Protesters slam nuclear plans

By Sarah Schwager
CASEY residents protested outside a Rotary Club lunch in Springvale last Friday where the Federal Government’s leading adviser on nuclear power was giving a talk.
Residents involved with the Western Port Action Group and Nuclear Free Australia joined forces to protest at Sandown Park Racecourse as Ziggy Switkowski named Western Port Bay as a possible site for a nuclear power plant.
The Australian Nuclear Science and Technology chairman listed Western Port as one of eight sites in Victoria and 25 nationwide that could be homes to Australia’s nuclear power industry.
Western Port Action Group president Mary Madigan said the risks of radioactive waste could be a massive problem for the next generations.
“Nuclear is no solution to global warming and climate change,” Ms Madigan said.
“People living near reactors have higher levels of cancer and other illnesses, especially children. All radiation released into the environment will harm living organisms. Omissions are released every step of the way.”
Dr Switkowski told those at the $80 a head Rotary Club of Dandenong business luncheon that 25 reactors could supply up to 30 per cent of Australia’s electricity.
Ms Madigan said the protest was aimed at informing business people, MPs and councillors that locals would not support a nuclear power plant anywhere in Australia and certainly not in Western Port Bay.
She called on residents to contact their local MPs and newspapers and tell them their thoughts on the issue.
See www.westernportactiongroup.com to sign a petition or make a comment on nuclear power.