British Nuclear Testing in Australia

[1938 Observer]

Re: British Nuclear Testing in Australia

As a little extra "Homework"

Some of the text below is extracted from a report on Strontium 90.


The involvement of Australian pathologists and other medical researchers in Project Sunshine can be dated
back to a letter 22 at Series A1209/23 Item 1957/6061 of National Archives of Australia (Canberra)
dated 7 November 1957 from the Department of External Affairs, Canberra to the Secretary of the National
Radiation Advisory Committee in Melbourne asking for advice "concerning the question of Australian
participation in the Standardisation Programme of the Measurements of Strontium-90, which was prepared
by the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation." The letter notes that the
matter was discussed at the second meeting of the NRAC "and that it was resolved that Australia should
participate in the programme and that the Commonwealth x-ray and Radium Laboratory and the Australian
Atomic Energy Commission should carry out the necessary work."
The impact of the early results of the studies of Strontium 90 in human bone was evident in a memo 33 at
Series A4940/1 Item C2067 of National Archives of Australia (Canberra) to the Australian Prime Minister
dated 23 March 1959 (signature of sender unclear) reported a story 44 at same location as above in the
Daily Mirror of the same date which in turn reported disclosures made by the US Joint Congressional Atomic
Commission on the presence of Strontium 90 in a fallout band predominantly in the south-eastern portion of
Australia in a line below 35 degrees latitude, stretching from Adelaide in South Australia to Jervis Bay in
New South Wales. While the measurements of Strontium 90 in the atmosphere were lower than those in
both the USA and UK they caused the head of the School of Chemistry at the NSW University of
Technology, Professor D P Mellor to say (as quoted in the Daily Mirror): "This report has come as quite a
shock. It is quite obvious not enough measurements have been taken here and not enough money and time
and scientific effort have been put into this important research. According to this report the danger in
Australia is much higher than was thought. It is even further increased by the discovery that Strontium 90 is
not remaining in the stratosphere (sic) as long as was predicted."
Under a paragraph heading Freak Births the Daily Mirror stated: "Australian experiments by CSIRO experts
have shown that effects of radiation produces freak babies and horrific abnormalities to future generations.
In overseas countries - in less danger than Australia, according to the U.S. report - freak animals have been
born, cattle have died mysteriously and weird (sic) plant life has appeared following radiation contamination."
The 1959 memo to the Prime Minister advises him: "If you propose to make any public comment I think the
most important aspect is that Strontium 90 does not result from atom bomb tests and
therefore has no relevance to the testing of weapons in Australia."
This is in error since Strontium 90 is a fission product from atoms bombs such as were being tested in
Australia at Monte Bello, Emu and Maralinga in the 1950s. (It is also a fission product of H-bombs such as
the UK subsequently developed at Christmas Island since H-bombs used A bombs as triggers. It is also a
fission product of nuclear reactors such as the Australian installation at Lucas Heights, which became
operational in 1958.55 Alan Parkinson


Taken from......................... PROJECT SUNSHINE AND THE SLIPPERY SLOPE
Sue Rabbitt Roff
Cookson Senior Research Fellow
Centre for Medical Education
Dundee University Medical School


http://www.sehd.scot.nhs.uk/scotorgr...ry%20slope.pdf

[1938 Observer]

Re: British Nuclear Testing in Australia

Maralinga whistle blower joins tour - 23-Apr-2014



As the world watched in wonder as man began early space exploration during the late 1960s, Avon Hudson was sitting in an operations office on Island Lagoon - helping put Apollo 13 into the space race.
But that history making mission was not the most defining chapter of his life.
Mr Hudson was one of the thousands of army personnel posted to Maralinga during the atomic weapon trials.
He was part of the Vixon Three project – a group of weapons testers who helped experiment weapon capability in the remote South Australian desert in the 1950s and 60s.
He arrived in Maralinga in 1960 and his experiences and eye witness account of atomic weaponry and destruction are why he is an anti-nuclear campaigner to this day.
From 1960 to 62 Mr Hudson worked on this Maralinga mission, before being transferred to Woomera to test other military weaponry, working on secret projects like the Black Night missile launches.
After two years Mr Hudson refused to be involved with the weaponry testing division any further. It was a choice that landed him on the Apollo 13 space mission … And one that changed his life.
The now 78-year-old has spent much of his life campaigning against the British Government’s Maralinga experiments – and the rest of his time educating whoever will listen about nuclear disarmament.
He conceded there were some real world uses for uranium – particularly for radiation treatment for cancer patients. He himself has benefited from the use of radioactive isotopes as part of his own personal cancer journey only a few years ago.
But he believes that technology has now advanced enough to make alternative energy supply a real reality to power today’s global community, and that there was no room for excuses when it came to Australian uranium being used by other countries to develop nuclear grade weapons.
The risks to humanity were just too great and the real benefit to the Australian export dollar was minimal compared to other commodities, he said.
“We sell more cheese around the world than we do uranium,” Mr Hudson said.
“Hundreds of millions of dollars more cheese, than we do uranium
“It represents a small amount of our economy,”
“It’s not worth it.”
Mr Hudson said he would never forget the effects the experimental bombings had on the landscape at Maralinga.
“No-one is ever prepared, in any way, mentally or physically for what we were about to encounter,” Mr Hudson said
“We once gave the British our uranium, and we got it back in the form of bombs,” he said.
“One day, who knows? China might deliver bombs back here made out of our uranium.
“The future generations will reap the bitter fruits of what we do today.”
He said Australia should be learning from it’s mistakes.
“You look at history, and try not to repeat it,” Mr Hudson said.
“Well we are repeating it – and repeating it very frequently.
“While money is very important and we’ve got to have an economy, and we’ve got to provide – these are the things that are providing not much, if anything, to the Australian economy.
“Even this place here (Olympic Dam), is mainly copper…there’s more bloody gold that goes out of here than uranium. Let’s face it – if they just extracted the uranium out of it and put it there in a dump and put a bloody wall around it, kept it and never sold it they would be no worse off.
“It costs an awful amount – it’s a terrible cost to business to refine it into yellow cake. I don’t know why any company would do it.
“The little bit of money that’s involved is peanuts.
“You’ve got to look at the science, and science has been my life. There’s no-one with any scientific knowledge that doesn’t recognise the facts relating to the nuclear industry.
“It’s just not an industry that we should be supporting.
“We can’t even solve the problem of the nuclear waste after it has been used in a power station.”
“We’ve bitten off something we can’t chew. We’ve lost the plot – and that is around the world … every country in the world has a nuclear waste problem.
“It’s not a matter of saying ‘you’re wrong, and I’m right’. I’m only looking at the technology .. the facts, as we know it, over the past 60 years.
“In my lifetime I’ve seen the nuclear industry from the bombing of Hiroshima to the present day. We are going to be the victims one day – we won’t always be the top dog.”









http://www.themonitor.com.au/news-ar...wer-joins-tour

[1938 Observer]

Re: British Nuclear Testing in Australia

Lingering impact of British nuclear tests in the Australian outback

31 December 2014 Last updated at 07:11 BBC News Australia.


It seems remarkable today but less than 60 years ago, Britain was exploding nuclear bombs in the middle of Australia.

In the mid-1950s, seven bombs were tested at Maralinga in the south-west Australian outback.

The combined force of the weapons doubled that of the bomb dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima in World War Two.

In archive video footage, British and Australian soldiers can be seen looking on, wearing short sleeves and shorts and doing little to protect themselves other than turning their backs and covering their eyes with their hands.

Some reported the flashes of the blasts being so bright that they could see the bones of their fingers, like x-rays as they pressed against their faces.



Full story and photographs are at the link.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-30640338

[1938 Observer]

Re: British Nuclear Testing in Australia

Hawke government schemed to stymie Maralinga nuclear test compensation, cabinet documents reveal :unimpressed::unimpressed:


National News. Courier Mail, Australia. PETER JEAN POLITICAL REPORTER From: The Advertiser December 31, 2014 11:30PM.



THE statute of limitations was invoked by the Hawke Government to prevent hundreds of compensation actions being pursued in court by veterans of British nuclear tests in Australia.
Government documents from 1988 and 1989 released by the National Archives of Australia reveal that cabinet decided to try and invoke time-limit rules to fight court compensation actions launched after 1988.

But cabinet did agree to voluntarily compensate people with leukaemia or multiple myeloma that could be linked to the tests in the 1950s and 60s.

The tests were conducted at Emu Field and Maralinga in South Australia and the Monte Bello Islands in Western Australia.

The government decided in 1984 not to use the statute of limitations to try and prevent people from suing but later changed its mind.

In a cabinet submission, Primary Industries and Energy Minister John Kerin said it had been estimated that paying $870,000 each in compensation to about 50 people suffering from cancer would cost $43 million.

He successfully recommended that the government fight court cases lodged after 1988 but offer to pay compensation in cases assessed as genuine.

“Where a claim is not considered to have merit (either because it is fraudulent or the plaintiff’s illness could not have resulted from participation in the tests) then no settlement would be offered and the claim would be defended,’’ Mr Kerin said in a cabinet briefing.

More than 60 years after the nuclear testing program began, hundreds of veterans are still fighting for what they consider to be adequate compensation.

Cabinet documents from 1989 also reveal steps taken by the Australian Government to ensure that British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher’s administration could not downplay the environmental impact of the nuclear tests.

A cabinet memo said it was crucial that the UK Government remained “locked in’’ to environmental studies so that approaches could be made to if for compensation.

“The identification of reputable UK firms, agencies and experts with the study program, UK Government support for the program and the pre-eminence of the (Technical Expert Group) membership ensure that the UK cannot distance itself from the outcome,” the memo said.

View the cabinet documents from 1988 and 1989 at naa.gov.au

Originally published as Maralinga nuclear compensation cases blocked


http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/n...-1227171284110

[1938 Observer]

Re: British Nuclear Testing in Australia

I thought I might add a couple of stories that are related that are related to the testing at Maralinga.

6 Mustang aircraft recoverd from A-Bomb test site Australia

This quite an interesting story that I had not come across before


Emu Desert in 1960 was 1500 miles from anywhere .. ideal place for the British to test their Atomic Bombs in their former Australian Colonies.. the bastards !
This clip from Channel10 shows the recovery performed by some very hard working Aussie aircraft enthusiasts :)

[1938 Observer]

Re: British Nuclear Testing in Australia

This is from the Emu Operation Totem 1953, and Maralinga Operation Buffalo October 1956 tests 500km West of Woomera . Of interest one of the Centurion tanks in the test, 169041 the "Atomic Tank" was back into service, served another 20 odd year including combat in Vietnam, and now resides as a Display in Darwin, NT.

NOTE: this video is silent.

[1938 Observer]

Re: British Nuclear Testing in Australia

Mentioned in the previous post was the "Atomic Tank", the story of its history is quite remarkable and emulates the recovery and restoration of the Mustang Aircraft contained in the initial post.

Here is just a brief summary, the link at the end of the post contains the full story with plenty of photographs,.
Atomic Tank: The Unique History of Centurion 169041
Mike Cecil
Head of Military Heraldry and Technology, Australian War Memorial

Centurion tank Mark 3 Type K with constructor’s number 39/190 commenced manufacture at the Royal Ordnance Factory, Barnbow, UK in December 1951, and was accepted by the Ministry of Supply at the end of January 1952. Assigned the British registration 06 BA 16, the tank was supplied to the Australian Commonwealth Government under Contract Demand 2843, arriving in Australia in late May 1952.



Read on and enjoy @ http://www.raeme.info/opse746.php?op=armd&item=3

[1938 Observer]

Re: British Nuclear Testing in Australia

Once again [New Year], the latest Cabinet Papers have been released..............here is some more Maralinga news.


"
Cabinet papers: Fallout continues from British atomic tests
DateJanuary 1, 2016


The cabinet papers reveal how ignorant various Australian governments had remained about contamination at the British atomic test sites in Maralinga in South Australia.

They also erroneously believed that British clean-up operations were effective in removing plutonium contamination.

In October 1990 the cabinet was advised of the delicacy of approaching the government of Britain for a contribution to the final rehabilitation of the sites where atomic tests took place between 1956 and 1963.





Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/cabinet-pa...#ixzz3w8VXD3Px
Follow us: @smh on Twitter | sydneymorningherald on Facebook



The above is only a small segment of the article.................the reainder is available at the link.

[1938 Observer]

Re: British Nuclear Testing in Australia


Man loses compensation bid after radiation exposure at nuclear test site in South Australia


:unsure::unimpressed:



An 83-year-old man has lost his bid for compensation after developing health complications working at Maralinga in the late 1950s, the remote South Australian base for British nuclear tests.

Reginald Elborough claims he was exposed to ionising radiation while stationed at the site as a postal clerk, developing prostate cancer, bowel and urinary tract, osteoporosis and 26 other health conditions.

He also sought compensation for skin cancers, impotence, high cholesterol, arthritis, lung scarring, muscle cramps, mouth ulcers, tinnitus, skeletal hyperostosis and an overactive immune system.




Comcare denied liability in 2010 despite accepting he suffered from the illnesses. Mr Elborough unsuccessfully challenged the decision at the Administrative Appeals Tribunal of Australia.

Advertisement
Maralinga, about 1000 kilometres north-west of Adelaide, was contaminated with radioactive waste in the 1950s and early 1960s after testing of fission bombs, including one dropped from an aircraft.

Mr Elborough was stationed in Maralinga village between February and September 1957 when two major nuclear tests were conducted.

The McClelland Royal Commission in 1984-85 found residual contamination at the site with British and Australian personnel deliberately exposed to the blasts to study radiological effects.

In 1994, the Australian government settled a $13.5 million compensation deal with the Maralinga Tjarutja, the corporation representing traditional owners of the land, who claim they were poisoned by the tests.

Tribunal deputy president Katherine Bean said there was no dispute over Mr Elborough's exposure to ionising radiation while working with the Postmaster-General's Department.

The tribunal heard Mr Elborough also visited the detonation sites about 40 kilometres from the village and reported seeing "glazing".

But medical evidence presented by a consultant physician found only certain types of skin cancers, hypertension, cataracts, and mouth ulcers had a known association with exposure to ionising radiation.

The physician was "very confident" there was no connection between Mr Elborough's conditions and his exposure to relatively low levels of ionising radiation.

"There is simply no evidence before me that they are linked with exposure to radiation ... and therefore no basis for a conclusion that any of the remaining conditions are related to Mr Elborough's employment with the PMG," Ms Bean said.




Dr Philip Crouch, an associate at the University of Adelaide's occupational and environmental health laboratory, said Mr Elborough would have been exposed to a small dose of ionising radiation while visiting the test site.

Dr Crouch said he was satisfied Mr Elborough's exposure to ionising radiation had not made any contribution to any of his claimed conditions.

"I accept that Mr Elborough has multiple comorbidities which he believes were caused by his exposure to radiation at Maralinga," he said.

"However, the medical and expert evidence before me is to the effect that the low level of radiation he was exposed to did not make any contribution to those conditions."



http://www.smh.com.au/national/man-l...01-gmj31o.html

[1938 Observer]

Re: British Nuclear Testing in Australia

[B] Factsheet DP83 – British Nuclear Test Service – Maralinga,
Emu Field and Montebello Islands
Purpose [/B


This Factsheet provides information for ex-service personnel and other participants who
were involved in the nuclear tests at Maralinga, Emu Field and Montebello Islands
between 1952 and 1965. The factsheet also provides information for Australian Federal or
Commonwealth Police Officers and Australian Protective Services Officers who patrolled
the test area at Maralinga after the test period.



What compensation is available to those people who were not members of the Australian
Defence Force?
In addition to members of the Australian Defence Force, BNT participants who were
Commonwealth Public Servants or Commonwealth Police who were injured or suffered
loss as a result of their participation in the BNT program have access to compensation
under the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1988 (SRCA). DVA is responsible
for administering claims for compensation and rehabilitation under the SRCA for members
and former members of the Australian Defence Force. Other claimants can contact
Comcare on 1300 366 979 for more information.
Compensation offsetting provisions apply if a BNT participant is eligible for compensation
under both the VEA and the SRCA, see DVA Factsheet DP82.
Civilian BNT participants are covered by a SRCA-like scheme administered by the
Department of Employment. This scheme is similar to the SRCA. For more information,
contact the Department of Employment on 1300 363 079.
British Nuclear Test Participants Non-Liability Health Care Scheme
Eligible Australian military personnel, Commonwealth employees and civilian contractors
have also been covered since 2006 under the Australian Participants in the British Nuclear
Tests (Treatment) Act 2006 for the cost of testing and treatment for any cancer. They do
not need to have an accepted compensation claim to access heath care for cancer under
this scheme, rather, they have to satisfy the definition of 'nuclear test participant' as
specified in the Act.
The definition of a participant for the purposes of non-liability health care includes
Australian Federal Police or Commonwealth Police Officers and Australian Protective
Services Officers who were present in the Maralinga test area between 1 May 1965 and
30 June 1988.
Disclaimer
The information contained in this Factsheet is general in nature and does not take into
account individual circumstances. You should not make important decisions, such as
those that affect your financial or lifestyle position on the basis of information contained in
this Factsheet. Where you are required to lodge a written claim for a benefit, you must take
full responsibility for your decisions prior to the written claim being determined. You should
seek confirmation in writing of any oral advice you receive from DVA.


The full PDF file may be read at thelink below----------it is only three pages long


http://factsheets.dva.gov.au/documen...ear%20Test.pdf

[Hugh]

Re: British Nuclear Testing in Australia

I have some of the same conditions that are more likely due to old age.

Hugh

[Alastair]

Re: British Nuclear Testing in Australia

Have you noticed this thread has had over 21,000 views? That's pretty damn good.

Alastair

[1938 Observer]

Re: British Nuclear Testing in Australia

Have you noticed this thread has had over 21,000 views? That's pretty damn good.

Alastair

Not too bad really, now climbing up towards 22,000 !!!!!!............... pity the participating governments pay little heed to it.................Many millions of $$$$$$ [or pounds] expended in financing these tests; millions more spent on Clean-Up, then more millions spent denying claims from veterans.........Whoops,sorry, must only call them "Participants".

Final result ????????????--------------- A totally useless item of weaponry that most of the world is against !!!!!!!


Gordon.

[1938 Observer]

Re: British Nuclear Testing in Australia

I am fairly sure i have placed various individual links to some of the items on this post, however for ease of viewing the link below will give a broad coverage of many items/stories; it seems quite topical at the moment as there is considerable debate/discussion at the present time about the construction of a "Nuclear Waste Storage Facility" in South Australia; The question is................how safe is safe????, this effort forsees the waste being brouht in from around the world.

Why would the world accept Australia’s offer to store nuclear waste?

While acknowledging that nuclear electricity is not commercially viable in South Australia, the Royal Commission’s tentative findings give strong support to the extraordinary notion that the state should attempt to profit by storing high-level nuclear waste from countries that do have nuclear power.

The scheme envisages a combination of above-ground temporary storage in dry casks, together with storage in a permanent underground repository. In practice, almost all the imported waste would be stored initially in dry casks for several decades before being transferred to the proposed underground storage area, where they would have to be managed for hundreds of thousands of years.

http://theconversation.com/why-would...ar-waste-54742


Nuclear waste dump to meet 'global need' recommended for SA by royal commission
By Malcolm Sutton

Commissioner Kevin Scarce said there were 390,000 tonnes of high-level nuclear waste in worldwide inventories, and nearly 10 million cubic metres of intermediate-level waste — all of it produced from nuclear power generation.

He said SA could take 13 per cent of the world's waste.

"Nations have not been able to find a disposal solution that meets their geology," Mr Scarce said.

"National consensus is that deep geological storage is the right solution for spent fuel, kept isolated from the environment for hundreds of thousands of years."

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-02-1...mended/7167412


SA nuclear waste dump would deliver $257b


Job creation
About 1500 jobs would initially be created and this would rise to 4500 jobs during a construction period of 25 years. The $145 billion in costs included a $32 billion reserve fund to cover whole-of-life maintenance and eventual closure costs.

There are significant quantities of used fuel from nuclear reactors in temporary storage in the Asia-Pacific region and these quantities will grow, the report found.

But Mr Scarce said the timeframes were long. In Finland and Sweden, successful projects had taken more than 30 years to develop. "These are long-term projects," Mr Scarce said.



Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/business/energ...#ixzz40IbB0cv8
http://www.smh.com.au/business/energ...11-gmrcgx.html


Now of course all of the above links are purely "Political Propaganda"


Now to where the post actually started.............................. Various items/articles about testing plus the usual good videos............................One that is worth watching again is "Australia's Atomic Confessions"

They are all contained at the link below............................


Maralinga


http://australianmap.net/maralinga/?...23400878906250

[Hugh]

Re: British Nuclear Testing in Australia

And then there's the problem of getting it there.

Hugh