Lucas Heights is a

suburb A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area. They are oftentimes where most of a metropolitan areas jobs are located with some being predominantly residential. They can either be denser or less densely populated ...

southern Sydney Southern Sydney, also commonly referred to as the Southern suburbs, is the southern metropolitan area of Greater Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Southern Sydney is a title for the regions and neighbourhoods which fall dire ...

, in the state of

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. It is near to the

Royal National Park The Royal National Park is a state park, protected national park that is located in the Sutherland Shire local government area in Southern Sydney and in the City of Wollongong local government area in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Au ...

Geography

It is located 31 kilometres south-west of the

Sydney central business district The Sydney central business district (CBD) is the historical and main Central business district, commercial centre of Sydney. The CBD is Sydney's city centre, or Sydney City, and the two terms are used interchangeably. Colloquially, the CBD or ...

, in the

local government area A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a federated state, state, province, division (politica ...

of the

Sutherland Shire Sutherland Shire is a local government area (LGA) in the southern region of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Sutherland Shire is located approximately south-southwest of the Sydney CBD, and comprises an area of . As at the ...

. Lucas Heights is located on the

Woronora River The Woronora River is a perennial river of the Sydney Basin, located in the Sutherland Shire local government area of Greater Metropolitan Sydney, approximately south of the Sydney central business district, in New South Wales, Australia. 'W ...

, which flows north into the

Georges River The Georges River, also known as Tucoerah River, is an intermediate tide-dominated Ria, drowned valley estuary, that is located in Sydney, Australia. The Georges River is located south and south-west from the Sydney central business district, w ...

. Unusually for a suburb, Lucas Heights does not contain a residential area. The residential area previously part of Lucas Heights was renamed Barden Ridge in 1996 to increase the real estate value of the area, as it would no longer be instantly associated with the High Flux Australian Reactor (HIFAR).

History

Lucas Heights was named after John Lucas Senior, a

flour miller A miller is a person who operates a mill, a machine to grind a grain (for example corn or wheat) to make flour. Milling is among the oldest of human occupations. "Miller", "Milne" and other variants are common surnames, as are their equivalents ...

who in 1823 was granted on the 'head of unnamed stream into Georges River'. He built a water-driven mill for grinding corn from the

Illawarra The Illawarra is a coastal Regions of New South Wales, region in the southeast of the Australian state of New South Wales. It is situated immediately south of Sydney and north of the South Coast, New South Wales, South Coast region. It encompas ...

farms. Small ships sailed up the coast into

Botany Bay Botany Bay (Dharawal language, Dharawal: ''Kamay'') is an open oceanic embayment, located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, south of the Sydney central business district. Its source is the confluence of the Georges River at Taren Point a ...

, Georges River and the Woronora River.

Commercial areas

Lucas Heights has become notable as the site of the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation’s (ANSTO) main research establishment, originally built by the

Australian Atomic Energy Commission The Australian Atomic Energy Commission (AAEC) was a statutory body of the Australian Government devoted to nuclear science, engineering and research. It was established in 1952, replacing the Atomic Energy Policy Committee. In 1981, parts of th ...

and home to the historic

HIFAR The High Flux Australian Reactor (HIFAR) was Australia's first nuclear research reactor. It was built at the Australian Atomic Energy Commission (AAEC) research establishment at , Sydney, New South Wales. The reactor was in operation between 195 ...

research reactor Research reactors are nuclear fission-based nuclear reactors that serve primarily as a neutron source. They are also called non-power reactors, in contrast to power reactors that are used for electricity production, heat generation, or maritim ...

. HIFAR was shut down in January 2007 and superseded by the

OPAL Opal is a hydrated amorphous form of silicon dioxide, silica (SiO2·''n''H2O); its water content may range from 3% to 21% by weight, but is usually between 6% and 10%. Due to the amorphous (chemical) physical structure, it is classified as a ...

research reactor. OPAL consists of leading

neutron radiation Neutron radiation is a form of ionizing radiation that presents as free neutrons. Typical phenomena are nuclear fission or nuclear fusion causing the release of free neutrons, which then react with nuclei of other atoms to form new nuclides— ...

facilities and attracts international scientists as its staff members and many hundreds of third-party users. In 2005, Australian police suggested the HIFAR reactor was a possible target for a foiled terrorist bomb attack. Spent fuel from the OPAL research reactor is transported to Port Kembla, then exported to France for reprocessing. The non-governmental Australian Institute of Nuclear Science and Engineering (AINSE) also has its headquarters at Lucas Heights. Lucas Heights also hosts a (non-nuclear)

waste management Waste management or waste disposal includes the processes and actions required to manage waste from its inception to its final disposal. This includes the collection, transport, treatment, and disposal of waste, together with monitor ...

facility, which was for many years a major disposal site for sanitary carters.

Climate

Due to its elevation, Lucas Heights is one of the few places in Sydney that has a borderline

Oceanic Oceanic may refer to: *Of or relating to the ocean *Of or relating to Oceania **Oceanic climate **Oceanic languages **Oceanic person or people, also called "Pacific Islander(s)" Places * Oceanic, British Columbia, a settlement on Smith Island, ...

(''Cfb'') and a

Humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...

(''Cfa'').

References

Suburbs of Sydney {{Sydney-geo-stub