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Australia Considers Nuclear Reactors
Australian Justice Minister Chris Ellison said his country should not avoid developing nuclear reactors based on the fact that they could become the targets of terrorist attacks, the Australian Associated Press reported yesterday (see GSN, May 12). The federal Cabinet did not consider terrorism when it chose to study the energy option, Ellison said. “When you look at sources of energy you don’t look at any potential terrorist threat,” he told the Nine Network. “You look at what is best for the community and the way forward.” “Energy sources are very important for the future of any community and I think we’re not about to be stymied or restricted in that approach because of any threat of terrorism,” Ellison added. A task force is scheduled to recommend this year whether Australia should pursue nuclear energy. Ellison said the Cabinet has considered various nuclear protection measures, but added that he believes that the electricity grid or a rail network would be as susceptible to attack as a nuclear site, AAP reported. Greens party leader Senator Bob Brown disagreed. “It’s daft to say the least and it’s really pig-ignorant of the dangers of nuclear material coming into the hands of terrorists,” Brown said. “We’re in an age of handbag-sized nuclear bombs and so-called dirty bombs, where the gaining of nuclear materials that can be spread by conventional explosives are real options for terrorists” (Maria Hawthorne, Australian Associated Press, June 11).
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