ANDREW Clark-Dickson says he has few concerns about the physical safety of the nuclear waste facility proposed for the Oman-ama district near Inglewood.
However, the president of the Traprock Group which represents the geographic region’s various farm businesses, says he has very real concerns that any form of nuclear facility would have on the reputation of the region’s agricultural products and land values.
“Even then I hope any impact on reputation would be short lived given the nuclear waste appears to be low to medium grade waste used in the medical industry,” Mr Clark-Dickson said.
“Oman-ama and the Traprock has developed a reputation for its high quality, green products. It would be very unfair if this facility damaged that reputation at all.
“Any damage to reputation would also have an immediate impact on the capital value of these properties.
“What I am keen to understand how the $10 million in compensation they are talking about has actually been calculated and how it would be spent if the facility went ahead.”
Oman-ama is one of six sites which have been identified as being suitable for a nuclear waste facility. Possible sites have also been identified in South Australia, NSW and the Northern Territory. The site is expected to be announced by the end of next year.
Mr Clark-Dickson said he had quizzed the proponents of the facility about whether the facility would be upgraded to handle high grade nuclear waste at a later stage.
“They were very clear this was not an option,” he said.
About 200 people attended a meeting in Inglewood yesterday.