Vic: Anti nuclear group protests at the wrong place

AAP General News (Australia)
12-06-1999
Vic: Anti nuclear group protests at the wrong place

MELBOURNE, Dec 6 AAP - Melbourne's Uranium Information Centre (UIC) today said it "welcomed
a small but misguided protest" outside its offices against a proposal to establish a high-level
nuclear waste dump in the Australian outback.

The small group of protesters from the Friends of the Earth environment group marked
the first anniversary of the leaking of a promotional video outlining the planned dump
by Pangea Resources.

The video, intended as part of an advertising campaign to win over Australians to the
idea of a nuclear waste dump in outback Australia, was leaked to Friends of the Earth
in London a year ago.

But UIC general manager Ian Hore-Lacy today said the protesters "had come to the wrong
place" to voice their disapproval of the Pangea proposal.

"However, there is a benefit for us because the protesters' objective is to generate
publicity, and this provides us with the perfect opportunity to increase the UIC's public
profile and remind people of our role in providing information on nuclear issues," he
said.

Mr Hore-Lacy said the UIC was not a lobbyist on nuclear and uranium issues, merely
an information provider on a range of matters, including the Pangea proposal.

"The more people know about us, the more they will contact us for information," he said.

"The protest may attract some attention and contribute to replacing prejudice with
information on such issues."

He did confirm Pangea was a participating member of the UIC, as were about eight other
companies undertaking uranium exploration or feasibility studies in Australia.

Protest spokesman Mr Daniel Voronoff said despite widespread outrage at the plan, Pangea
was pressing ahead with a long-term campaign to see the project go ahead.

He said it was vital the Federal Government took immediate legislative action to ban
the importing of nuclear waste.

The protesters had planned to use a mock nuclear transport truck in the protest, but
police ruled it would be too disruptive to traffic.

AAP gfr/cjh

KEYWORD: NUCLEAR NIGHTLEAD

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