07-21-2007, 12:25 AM
By David Mark
Foreign Minister Alexander Downer says nuclear cooperation talks with the US could lead to Australia joinng a new global nuclear group. (ABC TV)
The nuclear genie has escaped the bottle once again, with confirmation today that Australia is talking to the United States about nuclear cooperation.
Critics of the Federal Government argue Australia is being courted by the US about nuclear cooperation so that it will become the world's nuclear waste dump.
Foreign Minister Alexander Downer says talks with the US about nuclear cooperation could lead to Australia joining a new nuclear group known as the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP).
The partnership includes the US, Russia, Japan, China and France, and aims to keep information about nuclear technology and the disposal of waste within the nuclear club.
But the Labor Party and environmentalists say they do not trust assurances by the Federal Government that Australia will not accept nuclear waste.
Mr Downer claims that the US approached Australia.
"The United States Department of Energy came to us and suggested we might be interested in negotiating some sort of update agreement of the 1982 agreement on nuclear cooperation, particularly in areas like research and development, and safeguards," he said.
He says it is all about developing a safer nuclear industry.
"It's a real possibility that we could build a relationship with the Americans under the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP) but their work on that isn't even finished yet," he said.
"But in general terms, we are absolutely in favour of working with them on safeguards on research and development, looking for safer and better ways of developing the peaceful nuclear industry, the nuclear power industry. Why wouldn't we be?"
Bush's nuclear plan
Last year, US President George W Bush announced his plans to form the GNEP and this May, some of the world's other major nuclear powers signed on.
Under the plan, the entire nuclear cycle would be kept within this nuclear club, from control over nuclear fuel to reprocessing and disposal of waste.
Disposal of nuclear waste is exactly why the critics are sceptical about today's news that Australia is talking nuclear with the US.
Opposition spokesman for climate change and the environment Peter Garrett says he does not think the Government is particularly credible on the issue.
"The first thing to point out is that the Liberal Party Federal Council in June of this year unanimously called on Australia to embrace worldwide nuclear waste storage, including for remote areas that Australia has to offer," he said.
"Minister [Mark] Vaile has said we need to be open-minded about it, and with discussions under way between America and Australia that we knew nothing about, I think all roads lead to Rome."
Today the Government was on the defensive.
"We have a policy of not accepting nuclear waste and we're certainly not in the game of changing that policy, we've made that very clear to the Americans," Mr Downer said.
But Prime Minister John Howard clarified that the Government's policy was not to accept other people's waste.
Mr Downer also appeared to leave the door open to storing nuclear waste in the future.
"To the best of my knowledge at the moment, enrichment in any case is not commercially viable in Australia, so it's not likely to happen," he said.
But Mr Garrett has been quick to respond.
"That's Mr Downer seeking to lessen the political damage that inevitably would result as a consequence of these discussions becoming public," he said.
Guilty conscience
Mr Garrett's analysis is shared by green groups such as The Wilderness Society and University of Sydney adjunct professor Richard Broinowski, a former Australian diplomat and the author of a book about Australia's nuclear ambitions.
"[Mr] Downer's got a guilty conscience, he knows that by joining GNEP we're actually abrogating our responsibilities and our sense of balance with the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty, because under that treaty everyone is entitled to develop every aspect of the civilian nuclear fuel chain, so long as they don't get weapons," he said.
"On the other hand, GNEP is a 'boys only' club, it's a club of the nuclear powers.
"What [Mr] Howard is doing is really saying is, 'well, we want to be in that too because Australia's always wanted to have a seat at the nuclear table, with the United States'."
He says Australia is being asked by the US to be involved, specifically because it needs a place to dump its waste.
"Yaka Mountain in the United States is dead in the water, it's not going anywhere," he said.
"There are thousands upon thousands of tonnes of spent nuclear fuel, over 100 nuclear power reactors in the United States and they don't know what the heck to do with it."
http://abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/07/20/1983906.htm
Foreign Minister Alexander Downer says nuclear cooperation talks with the US could lead to Australia joinng a new global nuclear group. (ABC TV)
The nuclear genie has escaped the bottle once again, with confirmation today that Australia is talking to the United States about nuclear cooperation.
Critics of the Federal Government argue Australia is being courted by the US about nuclear cooperation so that it will become the world's nuclear waste dump.
Foreign Minister Alexander Downer says talks with the US about nuclear cooperation could lead to Australia joining a new nuclear group known as the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP).
The partnership includes the US, Russia, Japan, China and France, and aims to keep information about nuclear technology and the disposal of waste within the nuclear club.
But the Labor Party and environmentalists say they do not trust assurances by the Federal Government that Australia will not accept nuclear waste.
Mr Downer claims that the US approached Australia.
"The United States Department of Energy came to us and suggested we might be interested in negotiating some sort of update agreement of the 1982 agreement on nuclear cooperation, particularly in areas like research and development, and safeguards," he said.
He says it is all about developing a safer nuclear industry.
"It's a real possibility that we could build a relationship with the Americans under the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP) but their work on that isn't even finished yet," he said.
"But in general terms, we are absolutely in favour of working with them on safeguards on research and development, looking for safer and better ways of developing the peaceful nuclear industry, the nuclear power industry. Why wouldn't we be?"
Bush's nuclear plan
Last year, US President George W Bush announced his plans to form the GNEP and this May, some of the world's other major nuclear powers signed on.
Under the plan, the entire nuclear cycle would be kept within this nuclear club, from control over nuclear fuel to reprocessing and disposal of waste.
Disposal of nuclear waste is exactly why the critics are sceptical about today's news that Australia is talking nuclear with the US.
Opposition spokesman for climate change and the environment Peter Garrett says he does not think the Government is particularly credible on the issue.
"The first thing to point out is that the Liberal Party Federal Council in June of this year unanimously called on Australia to embrace worldwide nuclear waste storage, including for remote areas that Australia has to offer," he said.
"Minister [Mark] Vaile has said we need to be open-minded about it, and with discussions under way between America and Australia that we knew nothing about, I think all roads lead to Rome."
Today the Government was on the defensive.
"We have a policy of not accepting nuclear waste and we're certainly not in the game of changing that policy, we've made that very clear to the Americans," Mr Downer said.
But Prime Minister John Howard clarified that the Government's policy was not to accept other people's waste.
Mr Downer also appeared to leave the door open to storing nuclear waste in the future.
"To the best of my knowledge at the moment, enrichment in any case is not commercially viable in Australia, so it's not likely to happen," he said.
But Mr Garrett has been quick to respond.
"That's Mr Downer seeking to lessen the political damage that inevitably would result as a consequence of these discussions becoming public," he said.
Guilty conscience
Mr Garrett's analysis is shared by green groups such as The Wilderness Society and University of Sydney adjunct professor Richard Broinowski, a former Australian diplomat and the author of a book about Australia's nuclear ambitions.
"[Mr] Downer's got a guilty conscience, he knows that by joining GNEP we're actually abrogating our responsibilities and our sense of balance with the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty, because under that treaty everyone is entitled to develop every aspect of the civilian nuclear fuel chain, so long as they don't get weapons," he said.
"On the other hand, GNEP is a 'boys only' club, it's a club of the nuclear powers.
"What [Mr] Howard is doing is really saying is, 'well, we want to be in that too because Australia's always wanted to have a seat at the nuclear table, with the United States'."
He says Australia is being asked by the US to be involved, specifically because it needs a place to dump its waste.
"Yaka Mountain in the United States is dead in the water, it's not going anywhere," he said.
"There are thousands upon thousands of tonnes of spent nuclear fuel, over 100 nuclear power reactors in the United States and they don't know what the heck to do with it."
http://abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/07/20/1983906.htm