Jay Weatherill's throw of the nuclear dice

By The Canberra Times
Updated April 23 2018 - 8:52pm, first published February 10 2015 - 6:11pm

Australia has, with one exception, never seriously contemplated the question of nuclear power generation. Abundant, easily accessible coal reserves have rendered economic imperatives redundant, and the ability of anti-nuclear campaigners to stoke public fear has killed debate in political circles. The federal Labor Party's 2011 policy platform expressly forbids "the establishment of nuclear power plants and other stages of the nuclear fuel cycle", and though the Liberal Party's thinking on the matter is more agnostic, the only senior to have seriously embraced the idea of a domestic nuclear power industry was Robert Menzies. In the early 1960s, the then-prime minister proposed building a reactor at Jervis Bay on the NSW south coast to produce weapons-grade plutonium as well as electricity for the NSW grid. But the enthusiasm of his successors for the plan waned, especially after it was revealed that electricity generated there would be twice the price of coal-fired power.

Subscribe now for unlimited access.

$0/

(min cost $0)

or signup to continue reading

See subscription options

Get the latest Canberra news in your inbox

Sign up for our newsletter to stay up to date.

We care about the protection of your data. Read our Privacy Policy.