Australia has taken a step nearer to setting up a national facility for the management of its radioactive waste with the passage of new legislation by the country's senate.
The National Radioactive Waste Management Bill 2010 aims to establish a single-site facility for managing the waste arising from Australian use of radioactive material in medicine, industry and research. Such material is currently stored at numerous sites at Australian universities, hospitals and laboratories.
Although the bill allows nominations to be volunteered in any Australian state or territory, in practice one location is the focus of attention. Muckaty Station, in the Northern Territory, was nominated as a potential site for the waste facility by its traditional Ngapa owners under existing legislation in 2007. That nomination is recognised in the new legislation, although the nomination is currently the subject of litigation by some traditional owners in the federal courts.
The amended bill as passed by the senate will now be reintroduced for approval to Australia's House of Representatives.
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