As anticipated by the NT media, the ABC and Crikey, yesterday Martin Ferguson announced the repeal of the Howard Government’s Commonwealth Radioactive Waste Management Act 2005 and a process to investigate the establishment of a nuclear waste dump at Muckaty Station in the Northern Territory.

He was immediately followed by Damian Hale, Labor’s bluff member for Solomon, who declared himself pleased with the repeal of the CRWMA and definitely not pleased at all with the proposal for Muckaty Station.  Hale had made his views known in Caucus that morning.  His fellow MPs from other states weren’t too impressed, primarily at the idea that a nuclear waste dump might end up anywhere near them.

The NT Government, which in 2008 was demanding the Rudd Government abandon any plans for a waste dump in the NT, also welcomed the repeal of the CRWMA and criticised the nomination of Muckaty Station.

There’s a small problem with that position, though.  Labor’s 2007 election commitment was to repeal the CRWMA, which overrode NT laws and any Commonwealth legislation that might have delayed or hindered the investigation of waste dump sites, and replace it with a “a consensual process of site selection”.  And Ferguson insisted yesterday that that was exactly what was happening.

“I’ll introduce legislation into the Parliament tomorrow that repeals the Howard Government Radioactive Waste Management Act. I will introduce in its place a process which requires me as the minister to actually engage to establish a purpose-built facility, having proper regard to the normal processes that exist in Australia, going to issues of heritage and environmental protection.

“For example, it means that if we are to proceed with a particular site there will be full application of the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act at arm’s length to me via the Minister for the Environment.”

A close look at Ferguson’s Bill, however, suggests it has an awful lot in common with the CRWMA.

S.11 of the Bill overrides all state and territory laws that regulate or prohibit nuclear waste dumps

S.12 of the Bill directly overrides the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage Protection Act 1984 in a similar manner to the Howard-era Act.  It also overrides the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 to prevent the Environment Minister (Peter Garrett — haven’t heard much from him lately) from having any role in the site selection process i.e. Garrett’s role in determining whether the environmental impact of the waste dump is significant only applies after a site has been selected for the dump.

Both ss. 11 and 12 are exact copies of the comparable sections of the Howard-era Act, with the exception that Ferguson’s overriding of state and territory laws is even wider in scope than under the CRWMA.  Damian Hale and the NT’s Paul Henderson both might want to read the Bill before declaring themselves pleased that the previous Act will be repealed.

Greens Senator Scott Ludlam called the Bill “a legislative battering ram that squarely lines up the Northern Territory as the target for the nation’s radioactive waste.”  He is pushing for a Senate inquiry into the Bill but has been told by the other parties there may not be support for the Bill.  The Coalition has already indicated it will support the Bill.

Ferguson was correct to say yesterday that the issue of a permanent waste storage is one Australia has been avoiding for too long and that the Government must make a hard decision about where to place a facility.  However, he shouldn’t be pretending that he isn’t using exactly the same tools as his conservative predecessors used.