Nuclear power in Australia
The Royal Commission determined that there was no case for the introduction of nuclear power to the electricity grid in South Australia, but it did not consider its potential interstate.
All have been located at ANSTO (formerly AAEC) headquarter site at Lucas Heights, New South Wales, and all have been research reactors that were not used for power (electric or thermal) generation.
In 1952, South Australian Premier Tom Playford expressed with confidence that the first location for a nuclear power station in Australia would be on the shores of Spencer Gulf.
[11] A local opposition campaign began, and the South Coast Trades and Labour Council (covering workers in the region) announced that it would refuse to build the reactor.
[12] Some environmental studies and site works were completed, and two rounds of tenders were called and evaluated, but in 1971 the Australian government decided not to proceed with the project, citing economic reasons.
[17] While a nuclear power station in South Australia's Upper Spencer Gulf region was discussed intermittently from 2007, no formal proposal to construct a plant was ever made.
In 2007, The Australian newspaper revealed that a location near Port Augusta in the Upper Spencer Gulf region of South Australia was being considered for a future nuclear power station.
[18] In 2012 a first-of-a-kind study was undertaken in which a combination of solar and wind technology, proposed as a replacement for the ageing Northern coal power station, was comprehensively compared with a reference nuclear reactor.
Assuming equal public confidence and an established regulatory framework, the nuclear energy option compared favourably on cost, reliability, commercial availability, plant lifetime and greenhouse gas abatement, among other criteria.
[20] In April 2016, Australia committed to purchasing French-designed Barracuda-class attack submarines with customised diesel propulsion systems, despite the existing French fleet being wholly nuclear-powered.
In late 2006 and early 2007, the Prime Minister, John Howard, made widely reported statements in favour of nuclear power, on environmental grounds.
[43] During the Labor-led Rudd-Gillard government, the party's opposition to nuclear power was upheld, while conversely, Resources and Energy Minister Martin Ferguson demonstrated his support for the uranium mining sector.
At a South Australian mining and energy sector conference, he stated "I am optimistic that we will get (power) generation issues attended to and that it will be done in a timely fashion".
[44] In 2013, the Liberal Party, led by Tony Abbott, resumed power and reopened discussions about the future of nuclear energy generation in Australia.
[45] In November 2013, University of Adelaide Professor of Climatology Tom Wigley co-authored an open letter calling for an expansion of nuclear energy as a tool against climate change.
[55] The CEO of Origin Energy spoke in support of the prospect[56] and Business SA demanded the lifting of federal prohibitions so that debate on specific designs could proceed.
[58] In December 2014, Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott told the ABC that he was open to considering a proposal for a nuclear power project for Australia should one be made.
Kevin Scarce, former Governor of South Australia, retired Rear Admiral of the Royal Australian Navy and current Chancellor of the University of Adelaide, was appointed Commissioner.
His plan called for the construction of reactors on the sites of retiring coal-fired power stations, including at Tarong, Callide, Liddell, Mount Piper, Port Augusta, Loy Yang and Muja, with the first two plants coming online between 2035 and 2037.
Ramsay supports the establishment of a waste storage facility in South Australia, and has said: Having been to France, Sweden and Finland and looked at their low level repositories I'd be more than happy to have one on my farm.
Dr Helen Caldicott, a pediatrician from Melbourne emerged as a leading voice of the movement as she conducted public talks and informed politicians and trade unions of the health risks of exposure to ionizing radiation.
MPs clashed over the issue and protesters were marched from Sydney's convention centre before Prime Minister Julia Gillard's motion to remove a party ban on uranium sales to India was narrowly supported 206 votes to 185.
[161] In March 2012, hundreds of anti-nuclear demonstrators converged on the Australian headquarters of global mining giants BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto.
[154] As of 2015, nuclear power remains opposed by a number of not-for-profit and environmental organizations, political parties and their members, renewable energy advocates, and anti-nuclear campaigners.
There are several prominent Australians who have publicly expressed anti-nuclear views: A McNair Gallup poll on the construction of nuclear power stations in Australia was carried out in 1979.
[1] Respondents were asked the following question: The 1979 poll was conducted soon after the Three Mile Island Unit 2 (TMI-2) nuclear power plant accident located near Pennsylvania USA where a sequence of events lead to the partial meltdown of the TMI-2 reactor core.
A 2014 independent survey, commissioned by SACOME, of 1,214 South Australians revealed a distinct trend in the community towards supporting consideration of nuclear energy.
[178] The proportion of neutral respondents was at around 20-25% in all categories, with qualitative feedback largely indicating conditional support given the satisfactory addressing of concerns, or a requirement for further information.
A Morgan poll in September 2019 found support for Australian nuclear power had attained a narrow majority, with 51% in favour when reduction of carbon emissions was cited.
[179] A February 2024 poll published by the Sydney Morning Herald found that 36% supported Nuclear power in Australia, 27% were open to it, 23% were opposed and 15% were Undecided.
