Nuclear power 'a threat to water supply'

From SMH

October 29, 2006 - 12:29PM

Australia's crippling drought will worsen if the Howard government succeeds in its push for nuclear power, Queensland Premier Peter Beattie says.

Addressing the New Zealand Labour Party conference in Rotorua, Mr Beattie said an independent study commissioned by the Queensland government showed a nuclear power station would use 25 per cent more water than a coal-fired power station.

"At a time when our farming communities are hurting badly, it is a folly for (Prime Minister John) Howard to be entertaining the thought of nuclear power stations in Queensland or anywhere else," he said.

"Many towns and shires in our state are struggling to get enough drinking water, let alone enough to satisfy the amount a nuclear station would need to guzzle."

Mr Howard established a review, headed by former Telstra boss Ziggy Switkowski, in June as part of his push for nuclear power to be considered in the nation's future energy mix.

Mr Beattie said a coal-fired power station produced up to 1,400 megawatts of electricity a year and used around 19,500 megalitres of water to condense and recycle steam.

He said a nuclear power station producing the same output would need about 25,000 megalitres.

"That is the equivalent of at least an additional 5,000 Olympic-size swimming pools a year," Mr Beattie said.

"It is water that we simply cannot afford when drought and climate change are drying up water supplies."

He said nuclear power stations needed a guaranteed water supply and a strong connection to an electricity grid, implying a nuclear power plant would need to be close to the eastern seaboard.

"Where is Mr Howard planning to put it? Is it Townsville or Mackay or perhaps further down along the coastline on the Sunshine Coast or Gold Coast?

"Even then a guaranteed water supply to meet minimum safety concerns would be a tall order.

"A guarantee like that is tough at the best of times, let alone in the middle of the worst drought on record."

Mr Beattie is on a three-day trip to New Zealand to boost trade and economic ties.

© 2006 AAP