Thursday, 7 June, 2007

ABC NT Local News

The Federal Science Minister, Julie Bishop, has restated that there are no plans to establish a dump for overseas nuclear waste at Muckaty Station, a remote site north of Tennant Creek in the Northern Territory.

Ms Bishop says Australian law prevents the importation of nuclear waste from other countries and the government has no intention of changing the law.

The Minister says Muckaty Station will serve a different purpose.

"The proposed radioactive waste management facility for the Northern Territory will be designed and established purely to take the low-level and intermediate-level waste that already exists and is derived from for example the nuclear research reactor," she said.

The Federal Science Minister Julie Bishop says she hasn't even received a formal application for Muckaty Station to be used as a nuclear waste dump.

The Minister says she understands there was unanimous agreement to support the Northern Land Council's proposal to create a waste dump at Muckaty Station.

Ms Bishop says she'll need to see the application before she can consider applying Commonwealth criteria for site selection.

"I've not yet seen it and I've not signed anything."

"Muckaty Station has only volunteered the land to be considered for a site, I've not yet accepted it as a nominated site."