Maralinga concern

That story is 6 years old ::shock:: Problem should have decayed by now!

agsmky

This is all very well, but have you considered, what the alternatives could have been, if we hadn't of been aggressive in weapons research?

Have you considered who may have taken Australia by force, and what they would have done?

It is done.

It is history.

People have been misplaced, people have got sick.

People died fighting the enemy in World War 2, who came to our shores.

I was bred in Woomera, during it's hey days, I know about weapons research.

Wolfie

From the Current permit application.

"Access is not permitted from Emu Junction to Maralinga"

So anyone contemplating this route would obviously be doing so without a permit as access IS not permitted.

Jim
I read once that they now date wine by the date of the test at emu and Maralinga because of the fallout freaky ha.
It always a shame that no one seem to take responsibility of these problems the only justification in my mine for doing that they did is that they were scared of there enemy
No smart mine would build a bigger bomb to end life as we know it would they?

like what did Australia get out of it?

Richard

cool

I took the request to be less specific in it's nature than what you appear to.

For one thing, it is possible to get permits. I had this confirmed for me today.

It may not be desirable, and in fact, they may not be granted - depends on where you plan to go, how you plan to do it, what safety (not radiation safety - personal safety) plans, etc.

Contrary to your statement, the Maralinga Tjarutja traditional owners are well informed - they live within the Maralinga Lands at Oak Valley, and the do "go" to the sites from time to time.

The clay pan at Emu, like the other test sites at Maralinga have been cleaned up. Does that mean you would be allowed to camp on them - most likely not - there are still some restrictions. Does that mean that you would be putting your life in danger going there? Probably only as much as crossing the road or some other deadly activity like that.

The Maralinga Tjarutja lands are a substantial area much larger than the testing area, as surely you know if you lived in Ceduna. I was just looking at the details on the NATMAPs today. The plutonium was only ever to be found at the testing sites.

The ABC story is considerably out of date, (there was a lot of clean up in the '90s through to 2003/4) and as much as I am not one to believe everything governments say, this is what was said in 2003 ...

"The Maralinga Rehabilitation Technical Advisory Committee (MARTAC) report confirms that clean-up of the former British nuclear test site at Maralinga has been a success and the process has been of a world-class standard," Mr McGauran said.

The $108 million Maralinga Rehabilitation Project, the largest clean-up of its type ever undertaken in the world, began in 1995 and was completed at the major test sites in 2000.

It consisted of two major parts - the removal of surface soil from the more contaminated areas and the treatment of contaminated debris pits.

"The report Rehabilitation of Former Nuclear Test Sites at Emu and Maralinga (Australia) fully addresses all aspects of the project," Mr McGauran said.

"It describes the contamination, the agreement of the Commonwealth, South Australia and the traditional owners Maralinga Tjarutja to the clean-up option, the outcomes of the rehabilitation and future land and environment management issues.

"Not only did the project meet required standards, it achieved an excellent safety record and was completed at the major test sites on time and within budget.

"Recently, there has been some criticism of the decision to abandon the use of the in situ vitrification (ISV) process to treat contaminated debris pits.

"The Report concludes that the results of the ISV were unsatisfactory, and after a dangerous explosion in March 1999, could not responsibly be continued with."

The Commonwealth’s independent regulator, ARPANSA, has confirmed that the clean-up met the standards agreed to in 1991 by the Commonwealth and South Australian governments and Maralinga Tjarutja, the traditional owners, prior to the clean-up and was consistent with international guidelines.

ARPANSA has found that possible radiation doses are well below those anticipated at the start of the project and a restricted land-use boundary is purely a precautionary measure.

Stakeholders are now working with the Commonwealth to see that the land is returned to South Australia and given back to the Maralinga Tjarutja traditional owners as soon as possible.

Mr McGauran thanked the Maralinga Rehabilitation Technical Advisory Committee (MARTAC) which prepared the report on the clean-up

Additional information on the MARTAC report is attached. The report can be viewed online at 4pm at Site Link

... there you go - make of it what you will, but scare mongering is unnecessary. Let's be informed a little.

Ciao for now
Andrew