [More…]
(Uranium hexafluoride comes within the international definition of special nuclear material only above .73 per cent enrichment), [More…]
(This figure includes some uranium hexafluoride below .73 per cent enrichment and not technically defined as special nuclear material), [More…]
(As with (b) above this figure includes some uranium hexafluoride below .73 per cent enrichment and not technically defined as special nuclear material). [More…]
Uranium hexafluoride standards are being purchased from the United States Depanment of Energy and HIFAR fuel elements are being purchased from British Nuclear Fuels Ltd. [More…]
1 ) What standards apply to the exposure of members of the public to radiation in the environment from the operation of the nuclear reactors at the Australian Atomic Energy Commission’s research establishment at Lucas Heights, NSW. [More…]
Has the Government adopted or does it intend to adopt the United States Environment Protection Agency standards promulgated in 1977 in relation to nuclear reactors operating at Lucas Heights; if not why not. [More…]
1 ) The standards applied to the exposure of members of the public to radiation in the environment from the operation of the nuclear reactors at the AAEC’s research establishment at Lucas Heights are those recommended by the Australian National Health and Medical Research Council. [More…]
Nuclear Waste (Question No. [More…]
1 ) Has his attention been drawn to a statement by the Premier of Western Australia, reported in the Canberra Times of 30 August 1 978, that he would be prepared to ha ve nuclear waste dumped in Western Australia. [More…]
If so, has the Commonwealth Government received any proposals from the Government of Western Australia for the establishment of a nuclear waste repository in Western Australia. [More…]
Have any discussions taken place between the Commonwealth and Western Australian Governments concerning the possible establishment of a nuclear waste repository in Western Australia. [More…]
What approval of the Commonwealth Government would be required for the establishment of a nuclear waste repository in a State. [More…]
We have reached the position where mighty powers have developed nuclear weapons and are involved in an area of tension. [More…]
It does not understand the potential human suffering of the people of our region and of the world if the present conflict escalates to a global nuclear war. [More…]
1 ) Are the physical security measures used to protect the plutonium stored at Maralinga the same as those set out in the International Atomic Energy Agency Information Circular 225 of September 1975, entitled The Physical Protection qf Nuclear Material. [More…]
The answer to the honourable member’s question is as follows: ( 1 ), (2) and (3) The IAEA was informed on 23 December 1976 by the Australian Embassy in Vienna of the possibility that potentially recoverable nuclear material might be present at or near the former British nuclear weapon test sites at Maralinga and advised that this possibility was to be investigated. [More…]
What is the internationally accepted limit for personal exposure to nuclear radiation. [More…]
They relate to Indo-China and China; the Association of South East Asian Nations; West Asia; and the global balance, arms control and nuclear proliferation. [More…]
Although my time has nearly expired, I have much more to say, particularly about disarmament, nuclear nonproliferation and other related issues. [More…]
All the components of modern military power are now included in the Soviet armed forces, from intercontinental and strategic nuclear and thermo-nuclear forces to a wide range of non-nuclear capabilities-among them, chemical weapons. [More…]
At least 22 per cent of the increase in the Soviet defence budget during those 13 years has been attributed to the build-up in the Far East and the remaining 78 per cent, according to intelligence estimates, has gone to the strategic nuclear forces and the theatre forces oriented towards western Europe. [More…]
Co-operation with the Soviet Union serves the cause of peace, for in the nuclear age world peace must include peace betweeen the superpowers- and it must mean the control of nuclear arms. [More…]
Yet, in fact, the United States is prepared in SALT II to accept numerical equality of nuclear weapons with the Soviet Union. [More…]
By 1985 it is expected that most, if not all, American nuclear weapons will have been withdrawn from Korea and mainland Asia. [More…]
The Soviet Union is the only country in the world that can endanger world peace and the only country that has both the will and the ability to create a world diversion and involve the rest of the world in possible nuclear assault of one kind or another. [More…]
Last week, five days after the Chinese invasion of Vietnam, at a time of a serious threat of a global nuclear war, the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) made a superficial statement on general instability in the region. [More…]
Is it a fact that the report indicates that a country’s agreement to subject its nuclear activities to IAEA safeguards does not necessarily assure that adequate material control and accounting measures are applied in all cases: if so, what measures has the IAEA taken to rectify these deficiencies in IAEA safeguards. [More…]
The change in the Commission’s estimates reflects both sales by other countries and, of considerable importance, the continual delay in nuclear power programs and the cancellation of a number of reactor contracts. [More…]
What progress has been made in negotiations between the Commonwealth and State governments concerning nuclear codes? [More…]
The continuing concerns of the Australian people in respect of the uranium industry focus especially on nuclear waste disposal and nuclear non-proliferation. [More…]
Now, in the past month, the Minister, without any apparent embarrassment, has produced cash from the same pocket to support research by Professor Ted Ringwood of the Australian National University on a new process for nuclear waste disposal known as Synroc, a complete departure from the vitrification process. [More…]
From the outset, its objective has been to minimise public discussion, to avoid as far as possible the provision of information, to refuse to enter into debate in the Parliament and to seek to cover up problems in the nuclear industry by giving soothing assurances. [More…]
The safeguards agreements that the Government is pursuing are as far from adequate as one could imagine as a basis for nuclear non-proliferation. [More…]
What is needed is a more extensive and thoughtful approach by the Government to the management of the nuclear fuel cycle and, in particular, the avoidance of national access to or control over weapons-usable material and the means for their production. [More…]
At that time, the United States had a substantial lead in the nuclear industry. [More…]
In describing the consequences, let me quote from a paper recently released by the International Consultative Group on Nuclear Energy. [More…]
This paper was written by the French Government’s representative on the board of directors of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Bertrand Goldschmidt, and a former United States Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Nuclear Energy Affairs. [More…]
The outcome of this was swamping the market and a slump in prices at the very time that increased prospecting effort was necessary to cope with the increasing demand of the ambitious nuclear power plant programs foreseen for the 1970s and beginning of the 1980s. [More…]
Interest in nuclear power increased. [More…]
Nuclear fuel consumers moved to ensure long term supplies. [More…]
-The Minister for Trade and Resources will be aware of the current controversy concerning a nuclear incident at a power plant at Vasteras in Sweden, reported this week on the Australian Broadcasting Commission radio program AM. [More…]
I can well imagine the antinuclear people getting on the band wagon and peddling this incident to the maximum. [More…]
The information basically that they have come back with is that there is no threat or risk at all of nuclear reaction taking place. [More…]
Acceptance of the Agreement on an International Energy Programme and decisions of the Government Board of the IEA is to the extent that these are compatible with Australia’s Federal constitution and our policies on foreign investment, the development, export and marketing of uranium, including our policies with regard to nuclear non-proliferation and our policies with regard to the export of other energy resources. [More…]
It is a British interest, for instance, that the peace should be secure, that the strong should not gobble up the weak, that international disputes, even if they cannot be settled, should at least be talked over until the danger point is passed, that atomic weapons should not get into the hands of any country which might be tempted to use them, that the nuclear balance should be firmly maintained, that relations between the capitalist and countries should become gradually easier . [More…]
What does not come from coal, nuclear power and natural gas or whatever exotic forms of energy that emerge must come from oil or it will not come at all. [More…]
Here are posed, as one peers into the 1980s, issues of survival that in their own way are no less fundamental than those of the nuclear arms balance. [More…]
While conceding a nuclear as well as a conventional weaponry superiority to the Soviet, America is not willing to engage or capable of engaging again in South East Asia, if Australia is the only concern. [More…]
1 ) The areas to which the Government accords priority in establishing nuclear codes of practice were spelt out in Second Reading Speech on the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill on 10 April last year. [More…]
Under the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Act nuclear codes of practice will be developed through a statutory process of consultation with the States and the Northern Territory. [More…]
Section 8 (a) of the Nuclear Codes Act makes provision for public comment on proposed codes of practice or variations of existing codes: An appropriated period for submission of comments on a proposed code would be set at that time. [More…]
As Australia has no nuclear power program and consequently does not generate significant quantities of high level radioactive waste, there is no need for Australia to invest large sums in studies on high level waste disposal. [More…]
Significant programs are being undertaken by countries with nuclear power programs, such as the United States, France, the United Kingdom and the Federal Republic of Germany. [More…]
The Government does, however, maintain up-to-date information on overseas developments by representation on international bodies, such as the Nuclear Energy Agency of OECD and the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation (INFCE). [More…]
On 25 August 1977, the Prime Minister said that, by taking the decision to export uranium, Australia could slow the movement towards the use of plutonium as a nuclear fuel. [More…]
If hostilities had taken place this base would have been one of the prime targets for a nuclear strike or some other strike on Australian soil. [More…]
Do you think people are justified though in worrying about the safety of nuclear reactors because of this incident? [More…]
No, I wouldn’t say so on the evidence presently available and so far in 23 years of nuclear power nobody has been killed by nuclear power. [More…]
There are a hell of a lot of nuclear power stations in the world and not many accidents of any note. [More…]
What does happen is that every time anything goes wrong at all, trivial or otherwise, it becomes headline news because nuclear power stations are very sensitive objects. [More…]
The other event was the near catastrophic failure of the newly-installed thermal reactor at Harrisburg in Pennsylvania in the United States of America, where we have witnessed for the first time the prospect of the ultimate nuclear calamity and the possible melt-down of a reactor core. [More…]
The Opposition believes that it is opportune now to say to the Government that the impending contracts for exports of yellow cake which will arise from negotiations by Queensland Mines and from the decision by the Government to send out private members of the Ranger consortium, Peko Mines Ltd and the Electrolytic Zinc Co. of Australasia Ltd, on their own marketing expedition and for the Government, as a member of the Ranger consortium, to go out on its own marketing expedition to find contracts in a market which is very thin and very poor indeed in terms of market demand for uranium, should not be agreed to by the Government until an attempt is made by the Government and other interested parties to ensure that, as we state in our matter of public importance, ‘the grave risks associated with the nuclear industry have been resolved ‘. [More…]
Nevertheless, we must make the point that the Government, through its policy, is buttressing the course of nuclear power and the development of nuclear power by the supply of quite massive amounts of uranium potentially on to a very thin world market, thereby depressing the price of uranium and making it more available. [More…]
This must have the effect of depressing prices and making nuclear power a more commercial option. [More…]
Policy respecting Australian uranium exports, for the time being at least, should be based on a full recognition of the hazards, dangers and problems of and associated with the production of nuclear energy, and should therefore seek to limit or restrict expansion of that production. [More…]
I stress that the recommendation was that policy should seek to limit the expansion of production of nuclear power. [More…]
The hazards involved in the ordinary operations of nuclear power reactors, if those operations are properly regulated and controlled, are not such as to justify a decision not to mine and sell Australian uranium. [More…]
The dubious argument then tendered is that, if there are not supply assurances, the Western world’s nuclear power utilities will move into using fast breeders and out of using thermal reactors. [More…]
Every honourable member on this side of the House, and I would think, in the Parliament, would believe that it would be good for the world if the present nuclear industry operated more safely than it does now and if thermal reactors were far safer and more efficient than they are. [More…]
Reactor safety had died pretty well as an issue in the United States, where the waste disposal and the nuclear non-proliferation aspects were becoming prominent in the nuclear debate. [More…]
Apparently the Nuclear Regulatory Commission pointed to some of the defects which subsequently brought us to this near catastrophic failure. [More…]
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission in the United States is only four years old. [More…]
Until 1975 there was no separate regulatory arm of the nuclear authority in the United States. [More…]
The NRC, as it is called, is really only just getting its act together now in terms of management of the nuclear power program of the United States and reactor safety. [More…]
The Leader of the Opposition (Mr Hayden) said in a sensible statement yesterday that Australia itself should have a separate nuclear regulatory authority as distinct from the Australian Atomic Energy Commission. [More…]
We cannot do that if we just allow the wholesale export of Australian uranium onto the world market at low prices to buttress the growth of nuclear power. [More…]
Admittedly, the French, the Japanese and probably to a lesser extent the Germans, will probably go their wilful way with nuclear power for all other kinds of considerations which are prominent in their countries. [More…]
Fortunately, we do not have a nuclear power station to worry about. [More…]
We heard at Question Time today that Australia, apparently with the agreement of the Prime Minister, would have a nuclear power reactor in Western Australia in the very near future. [More…]
How foolish would it be to inflict upon this country the whole problem of nuclear waste disposal and reactor safety in a State which has a total electricity grid of about 1,200 megawatts. [More…]
What a nonsense proposal a nuclear power plant in Western Australia would be. [More…]
The only thing I have to say about such a proposition is this: Let it be said and understood widely that if my party comes to power in Australia it will never permit Sir Charles Court to build a nuclear power station in Western Australia. [More…]
We have not done enough as a nation about the question of waste disposal or nuclear non-proliferation. [More…]
In respect of nuclear waste disposal, Professor Ted Ringwood of the Australian National University has dispensed quite thoroughly with the question of leaching of vitrified glass. [More…]
There is a heavy requirement upon Australia to do something about making the present nuclear power industry safer in respect of waste disposal, in respect of non-proliferation and, as far as we can, in respect of reactor safety. [More…]
Australia should desist from the commitment of Australian uranium to the international fuel cycle until such time as the reactor safety issue is resolved to the point where there is agreement about the safety factors, until the waste disposal issue has been conquered and a proven disposal system is established for the isolation of long-term transuranic elements and actinides from the atmosphere and until we have devised a system of international accords that mean something in respect of nuclear non-proliferation. [More…]
It would be a tragedy if the world were to be pushed into the continuing premature development of a large scale nuclear industry, to find in a few years time that everyone had a nuclear weapons option, that everyone had a thermal or fast breeder reactor and that we helped by selling and buttressing the nuclear industry with cheap uranium from this country. [More…]
I would just say this in response to the general theme of what he said: This Government, in agreeing to export sales, has acted in an extremely responsible way in ensuring that each country that is the recipient of any sales has a responsible attitude to the operation of its nuclear plants. [More…]
It has to be said that nuclear energy is a fact of life. [More…]
The Government appreciates the concern some people feel about nuclear energy. [More…]
As a biologist I should have preferred that there had never been developed the military and industrial exploitation of nuclear power. [More…]
I believe that a majority of thoughtful people accept the inevitability for at least an interim period, of large scale use of nuclear energy in most parts of the world. [More…]
Things being as they are, nuclear power generators will be needed for the next twenty, or perhaps fifty, years in most of the developed countries, with Japan and Sweden in particular need. [More…]
The simple fact is that nuclear energy is the only readily available alternative most countries have to meet their essential need for electrical energy in the wake of the oil crisis. [More…]
Without nuclear power there will be a shortage of energy to work factories, to light buildings, to provide jobs, to heat homes, to cook food and all the rest of it. [More…]
But one hard fact must be faced, namely, that parts of the world are dependent on nuclear energy and will continue to be dependent for many years to come. [More…]
Twenty-one countries in the world have installed nuclear power stations. [More…]
There are now 208 operational nuclear power reactors totalling 107,000 megawatts. [More…]
The commitment to nuclear power is not confined just to developed countries. [More…]
Five nuclear power units are in operation in developing countries; 20 are under construction; six are on order, and 60 are planned. [More…]
The fact that nuclear energy usage for electric power generation has proceeded in other countries without access to Australian uranium and will continue in no way relieves Australia of its responsibilities as an energy rich nation. [More…]
Safety is concerned with the safe operation of all elements of the nuclear industry. [More…]
But it has to be said that the responsibility for the siting, the design, the construction, the safe operation and the waste management of nuclear power plants rests with individual sovereign states. [More…]
We are making a contribution through co-operative efforts to develop standards and codes of practice for the nuclear industry within such organisations as the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s Nuclear Energy Agency and the International Atomic Energy Agency- IAEA. [More…]
A major study of the nuclear fuel cycle is proceeding with particular emphasis on the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel. [More…]
Mention was made by the honourable member for Blaxland of the international nuclear fuel cycle evaluation. [More…]
First of all, we have noted that the Leader of the Opposition (Mr Hayden) has called for an Australian nuclear regulatory commission. [More…]
The Government is fully aware of the need for nuclear facilities to be subject to the most technically competent scrutiny from the time when they are planned, through their commissioning and operation, to their final decommissioning and dismantling. [More…]
The Australian Ionising Radiation Advisory Council has prepared a draft report on the needs for licensing and regulation of nuclear activities in Australia. [More…]
The United States Secretary of Energy, Mr Schlesinger, has rejected as premature demands that all nuclear reactors similar to the one at Three Mile Island should be shut down for technical study. [More…]
-The Harrisburg nuclear reactor accident has shocked and horrified the people in this country, as it has in the United States and throughout the rest of the world. [More…]
The horror follows the realisation of what would happen if the ultimate nuclear disaster, a reactor core melt-down, eventuated. [More…]
It is clear now, as it has been all along, that the technical, commercial and regulatory authorities responsible for nuclear safety did not know what was happening inside the reactor at Three Mile Island. [More…]
Secondly, the nuclear industry’s record of irresponsibility, negligence and dishonesty continues. [More…]
Thirdly, nuclear power is just too dangerous to support at present. [More…]
Fourthly, Australia’s nuclear policy and administration are fundamentally inadequate to take account of the seriousness of these problems, and to deserve public confidence. [More…]
The ‘facts’ in these reports depended on who was making them; State officials, the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission, President Carter’s office, the power plant operator, or the nuclear reactor builders. [More…]
Yesterday we read that Pennsylvanian authorities had drawn up plans to move 636,000 people who live within 20 miles of the plant, but Nuclear Regulatory Commission officials hoped that this number could be reduced to 200,000. Who would believe any assurances of safety given by these officials with this record? [More…]
The worst possible accident in a nuclear reactor- a melt-down of its core followed by the dispersal of its toxic radioactive components into the environment- has been threatening these people for a week. [More…]
The first, the 1957 Brookhaven report, found that the maximum credible accident could cause 3,400 deaths and $7 billion in property damage if it took place in a small nuclear reactor sited 30 miles from a city. [More…]
Coming from someone like you who has spent so much time talking about children being killed due to unwanted pregnancies, you are nothing but a damned hypocrite to come in here and start supporting nuclear energy. [More…]
States Nuclear Regulatory Commission following an extensive review, for being too optimistic about the possibility of preventing serious reactor failure. [More…]
I point out, getting away from the question of Harrisburg for the moment, that last year the Deputy Prime Minister (Mr Anthony) stated that Australia was negotiating nuclear safeguard agreements with Korea and Iran. [More…]
If he had his hands on a nuclear button, I would not like to be within 1,000 miles of Iran. [More…]
I find it a most frightening prospect that we could have reached agreement with Iran and the Ayatollah Khomeyni could now be in control of a great deal of nuclear equipment. [More…]
I think that we are seeing the beginning of the end of the nuclear debate in this country. [More…]
One cannot help but note that most of the opposition to nuclear power comes from the Friends of the Earth organisation, financed by Russia, and from militant union leaders who regularly visit Russia and are at the opposite end of the political spectrum from us. [More…]
To put the matter into perspective, let us look at nuclear power generation. [More…]
However, there has been no loss of life in any of the nuclear power stations and I pray that there will be none in Harrisburg. [More…]
Those opposed to uranium do not tell us that coal-fired power stations give off radioactivity which has a longer life than the emission from nuclear power stations; nor do they tell us that there is more radioactivity in whisky, milk, salad oil and tap water than there is from nuclear power stations. [More…]
Compare their position with that of a person sitting alongside a nuclear reactor for 10 years. [More…]
The opposition to nuclear power stations has endeavoured to make the word ‘nuclear’ synonymous with ‘bomb’. [More…]
A nuclear explosion in a nuclear power station is absolutely impossible and the newspapers which talk of the possibility of a nuclear explosion at Harrisburg are completely irresponsible. [More…]
Now that I have shown that nuclear power is the safest of all generating systems, and the least polluting, let us look at the ramifications of shutting down all nuclear power stations, as some unthinking people have been stupid enough to suggest. [More…]
To carry on from what the Minister for National Development (Mr Newman) was saying, at present 70 nuclear power reactors provide 13 per cent of the electrical power in the United States of America. [More…]
England, nuclear power is half the total power generated. [More…]
To close down all its 70 nuclear power stations could be, according to a Senate expert, as devastating as the complete loss of Saudi Arabian oil. [More…]
Even if the sophisticated Western nations shy away from nuclear energy, the developing countries (probably less skilled in its safe operation) and the communist countries are unlikely to be deterred. [More…]
The Soviet atom physicist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Dr Andrei Sakharov, warned last year that the alternative to nuclear energy development was Western political dependence on the communists. [More…]
As the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) said earlier, Sir Francis Tombs, the famous British nuclear expert said of Harrisburg that over-reaction by the Press had created a mistaken public impression of the nature and importance of the incident, but supposed that it was inevitable that it should sensationalise its reporting. [More…]
But before more drastic decisions are made, the actual and potential hazards of nuclear energy have to be compared with those of other industries and activities, and weighed against its benefits and the costs of doing without it Such an assessment is not easy, but it is better made from a basis of knowledge and judgment than in a turmoil of popular fears and passions. [More…]
The Harrisburg incident has demonstrated to the world the dangers of at least one aspect of the development of nuclear energy. [More…]
It has demonstated the confusion, the incompetence and the ignorance of nuclear scientists. [More…]
It has demonstrated that the nuclear reactors are not safe and that we cannot put our trust in nuclear scientists and nuclear technology. [More…]
Loss of coolant and the subsquent core melt-down is the major accident nuclear power plants should be specifically designed to prevent. [More…]
The decomposition of the cooling water in contact with the damaged nuclear fuel rods that produced a hydrogen bubble was an event for which there was no contingency plan. [More…]
What other processes in the total nuclear fuel cycle are unsafe? [More…]
The ordinary people can see now that the nuclear scientists cannot be trusted. [More…]
Ordinary people can now see that the nuclear energy industry is dangerous- the most dangerous enterprise taken on in human history. [More…]
Nuclear power has become a technological monster and it is not clear who, if anyone, is in control. [More…]
I am no longer convinced of the technical safety of nuclear power, and I fear the high risk of political and human factors that will ultimately lead to the misuse of its by-products. [More…]
Bridenbaugh said that the control systems in nuclear reactors are ‘susceptible to malfunctions’, and that ‘hundreds of near accidents’ occurred in operating rooms every month and it was only a matter of time before a disaster occurred. [More…]
The facts are that the Harrisburg accident is not the only accident that has occurred at a nuclear power plant. [More…]
I seek leave of the House to incorporate in Hansard a list of major accidents that have occurred in the nuclear power industry over the last 1 4 to 1 5 years. [More…]
Those accidents cause concern, but we have to see them in the context of the dangers built into the total nuclear fuel cycle. [More…]
According to the Fox report, nuclear weapons and the generation of electricity by nuclear power stations cannot be separated. [More…]
They are interconnected in their relationship to uranium rnining through the whole nuclear fuel cycle. [More…]
The nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of nuclear war. [More…]
The richest nation in the world has 75 million gallons of toxic waste from nuclear testing. [More…]
There is no control over the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
The people have not been consulted, but now the people are involving themselves in the struggle against the nuclear industry. [More…]
In California in the United States a nuclear power station now may not be built. [More…]
After the Harrisburg incident we may be sure that State after State in the United States will refuse permission for the construction of nuclear power stations. [More…]
In Austria the people decided not to use a nuclear power station on which $500m had been spent. [More…]
Even at the time of that enormous crisis, the people of Switzerland agreed by a narrow majority of 40,000 votes in a referendum to continue with a nuclear power program. [More…]
We know that because we are aware of the commitment of the people’s struggle against nuclear power generation. [More…]
We know that in France, in Germany, in Spain and in many other countries across the world people are standing up and protesting against the nuclear industry. [More…]
They are becoming concerned about the unresolved problems- the inter-relationship with the spread of nuclear weapons, the threat to future generations from nuclear waste. [More…]
I believe that a broad based movement against nuclear energy is growing. [More…]
Whether we like it or not, we are living in the nuclear age. [More…]
The United States of America has 70 nuclear power stations in operation, 70 under construction at present and another 69 have been contracted for. [More…]
The United States Navy has been nuclear powered for over 23 years. [More…]
Its warships and many of its passenger steamers are nuclear powered. [More…]
It has been my pleasure and privilege to visit Calder Hall in London, the nuclear power station which was built in 1956. [More…]
There has been no problem at all with that power station or indeed in the whole of Great Britain where over 15 per cent of the nation’s power requirements are generated by nuclear means. [More…]
Over 15 per cent of Japan’s total power requirements is met from nuclear power stations. [More…]
Some of them use up to 12 per cent nuclear power and others use as much as 38 per cent nuclear power. [More…]
There have been over 3,000 hours of nuclear reactor operation throughout the world and there has been not one loss of life in that connection. [More…]
One cannot find any real evidence from research or from the various libraries of anybody having died of cancer as a result of being close to uranium or a nuclear reactor. [More…]
Thirty four nations of the world already have nuclear power systems and six have nuclear weapon production facilities. [More…]
It is very instructive to consider the personalities comprising the opponents and proponents of nuclear power. [More…]
These people contrast notably with the proponents of nuclear power who can count on their side most of the pre-eminent nuclear scientists and engineers in the world, together with the majority of others in allied fields. [More…]
There is no doubt that, as mentioned earlier, we are in the nuclear age and that Australia has a part to play in that age. [More…]
Is he able to state what facilities associated with the production of nuclear energy and the production and processing of nuclear materials exist in South Africa. [More…]
Is he also able to state which countries have supplied nuclear materials or technology to South Africa, and in each case what is the nature of the materials and technology supplied and what safeguards apply to their supply. [More…]
What resolutions of the General Assembly or Security Council of the United Nations apply to the transfer of nuclear materials or technology between South Africa and member countries. [More…]
Has the Government made any assessment, or is it aware of any assessment of any other government, of the nuclear weapons capability of South Africa; if so, what are the results of any assessment. [More…]
What attitude has the Australian Government adopted regarding the transfer of nuclear material or technology between (a) South Africa and Australia and (b) South Africa and any other country. [More…]
1 ) The following facilities associated with the production of nuclear energy and the production and processing of nuclear materials are known to exist in South Africa: [More…]
A nuclear research establishment at Pelindaba, which includes the Safari I research reactor [More…]
Two nuclear power reactors under construction at Koeberg. [More…]
This agreement requires that all nuclear materials, equipment and facilities supplied to South Africa by the United States whenever they may be located in South Africa should not be used for any military purpose. [More…]
The two Koeberg nuclear reactors are also subject to international safeguards against military of explosive use under the terms of an agreement among the IAEA, France and South Africa of5 January 1977 (IAEA document INFCIRC/244). [More…]
This agreement also covers nuclear fuel supplied by France, any other facility based on Frenchsupplied technology and all special fissionable and other nuclear material, including any subsequent generations thereof, produced in or by the use of the Koeberg facility or any other facility based on French-supplied technology. [More…]
The United States supplied the Safari I research reactor and its nuclear fuel. [More…]
Nuclear materials and technology supplied between states are normally the subject of agreements for cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. [More…]
Resolution 3324E(XXIX) of 1974 requested all Governments ‘to cease all cooperation with South Africa in nuclear and other modern technological research, particularly research with military applications’. [More…]
Resolution 341 1G (XXX) of 1975 requests ‘that the Security Council call upon the Governments concerned to prohibit any of their institutions, agencies or companies, within their national jurisdiction, from delivering to South Africa or placing at its disposal any equipment or fissionable material or technology that will enable the racist regime of South Africa to acquire nuclear-weapon capability’. [More…]
Resolution 31/61 of 1976 demanded ‘the cessation of any form of military and nuclear cooperation with the racist regime of South Africa ‘. [More…]
Resolution 32/105F of 1977 requested the Security Council to call upon all States ‘to end all transfer of nuclear equipment or fissionable material or technology to South Africa’; and ‘to prohibit companies, institutions or agencies within their jurisdiction from any cooperation with South Africa, directly or through participation in companies registered in South Africa, in its military build-up or nuclear development ‘. ‘ [More…]
Resolution 33/183G of 1978 called upon ‘all States which have not yet done so- in particular France, Federal Republic of Germany, Israel and the United States of America- to cease forthwith all collaboration with the racist regime of South Africa in the nuclear field and to take measures to prevent such collaboration by corporations, institutions and other bodies and individuals within their jurisdiction’. [More…]
No resolutions of the Security Council have been adopted which specifically apply to the question of the transfer of nuclear materials or technology between South Africa and member countries. [More…]
Security Council resolution 418 of 4 November 1977, which was adopted unanimously decided however that ‘all states will refrain from any cooperation with South Africa in the manufacture and development of nuclear weapons ‘. [More…]
The Government is opposed to the transfer of nuclear material or technology between Australia and South Africa. [More…]
The Communique of the 1977 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, in which Australia participated, urged, that inter alia any Government which collaborates with South Africa in the development of its nuclear industry should desist from doing so. [More…]
Following the signing of a nuclear safeguards agreement with the Republic of Korea and the Minister’s discussions this morning with Energy and Resources Minister Chang of the Republic of Korea, what are the prospects for increased Australian exports, in particular minerals, to the Republic of Korea? [More…]
Korea has a nuclear program which it hopes to continue to develop as an alternative form of energy to oil for power generation. [More…]
It anticipates the building of two nuclear power stations per annum and expects to have about 40 nuclear power stations by the year 2000. [More…]
If Australia were to supply the uranium for that nuclear power program it would mean that 80,000 tonnes of uranium would be supplied between now and the year 2000. [More…]
But when cataloguing the technological discontinuities which would justify such a title, their first choice will not be the internal combustion engine, jet aircraft, nuclear power or plastics- it will be semiconductors. [More…]
Is he able to state how many nuclear power stations were (a) ordered, (b) cancelled and (c) deferred during 1978 in (i) Japan, (ii) the United States of America, (iii) the United Kingdom, (iv) France, (v) West Germany, (vi) Canada, (vii) Italy and (viii) OECD countries, and in each case what was the generating capacity. [More…]
) Is he able to state how many nuclear power stations were (a) ordered, (b) cancelled and (c) deferred in third world countries during each year since1970 and in each case what was the generating capacity. [More…]
Is he also able to state in each case what was the type of nuclear power station ordered and with which company was the order placed. [More…]
1 ) and (2) Details of the number and generating capacity of nuclear power stations (a) ordered, (b) cancelled and (c) deferred in third world countries during each year since 1 970 and the type and supplier of ordered power stations are given below: [More…]
I suppose that it would be opportune to point out at this stage the view of the Opposition about uranium mining- that there should be no addition of uranium to the international fuel cycle until the unresolved problems of the nuclear industry have been resolved. [More…]
I cannot understand how a government which believes that nuclear power is the saviour in regard to power generation for the Western world can still believe that there is a market for uranium when it has to do this to its own authority- as it has done. [More…]
It was established in the Cold War climate of the early 1950s so that it might involve itself in nuclear research, much of it with a military connotation, or weapons-related. [More…]
I cite some of them: Nuclear fuel cycle research and development; radioisotope preparation and distribution; regulatory and safety aspects of nuclear operations; participation in mineral development; de facto source of nuclear energy policy advice; where necessary, nuclear weapons research and advice; and a minor amount of nonnuclear energy research. [More…]
Some of those roles are conflicting in nature, particularly the regulatory role and that of sponsoring and developing, indeed, the concept of nuclearrelated energy and power. [More…]
1 ) the Australian Atomic Energy Commission should not be empowered to raise funds on the commercial market for uranium mining until such time as the unresolved problems associated with the nuclear industry have been satisfactorily resolved: and [More…]
2 ) the Atomic Energy Act is an inappropriate legislative basis for nuclear energy research and development and for commercial activities and should be repealed and replaced by legislation to establish- [More…]
an independent regulatory authority responsible for nuclear-related environmental protection, health, safety, security, safeguards and other non-proliferation activities: [More…]
a Nuclear Science Authority to perform, as appropriate, the other functions currently undertaken by the Commission. [More…]
One of the problems about building an energy research and development agency around the Atomic Energy Commission is that, basically, the weight of 25 years of bureaucratic experience will direct the whole thrust of such an agency towards the nuclear area. [More…]
For that reason, the Opposition suggests that we break up the Com: mission so that it will have a commercial function- a function to handle nuclear medicine, radioisotopes and such matters- and an independent regulatory authority responsible for environmental matters, including the Australian Safeguards Office which, even though it has a specific safeguards function, is an integral part of the Atomic Energy Commission in as much as it reports through the Chairman of the Commission. [More…]
We would propose to break it up further by forming a nuclear science authority which would do the kinds of things that the Atomic Energy Commission has done since its inception. [More…]
It would be far better to have a nuclear science authority established in its own right than to attempt to submerge the present functions ofthe [More…]
If one were foolish enough to believe that the aims ofthe research and development agency would not be diluted by the force of 25 years of nuclear research and a career structure in the Atomic Energy Commission which would be heavily involved in this research and development agency, one would be very much mistaken. [More…]
We believe that there ought to be a nuclear science authority. [More…]
Those who committed their lives to the branch of nuclear research when it was something which was viewed by most people as a thoroughly important scientific endeavour transcending most other areas of scientific research are entitled to maintain their places in the career structure which has been established in the Commission. [More…]
The nuclear science authority would do that, but again it would be separate and distinct from the energy research and development agency situation. [More…]
The other criticism we have of the Government’s review is that it would preclude thorough consideration of the commercial activities ofthe Commission, including the most appropriate administrative arrangements for those activities and their relationship to the Commission’s nuclear energy research activities and facilities. [More…]
It would also exclude consideration of the nuclear regulatory and safeguards activities of the Commission and their relationship to the activities of the Australian Safeguards Office and other government agencies involved with nuclear regulatory and safeguard activities. [More…]
The submission which the Leader of the Opposition (Mr Hayden) presented to the review group listed the recent criticisms of the Commission as follows: Its conflicting functions in both promoting and regulating nuclear activities; its past failures in attempts to develop and innovate nuclear technologies; the questionable quality of its research; and the excessive secrecy which surrounds its work and its general lack of mission. [More…]
In the mid-1960s the Commission abandoned research into high temperature gas-cooled nuclear reactors, what was then called the HTGCR. [More…]
In the late 1960s there was abandonment of the illconceived Jervis Bay project, which was to build Australia’s first nuclear power generator. [More…]
The plutonium by-product was the thin edge of the wedge for the acquisition by Australia of a nuclear weapons option. [More…]
There were Ministers in the McMahon Government who wanted Australia to have a nuclear weapon and there were elements in the Atomic Energy Commission which were prepared to accommodate that view and to comply with it. [More…]
That is, that this country does not need nuclear power. [More…]
Australia is a country with abundant reserves of coal and other fossil fuels and we are not in the position in which, unfortunately, some countries are of having a lack of reserves and resources and of having to take a decision to go to nuclear power. [More…]
Fortunately when we had pressures applied to us to do so we resisted and rejected the nuclear option. [More…]
So we do not really need electrical generation from nuclear power. [More…]
When one looks at the research and development expenditure on energy in Australia one finds a complete distortion in favour of nuclear power. [More…]
In fact, about 55 per cent of all Commonwealth expenditure on energy research and development goes into nuclear power through the Atomic Energy Commission. [More…]
Last year research into nuclear power was allocated somewhere between $12m and $15m. [More…]
What is the funding for nuclear power? [More…]
We do not need nuclear power; nevertheless the Government is going down the nuclear course. [More…]
We on this side of the House say that it is a waste of money and is irresponsible but we are not so silly as to say or to believe that 25 years of experience in nuclear power can be just thrown out. [More…]
There are nuclear applications other than power generation, such as nuclear medicine, and the people who have committed themselves, their livelihood and their careers to this branch of research should not be thrown into the dustbin. [More…]
That is why we are talking about the establishment of a nuclear science authority. [More…]
The enormous expenditures which are now moving into nuclear research and development in respect of energy would be abandoned under a Labor government. [More…]
I have referred to the conflict of the various roles that the Australian Atomic Energy Commission has- its nuclear regulatory role, as a promoter of nuclear power, as a promoter of nuclear research, and now as a commercial activist in the uranium mining area. [More…]
Even though we do not have nuclear power programs in this country there are many related matters which require a competent, independent, nuclear regulatory body, and not one modelled on the Australian Safeguards Office, which is still part of the Commission, which has Commission staff, and which reports to the chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission. [More…]
Apparently this Nuclear Safeguards Agreement was enacted and signed, but it has still not been tabled. [More…]
It recognises that Australia must play an important role in the nonproliferation of nuclear weapons and the strengthening of nuclear safeguards. [More…]
The policy recognises Australia’s obligation as a country well endowed with energy resources to make those resources available to other countries, many of which have no alternative in the wake of the world energy crisis but to turn to nuclear energy as a means of supplying electricity to their peoples. [More…]
With declining oil resources it was concluded that there will be tremendous substitution of fuels, particularly by means of coal and nuclear fuels. [More…]
This cannot be met without nuclear power and breeder reactors. [More…]
In the absence of a vast program of nuclear power development some more highly developed countries which are rich in other fuel resources may be able to maintain their economies at an acceptable level. [More…]
However, the great brunt of this lack of nuclear development will fall upon the highly populated developing countries. [More…]
This may mean economically strong countries with oil and gas resources will have to use more nuclear power to release oil and gas for simple low investment systems in developing countries. [More…]
Finally, the Conference concluded that enough information is available to make everyone aware of the energy crisis, and aware that definite action is required now, especially in the area of nuclear power. [More…]
I suppose honourable members will be subjected now to the regular burst from the honourable member for Reid in which he will try to say that Harrisburg is reason for stopping nuclear energy whereas, in fact, it was the proof that the safety devices worked. [More…]
The honourable member for Blaxland, wearing his Scottish tie, may be interested to know that the Scots people are one of the greatest users of nuclear energy, and they are working towards a breeder reactor. [More…]
In conclusion I point out that it can be seen that there is a massive and irrevocable commitment to nuclear power generation. [More…]
-This is the first time that a major debate has arisen on nuclear industry in this House since the Harrisburg incident. [More…]
If one examines when the debates on nuclear industry are carried out in this House one finds that they take place on a Wednesday evening. [More…]
The Government knows that most newspapers have been put to bed; it knows that they will not get the news out and therefore both the media and the system as a whole are trying to stifle debate on the whole matter of nuclear industry. [More…]
nuclear power is unlikely to contribute on a large scale to the energy needs of the less affluent countries. [More…]
Nor does it appear that the further development of nuclear power in economically advanced countries will make any significant difference to the ability or the willingness of those countries to assist less affluent countries. [More…]
Deputy Speaker, and to the House that one cannot separate any aspect of the nuclear industry, whether it be uranium mining, the nuclear power industry or the nuclear weapons industry, or some other aspect of the industry. [More…]
The nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of nuclear war. [More…]
I am saying quite clearly that the people of Australia have to understand that one cannot divorce uranium mining from the nuclear power industry or from the nuclear weapons industry. [More…]
The Australian Atomic Energy Commission should not be empowered to raise funds on the commercial market for uranium mining until such time as the unresolved problems associated with the nuclear industry have been satisfactorily resolved. [More…]
(3) increased costs of nuclear power. [More…]
In 1978 in the United States of America only two nuclear power reactors were ordered- five orders were cancelled and one was deferred. [More…]
I said earlier that we cannot divorce peaceful uses for atomic energy and nuclear war. [More…]
That among 13,500 nuclear scientists it has trained for other countries, 135 are in Pakistan, 94 in South Africa, 1,367 in India, and 358 in Israel, all nations with the bomb, or within a few years of it. [More…]
They were trained under the American atoms for peace program, but as the Government’s general accounting office points out, it is difficult to draw the line between skills related to the making of nuclear weapons. [More…]
How many more will get the bomb by stealth if this Government continues to make our uranium available to the world nuclear fuel cycle? [More…]
the Atomic Energy Commission should not be empowered to raise funds on the commercial market for uranium mining until such time as the unresolved problems associated with the nuclear industry have been satisfactorily resolved . [More…]
It is true that Australia does not need nuclear power. [More…]
The crisis at Harrisburg was of concern not only to the residents of the area around the power station but also to the whole nuclear industry throughout the world. [More…]
The Harrisburg incident is an indication that the knowledge throughout the Western world of nuclear energy is extremely good. [More…]
The successful operation indicated to the world, and in particular the countries which are relying on nuclear power for the energy needs of their people, that this is a quite safe means of generating energy. [More…]
Not long after the incident at Harrisburg a uranium enrichment plant was opened in France, which was an indication of the confidence of that nation in nuclear energy. [More…]
Opponents of France’s nuclear energy program have stepped up their protests following the accident at Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania. [More…]
But Mr Barre said that soaring oil prices left no alternative to nuclear power if France wished to remain an independent atomic power and an industrial exporting nation. [More…]
It ‘s either nuclear energy or economic recession and mass unemployment.’ [More…]
That indicates that, despite the Harrisburg problem, that nation is prepared to go on with its nuclear plants. [More…]
The honourable member for Reid talked about the slowing down of the nuclear energy program in the United States of America. [More…]
The United States of America has 70 nuclear power stations in operation, 70 under construction at present and another 69 contracted for. [More…]
That shows what the United States thinks of nuclear power and its safety. [More…]
For his information, I point out that all the major countries of the world have nuclear warheads and nuclear power. [More…]
Russia would not like to see us developing our nuclear industry. [More…]
It was a great pleasure to be in that country recently and I know that it has nuclear warheads and is interested in the nuclear industry. [More…]
The attitude of the Opposition to the Bill is that the Atomic Energy Commission should not be empowered to raise funds for uranium mining on the commercial market until such time as the unresolved problems associated with the nuclear industry have been resolved satisfactorily. [More…]
The Opposition contends also that the Atomic Energy Act is an inappropriate legislative basis for nuclear energy research and development and for commercial activities and that it should be repealed and replaced by other legislation. [More…]
That provision was enacted at a time when there was a need to secure Australian uranium for use by Great Britain and the United States of America in a nuclear weapons program. [More…]
-Has the Minister for Foreign Affairs studied the paper published by the International Consultative Group on Nuclear Energy in November 1978 entitled ‘International Custody of Plutonium Stocks: A First Step Towards an International Regime for Sensitive Nuclear Energy Activities’, of which the authors were Russell Fox and Mason Willrich? [More…]
Its essential aim is to limit as a first step and then to reduce the nuclear armaments of the two countries while preserving a stable strategic balance and maintaining international confidence. [More…]
President Carter has described SALT as being based on the powerful common interests of the two superpowers in reducing the threat of nuclear war. [More…]
He has assured the United States Congress that he would sign no agreement which could not be verified and that the United States nuclear deterrent would remain strong after the conclusion of SALT II. [More…]
It should, at least in theory, reduce the threat of a nuclear war and place limits on the strategic arsenals of both the United States and the Soviet Union. [More…]
It should also place limits on the development of new strategic systems by these two countries and open the way to reductions in nuclear arsenals in the future. [More…]
At least there are problems in the nuclear industry and we are entitled to do what we are doing. [More…]
It is incredible that people such as Sir Charles Court, who talk about unlimited energy exports and the need for a Western Australian nuclear power industry, will not consider a huge methanol plant in the north-west or even in the east if eventually a pipeline is constructed. [More…]
-Does the Prime Minister agree that ratification of SALT II is to the strategic advantage of Australia and its allies and that failure of ratification by the United States Congress would have profound serious consequences in respect of nuclear proliferation? [More…]
by leave- For the information of honourable members, I present the Agreement between the Government of Australia and the Government of the Republic of Korea concerning Co-operation in the Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy and the Transfer of Nuclear Material, together with the letter sent to the leader of the Republic of Korea delegation which negotiated the agreement. [More…]
Consistent with the practice that I adopted regarding previous nuclear safeguards agreements, namely with Finland and the Philippines, I have sought to present the agreement to Parliament as soon as possible after signature. [More…]
The agreement is a further step in the establishment of a network of bilateral nuclear safeguards agreements between Australia and other countries. [More…]
The agreement incorporates all the Government’s nuclear safeguards requirements as announced by the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser) on 24 May 1977. [More…]
These are: an undertaking that nuclear material supplied by Australia will not be diverted to military or explosive purposes; the application of International Atomic Energy Agency- IAEA- safeguards, which provide an international check against diversion of material; fall-back arrangements to ensure continued safeguarding of nuclear material should IAEA safeguards for any reason cease to apply; a requirement for Australia’s prior consent to any retransfers, to ensure that uranium supplied by Australia cannot be re-exported unless we are satisfied as to the ultimate destination and as to the controls that would apply; a requirement for Australia’s prior consent for high enrichment or reprocessing of material supplied by Australia. [More…]
This effectively reserves our position on reprocessing, as we have said we wish to, pending the outcome of international studies, including- INFCE- the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation; provisions ensuring that adequate physical security will be maintained, to guard against theft or other illegal use of nuclear material by groups or individuals; provisions for consultations to ensure the effective implementation of the Agreement; and all these safeguards and controls to cover nuclear material derived from Australian uranium so long as it remains in a form relevant from the point of view of safeguards. [More…]
The agreement also contains: a sanctions Article acknowledging Australia’s right to suspend supplies and to require return of material in the event of detonation of a nuclear device, failure to comply with IAEA safeguards or breach of the agreement; and arbitration procedures for the settlement of disputes. [More…]
The purpose of the letter is to provide a degree of reassurance to the Republic of Korea of the manner in which Australia intends to exercise its prior consent rights and to handle administrative problems that might arise from multiple labelling, that is the attachment of different national nuclear safeguards conditions to material as it is transferred internationally for processing purposes on its way to the end user. [More…]
The letter states Australia’s intention of being a reliable supplier and its attitude towards a possible international convention on the physical protection of nuclear material. [More…]
The Republic of Korea’s nuclear program is a large one, and envisages over 40 reactors by the year 2000, at which time nuclear power would account for 60 per cent of electricity generation and 20 per cent of the Republic of Korea ‘s total energy requirements. [More…]
The conclusion of this nuclear co-operation and safeguards agreement with the Republic of Korea provides a basis for shipments of Australian uranium to that country under commercial contracts. [More…]
Further nuclear safeguards agreements with other countries will follow. [More…]
The Government’s nuclear safeguards policy is a comprehensive, stringent and highly responsible policy aimed at contributing to the prevention of the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
The willingness of potential customer countries to accept Australia’s nuclear safeguards requirements, thorough and stringent as they are, is evidence of this. [More…]
In examining the text of this agreement, we note it is essentially the same as the Nuclear Safeguards Agreement between Australia and the Philippines. [More…]
We note that the document emphasises co-operation in peaceful use of nuclear energy and the transfer of nuclear material. [More…]
The title ‘Nuclear Cooperation ‘ is more appropriate than safeguards as the intent of this agreement is to pave the way for very substantial co-operation with the Republic of Korea in these matters. [More…]
The Deputy Prime Minister made clear that the Republic of Korea bases its expansion plans in substantial part on nuclear generation of electricity. [More…]
We have discussed with the Foreign Minister in previous debates the details of other nuclear co-operation agreements during the last session of the Parliament. [More…]
Since that time, of course, events in the world affecting nuclear energy have not stood still. [More…]
We note, for example, that the Government has extended the appointment of Mr Justice Fox as Ambassador-at-large for Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Safeguards Matters. [More…]
Mr Justice Fox is on record in a paper published in November 1978 by the International Consultative Group on Nuclear Energy as proposing quite new approaches to the avoidance of nuclear proliferation. [More…]
These proposals reflect a different approach to that evident in the Government’s continuing program of negotiating nuclear safeguards agreements. [More…]
We also note that a very senior officer of the Australian Atomic Energy Commission, again in a personal capacity, has proposed a quite radical new approach to international nuclear co-operative activities for the avoidance of nuclear proliferation. [More…]
The decline in confidence in petroleum supplies brought about by events in Iran undoubtedly increases international interest in nuclear energy. [More…]
The events at Harrisburg, however, have greatly increased public apprehension about the safety of nuclear reactor operations. [More…]
In many of the democracies, nuclear power programs will be set back. [More…]
We note that Sweden will now hold a referendum on nuclear power. [More…]
The Deputy Prime Minister has told us of the projections by the Republic of Korea of its nuclear reactor requirements over the next 20 years- 40 reactors requiring 80,000 tons of uranium. [More…]
The magnitude of the Korean nuclear program can be illustrated in comparative terms by saying that the Koreans wish to buy, by the year 2000, a quantity of uranium equal to twice the current annual world market for uranium and five times the amount the Deputy Prime Minister would like Australia to be able to export annually by 1988. [More…]
We wish to express the following reservations and concerns about this proposed nuclear cooperation agreement. [More…]
The prospect is that, if the Government were permitted to proceed with its plans on such a basis, we could find ourselves so substantially committed to uranium exports a decade from now that we would be a desperate seller rather than a seller concerned, as we should be, about the safety, environmental, weapons proliferation and waste disposal problems of nuclear energy. [More…]
The advocates of nuclear energy have included two camps: Those who see the nuclear option as a major long term contributor to energy needs; and those who, especially more recently, have justified nuclear energy as essential to fill an energy deficit which may be upon us in the mid 1980s. [More…]
The two approaches to nuclear industry lead to different conclusions. [More…]
If nuclear industry has a long term future, the reviews, adjustments and options made remain relevant. [More…]
If, on the other hand, nuclear power is supposedly only a stop-gap to be replaced by more benevolent, renewable alternatives several decades from now, we must doubt very much whether nuclear power now has the viability to be a gap-filler. [More…]
There are reactions against nuclear power, but other countries with major nuclear programs will continue with these and are likely also to press for exports. [More…]
At the same time, the Republic of Korea is a country which has quite clearly contemplated the” acquisition of nuclear weapons in the past. [More…]
In fact, evidence available to the United States Government as far back as 1976 led it to bring pressure to bear on France and on Korea to prevent the export of a nuclear reprocessing plan t by France to Korea. [More…]
That pressure also culminated in the Republic of Korea becoming a party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty after many years of avoidance of that commitment. [More…]
The facts remain that, firstly, South Korea is a country with an understandably great concern for its defence and which cannot be considered to have excluded from its future plans the acquinon of nuclear weapons. [More…]
The Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty provides for withdrawal of any country ‘if it decides that extraordinary events, related to the subject matter of this Treaty, have jeopardised the supreme interests of its country’. [More…]
Secondly, neither the Treaty tabled today, nor the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty would prevent the Republic of Korea- or any other country similarly bound by Treaty- from accumulating over time and within its so-called peaceful’ nuclear fuel cycle, both the materials usable for nuclear weapons and the technology and skills for converting that material into weapons in less time than the three months required for withdrawal from the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty. [More…]
That is, if the Republic of Korea withdrew from the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty and from the safeguards regime, and if it further declined to accept the full scope safeguards required, Australia would have the capacity to exercise its safeguards or retrieval rights only in respect of, say, 40 per cent of the nuclear material. [More…]
That country is nonetheless a country with an interest in nuclear weapons. [More…]
It must also be noted that since the subject of nuclear non-proliferation was last debated in the Parliament in November 1978, announcements by the Deputy Prime Minister about uranium sales contracts have made even more clear than was then the case that the Government regards the safeguards as little more than a political cosmetic to facilitate exports. [More…]
Finally, nuclear exports policy is now unqualifiedly in the hands of the Deputy Prime Minister, who we say is not competent to manage this policy. [More…]
A bilateral nuclear safeguards agreement has recently been concluded, opening the way for negotiations for the supply of Australian uranium to the Philippines. [More…]
These make Australia a prime nuclear target as part of a world-wide network which aims to provide the US with a nuclear first-strike capacity. [More…]
I asked whether failure to ratify the Agreement would have consequences of nuclear proliferation. [More…]
By that I meant proliferation by the Americans and the Russians and with new weapons by other countries acquiring nuclear capability. [More…]
If the bases in Australia are part of a system sustaining stability and moving towards arms control and reduction in nuclear weapons, clearly they have a positive value. [More…]
If, however, the strategic balance is upset and the guidelines under which they operate change, if there is an escalation in the arms race, a proliferation of nuclear weapon states and an increased risk of nuclear war, any sensible Australian Government will have to consider what will happen to the bases. [More…]
We approve of nonproliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
Yet we never hear a word about the Soviet Union or the East European countries which are pushing ahead with nuclear power generation as fast as they can. [More…]
It is all right for a few people who want to get round in a loin cloth or to live up a tree to live without nuclear power, but the great bulk of the people look to the future so that their children can have a standard of living comparable to ours. [More…]
The work on which Mr Justice Fox has been engaged as Ambassador-at-Large for nuclear non-proliferation and safeguards is, in the view of the Government, work of great national importance. [More…]
He has travelled extensively and tirelessly in Asia, Western and Eastern Europe and North America and has made an important contribution to international understanding on nuclear non-proliferation questions. [More…]
Late last year Mr Justice Fox led the Australian delegation to the mid-term plenary conference of the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation. [More…]
The International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation is due to hold its concluding conference in 1980. [More…]
The Government believes that Mr Justice Fox will be able to make his own special contribution to policy in all these fields and will be an invaluable adviser to the Government on nuclear matters. [More…]
After all, it was the Australian Labor Party when in government which appointed Justice Fox to head the inquiry into uranium mining and export- generally the nuclear power industryand I believe his report was one of the more significant contributions towards the information of the public mind on this subject. [More…]
Justice Fox’s paper on international involvement in the regulation of the nuclear fuel cycle and the nuclear energy industry is, in my view, a seminal work. [More…]
While the Leader of the Opposition (Mr Hayden) has indicated that the Opposition has no objection in principle to the appointment of Mr Justice Fox as Ambassador-at-Large, on the very important question of an examination of the processes of nuclear industry, we do not believe that the question of the extension of his appointment ought just simply to be an exercise to be taken by the Executive. [More…]
His functions are to examine the range of arguments, the range of developments and the complexities of the problems which confront mainly those nations of Western society which seem to have been committed to nuclear industry and to inform, not merely the Government of Australia on the range of those matters - [More…]
The Government endeavours to work on the basis, both in this Parliament and in the community at large, that the issues related to the future of the nuclear industry have been resolved. [More…]
As far as the Government is concerned there are no problems in terms of nuclear proliferation; there are no problems in relation to waste disposal. [More…]
He points out the competitiveness of the nuclear industry and how such competition presently erodes and diminishes the concept of non-proliferation. [More…]
He points out the continuing difficulties in preventing the development of nuclear technology spreading to encompass military purposes. [More…]
The Government believes that so long as it can keep Mr Justice Fox as ambassador-at-large wandering around the world he can produce as many memoranda as he likes, he can tell the Government of the problems and the threats that are posed to the people of Australia by nuclear profliferation, he can tell the people of Australia and the Government that we have not solved the problems of nuclear waste disposal, he can point out all these problems, but they will stay within the confines of the Cabinet. [More…]
I only hope that the recommendations he has made, which the Minister would not allow to be tabled because they highlight the essential dishonesty of this Government’s policy on the nuclear industry, will continue to be made, not merely to the executive arm of Government but also to the Parliament and, through the Parliament, to the people of Australia. [More…]
1 ) the latest moves (24 hr police coverage + locking of the APR) have been instigated as there is evidence of a higher threat at the moment as Japanese anti-nuclear activists arc alleged to be in the country to train local activists in some of the finer (and perhaps not so fine) points of being anti-nuclear activists. [More…]
I would like to know whether the circular is upheld by the Government and whether the Government is prepared to join with this contention about the threat of Japanese anti-nuclear activists who are supposed to be here or who could be here. [More…]
The paper states that: ‘activists are alleged to be in the country to train local activists in some of the finer (and perhaps not so fine) points of being anti-nuclear activists’. [More…]
There are many anti-nuclear activists in my area in my Party. [More…]
I believe that it is a very serious reflection on them for anyone to contend that they would be capable of being subjected to any manipulation by such Japanese anti-nuclear activists. [More…]
I do not know what it is, but I think it is important to say that if this nuclear reactor is under threat this Parliament, the constituents in my electorate and the workers in that plant are entitled to know what is being done to protect their well-being. [More…]
If a possibility exists of Japanese anti-nuclear activists being in the country there is a reason for this Government to come clean and to tell us precisely what is the position. [More…]
Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Act, 1978 s.15(l)(d) [More…]
The Labor Party’s policy is that, having regard to the present unresolved economic, social, biological, genetic, environmental and technical problems associated with the mining of uranium and the development of nuclear power in particular, until Australian sovereignty, the needs of our environment, the economic welfare of our people and the rights and wellbeing of the Aboriginal people are understood we will not assist in any way the Government’s actions to carry out uranium mining in the Northern Territory. [More…]
Conference recognises that the provision of Australian uranium to the world nuclear fuel cycle creates problems relevant to Australian sovereignty, the environment, the economic welfare of our people, and the rights and well-being of the Aboriginal people. [More…]
Labor believes, that having regard to the present unresolved economic, social, biological, genetic, environmental and technical problems associated with the mining of uranium and the development of nuclear power and’ in particular: [More…]
to the proven contribution of the nuclear power industry to the proliferation of nuclear weapons and the increased risk of nuclear war; [More…]
It is imperative that no commitment of Australia’s uranium deposits to the world’s nuclear fuel cycle should be made until: [More…]
The nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of nuclear war. [More…]
The nuclear power industry is a very dangerous industry. [More…]
Uranium mining cannot be divorced from the nuclear power industry because nuclear energy provides the material for the development of nuclear weapons and this increases the risk of nuclear war. [More…]
The nuclear power industry is interrelated with the uranium mining industry. [More…]
The ‘peaceful uses’ of uranium for the nuclear industry cannot be divorced from the manufacture of nuclear weapons and the increased risk of war. [More…]
We know that the economic aspect is one which will defeat the uranium and nuclear industry in the northern hemisphere. [More…]
What about the cost of decommissioning nuclear power stations after their 30 years life has ended? [More…]
What is the real cost to police nuclear waste for a quarter of a million years? [More…]
We know that economics are drying up the nuclear power industry. [More…]
Yet the member for Reid knows only too well that his colleagues- I say this unreservedly- in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics are forging ahead with the development of nuclear energy. [More…]
When his friends in the USSR are forging ahead with developing nuclear energy, why does he do his best, with many of his colleagues, to prevent this development in Australia? [More…]
1 ) In a recent statement the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission said that it no longer regarded as reliable the Reactor Safety Study’s numerical estimates of the overall risk of a reactor accident, and that the absolute values of the risks presented in the Study should not be used uncritically. [More…]
The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission has not based the licensing of any light water reactor on the Reactor Safety Study. [More…]
In a recent statement to the Sub-committee on Energy and the Environment of the House Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs, Mr Joseph M. Hendrie, the Chairman of the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission stated: [More…]
The Power Reactor and Nuclear Fuel Development Corporation plans to construct a plant for reprocessing lowenriched oxide fuel from Light Water Reactors with capacity of five tonnes a day to commence operation in 1990. [More…]
What are the legal aspects of concern to Australia regarding nuclear power sources in space, as raised by Mr F. P. Nolan, the Australian representative on the Legal Sub Committee of the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, at its meeting in April 1 979. [More…]
At the 18th Session of the Legal Sub-Committee of the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, the Australian Delegation supported a Canadian proposal that an item entitled ‘Legal Aspects of the Uses of Nuclear Power Sources in Outer Space’ should be included in the agenda of the Sub-Committee’s next session. [More…]
) further development of the existing outer space legal regime to require the launching State to provide notification prior to the launching of a satellite carrying a nuclear power source; [More…]
b) elaboration of an obligation to provide early warning of a possible re-entry or malfunctioning of a satellite containing a nuclear power source; [More…]
Officials will be further considering legal aspects of the use of nuclear power sources in outer space in an effort to identify those points of concern to Australia. [More…]
So here we have the honourable member for Kalgoorlie, in a very doubtful seat, defending the Government’s most doubtful policy, to be supported by the apologist for the nuclear industry, the honourable member for Hotham (Mr Roger Johnston). [More…]
The Code of Practice on Radiation Protection in the Mining and Milling of Radioactive Ores, 1975, prepared by my Department is at present being adopted for inclusion in the Environmental Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill 1978 which is the responsibility of my colleague, the Minister for Science and the Environment. [More…]
hospitals and clinics, involved in nuclear medicine (including both staff and patients). [More…]
Commonwealth and State Government departments and establishments involved in nuclear activities such as the Australian Atomic Energy Commission, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, Australian Radiation Laboratory, and State Health Departments. [More…]
1 ) Has his attention been drawn to the recent report of the United States of America Academy of Science recommending a reduction in the maximum permissible dose of ionising radiation for workers in the nuclear industry. [More…]
How do the recommendations compare with the codes of practice with respect to nuclear activities accepted in Australia. [More…]
Are there any proposals which would include use being made of HMAS Stirling by nuclear powered ships or submarines of the United States Navy. [More…]
Will any nuclear powered ships or submarines of the United States Navy be based or serviced at HMAS Stirling, if so, will these arrangements include the Trident submarine. [More…]
Use has already been made of HMAS Stirling on two occasions by US nuclear powered warships (by USS Truxton in August 1978 and USS Tunny in April 1979). [More…]
The general conditions of entry for visits to Australian pons by nuclear powered warships are laid down in pages 3 and 4 of the document Environmental Considerations of Nuclear Powered Warships (May 1976). [More…]
) How many of the ships were nuclear powered. [More…]
1 ) When and by which Department or statutory authority were estimates of nuclear power capacity in Australia of O.5 GW in 1988 and 1.0 GW in 1990 which are contained in an OECD Nuclear Energy Agency report entitled Nuclear Fuel Cycle Requirements (February 1978) provided to that Agency. [More…]
Is he able to state the Government’s intention regarding the development of nuclear power in Australia. [More…]
What are the most recent estimates of future nuclear power capacity in Australia. [More…]
1 ) Estimates of nuclear power capacity in Australia of 0.5 GW in 1988 and 1.0 GW in 1990 were provided by the Australian Atomic Energy Commission (AAEC) to the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) in 1975, in response to a questionnaire seeking information for the 1975 joint IAEA/NEA report Uranium Resources. [More…]
These estimates were reproduced by the NEA in the 1978 publication Nuclear Fuel Cycle Requirements. [More…]
However, on the basis of later estimates provided to the NEA, the 1 977 report Uranium Resources, Production and Demand indicates no nuclear plants likely in Australia for the years in question. [More…]
Estimates of nuclear power in Australia provided by the AAEC for the 1975 report on Uranium Resources, Production and Demand took into account the intentions of State electricity generating authorities as they were understood at that time. [More…]
3 ) The Commonwealth Government has no plans to construct a nuclear power reactor for electricity generation in Australia. [More…]
In their planning for future power needs nuclear power is clearly an option which will be considered. [More…]
The experiences of other countries are being closely monitored so that the appropriate power supplying authorities will be in a position to reach considered decisions on the nuclear option if and when the need arises. [More…]
The most recent estimate of primary energy consumption in Australia, prepared by the Commonwealth Government, is the Demand for Primary Fuels, Australia, 1976-77 to 1986-87 published by the Department of National Development in 1978, which does not identify nuclear energy as making any contribution during that period. [More…]
The interviewer on the Newsvoice program indicated that I had stated that signature of the nuclear safeguards agreement with the Republic of Korea would clear the way for South Korea to begin negotiating contracts with the Ranger consortium and/or Queensland Mines. [More…]
1 ) Is it a fact that the Australian Atomic Energy Commission recently advertised in newspapers for a marine zoologist to conduct research into the movement and fate of contaminants released near shore (with respect to siting of nuclear facilities) and in deep ocean waters (with respect to dumping). [More…]
If so, is the Commission (a) carrying out, or intending to carry out, a program of dumping nuclear wastes in deep ocean waters and (b) intending to build a nuclear facility adjacent to one of Australia ‘s estuaries or along its coastline. [More…]
Is this research being carried out to determine the fate of nuclear wastes produced by a nuclear power plant of the type proposed by Sir Charles Court in Western Australia and is it proposed that this waste would be disposed of by dumping into the ocean. [More…]
This means that we need to be experts on everything from leaking taps to nuclear energy. [More…]
Before that, he was Deputy Chairman, representing the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, of a small, expert, multi-disciplinary task force which provided advice to the Government on Nuclear Non-proliferation and Safeguards issues. [More…]
I refer to reports that Pakistan is developing a nuclear arms potential. [More…]
If so, what does the Government intend to do to check the growth of nuclear arms on the Indian sub-continent? [More…]
-There is considerable concern internationally that Pakistan is constructing a centrifuge uranium enrichment facility, outside of international safeguards, which would provide it with nuclear explosive capability. [More…]
There can be no doubt that achievement of a nuclear explosive capability by any additional state would endanger not merely the security of the region concerned but also international stability generally. [More…]
It would continue to increase the risk of further proliferation, while obviously international co-operation and trade in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy would be seriously jeopardised. [More…]
Pakistan has stated that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only. [More…]
The Government considers that if there is evidence to indicate that a country is planning to develop a nuclear explosive capability, broadly based international pressure should be brought to bear to dissuade it from proceeding with those plans. [More…]
Adherence by all states to a treaty prohibiting nuclear weapons testing would obviously greatly assist international efforts to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons to additional countries. [More…]
For the information of honourable members I present the agreement between the Government of Australia and the Government of the United States of America concerning peaceful use of nuclear energy, together with an agreed minute, and the agreement between the Government of Australia and the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland concerning nuclear transfers between Australia and the United Kingdom, together with an agreed minute and an exchange of letters. [More…]
Consistent with the practice I have adopted with previous nuclear safeguards agreements, the texts were published immediately upon signature and are now being presented to the Parliament early in the present session. [More…]
The signature of these two agreements brings to five the number of nuclear safeguards agreements signed between Australia and other countries. [More…]
Both the United Kingdom and the United States are nuclear weapons states and, in accordance with the policy announced by the Prime Minister on 24 May 1977, the primary purpose of these agreements will be to ensure that when Australia supplies uranium to them for peaceful purposes, this uranium will not be diverted to non-peaceful or explosive purposes. [More…]
The two agreements represent confirmation of the closeness of the views of the three governments on nuclear safeguards issues. [More…]
It provides a new framework for the nuclear co-operation between Australia and the United States which commenced well before 1956 when the two governments concluded an agreement concerning the civil use of atomic energy. [More…]
That agreement, which was amended in 1960 and 1967, is superseded by the new agreement, which also supersedes an interim nuclear safeguards agreement of limited scope concluded between the two governments on 8 August 1978. [More…]
The agreement reflects the shared non-proliferation objectives of Australia and the United States and is a further demonstration of the commitment by both Australia and the United States to stringent controls on the exports of nuclear material. [More…]
President Carter said he was particularly pleased that the first peaceful nuclear co-operation agreement entered into since the enactment of the United States NonProliferation Act of 1978 should be with Australia. [More…]
‘The proposed agreement’, he noted, reflects the desire of the Government of the United States and the Government of Australia to update the framework for peaceful nuclear cooperation between our two countries in a manner which recognises both the shared nonproliferation objectives and the close relationship between the United States and Australia in the peaceful applications of nuclear energy’. [More…]
I wish also to bring to the attention of the House the nuclear proliferation assessment statement on the Agreement prepared for President Carter by the United States Arms Control and Disarmament Agency. [More…]
It goes on to describe Australia’s nuclear export policies as perhaps the most stringent of any country’ and its requirement that a non-nuclear weapon recipient state be a party to the NPT as ‘virtually unique and highly commendable’. [More…]
The statement continues that Australia’s efforts to halt the growth in existing nuclear weapon stockpiles have been no less intensive as it continues to emphasise the responsibility of the nuclear weapon states to engage in effective nuclear arms control through negotiations such as the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks and the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty. [More…]
The statement says that Australia’s ‘serious and sustained efforts to promote nuclear arms control have earned Australia the respect of the international community’. [More…]
The United States Arms Control and Disarmament Agency concludes that ‘it is entirely fitting that the first agreement for co-operation to be submitted’ to the United States Congress ‘for approval since enactment of the United States Nuclear Non-Proliferation Act is with a state of such impeccable nonproliferation credentials’. [More…]
The application of International Atomic Energy Agency- IAEA- safeguards to Australian-origin nuclear material in the [More…]
As a nuclear weapon state the United States is not required under the NPT to institute IAEA safeguards in its territory. [More…]
Fallback arrangements to ensure continued safeguarding of nuclear material should IAEA safeguards for any reason cease to apply. [More…]
Provisions ensuring that adequate physical security will be maintained, to guard against theft or other illegal use of nuclear material by groups or individuals. [More…]
All these safeguards and controls to cover nuclear material derived from Australian uranium so long as it remains in a form relevant from the point of view of safeguards. [More…]
This is because of the elaborate co-operation provisions covering not only nuclear material but also other material, equipment and information, and the need to meet the provisions of United States nuclear safeguards policy as legislated in the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Act of 1978. [More…]
This Act contains some provisions which are not among Australia’s own requirements and reflects the involvement of the United States in a wide range of peaceful nuclear activities. [More…]
As with all of Australia’s bilateral nuclear safeguards agreements, this agreement incorporates all of the Government’s safeguards requirements as announced by the Prime Minister on 24 May 1977 and to which I have just referred in detail in connection with the United States agreement. [More…]
-Before the suspension of the sitting for lunch I was making a statement on our nuclear safeguards policy. [More…]
As a result the Government in formulating its nuclear safeguards policy decided that any future sales arrangements for exports of Australian uranium should be such that the uranium will be in a form which attracts full International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards by the time it leaves Australian ownership. [More…]
Honourable members will be aware from the remarks I have made beforehand in presenting the two most recent nuclear safeguards agreements to the House that, following negotiations on safeguards agreements with other governments, a practical framework for implementing the Government’s policy as announced in 1977 has emerged. [More…]
Australian Safeguards Office requirements for notification of the movements of nuclear materials; inter-governmental arrangements or agreements with processor countries; bilaterial nuclear safeguards agreements with the country of the ultimate consignee. [More…]
The Government is convinced that the framework of control will be fully effective and will maintain the integrity of Australia’s stringent nuclear safeguards policy. [More…]
To return to the primary purpose of this statement, Mr Speaker, the two agreements that I have tabled today are important achievements in giving effect to the Government’s nuclear safeguards policy. [More…]
They demonstrate that Australia is playing a responsible and constructive role in helping to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
Australia’s nuclear export policies as ‘perhaps the most stringent of any country’ and its requirement that a non-nuclear weapon recipient state be a party to the NPT as ‘virtually unique and highly commendable’. [More…]
I remind honourable members that the statement continued by saying that Australia ‘s efforts to halt the growth in existing nuclear weapon stockpiles have been no less intensive as it continues to emphasise the responsibility of the nuclear weapons states to engage in effective nuclear arms control through negotiations such as SALT and the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty. [More…]
The statement says that Australia’s ‘serious and sustained efforts to promote nuclear arms control have earned Australia the respect of the international community’. [More…]
The Agency concludes its paper by stating that ‘it is entirely fitting that the first agreement for co-operation to be submitted’ to the United States Congress ‘for approval since enactment of the United States Nuclear Non-Proliferation Act is with a state of such impeccable non-proliferation credentials’. [More…]
I place on record that at Question Time today he was asked a question about the danger to mankind if Pakistan were to engage in the enrichment of uranium which could lead to a nuclear device being exploded. [More…]
Pending international acceptance of new international arrangements and institutions to provide more effective measures against the proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
The statement reflects the fact that there are international discussions under way to improve non-proliferation regimes- these discussions are taking place in many places- in particular, the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation and the Preparatory Committee of the 1980 Conference to Review the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
We also know that agreement was reached in 1978 between Australia and Iran on the text of a bilateral nuclear co-operation agreement. [More…]
Nor has the Government told us, for example, that the Philippines has now decided not to proceed with the nuclear power reactor which it wanted to build and for which it wanted Australian uranium. [More…]
I recently had a chance to visit Korea, Japan, Great Britain, the United States and other countries where there have been nuclear power facilities. [More…]
For the very same reason, if one goes to France and to the French nuclear research and development establishments and one looks at the processes there, one will see that they are actively engaged- quite fairly, from their point of view- in establishing France as the ‘uranium OPEC of Europe’. [More…]
It is clear that governments can be dedicated to the pursuit of nuclear energy but it is important that we have a look at what sort of governments they are. [More…]
Any person representing the area where that nuclear reactor failed to function is not going to allow that reactor to be re-opened. [More…]
While you have the problems of nuclear proliferation, even when well-intentioned governments look at uranium for peaceful uses there are grave problems in the use of fuel from the point of view of management, and certainly from the point of view of waste disposal. [More…]
It was put to me very clearly in the United States that if the US Presidential Commission of Inquiry into the Three Mile Island incident found that fundamental problems exist in operating all nuclear reactors then that will end the commissioning of new power reactors in the United States, at least for the time being. [More…]
At present, the nuclear fuel cycle in the United States has been set back at least five years because they are not satisfied with the safety of the fuel. [More…]
In the next year we may expect nuclear policy to be a continuing issue in West Germany and Sweden. [More…]
Both countries are having elections and in both cases nuclear power generation is going to be the subject of a democratic process- the people agree with it or otherwise. [More…]
In the case of nuclear weapon states, Britain and the United States have established or are establishing safeguards arrangements for their non-military fuel cycles. [More…]
The full fuel cycle safeguards arrangement is that required of parties to the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty. [More…]
As we have argued before, the work being done on safeguards is of limited relevance to nuclear nonproliferation. [More…]
Therefore, in no sense can it be said that non-proliferation and safeguards concerns dominate or have priority in the development of nuclear policy by the Government. [More…]
The ultimate objective of any nonproliferation regime is to enable countries to have access to nuclear material for energy or for medical or industrial uses, while keeping away from national control or use the material and equipment which can enable weapons to be made. [More…]
I commend to the Minister the paper presented in 1978 by Australia’s Dr Alan Wilson to a conference, which was convened by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute on nuclear proliferation. [More…]
I note that a British Government consortium representing British Nuclear Fuels Ltd and the Central Electricity Generating Board is reported to be a bidder. [More…]
Here we have the Premier of Western Australia, Sir Charles Court, stating that he wants a nuclear reactor. [More…]
The power production of the nuclear reactor is pretty substantial and Western Australia has a very small power demand at the present time. [More…]
Let me also emphasise that decisions on whether to proceed with nuclear industry will be taken outside Australia and beyond Australian influence. [More…]
The Government has claimed that it can help to avoid nuclear proliferation by exporting uranium. [More…]
This Government has no nuclear safeguards agreements with France yet. [More…]
If honourable members talk to United States Congressmen they will find that the United States will opt out of the nuclear energy cycle at this stage if it can because of the dangers to the American people. [More…]
It is the fact that the Omega base will ultimately be an integral part of the American military defence communications system, particularly communications systems with nuclear submarines, that needs to be considered when one is making an assessment of the importance of that base. [More…]
It is the importance of that base militarily for the United States and the entanglement that that would involve within the American nuclear defence capability that causes people to have what I believe to be a justifiable concern. [More…]
The honourable member will know that at the tenth meeting of the South Pacific Forum on 9-10 July, all South Pacific Forum countries, which, to elaborate further, include Australia, unanimously adopted a resolution opposing the use of the Pacific area as a place to dump nuclear waste. [More…]
There are two nuclear reactors in Australia, both located at the Australian Atomic Energy Commission (AAEC), Research Establishment, Lucas Heights. [More…]
I refer to the fact that yesterday we were advised that sites in the Pacific were not suitable for nuclear waste disposal. [More…]
I emphasise that the present amendments do not affect in any way the powers provided by the Atomic Energy Amendment Act 1978 to enable the Commonwealth to implement nuclear non-proliferation safeguards in Australia pursuant to the Government’s international obligations. [More…]
The people of South Australia are not in accord with the views being expressed by Sir Charles Court in his talks with the Prime Minister, or with Joh BjelkePetersen in his talks with the Prime Minister about the establishment of enrichment plants and as a probable follow-up the establishment of nuclear power stations in Australia. [More…]
My third observation is that we ought to have noted that Mexico has already entered into negotiations to trade off between West Germany and Canada oil for nuclear technology. [More…]
It has confidence that the strict safeguards, that are the standards of the Labor Party in the matters of waste disposal, reactor safety and proliferation of nuclear weapons, will be met. [More…]
We are not looking at the disposal of nuclear waste in South Australia; that is a furphy so far as the development of Roxby Downs is concerned. [More…]
It is because the use of nuclear reactors throughout the world is now well established. [More…]
The Soviet Union is now proposing to construct nuclear stations of two to 6 million kilowatts each in the following areas: Leningrad, Ignalinskaya, Kursk, Smolensk, South Ukrainian, Kalinin and Rovno. [More…]
The whole of its nuclear program is based on the idea that it will use the fast reactor breeder and one has been built only 75 miles out of Stalingrad. [More…]
The more one thinks about the Labor Party’s opposition to Australia ‘s selling of nuclear yellowcake and nuclear materials to the world the more one is shown that the minds of Opposition members are in a troglodyte era that has long passed. [More…]
Honourable members will remember that one of the principal recommendations of the Ranger Uranium Environmental Inquiry was that a uranium advisory council should be established to advise the Government and report to Parliament with regard to the export and use of Austraiian uranium having in mind the hazards, dangers and problems of and associated with the production of nuclear energy. [More…]
As honourable members will see from the report, the Council has been most industrious in informing itself on issues related to the nuclear fuel cycle and it has had already initiated studies of several issues which it sees as relevant to the development of the uranium industry in Australia. [More…]
The Council goes on to say that, if the Government does decide not to sell, it should establish a separate commercial authority to take over the management of its interest -from the Australian Atomic Energy Commission, leaving the Commission to carry out its nuclear and other energy research and advisory functions. [More…]
He wants to get involved in the whole question of the nuclear power industry. [More…]
If fact, even though he recognises that there is an interrelationship between the uranium mines and nuclear warthat is the spread of nuclear weapons- that is of no concern to him at all. [More…]
The Government is, of course, gratified that the Council of European Communities yesterday adopted a mandate enabling the European Commission to negotiate a nuclear safeguards agreement with Australia on behalf of the European Atomic Energy Community; that is, Euratom. [More…]
Apart from the complexity of formulating a single negotiating mandate among nine countries on a very complicated subject there have been unresolved questions on the European side about the respective competence of Euratom on the one hand and the individual member states on the other in nuclear safeguards matters. [More…]
The Government has consistently emphasised the importance of concluding a nuclear safeguards agreement with Euratom as soon as possible. [More…]
The Government has always considered that an agreement with Euratom is the most practical means of meeting Australia’s nuclear safeguards requirements for the export of uranium to the European Community. [More…]
The first nuclear bomb test by USSR in 1949, was unexpected, the North Korean attack across the 38th parallel, in June 19S0 was a surprise, as was the later Chinese communist intervention; and the Bay of Pigs expedition by the CIA against Cuba in 1961 was an intelligence failure, in both senses of the word. [More…]
The Code of Practice on Radiation Protection in the Mining and Milling of Radioactive Ores, 1975, prepared by my Department is at present being adopted for inclusion in the Environmental Protection (Nuclear Codes) Bill 1978 which is the responsibility of my colleague, the Minister for Science and the Environment The Code recommends continued health surveillance including pre-employment, continuing and post-employment medical examinations. [More…]
hospitals and clinics, involved in nuclear medicine (including both staff and patients). [More…]
Commonwealth and State Government departments and establishments involved in nuclear activities such as the Australian Atomic Energy Commission, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, Australian Radiation Laboratory, and State Health Departments would be a massive undertaking. [More…]
If the United States of America was satisfied with intelligence reports that the Pakistanis are developing a nuclear weapon and the resultant decision was the complete abandonment of aid, will Australia take similar action; if not, why not. [More…]
I outlined, in response to a question in the House of Representatives on 23 August, the Government’s concern about the possibility of Pakistan’s acquiring a nuclear explosive capability. [More…]
A package of six uranium Bills, covering uranium development, Aboriginal land rights, nuclear codes, national parks and environmental protection measures, has been passed through the Parliament by this Government. [More…]
During a study tour of the United States of America which I made during the winter recess, I visited the Commonwealth Edison nuclear power station and a nuclear storage depot not far from Chicago. [More…]
In that statement he pointed out that in the future the United States would need to turn more and more to nuclear power. [More…]
With the United States, the Soviet Union and other nations relying increasingly on nuclear power, we in Australia, who have something like only 20 per cent of the world’s uranium supplies, can have little influence indeed on the world trend towards the use of nuclear energy. [More…]
At its most recent conference in Adelaide, the Australian Labor Party showed a most unrealistic approach to nuclear power and the mining of Australia’s supply of uranium. [More…]
The danger of a world nuclear war by accident is much reduced because of the impact of the Cuba crisis which has not been forgotten. [More…]
However, the increasing nuclear capacity to make weapons in India, Israel, Pakistan and perhaps Brazil is a matter for serious national concern. [More…]
The threat of nuclear war was also raised by the honourable member for Holt. [More…]
From what we read of Idi Amin, of Pol Pot, and of some of the luminaries and leaders of the modern world, we can say that Hitler could not hold a candle to them for their brand of sanity, which one day is going to have its finger on the buttonwhether it be in Pakistan, Brazil, Israel or any country which at the moment is contemplating getting nuclear bombs or whether it be some bandit who reads one of the popular versions of the recipe for the home grown nuclear bomb, which is now a possibility. [More…]
Since 1976, the Soviet Pacific fleet has received additional surface combatants, including the Minsk, other aircraft carriers, the Ivan Rogov amphibious assault transport- what does it want that for?- and several nuclear submarines. [More…]
Bob, I want the North Vietnamese to think there is a mad man in the White House and I want them to realise that this mad man has his finger on the nuclear button. [More…]
-I preface my question, which is directed to the Minister for National Development, by referring to a question that I asked the Minister on 25 September with regard to nuclear wastes and the negotiations going on between the Australian Government, the Western Australian Government and the West German Government about the storing of nuclear waste in Western Australia. [More…]
The Government would not adopt a policy of allowing nuclear waste from overseas to be dumped in this country. [More…]
Official ALP propaganda on unemployment, nuclear disarmament and the environment was handed out at that demonstration. [More…]
The recent book Nuclear Disaster in the Urals by Zhores A. Medvedev deals with the operations of the United States Central Intelligence Agency in suppressing the reports of the terrible explosion caused by nuclear wastes late in 1957 in the Russian Ural town of Kyshtym. [More…]
They said: ‘Between your interests and our interests there is no difference at all because we both want nuclear power. [More…]
We do not want any information that will strengthen the argument against the use of nuclear power to get out. [More…]
For example, Eltham Council has proposed spending $1,300 on signs to be erected in the municipality which read ‘Eltham is a Nuclear Free Zone’. [More…]
There is also an acceptance throughout European countries and in Japan and a great many other countries that if they are to have the energy that they need to keep their own industries going and to keep their homes warm in the winter, they will need to rely increasingly on nuclear generated electricity. [More…]
what right have you, the Australian trade union movement to tell us, the Japanese people, about the dangers of nuclear power. [More…]
Can you figure any greater gall and greater hypocrisy than we comfortably sitting here in Australia should make a decision on the basis of what is good or not good for Japanese workers in respect of nuclear power. [More…]
Can you figure any greater gall and greater hypocrisy than we comfortably sitting here in Australia should make a decision on the basis of what is good or not good for Japanese workers in respect of nuclear power. [More…]
They have been through it and they have made an economic decision endorsed by the trade union movement that in terms of the economic needs of Japan, it is essential that they have nuclear generated power. [More…]
1 ) What indicators, both economic and technical, will be used to determine the operating life of the existing nuclear reactor at Lucas Heights, N.S.W. [More…]
The decommissioning of nuclear reactors is receiving considerable study overseas and the Commission’s officers are following developments closely. [More…]
He said that if that should happen of course we would be in the midst of a nuclear war and we would have more problems than that on our hands. [More…]
The seriousness of this matter has been referred to by me before in regard to other matters both directly affecting nuclear safeguards arrangements and affecting the policies that we have adopted on them. [More…]
1 ) Did he agree with other Ministers at the International Energy Agency Governing Board Meeting of 2 1 and 22 May 1979 that (a) the international nuclear fuel cycle evaluation is incomplete and needs to be completed successfully by early 1980 if effective action is to be taken to resolve long term waste disposal and non-proliferation questions and (b) there is an urgent need (i) for national and international efforts to ensure adequate safety systems to minimise the occurrence and consequence of nuclear plant accidents and (ii) to inform the public of the results. [More…]
Does the statement make no declaration regarding other power sources and so conflict with previous assurances by Ministers that (a) safety of the nuclear power industry was higher than that of alternative power producing systems and (b) remaining technical arrangements to achieve commercial exploitation of solar power production are more complex. [More…]
Ministers noted that nuclear projections have been lowered repeatedly in recent years. [More…]
However, they also recognised that oil or other alternative energy sources would not be sufficient to meet growing energy demand in the short and mediumterm and that undesirable economic and social consequences would therefore result if more nuclear power is not available. [More…]
They therefore agreed on the need for projected additions to nuclear power supply to be realised in timely fashion and exceeded wherever possible, having due regard to legal and constitutional provisions. [More…]
They also agreed on the urgent need for effective national and international efforts to ensure that safety systems are sufficient to minimise the possibility of nuclear plant accidents and their consequences, and to adequately inform the public of the results. [More…]
They also recognised the need to bring the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation (INFCE) to a successful conclusion by early 1980, and to ensure that effective action is taken to resolve long-term waste disposal and non-proliferation questions. ‘ [More…]
Has the Government investigated claims that Japanese anti-nuclear activists are training local anti-nuclear activists in Australia: if so, (a) what is the nature of the alleged security threat?, (b) how many Japanese anti-nuclear activists are suspected of being in Australia?, (c) how and when did they arrive?, (d) is there evidence that they are training local activists or anti-nuclear groups to use nonlegitimate methods to express their anti-nuclear activity: if so, what are these methods? [More…]
Does the Government consider that (a) residents who have expressed legitimate concern about the siting of the Research Establishment and the levels of radioactive discharges in the atmosphere and in the Woronora River (b) all or any Australian opponent to the nuclear industry, and (c) opponents to the Government’s decision to mine uranium, pose serious threats to Australian security. [More…]
Does the Government have the right to place any opponents under surveillance at any particular time whenever allegations of security risks are made relating to the operations of the Commission, mining of uranium and the nuclear industry. [More…]
Eighteen members of a Japanese anti-nuclear group known as ‘Japanese Against Atomic and Nuclear Bombs and Power’ arrived in Australia on 19 May 1979. [More…]
Has the attention of the Minister been drawn to a statement that 1 1 tonnes of material has been moved from the former nuclear testing site at Maralinga? [More…]
The work of the Committee is of special relevance to the important Australian interest iri promoting the goal of the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons. [More…]
Proposals relating to the further control of nuclear weapons will be an important part of the Committee’s work in the negotiation of international arms control measures. [More…]
The Committee’s predecessor, the Conference of the Committee on Disarmament, was responsible for the negotiation of a number of important instruments, including the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the Biological Weapons Convention and treaties regulating the placement of nuclear weapons on the seabed and in outer space. [More…]
We have an overriding interest in seeing the early conclusion of a comprehensive nuclear test ban treaty as the most important next step forward in the process of nuclear arms control. [More…]
Negotiation of such a treaty and adherence to it by a wide range of states would inhibit the further development of existing nuclear arsenals and act as an additional pillar of the international non-proliferation regime. [More…]
A test ban treaty would create a new avenue through which governments could renounce the option of acquiring nuclear weapons. [More…]
The Committee on Disarmament also addressed two other nuclear arms control issues which Australia regards as deserving of international action. [More…]
The first was the question of assurances by the nuclear weapon states that they would not use nuclear weapons against nonnuclear weapon states which had themselves renounced the acquisition of nuclear weapons. [More…]
The second was the need for an eventual international agreement which would prohibit the production of fissionable material for nuclear weapons purposes. [More…]
This would be a most important step in the direction of nuclear disarmament. [More…]
In addition to issues of nuclear arms control, the other principal area of activity in the Committee has been a proposed convention prohibiting the development, production and stockpiling of chemical weapons. [More…]
As a major potential exporter of uranium, Australia has a special responsibility to work for measures to ensure that nuclear weapons do not put humanity at risk. [More…]
In particular, the achievement of a comprehensive nuclear test ban is of critical importance. [More…]
The significance of a comprehensive test ban in relation to these countries is that they have not become parties to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. [More…]
They state that that Treaty is politically objectionable because it establishes two classes of states, the nuclear weapon states and the nonnuclear weapon states. [More…]
They may, however, accept a comprehensive test ban in which the nuclear powers bind themselves equally not to conduct tests. [More…]
The so-called negative nuclear security assurances, or undertakings by the nuclear weapon states not to use weapons against non-nuclear weapon states which have renounced the acquisition of nuclear weapons, are also important. [More…]
We would welcome the achievement of a consistent, equal, and widely recognised statement in binding form which could be entered into by the nuclear powers. [More…]
We are less happy about the proposed agreement which would prohibit the production of fissionable material for nuclear weapons purposes. [More…]
There continues to be a risk of countries moving deliberately to acquire nuclear weapons as we see Pakistan now doing. [More…]
There is likely to be, by the 1990s a much larger and quite new problem, arising from national accumulation of weapons-usable material in what is called the peaceful nuclear fuel cycles. [More…]
The Government’s proposal already has a hole in it for a country like India to slip through on the basis that India was using a peaceful nuclear explosive device. [More…]
The Government’s proposed treaty ignores this central future problem of nuclear proliferation. [More…]
Similarly, the Government has ignored proposals that all sensitive stages of the nuclear fuel cycle should be internationalised. [More…]
This is a convention drafted by the nuclear weapons states to prevent other countries acquiring cheap and dirty weapons which they do not want. [More…]
There are intrinsic merits in the proposal, which would ban weapons which do not rely upon a nuclear explosion but which have their effect by the dispersion of radiological material. [More…]
The term ‘disarmament’ is most usefully seen as shorthand for ‘disarmament and arms control’, and covering a wide range of activities which could be put under these six headings: Firstly, the negotiations between the superpowers to control nuclear armaments and otherwise limit or control the development of the strategic environment or particular weapon systems; secondly, the discussions in international organisations, particularly at the United Nations, among wider groups of countries to seek the elimination, or ban the use of, particular categories of weapons; thirdly, the diplomatic conferences sponsored by the International Committee of the Red Cross to improve international law relating to humanitarian rights in armed conflict; fourthly, the various activities underway to prevent the diversion of nuclear material to military or explosive use; fifthly, regional negotiations to secure limitations to or a reduction of force levels, or to establish procedures for war avoidance; and finally, unilateral actions by countries to shape their defence forces and their diplomatic posture to diminish the prospects of conflict and enable reallocation of national resources in their region to social purposes rather than military expenditure. [More…]
It does not consider the problem of finally dismantling nuclear power stations. [More…]
1 ) Further to his answer to my question without notice on 29 August 1979 concerning nuclear waste (Hansard, pages 698-9), in referring to Australian safeguards policies as having a bearing on the safety of waste disposal does the Minister mean that (a) the safeguards agreements which the Australian Government has negotiated displaced a need to be concerned about waste disposal or (b) Australia has raised waste disposal safety questions in the course of safeguards or related negotiations with (i) Finland, (ii) the Philippines, (in) Korea, (iv) Great Britain, (v) the United States of America, (vi) Iran, (vii) France, (vin) Sweden, (ix) the Federal Republic of Germany, (x) Japan, (xi) Italy, (xii) the European Economic Commission or (xiii) other countries. [More…]
Nuclear safety questions, including the safe disposal of radioactive waste, are important but separate matters from non-proliferation safeguards arrangements negotiated with foreign governments. [More…]
Because the Government shares the widespread international concern to see effective arrangements in place for the safe disposal of nuclear waste, Australia participates in international activity in this area including in the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation (INFCE) and the Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) of the OECD. [More…]
In my 23 August statement to the House of Representatives, I mentioned the favourable references to Australia’s high standing in non-proliferation matters which were made by President Carter and the United States Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, when the Australia/United States nuclear safeguards agreement was presented to Congress. [More…]
There is a distinction between the permanent disposal of radioactive waste and the interim storage of spent nuclear fuel. [More…]
At the same time we acknowledge the non-proliferation arguments for providing safe interim storage of spent nuclear fuel in consultation with interested countries. [More…]
While the Government’s view is that the responsibility for disposing, in an environmentally responsible manner of waste arising from nuclear power generation in countries abroad, is a matter for those countries which generate electricity by nuclear means, it is important that Australia remain fully informed of developments in this area. [More…]
These included agriculture, defence technology and nuclear energy. [More…]
The first is the strength of the impression that certainly I obtained from the visit as to the importance of the further development of the nuclear generation of electricity for the future standard of living in Europe. [More…]
Time and time again the energy crisis was raised with us and time and time again those who raised this matter with us stressed the need for Europe to proceed with its nuclear development program. [More…]
For example, 25 per cent of France’s electricity output is already provided from nuclear sources. [More…]
Forty per cent of Belgium’s electricity is already nuclear generated and within five years this will rise to 60 per cent. [More…]
-Is the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Resources aware of reports that the Western Australian Government has asked the Commonwealth to establish a nuclear reactor in that State to replace the HIFAR reactor at Lucas Heights in New South Wales? [More…]
Without it we would have been behind the rest of the world in technical knowledge of matters relating to the nuclear age. [More…]
Regarding nuclear matters, if the Government of New South Wales feels so strongly about any further developments of nuclear plants in that State, certainly it would be of advantage to get its reaction to nuclear enrichment. [More…]
Its cost is lower than the cost of power produced by nuclear power stations which is now the world preferred system because of its cheapness and safety. [More…]
Re-fuelling Depot for Nuclear Powered Ships (Question No. [More…]
The Government has no plans to provide a re-fuelling depot for nuclear powered warships at Jervis Bay or any other Australian port, nor am I aware of any plans regarding similar facilities for nuclear powered merchant ships. [More…]
It is a far better option than Sir Charles Court’s proposal for a nuclear power station. [More…]
In the circumstances it is totally irresponsible of the Premier of Western Australia to be even talking about a nuclear power station, when it has been proven that there is no way that a nuclear power station can be decommissioned in future, after 30 or 40 years of active life. [More…]
Nor is there any way to dispose of the high level of nuclear waste. [More…]
In reaching its decisions on the further development of Australia’s unraium resources the Government had special regard to the issues of nuclear non-proliferation and world energy requirements. [More…]
Only as a major exporter of uranium is Australia in a position to exert influence and to take initiatives to strengthen nuclear safeguards whilst supplying essential sources of energy to an energy-deficient world. [More…]
Today I wanted to talk about the report of the Australian Ionising Radiation Advisory Council which clearly stated that there is no solution to the problems of nuclear waste. [More…]
Is he able to provide the following information in respect df the nuclear reactor accident at Three Mile Island, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, USA: (a) was the accident caused by a failure in the main reactor cooling system; if so, was a cloud of radioactive steam released because the reactor vessel was Unable to contain the pressure in the vessel; (b) were further releases of pressure necessary for the same reasons; (c) was radioactively-contaminated water released to the surrounding area; (d) was the level of radioactivity within the reactor vessel extremely high; if so, what were the levels, in both roentgens per hour and millirems per hour; (e) were the fuel elements damaged by the failure of the cooling system and the subsequent accident; (0 was contaminated material stored in auxiliary buildings; (g) how many dairy farms are situated in the area within a radius of 25 kilometres of the reactor; (h) did Charles Callinan of the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission admit publicly that there had been serious contamination on the reactor site; (i) was the police force of the State of Pennsylvania asked to provide a helicopter to monitor events at the reactor immediately following the accident; if so, were they informed that radioactive steam had been released into the atmosphere; (j) what precautions had to be taken to safeguard workers at the plant; (k) what was the extent of contamination of workers immediately following the accident; and (1) was the State of Pennsylvania entirely dependent on the utility company operating the reactor for information about the accident. [More…]
These figures do not include the costs, met by my Department, in respect of the appointment of Mr Justice Fox as Ambassador-at-Large for Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Safeguards. [More…]
Procedures for the use of such devices have not been discussed in the consultative bodies established by the Commonwealth, the States and the Northern Territory in relation to the Environment Protection (Nuclear Codes) Act 1978 for which I am responsible and which provides for the development in consultation with the States of codes of practice relating to the health, safety and protection of the environment in the course of nuclear activities. [More…]
Does the Nuclear Suppliers Group Trigger List specifically include laser isotope separation facilities. [More…]
If not, does this mean that as far as the Nuclear Suppliers Group is concerned, transfer of laser isotope separation facilities, and critical components thereof, will not necessarily be covered by International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards. [More…]
The guidelines of the Nuclear Suppliers Group require suppliers to exercise restraint in the transfer of sensitive technologies, such as enrichment plants, equipment or technology. [More…]
The detailed obligations of suppliers concerning any transfer to a non-nuclear-weapon state of enrichment technology are set out in IAEA document INFCIRC/254. [More…]
-The answer to the honourable member’s question is as follows: ( 1 ), (2) and (3)1 refer the honourable member to the joint OECD Nuclear Energy Agency/International Atomic Energy Agency report ‘Uranium Resources, Production and Demand ‘of December 1977. [More…]
I doubt very much whether within those few ranks there is the capacity to understand fully the implications of nuclear waste and the actions that are being taken around the world to try to exercise precautions and safeguards. [More…]
But there is concern all over the world that every precaution be taken with regard to nuclear waste. [More…]
Today there are something like ISO established nuclear power stations. [More…]
It appears that nuclear power generation is one of the few alternatives left to these countries. [More…]
The ploy of a pointed trade-off, which Mr Fraser is apparently determined to pull off, is seen in some quarters as, in addition, a politicalisation of the trade in uranium at a time when the United States President, Mr Carter, is using the same approach to retard the development of the fastbreeder reactor and, through this, the spread of military nuclear technology. [More…]
It is simply saying that the Government is using this whole exercise, running this whole gambit, this whole gimmick of appointing a special ministerial trade negotiator, for the purpose of running at variance with the President of the United States who is trying to quieten down the tendency to spread military nuclear technology. [More…]