6. Uranium Exports to China

On 3 April 2006, China and Australia signed two nuclear agreements which open the gates to uranium exports to China, a non-democratic country with a very poor history of industrial accidents and pollution. The Joint Standing Committee on Treaties examined the agreements and tabled a report on 6 December 2006. Read the report at: http://www.aph.gov.au/house/committee/jsct/8august2006/report.htm

The agreements were ratified by both governments on 4 January 2007: http://www.foreignminister.gov.au/releases/2007/fa001_07.html

The Aug/Sept 2006 edition of The Diplomat magazine includes an article entitled The China Syndrome by Sholto Macpherson. The article provides compelling reasons why China is not a suitable destination for Australian uranium.  http://www.the-diplomat.com/

• Major industrial accidents happen on a weekly basis in China, with state-owned enterprises enjoying virtual immunity from prosecution thanks to protection of party officials.
• Large private companies often have equally strong party connections and can bribe their way out of accidents or costly improvements that are ostensibly required by law.
• Recent accidents include a series of explosions at a petrochemical plant in the northeastern city of Jilin in November 2005, with an 80 km-long slick of benzene leaking into the Songhua River and then the Amur River on the border of Russia, polluting the water supplies of millions of Chinese and Russian residents.
• In December 2005, a state-owned smelter leaked cadmium into the Bei River in Guangdong province. Cadmium causes bone disease and liver and kidney damage. The authorities first denied that anything was wrong.
• The Beijing regime has relaxed a little on some environmental issues, allowing NGO’s to monitor breaches and submit complaints to authorities. “But it will brook no such dissent regarding its nuclear industry, and even normally outspoken environmental groups refuse to discuss the topic.”