Monday, 28 August, 2006

by Senator Trish Crossin
ALP

Senator Trish Crossin says the CLP Policy Committee's proposed research into uranium enrichment in the NT is laughable when a Federal Government committee is already set up to assess nuclear issues.

"The national committee is overwhelmingly pro nuclear but at least they have some relevant expertise unlike the CLP" Senator Crossin said.

"The CLP's inquiry proposal says nothing about looking at the storage of waste in the NT or the environmental impacts.

"Dave Tollner's grandstanding on enrichment is breath taking after his and Nigel Scullion's song and dance act about the Radioactive Waste Bill imposing the national dump on the Territory.

"After claiming to oppose the dump at the last federal election, they jumped into line with their federal masters and said well at least it will just have low and intermediate level waste but won't have the most dangerous high level waste.

"Now you don't need an inquiry to know the implication of having an enrichment industry in the Northern Territory is that there will be high level waste produced and that it will be stored in the Territory.

"Further Mr Tollner claims local enrichment is a nuclear non proliferation measure.

"However it is only an effective nuclear non proliferation measure if we become part of a nuclear fuel leasing plan where we take back the spent fuel which is high level radioactive waste.

"Mr Tollner is being completely naive when he compares the dangers from low level yellowcake going across Darwin wharfs to the danger from highly enriched uranium being trucked back and fourth through Darwin.

"Perhaps the CLP's inquiry could aim at educating him on some of the basic facts about radioactivity and its dangers.

"It's the type of information we hoped he learnt on his nuclear study trip to France and during the dump debate since then" Senator Crossin said.