SUTHERLAND Shire Council resolved on Monday night to urgently seek a meeting with Science and Research Minister Chris Evans, as well as Resources and Energy Minister Martin Ferguson, to press them to find an alternative site to Lucas Heights for the temporary storage of nuclear waste.

ANSTO chief executive Adi Paterson confirmed the waste was headed for Sutherland Shire last Tuesday, saying Australia had an obligation to deal with nuclear waste because it benefited from its by-products.

He said about 13.2 cubic metres of intermediate nuclear waste would be stored in a $30 million purpose-built facility at Lucas Heights from 2015 for a maximum of five years, while the national nuclear repository is built.

But as councillor after councillor pointed out at last Monday's meeting, the shire is being used to store radioactive waste from products which have been used across the entire nation.

Councillor Steve Simpson said all up both the major parties had together spent 50 years looking to establish a permanent storage site for nuclear materials but failed to do enough to actually establish one.

He called on the federal government to build a temporary facility in a sparsely populated area.

"Woomera comes to mind," Cr Simpson said. "If we can build a building in Lucas Heights then we can build one in Woomera."

Councillor Melanie Gibbons, who is also the Menai MP, said residents had not moved to Lucas Heights expecting it to become a dump.

"To make this into a halfway house for waste is not what the local residents signed on for," Cr Gibbons said.