Anti-nuclear movement in Australia
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Nuclear weapons testing Nuclear weapons tests are experiments carried out to determine nuclear weapons' effectiveness, yield, and explosive capability. Testing nuclear weapons offers practical information about how the weapons function, how detonations are affected by ...
,
uranium mining Uranium mining is the process of extraction of uranium ore from the ground. Over 50 thousand tons of uranium were produced in 2019. Kazakhstan, Canada, and Australia were the top three uranium producers, respectively, and together account f ...
and export, and
nuclear power Nuclear power is the use of nuclear reactions to produce electricity. Nuclear power can be obtained from nuclear fission, nuclear decay and nuclear fusion reactions. Presently, the vast majority of electricity from nuclear power is produced ...
have often been the subject of public debate in Australia, and the anti-nuclear movement in Australia has a long history. Its origins date back to the 1972–1973 debate over
French nuclear testing ''Gerboise Bleue'' (; ) was the codename of the first French nuclear test. It was conducted by the Nuclear Experiments Operational Group (GOEN), a unit of the Joint Special Weapons Command on 13 February 1960, at the Saharan Military Experimen ...
in the Pacific and the 1976–1977 debate about
uranium mining in Australia Radioactive ores were first extracted in South Australia at Radium Hill in 1906 and Mount Painter in 1911. 2,000 tons of ore were treated to recover radium for medical use. Several hundred kilograms of uranium were also produced for use in ce ...
.Koutsoukis, Jason (25 November 2007)
Rudd romps to historic win
''The Age''. Retrieved 15 December 2010.
Several groups specifically concerned with nuclear issues were established in the mid-1970s, including the Movement Against Uranium Mining and Campaign Against Nuclear Energy (CANE), cooperating with other environmental groups such as Friends of the Earth and the
Australian Conservation Foundation The Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) is Australia's national environmental organisation, launched in 1965 in response to a proposal by the World Wide Fund for Nature for a more co-ordinated approach to sustainability. One high-profil ...
.McLeod, Roy (1995). "Resistance to Nuclear Technology: Optimists, Opportunists and Opposition in Australian Nuclear History" in Martin Bauer (ed) ''Resistance to New Technology'', Cambridge University Press, pp. 171–173. The movement suffered a setback in 1983 when the newly elected Labor Government failed to implement its stated policy of stopping uranium mining. But by the late 1980s, the price of uranium had fallen, the costs of
nuclear power Nuclear power is the use of nuclear reactions to produce electricity. Nuclear power can be obtained from nuclear fission, nuclear decay and nuclear fusion reactions. Presently, the vast majority of electricity from nuclear power is produced ...
had risen, and the anti-nuclear movement seemed to have won its case; CANE was disbanded in 1988.McLeod, Roy (1995). "Resistance to Nuclear Technology: Optimists, Opportunists and Opposition in Australian Nuclear History" in Martin Bauer (ed) ''Resistance to New Technology'', Cambridge University Press, pp. 175–177. About 2003, proponents of nuclear power advocated it as a solution to
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and the Australian government began taking an interest.
Anti-nuclear The anti-nuclear movement is a social movement that opposes various nuclear technologies. Some direct action groups, environmental movements, and professional organisations have identified themselves with the movement at the local, nationa ...
campaigners and some scientists in Australia argued that nuclear power could not significantly substitute for other power sources, and that
uranium mining Uranium mining is the process of extraction of uranium ore from the ground. Over 50 thousand tons of uranium were produced in 2019. Kazakhstan, Canada, and Australia were the top three uranium producers, respectively, and together account f ...
itself could become a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions. As of 2015, Australia has no nuclear power stations and five uranium mines, four of which are located in South Australia. Olympic Dam (Roxby Downs) is a large underground mine,
Beverley Beverley is a market and minster town and a civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England, of which it is the county town. The town centre is located south-east of York's centre and north-west of City of Hull. The town is known fo ...
, Four Mile and Honeymoon are
in-situ leach In-situ leaching (ISL), also called in-situ recovery (ISR) or solution mining, is a mining process used to recover minerals such as copper and uranium through boreholes drilled into a deposit, ''in situ''. In situ leach works by artificially disso ...
mines and
Ranger A Ranger is typically someone in a military/paramilitary or law enforcement role specializing in patrolling a given territory, called “ranging”. The term most often refers to: * Park ranger or forest ranger, a person charged with protecting and ...
in an
open pit Open-pit mining, also known as open-cast or open-cut mining and in larger contexts mega-mining, is a surface mining technique of extracting rock or minerals from the earth from an open-air pit, sometimes known as a borrow. This form of minin ...
mine in the Northern Territory.Work begins on Honeymoon uranium mine
(24 April 2009), ''ABC News''. Retrieved 15 December 2010.
As of 2021 only two mines are operating (Olympic Dam and Four Mile) following the closure of Beverley and Ranger and the placement of Honeymoon into care-and-maintenance. Uranium mined in Australia is mainly for export. Australia has no nuclear weapons or nuclear-powered vessels.


History


1950s and 1960s

In 1952 the Australian Government established the Rum Jungle Uranium Mine 85 kilometres south of Darwin. Local aboriginal communities were not consulted to the extent of a formal treaty or agreement about mining and the mine site became an emblem for environmental disaster, with a small area of disturbance easily repaired and remedied. Also in 1952, the Liberal Government passed legislation, the ''Defence (Special Undertakings) Act 1952'', which allowed the British Government access to remote parts of Australia to undertake atmospheric nuclear weapons tests. The general public were largely unaware of the risks from the testing program, stemming from official secrecy about the testing program and the remote locations of the test sites.Australian Government
A toxic legacy: British nuclear weapons testing in Australia
But as the "Ban the Bomb" movement gathered momentum in Western societies throughout the 1950s, so too did opposition to the British tests in Australia. An opinion poll taken in 1957 showed 49 per cent of the Australian public were opposed to the tests and only 39 per cent in favour. In 1963, Australia was one of the first signatories to a
Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty The Partial Test Ban Treaty (PTBT) is the abbreviated name of the 1963 Treaty Banning Nuclear Weapon Tests in the Atmosphere, in Outer Space and Under Water, which prohibited all test detonations of nuclear weapons except for those conducted ...
. In 1964, very small Peace Marches which featured "Ban the bomb" placards, were held in several Australian capital cities. In 1969, a 500 MW nuclear power plant was proposed for the Jervis Bay Territory, 200 km south of Sydney. 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. 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.


1970s

The Ranger uranium deposits were first discovered by a joint venture between
Peko-Wallsend Peko-Wallsend was an Australian mining company. History Peko-Wallsend was founded in 1961 when Peko Mines merged with Wallsend Investments. In 1962 Peko-Wallsend purchased Toll Transport. In January 1968, Peko-Wallsend acquired a majority share ...
and Electrolytic Zinc Corporation, by airborne survey radiometric signals in October 1969. Remoteness and difficult terrain set the pace of ground investigation, but by about 1972 there was confidence that the Northern Territory of Australia hosted the largest and richest uranium deposits then known to the world. It was apt that opposition to their mining did not prevail because with each subsequent year it became more apparent that nuclear generation of electricity, that depended on uranium feed, was the superior method for essentially every country. The 1972–73 debate over
French nuclear testing ''Gerboise Bleue'' (; ) was the codename of the first French nuclear test. It was conducted by the Nuclear Experiments Operational Group (GOEN), a unit of the Joint Special Weapons Command on 13 February 1960, at the Saharan Military Experimen ...
in the Pacific mobilised several groups, including some trade unions. In 1972 the
International Court of Justice The International Court of Justice (ICJ; french: Cour internationale de justice, links=no; ), sometimes known as the World Court, is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN). It settles disputes between states in accordanc ...
in a case launched by Australia and New Zealand, and advocated by Dr
Helen Caldicott Helen Mary Caldicott (born 7 August 1938) is an Australian physician, author, and anti-nuclear advocate. She founded several associations dedicated to opposing the use of nuclear power, depleted uranium munitions, nuclear weapons, nuclear we ...
, ordered that the French cease atmospheric nuclear testing at Mururoa atoll. In 1973 Australia's concerns saw it as a champion and an early adopter of the
Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, commonly known as the Non-Proliferation Treaty or NPT, is an international treaty whose objective is to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and weapons technology, to promote cooperation ...
, and around this time, the Government ratified the Seabed Arms Control Treaty. Shortly after this, the Government negotiated with the International Atomic Energy Agency to put in safeguards to ensure Australia could mine and export nuclear material but not breach the intent of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. In 1974 and 1975 concern came to focus on uranium mining in Australia and several Friends of the Earth groups were formed. The
Australian Conservation Foundation The Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) is Australia's national environmental organisation, launched in 1965 in response to a proposal by the World Wide Fund for Nature for a more co-ordinated approach to sustainability. One high-profil ...
also began voicing concern about uranium mining and supporting the activities of the grass-roots organisations. Concern about the environmental effects of uranium mining was a significant factor and poor management of waste at an early uranium mine, Rum Jungle, led it to become a significant pollution problem in the 1970s. The Australian anti-nuclear movement also acquired initial impetus from notable individuals who publicly voiced nuclear concerns, such as nuclear scientists Richard Temple and Rob Robotham, and poets Dorothy Green and
Judith Wright Judith Arundell Wright (31 May 191525 June 2000) was an Australian poet, environmentalist and campaigner for Aboriginal land rights. She was a recipient of the Christopher Brennan Award. Biography Judith Wright was born in Armidale, New So ...
.Martin, Brian (Summer 1982)
The Australian anti-uranium movement
''Alternatives: Perspectives on Society and Environment'', Volume 10, Number 4, pp. 26–35. Retrieved 15 December 2010.
However, the main public audience was informed by well qualified senior scientists such as Sir Ernest Titterton and Sir Philip Baxter as detailed in the Book "The Nuclear Knights" by Brian Martin (1970). In 1975,
Moss Cass Moses Henry Cass (18 February 1927 – 26 February 2022) was an Australian doctor and politician who held ministerial office in the Whitlam Government. He served as Minister for Environment and Conservation (1972–1975), the Environment (19 ...
, Minister for the Environment and Conservation, led parliamentarians and ALP branch members in expressing concerns about the effects of
uranium mining Uranium mining is the process of extraction of uranium ore from the ground. Over 50 thousand tons of uranium were produced in 2019. Kazakhstan, Canada, and Australia were the top three uranium producers, respectively, and together account f ...
. A key concern was the adverse effect that uranium mining would have on the northern Aboriginal people. Cass said: "nuclear energy creates the most dangerous, insidious and persistent waste products, ever experienced on the planet". The years 1976 and 1977 saw uranium mining become a major political issue, with the Ranger Inquiry (Fox) report opening up a public debate about uranium mining.Bauer, Martin (ed) (1995). ''Resistance to New Technology'', Cambridge University Press, p. 173. Several groups specifically concerned with nuclear issues were established, including the Movement Against Uranium Mining (founded in 1976) and Campaign Against Nuclear Energy (formed in South Australia in 1976), cooperating with other environmental groups such as Friends of the Earth (which came to Australia in 1975) and the Australian Conservation Foundation (formed in 1975).Hutton, Drew and Connors, Libby (1999). ''A History of the Australian Environmental Movement'', Cambridge University Press. In November and December 1976, 7,000 people marched through the streets of Australian cities, protesting against uranium mining. The Uranium Moratorium group was formed and it called for a five-year moratorium on uranium mining. In April 1977 the first national demonstration co-ordinated by the Uranium Moratorium brought around 15,000 demonstrators into the streets of Melbourne, 5,000 in Sydney, and smaller numbers elsewhere.Falk, Jim (1982). ''Global Fission:The Battle Over Nuclear Power'', pp. 264–5. A National signature campaign attracted over 250,000 signatures calling for a five-year moratorium. In August, another demonstration brought 50,000 people out nationally and the opposition to uranium mining looked like a potential political force. In 1977, the National Conference of the
Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also simply known as Labor, is the major centre-left political party in Australia, one of two major parties in Australian politics, along with the centre-right Liberal Party of Australia. The party forms t ...
(ALP) passed a motion in favour of an indefinite moratorium on uranium mining, and the anti-nuclear movement acted to support the Labor Party and help it regain office. However, a setback for the movement occurred in 1982 when another ALP conference overturned its anti-uranium policy in favour of a "one mine policy". After the ALP won power in 1983, its 1984 National Conference voted in favour of a " Three mine policy". This referred to the then three existing uranium mines in Australia, Nabarlek,
Ranger A Ranger is typically someone in a military/paramilitary or law enforcement role specializing in patrolling a given territory, called “ranging”. The term most often refers to: * Park ranger or forest ranger, a person charged with protecting and ...
and Roxby Downs/Olympic Dam, and articulated ALP support for pre-existing mines and contracts, but opposition to any new mining. In 1977–78, the West Australian Government, under the leadership of
Charles Court Sir Charles Walter Michael Court, (29 September 1911 – 22 December 2007) was a Western Australian politician, and the 21st Premier of Western Australia from 1974 to 1982. He was a member of the Liberal Party. Early life Court's family e ...
, announced plans for a nuclear power reactor near Perth. 1977 was seen as the year of mass mobilization in WA, with 300 at the first anti-nuclear demonstration to 9,000 at the third protest in the inner city of Perth. Despite public protest, the WA Government selected a first site for a nuclear reactor in 1979 at Wilbinga, 70 kilometres north of Perth. Court predicted that at least another 20 nuclear power plants would be needed by the end of the century to meet rapidly growing power demand, but all of this never eventuated. From the late 1970s, a number of agreements were signed enabling the potential peaceful export (and import) of nuclear material: * In July 1978 with
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* August 1978 with the
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* August 1978 with the
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* May 1979 with
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* July 1979, with the
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* October 1980, with
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for ultimate use by Japan * March 1981, with
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
These International agreements created a market for Australia to mine and export uranium.


1980s and 1990s

Between 1979 and 1984, the majority of what is now
Kakadu National Park Kakadu National Park is a protected area in the Northern Territory of Australia, southeast of Darwin. It is a World Heritage Site. Kakadu is also gazetted as a locality, covering the same area as the national park, with 313 people recorded liv ...
was created, surrounding but not including the Ranger uranium mine. Tension between mining and conservation values led to long running controversy around mining in the Park region. The two themes for the 1980 Hiroshima Day march and rally in Sydney, sponsored by the Movement Against Uranium Mining (MAUM), were: "Keep uranium in the ground" and "No to nuclear war." Later that year, the Sydney city council officially proclaimed Sydney nuclear-free, in an action similar to that taken by many other local councils throughout Australia. In the 1980s, academic critics (such as
Jim Falk Jim Falk (born ) is a physicist and academic researcher on science and technology studies. Background Falk was born in Oxford, England. His father was the philosopher Werner D. Falk (latterly professor at the University of North Carolina), and h ...
) discussed the "deadly connection" between uranium mining, nuclear reactors and nuclear weapons, linking Australia's nuclear policy to nuclear proliferation and the "plutonium economy". In the 1980s, Australia experienced a significant growth of nuclear disarmament activism:
On Palm Sunday 1982, an estimated 100,000 Australians participated in anti-nuclear rallies in the nation's biggest cities. Growing year by year, the rallies drew 350,000 participants in 1985. The movement focused on halting Australia's uranium mining and exports, abolishing nuclear weapons, removing foreign military bases from Australia's soil, and creating a nuclear-free Pacific. Public opinion surveys found that about half of Australians opposed uranium mining and export, as well as the visits of U.S. nuclear warships, that 72 percent thought the use of nuclear weapons could never be justified, and that 80 percent favoured building a nuclear-free world.Wittner, Lawrence S. (22 June 2009)
Nuclear Disarmament Activism in Asia and the Pacific, 1971–1996
''The Asia-Pacific Journal'', Vol. 25-5-09.
The
Nuclear Disarmament Party The Nuclear Disarmament Party (NDP) was an Australian political party formed in June 1984. It was founded by medical researcher Michael Denborough as the political arm of the Australian anti-nuclear movement, which had been active since the ear ...
won a Senate seat in 1984, but soon faded from the political scene. The years of the Hawke-Keating ALP governments (1983–1996) were characterised by an "uneasy standoff in the uranium debate". The ALP acknowledged community feeling against uranium mining but was reluctant to move against the industry.Martin, Brian (Second Quarter 2007)
Opposing nuclear power: past and present
''Social Alternatives'', Vol. 26, No. 2, pp. 43–47. Retrieved 15 December 2010.
The 1986 Palm Sunday anti-nuclear rallies drew 250,000 people. In Melbourne, the seamen's union boycotted the arrival of foreign nuclear warships. Australia's only nuclear energy education facility, the former School of Nuclear Engineering at the
University of New South Wales The University of New South Wales (UNSW), also known as UNSW Sydney, is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is one of the founding members of Group of Eight, a coalition of Australian research-intensiv ...
, closed in 1986.Agelidis, Vassilios (7 December 2010)
Too late for nuclear
''ABC News''.
By the late 1980s, the price of uranium had fallen, and the costs of nuclear power had risen, and the anti-nuclear movement seemed to have won its case. The Campaign Against Nuclear Energy disbanded itself in 1988, two years after the Chernobyl Disaster. The government policy preventing new uranium mines continued into the 1990s, despite occasional reviews and debate. Following protest marches in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane during 1998, a proposed mine at Jabiluka was blocked. Also in 1998, there was a proposal from an international consortium, Pangea Resources, to establish a
nuclear waste Radioactive waste is a type of hazardous waste that contains radioactive material. Radioactive waste is a result of many activities, including nuclear medicine, nuclear research, nuclear power generation, rare-earth mining, and nuclear weapons ...
dump in Western Australia. The plan, to store 20 per cent of the world's spent nuclear fuel and weapons material, was "publicly condemned and abandoned". Four Corners. (2005)
Chronology – Australia's Nuclear Political History
Retrieved 15 December 2010.


2000s

In 2000, the
Ranger Uranium Mine The Ranger Uranium Mine was a uranium mine in the Northern Territory of Australia. The site is surrounded by, but separate from Kakadu National Park, 230 km east of Darwin. The orebody was discovered in late 1969, and the mine commenced ...
in the
Northern Territory The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory shares its borders with Western Aust ...
and the Roxby Downs/Olympic Dam mine in
South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
continued to operate, but
Nabarlek Uranium Mine The Nabarlek Mine is a uranium mine in the Northern Territory of Australia which was productively worked only in 1979. The deposit sits within the Alligator Rivers Uranium Field approximately northeast of Jabiru. It was discovered by Queensla ...
had closed. A third uranium mine,
Beverley Uranium Mine The Beverley Mine is Australia's third uranium mine and Australia's first operating in-situ recovery mine. It is located in South Australia in the gazetted locality of Wooltana about 35 km from Lake Frome at the northern end of the Flinder ...
in SA, was also operating. Several advanced projects, such as Honeymoon in SA, Jabiluka in the Northern Territory and Yeelirrie in WA were on hold because of political and indigenous opposition.Anti-uranium demos in Australia
(5 April 1998), ''BBC News''. Retrieved 15 December 2010.
In May 2000 there was an anti-nuclear demonstration at the
Beverley Uranium Mine The Beverley Mine is Australia's third uranium mine and Australia's first operating in-situ recovery mine. It is located in South Australia in the gazetted locality of Wooltana about 35 km from Lake Frome at the northern end of the Flinder ...
, which involved about 100 protesters. Ten of the protesters were mistreated by police and were later awarded more than $700,000 in damages from the South Australian government. Following the
McClelland Royal Commission The McClelland Royal Commission or Royal Commission into British nuclear tests in Australia was an inquiry by the Australian government in 1984–1985 to investigate the conduct of the British in its use, with the then Australian government's p ...
, a large clean-up was completed in outback South Australia in 2000, after nuclear testing at Maralinga during the 1950s contaminated the region. The cleanup lasted three years, and cost over A$100 million, but there was controversy over the methods used and success of the operation. On 17 December 2001, 46 Greenpeace activists occupied the Lucas Heights facility to protest the construction of a second research reactor. Protestors gained access to the grounds, the HIFAR reactor, the high-level radioactive waste store and the radio tower. Their protest highlighted the security and environmental risks of the production of nuclear materials and the shipment of radioactive waste from the facility. As uranium prices began rising from about 2003, proponents of nuclear power advocated it as a solution to
global warming In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...
and the Australian government began taking an interest. However, in June 2005, the Senate passed a motion opposing nuclear power for Australia. Then, in November 2006, the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Industry and Resources released a pro-nuclear report into Australia's uranium. In late 2006 and early 2007, then Prime Minister
John Howard John Winston Howard (born 26 July 1939) is an Australian former politician who served as the 25th prime minister of Australia from 1996 to 2007, holding office as leader of the Liberal Party. His eleven-year tenure as prime minister is the ...
made widely reported statements in favour of nuclear power, on environmental grounds. Faced with these proposals to examine nuclear power as a possible response to climate change, anti-nuclear campaigners and scientists in Australia emphasised claims that nuclear power could not significantly substitute for other power sources, and that uranium mining itself could become a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions.Diesendorf, Mark (2007)
Paths to a Low-Carbon Future: Reducing Australia’s Greenhouse Gas Emissions by 30 per cent by 2020 (PDF)
Green, Jim (2005)
Nuclear Power: No Solution to Climate Change (PDF)
Anti-nuclear campaigns were given added impetus by public concern about the sites for possible reactors: fears exploited by anti-nuclear power political parties in the lead-up to a national election in 2007. The Rudd Labor government elected in 2007 opposed nuclear power for Australia.Lewis, Steve and Kerr, Joseph (30 December 2006)
Support for nuclear power falls
''The Australian''.
The anti-nuclear movement continues to be active in Australia, opposing expansion of existing uranium mines, lobbying against the development of
nuclear power in Australia The prospect of nuclear power in Australia has been a topic of public debate since the 1950s. Australia has one nuclear plant in Lucas Heights, Sydney, but is not used to produce nuclear power, but instead is used to produce medical radioisoto ...
, and criticising proposals for nuclear waste disposal sites, the main candidate being
Muckaty station Muckaty Station, also known as Warlmanpa, is a Aboriginal freehold landholding in Australia's Northern Territory, north of Tennant Creek, and approximately south of Darwin. Originally under traditional Indigenous Australian ownership, the a ...
in the Northern Territory. By April 2009, construction had begun on South Australia's third uranium mine— the
Honeymoon Uranium Mine The Honeymoon Mine was Australia's second operating in-situ recovery uranium mine, beginning production in 2011. It is located in South Australia and is northwest of Broken Hill, New South Wales. Honeymoon is a sandstone-hosted paleochannel de ...
. In October 2009, the Australian government was continuing to plan for a nuclear waste dump in the Northern Territory. However, there was opposition from indigenous people, the NT government, and wider NT community. In November 2009, about 100 anti-nuclear protesters assembled outside the Alice Springs parliamentary sittings, urging the Northern Territory Government not to approve a nearby uranium mine site.


2010s

As of 2016, Australia has no nuclear power stations and the former Gillard Labor government was opposed to nuclear power for Australia. Australia has three operating uranium mines at Olympic Dam (Roxby) and
Beverley Beverley is a market and minster town and a civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England, of which it is the county town. The town centre is located south-east of York's centre and north-west of City of Hull. The town is known fo ...
– both in
South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
's north – and at
Ranger A Ranger is typically someone in a military/paramilitary or law enforcement role specializing in patrolling a given territory, called “ranging”. The term most often refers to: * Park ranger or forest ranger, a person charged with protecting and ...
in the Northern Territory. Australia has no nuclear weapons. Australia operates a
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 marit ...
which produces medical radioisotopes at
OPAL Opal is a hydrated amorphous form of silica (SiO2·''n''H2O); its water content may range from 3 to 21% by weight, but is usually between 6 and 10%. Due to its amorphous property, it is classified as a mineraloid, unlike crystalline form ...
. As of early April 2010, more than 200 environmentalists and indigenous people gathered in
Tennant Creek Tennant Creek ( wrm, Jurnkkurakurr) is town located in the Northern Territory of Australia. It is the seventh largest town in the Northern Territory, and is located on the Stuart Highway, just south of the intersection with the western termin ...
to oppose a radioactive waste dump being built on Muckaty Station in the Northern Territory. Western Australia has a significant share of the Australia's uranium reserves, but between 2002 and 2008, a statewide ban on uranium mining was in force. The ban was lifted when the Liberal Party was voted into power in the state and, as of 2010, many companies are exploring for uranium in Western Australia. One of the industry's major players, the mining company
BHP BHP Group Limited (formerly known as BHP Billiton) is an Australian multinational mining, metals, natural gas petroleum public company that is headquartered in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The Broken Hill Proprietary Company was founded ...
, planned to develop the Yeelirrie uranium project in a 17 billion dollar project. Two other projects in Western Australia are further advanced then BHP's Yeelirrie, these being the
Lake Way uranium project Lake Way is a dry saline lake located in the Mid West region of Western Australia, approximately south of Wiluna. It also gives its name to a nearby cattle station, the Lake Way Station. Description The lake, dry except during exceptional ...
, which is pursued by Toro Energy, and the
Lake Maitland uranium project Lake Maitland is a dry lake, dry salt lake located approximately south east of Wiluna, Western Australia, Wiluna, in the Mid West (Western Australia), Mid West region of Western Australia. Mining project The Lake Maitland mine, Lake Maitland ...
, pursued by Mega Uranium.Toro gets approval for uranium project
'' Sydney Morning Herald'', published: 7 January 2010, accessed: 13 February 2011
But it is unlikely that any new projects will enter active development until the market improves. As of 2013 uranium prices are very low. As of late 2010, there are calls for Australians to debate whether the nation should adopt nuclear power as part of its energy mix. Nuclear power is seen to be "a divisive issue that can arouse deep passions among those for and against". Following the March 2011 Fukushima nuclear emergency in Japan, where three nuclear reactors were damaged by explosions,
Ian Lowe Ian Lowe (born 3 November 1942) is an Australian academic and writer focused on environmental issues. A physics graduate, he is an Emeritus Professor of Science, Technology and Society and former Head of the School of Science at Griffith Univ ...
sees the nuclear power option as being risky and unworkable for Australia. Lowe says nuclear power is too expensive, with insurmountable problems associated with waste disposal and weapons proliferation. It is also not a fast enough response to address climate change. Lowe advocates renewable energy which is "quicker, less expensive and less dangerous than nuclear". Nuclear reactors are banned in
Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...
and
Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...
. Uranium mining was previously prohibited in
New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...
under the Uranium Prohibition Act of 1986, however in 2012 Premier
Barry O'Farrell Barry Robert O'Farrell (born 24 May 1959) is a former Australian politician who has been Australia's High Commissioner to India and non-resident Ambassador to Bhutan since May 2020. O'Farrell was the 43rd Premier of New South Wales and Minis ...
amended the legislation to allow prospecting and mining of uranium in New South Wales. In December 2011, the sale of uranium to India was a contentious issue. 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. Long-time anti-nuclear campaigner
Peter Garrett Peter Robert Garrett (born 16 April 1953) is an Australian musician, environmentalist, activist and former politician. In 1973, Garrett became the lead singer of the Australian rock band Midnight Oil. As a performer he is known for his signa ...
MP spoke against the motion. In March 2012, hundreds of anti-nuclear demonstrators converged on the Australian headquarters of global mining giants BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto. The 500-strong march through southern Melbourne called for an end to uranium mining in Australia, and included speeches and performances by representatives of the expatriate Japanese community as well as Australia's Indigenous communities, who are concerned about the effects of uranium mining near tribal lands. There were also events in Sydney. A site within
Muckaty Station Muckaty Station, also known as Warlmanpa, is a Aboriginal freehold landholding in Australia's Northern Territory, north of Tennant Creek, and approximately south of Darwin. Originally under traditional Indigenous Australian ownership, the a ...
was considered for Australia's low-level and intermediate-level
radioactive waste Radioactive waste is a type of hazardous waste that contains radioactive material. Radioactive waste is a result of many activities, including nuclear medicine, nuclear research, nuclear power generation, rare-earth mining, and nuclear weapons r ...
storage and disposal facility. However, the plan was withdrawn following a High Court hearing, and one of the seven clans of traditional owners of Muckaty Station, the Ngapa clan, served papers on the Northern Land Council over the way the process was handled. More than 400 people joined a "Lizard's Revenge march" to the Olympic Dam site in July 2012. The anti-nuclear activists, including Elder
Kevin Buzzacott Kevin Buzzacott (born 1947), often referred to as Uncle Kev as an Aboriginal elder, is an Indigenous Australian from the Arabunna nation in northern South Australia. He has campaigned widely for cultural recognition, justice and land rights fo ...
, protested against the mine expansion and the uranium industry. They say the company and the government have put short-term economic gain ahead of environmental and health concerns. Organiser Nectaria Calan said police harassed protesters, demanding identification and controlling access to and from their campsite. In August 2012, BHP Billiton announced that the expansion was being postponed indefinitely pending investigation of a "new and cheaper design". Historically, many prospective Australian uranium mines have been constrained by active antinuclear opposition, but state governments have now approved mine development in Western Australia and Queensland. But it is unlikely that any new projects will enter active development until the market improves. As of 2013 uranium prices are very low.
Cameco Cameco Corporation (formerly Canadian Mining and Energy Corporation) is the world's largest publicly traded uranium company, based in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. In 2015, it was the world's second largest uranium producer, accounting for 18 ...
placed the
Kintyre Kintyre ( gd, Cinn Tìre, ) is a peninsula in western Scotland, in the southwest of Argyll and Bute. The peninsula stretches about , from the Mull of Kintyre in the south to East and West Loch Tarbert in the north. The region immediately nor ...
project on hold until market prices improve and
Paladin The Paladins, also called the Twelve Peers, are twelve legendary knights, the foremost members of Charlemagne's court in the 8th century. They first appear in the medieval (12th century) ''chanson de geste'' cycle of the Matter of France, where ...
has stated that its project proposals (Bigrlyi, Angela/Pamela, Manyingee, Oobagooma, and Valhalla/Skal) need higher uranium market prices before they can proceed. Toro wants to take the Wiluna proposal to the development phase, but has not been successful in attracting equity investors. When market prices go up again, so that mine development is justified, most projects would need at least five years to proceed to production. In 2013, Prime Minister
Tony Abbott Anthony John Abbott (; born 4 November 1957) is a former Australian politician who served as the 28th prime minister of Australia from 2013 to 2015. He held office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia. Abbott was born in Londo ...
supported nuclear power, saying: "nuclear power is the only proven way of generating the base load power Australia needed without producing carbon pollution". Abbott's Coalition's Resources and Energy policy says "the Coalition will formalise the agreement to sell uranium to India". In 2016 under
Malcolm Turnbull Malcolm Bligh Turnbull (born 24 October 1954) is an Australian former politician and businessman who served as the 29th prime minister of Australia from 2015 to 2018. He held office as leader of the Liberal Party of Australia. Turnbull grad ...
, both Australian political parties opened the door for uranium exports to India, with trade potentially starting in 2017. In 2015, South Australian Premier
Jay Weatherill Jay Wilson Weatherill (born 3 April 1964) is an Australian politician who was the 45th Premier of South Australia, serving from 21 October 2011 until 19 March 2018. Weatherill represented the House of Assembly seat of Cheltenham as a member of ...
announced that a Royal Commission would be held to investigate the state's role in the nuclear fuel cycle. South Australia is currently home to four of Australia's five uranium mines, and the possibility of the state developing nuclear power generation, enrichment and waste storage facilities have previously proven to be contentious issues. The Royal Commission comes at a time of economic contraction for South Australia, which is suffering from job losses in mining and manufacturing sectors. Immediately following the announcement of the Royal Commission, emeritus Prof.
Ian Lowe Ian Lowe (born 3 November 1942) is an Australian academic and writer focused on environmental issues. A physics graduate, he is an Emeritus Professor of Science, Technology and Society and former Head of the School of Science at Griffith Univ ...
suggested that the current inquiry risks retreading old ground already covered by several previous public inquiries and proposals for nuclear industrialisation. Lowe referred to the 2006 UMPNER review's finding that substantial government subsidies would be required to support nuclear industrial development in Australia, and the 1976-78 Ranger Uranium Environmental Inquiry (Fox Report), which drew attention to the problems of nuclear weapons proliferation and
nuclear waste Radioactive waste is a type of hazardous waste that contains radioactive material. Radioactive waste is a result of many activities, including nuclear medicine, nuclear research, nuclear power generation, rare-earth mining, and nuclear weapons ...
. On 17 April 2015, Lowe was selected as one of five members of the Nuclear Fuel Cycle Royal Commission Expert Advisory Committee.


Issues

The case against nuclear power and uranium mining in Australia has been concerned with the environmental, political, economic, social and cultural impacts of nuclear energy; with the shortcomings of nuclear power as an energy source; and with presenting a sustainable energy strategy. The most prominent adverse impact of nuclear power is seen to be its potential contribution towards proliferation of nuclear weapons. For example, the 1976 Ranger Inquiry report stated that "The nuclear power industry is unintentionally contributing to an increased risk of nuclear war. This is the most serious hazard associated with the industry". The health risks associated with nuclear materials have also featured prominently in Australian anti-nuclear campaigns. This has been the case worldwide because of accidents like the Chernobyl disaster, but Australian concerns have also involved specific local factors such as controversy over the health effects of nuclear testing in Australia and the South Pacific, and the emergence of prominent anti-nuclear campaigners
Helen Caldicott Helen Mary Caldicott (born 7 August 1938) is an Australian physician, author, and anti-nuclear advocate. She founded several associations dedicated to opposing the use of nuclear power, depleted uranium munitions, nuclear weapons, nuclear we ...
and Tilman Ruff, who are medical practitioners. The economics of nuclear power has been a factor in anti-nuclear campaigns, with critics arguing that such power is uneconomical in Australia, particularly given the country's abundance of coal resources. According to the anti-nuclear movement, most of the problems with nuclear power today are much the same as in the 1970s. Nuclear reactor accidents still occur and there is no convincing solution to the problem of long-lived radioactive waste. Nuclear weapons proliferation continues to occur, notably in Pakistan and North Korea, building on facilities and expertise from civilian nuclear operations. The alternatives to nuclear power, efficient energy use and renewable energy (especially
wind power Wind power or wind energy is mostly the use of wind turbines to generate electricity. Wind power is a popular, sustainable, renewable energy source that has a much smaller impact on the environment than burning fossil fuels. Historically ...
), have been further developed and commercialised.


Public opinion

A 2009 poll conducted by the Uranium Information Centre found that Australians in the 40 to 55 years age group are the "most trenchantly opposed to nuclear power". This generation was raised during the Cold War, experienced the
anti-nuclear movement The anti-nuclear movement is a social movement that opposes various nuclear technologies. Some direct action groups, environmental movements, and professional organisations have identified themselves with the movement at the local, natio ...
of the 1970s, witnessed the 1979 partial meltdown of the Three Mile Island reactor in the US, and the 1986 Chernobyl disaster. It was the generation which was also subject to cultural influences including feature films such as the "nuclear industry conspiracies" ''
The China Syndrome ''The China Syndrome'' is a 1979 American disaster thriller film directed by James Bridges and written by Bridges, Mike Gray, and T. S. Cook. The film stars Jane Fonda, Jack Lemmon, Michael Douglas (who also produced), Scott Brady, James ...
'' and '' Silkwood'' and the apocalyptic ''
Dr Strangelove ''Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb'', known simply and more commonly as ''Dr. Strangelove'', is a 1964 black comedy film that satirizes the Cold War fears of a nuclear conflict between the Soviet Union and t ...
''. Younger people are "less resistant" to the idea of
nuclear power in Australia The prospect of nuclear power in Australia has been a topic of public debate since the 1950s. Australia has one nuclear plant in Lucas Heights, Sydney, but is not used to produce nuclear power, but instead is used to produce medical radioisoto ...
.Strong, Geoff and Munro, Ian (13 October 2009)
Going Fission
''The Age''.
Analysis of opinion polls from 2012 shows a "significant decrease in favourable views of nuclear power" following the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster. Indigenous land owners have consistently opposed uranium mining and have spoken out about the adverse impact it has on their communities.Vaisutis, Justine (April 2010). Indigenous communities getting dumped in it. Again. ''Habitat Australia'', Vol. 38, No. 2, p. 22. The
British nuclear tests at Maralinga Between 1956 and 1963, the United Kingdom conducted seven nuclear tests at the Maralinga site in South Australia, part of the Woomera Prohibited Area about north west of Adelaide. Two major test series were conducted: Operation Buffalo in 195 ...
were found to have left significant radiation hazards in land given back to the
Maralinga Tjarutja The Maralinga Tjarutja, or Maralinga Tjarutja Council, is the corporation representing the traditional Anangu owners of the remote western areas of South Australia known as the Maralinga Tjarutja lands. The council was established by the ''Mara ...
people, and the issue continues to cause indigenous opposition.


Active groups


Individuals

There are several prominent Australians who have publicly expressed anti-nuclear views: * Dorothy Auchterlonie * Sandra Bloodworth * David Bradbury (film maker) *
Bob Brown Robert James Brown (born 27 December 1944) is a former Australian politician, medical doctor and environmentalist. He was a senator and the parliamentary leader of the Australian Greens. Brown was elected to the Australian Senate on the Tasma ...
* Eileen Kampakuta Brown *
Kevin Buzzacott Kevin Buzzacott (born 1947), often referred to as Uncle Kev as an Aboriginal elder, is an Indigenous Australian from the Arabunna nation in northern South Australia. He has campaigned widely for cultural recognition, justice and land rights fo ...
*
Helen Caldicott Helen Mary Caldicott (born 7 August 1938) is an Australian physician, author, and anti-nuclear advocate. She founded several associations dedicated to opposing the use of nuclear power, depleted uranium munitions, nuclear weapons, nuclear we ...
*Joseph Camilleri *
Moss Cass Moses Henry Cass (18 February 1927 – 26 February 2022) was an Australian doctor and politician who held ministerial office in the Whitlam Government. He served as Minister for Environment and Conservation (1972–1975), the Environment (19 ...
*
Ian Cohen Ian or Iain is a name of Scottish Gaelic origin, derived from the Hebrew given name (Yohanan, ') and corresponding to the English name John. The spelling Ian is an Anglicization of the Scottish Gaelic forename ''Iain''. It is a popular name in Sc ...
* Michael Denborough * Mark Diesendorf *
Jim Falk Jim Falk (born ) is a physicist and academic researcher on science and technology studies. Background Falk was born in Oxford, England. His father was the philosopher Werner D. Falk (latterly professor at the University of North Carolina), and h ...
*
Malcolm Fraser John Malcolm Fraser (; 21 May 1930 – 20 March 2015) was an Australian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Australia from 1975 to 1983, holding office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia. Fraser was raised on hi ...
*
Peter Garrett Peter Robert Garrett (born 16 April 1953) is an Australian musician, environmentalist, activist and former politician. In 1973, Garrett became the lead singer of the Australian rock band Midnight Oil. As a performer he is known for his signa ...
*
Jim Green (activist) Jim Green is an anti-nuclear campaigner with Friends of the Earth Australia. Green is a regular media commentator on nuclear issues. He has an honours degree in public health from the University of Wollongong and was awarded a PhD in science an ...
*
Margaret Holmes Margaret Joan Holmes (née Read; 24 January 1909 – 10 September 2009) was an Australian peace activist, particularly during the Vietnam War and as part of the Anglican Pacifist Fellowship. She founded the New South Wales branch of the Women' ...
*
Avon Hudson Avon Hudson (born 1937) is a South Australian RAAF ex-serviceman, nuclear weapons testing whistle-blower and co-author of the 2005 book '' Beyond Belief'' which he wrote with academic and historian, Roger Cross. He has appeared in several docume ...
* Jacqui Katona * Sandra Kanck *
Ian Lowe Ian Lowe (born 3 November 1942) is an Australian academic and writer focused on environmental issues. A physics graduate, he is an Emeritus Professor of Science, Technology and Society and former Head of the School of Science at Griffith Univ ...
* Scott Ludlam * Yvonne Margarula *
Dee Margetts Diane Elizabeth Margetts (born 5 March 1955), known as Dee Margetts, is a former Australian politician. She was a member of the Australian Senate from 1993 to 1999 and a member of the Western Australian Legislative Council from 2001 to 2005, re ...
* Jillian Marsh * Kerry Nettle * David Noonan (environmentalist) *
John Quiggin John Quiggin (born 29 March 1956) is an Australian economist, a professor at the University of Queensland. He was formerly an Australian Research Council Laureate Fellow and Federation Fellow and a member of the board of the Climate Change Aut ...
*Mia Pepper * Tilman Ruff * Nancy Shelley * Dave Sweeney * Jo Vallentine *
Giz Watson Elizabeth Mary "Giz" Watson (born 18 January 1957) is an English-born former Australian politician, and a former leader of The Greens, Western Australia. Biography Watson was born in 1957 in Eastleigh, a town in Hampshire, England, and emig ...
*Peter Watts * Patrick White * Stuart White *Bill WilliamsJames Norman and Bill Williams
Stars align in quest to rid the world of nukes
''The Age'', 24 September 2009.
* Eileen Wani Wingfield


See also

* Anti-nuclear protests * Arkaroola, South Australia * Australian Renewable Energy Agency * Australian Uranium Association * ''Fallout and Follow Me'' (1977 play) * Gavin Mudd * History of the anti-nuclear movement *
International Commission on Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament The International Commission on Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament is a joint initiative of the Australian and Japanese governments. It was proposed by Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd on 9 June 2008, and on 9 July 2008 Rudd and Jap ...
*
List of anti-nuclear groups Anti-nuclear organizations may oppose uranium mining, nuclear power, and/or nuclear weapons. Anti-nuclear groups have undertaken public protests and acts of civil disobedience which have included occupations of nuclear plant sites. Some of the ...
* List of Australian inquiries into uranium mining * List of environmental accidents in the fossil fuel industry in Australia *
Lists of nuclear disasters and radioactive incidents These are lists of nuclear disasters and radioactive incidents. Main lists * List of attacks on nuclear plants * List of Chernobyl-related articles * List of civilian nuclear accidents * List of civilian radiation accidents * List of ...
* Nuclear industry in South Australia *
Renewable energy commercialization Renewable energy commercialization involves the deployment of three generations of renewable energy technologies dating back more than 100 years. First-generation technologies, which are already mature and economically competitive, include b ...
* Renewable energy in Australia * Say Yes demonstrations


References


Bibliography

* Cooke, Stephanie (2009). '' In Mortal Hands: A Cautionary History of the Nuclear Age'', Black Inc. *Diesendorf, Mark (2009). ''Climate Action: A Campaign Manual for Greenhouse Solutions'', University of New South Wales Press. * Diesendorf, Mark (2007). '' Greenhouse Solutions with Sustainable Energy'', University of New South Wales Press. * Elliott, David (2007). '' Nuclear or Not? Does Nuclear Power Have a Place in a Sustainable Energy Future?'', Palgrave. *Falk, Jim (1982). ''Global Fission: The Battle Over Nuclear Power'', Oxford University Press. *Giugni, Marco (2004). ''Social Protest and Policy Change: Ecology, Antinuclear, and Peace Movements in Comparative Perspective'', Rowman and Littlefield. * Lovins, Amory B. (1977). '' Soft Energy Paths: Towards a Durable Peace'', Friends of the Earth International, *Lovins, Amory B. and Price, John H. (1975). '' Non-Nuclear Futures: The Case for an Ethical Energy Strategy'', Ballinger Publishing Company, 1975, * Lowe, Ian (2007). '' Reaction Time: Climate Change and the Nuclear Option'',
Quarterly Essay ''Quarterly Essay'' is an Australian periodical that straddles the border between magazines and non-fiction books. Printed in a book-like page size and using a single-column format, each issue features a single extended essay of at least 20,000 ...
. *Parkinson, Alan (2007). '' Maralinga: Australia’s Nuclear Waste Cover-up'', ABC Books. * Pernick, Ron and Wilder, Clint (2012). '' Clean Tech Nation: How the U.S. Can Lead in the New Global Economy'', HarperCollins. * Schneider, Mycle and
Antony Froggatt Antony Froggatt is an energy policy consultant and a senior research fellow at Chatham House. He is co-author of ''The World Nuclear Industry Status Reports''. Biography Antony Froggatt is a senior research fellow in the Energy, Environment and De ...
, (2012). ''
The World Nuclear Industry Status Report ''The World Nuclear Industry Status Report'' is a yearly report on the nuclear power industry. It is produced by Mycle Schneider, an anti-nuclear activist and a founding member of WISE-Paris, which he directed from 1983 to 2003. 2019 Report The ...
''. *Smith, Jennifer (Editor), (2002). ''The Antinuclear Movement'', Cengage Gale. *Walker, J. Samuel (2004). '' Three Mile Island: A Nuclear Crisis in Historical Perspective'', University of California Press.


External links


Australian map of nuclear and uranium sites''Nuclear Knights''
a book by Brian Martin, university professor.
''Strategy against nuclear power''
an anti-nuclear campaign strategy produced by Friends of the Earth.
''Backs to the Blast, an Australian Nuclear Story''
a documentary about nuclear testing in Australia.
''Stop Uranium Mining! Australia's Decade of Protest 1975–1985''
a history of anti-nuclear protest in the 1970s and 1980s.
ALSOS Digital Library for Nuclear IssuesChain Reaction magazineContemporary critiques of nuclear power by Australian scientists
*Say NO to Uranium mining (An Interview of Uncle Kevin Buzzacott) on YouTube Channel ''Telling Indigenous Stories:''https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqSWoufpfgE
ACE Anti-Nuclear Activist Archive
large archival collection from ACE at FoEA
Anti-Nuclear Archives
growing collection of digitised videos from ACE {{Anti-nuclear movement Australia Nuclear energy in Australia Political movements in Australia Environmentalism in Australia Protests in Australia Technology in society Social movements in Australia