By Ben Pearson
SYDNEY — A bill now before the federal parliament would place control of the Lucas Heights nuclear facility in the hands of the federal government, and possibly make the site a national dumping ground for radioactive waste.
Lucas Heights, in Sydney's south, has always been a source of concern to local residents. With two reactors and 90% of all Australia's nuclear waste on site, it is said to be an environmental disaster waiting to happen.
The Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO), which controls Lucas Heights and the entire Australian nuclear industry, has been moving to make Lucas Heights a dump site for some years. In 1990, it took possession of 2000 cubic metres of nuclear waste from the CSIRO's Fishermans Bend site in Victoria, and made plans to take on waste from the Australian Defence Industries site in St Marys, NSW.
These plans were stopped when the Sutherland council won a court case in February. The NSW Land and Environment Court ruled that under state environmental protection laws, ANSTO had to remove the Fishermans Bend waste and was not allowed to take on the waste from St Marys.
The federal government reacted swiftly. An amendment to the original ANSTO act was drafted which, among other things, would give ANSTO immunity from certain classes of state and territory laws. The effect of the legislation is to deny local government and residents a say over the environment in which they live.
The Sutherland Shire Environment Centre fears the amendment will allow Lucas Heights to become a national repository for radioactive waste. The federal government has assured residents this will not happen. But there is no guarantee that future governments will not make use of the legislation.