February 17, 2004

Verdict is in: Now it’s time for Carr to stop the trucks

National environment group Friends of the Earth (FoE) has the findings of a new report tabled in the New South parliament today. The NSW Parliamentary Inquiry into the Transport and Storage of Nuclear waste has found that the Federal Governments proposal to transport radioactive waste across NSW cannot be justified and should be abandoned.

The Carr government set up the Inquiry in response to strong community concern and calls from across the state to investigate the Federal plan and heard evidence from federal agencies, state and local government representatives, emergency service union, environment and community groups.

The Inquiry also received many individual submissions on the plan which would see an initial 130 truckloads of nuclear waste transported 1700km across NSW to a site near Woomera in South Australia.

The Inquiry is highly critical of the federal government plan and called for the NSW government to take urgent action to oppose it by introducing state legislation to prohibit the transport and dumping of nuclear waste. The report also found that there had been inadequate community consultation, no clear need for the transport plan and that emergency services were ill prepared to respond in the case of an accident.

“This report is a strong vindication of the opposition we have heard from rural communities,” said FoE nuclear campaigner Loretta O’Brien. “The Federal Government must accept that communities are not prepared to live in “Nuke South Wales.”

FoE is calling on the NSW government to follow the lead of South Australia and Western Australia by implementing one of the reports key recommendations and passing legislation against the federal plan..

“This Inquiry has helped to lift the lid on the federal governments secret nuclear agenda and allowed a real examination of the plan,” said FoE national nuclear campaigner Dr Jim Green.

“Now that the verdict is in, Bob Carr should act to protect the NSW community with strong legislation to prevent the transport and dumping of nuclear waste – and the federal government should end this unnecessary and unsafe proposal.”

For enquiries and comment:

Jim Green
National Nuclear Campaigner
Mob: 0417 318 368

Loretta O’Brien
Nuclear FreeWays Campaigner
Mob: 0418 178 053