STATUTES AMENDMENT (NUCLEAR WASTE) BILL 2003

Part 1—Preliminary

Short title

1. This Act may be cited as the Statutes Amendment (Nuclear Waste) Act 2003.

Amendment provisions

2. In this Act, a provision under a heading referring to the amendment of a specified Act amends the Act so specified.

Part 2—Amendment of Dangerous Substances Act 1979

Amendment of section 2—Interpretation

3. (1) Section 2(1)—after the definition of "authorised officer" insert:

"Code of Practice" means the Code of Practice for the Near‑Surface Disposal of Radioactive Waste in Australia (1992) approved by the National Health and Medical Research Council and published by the Australian Government Publishing Service as Radiation Health Series No. 35 (ISBN 0 644 28673 3);

(2)Section 2(1), definition of "dangerous goods"—after paragraph (b) insert:

(c)nuclear waste;

(3)Section 2(1)—after the definition of "the Government Analyst" insert:

"ionizing radiation" has the same meaning as in the Radiation Protection and Control Act 1982;

"nuclear waste" means

(a)Category A, Category B or Category C radioactive waste as defined in the Code of Practice; or

(b)any waste material that contains a radioactive substance and is derived from—

(i)the operations or decommissioning of—

(A)a nuclear reactor; or

(B)a nuclear weapons facility; or

(C)a radioisotope production facility; or

(D)a uranium enrichment plant; or

(ii)the testing, use or decommissioning of nuclear weapons; or

(iii)the conditioning or reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel,

but does not include—

(c)nuclear waste lawfully stored in the State before the commencement of the Nuclear Waste Storage Facility (Prohibition) Act 2000; or

(d)nuclear waste—

(i)from radioactive material that has been used or handled in accordance with the Radiation Protection and Control Act 1982 pursuant to a licence, permit or other authority granted under that Act; and

(ii)the storage or disposal of which has been authorised by or under that Act;

(4)Section 2(1)—after the definition of "premises" insert:

"radioactive substance" means any substance that spontaneously emits ionizing radiation;

Substitution of section 13

4. Section 13—delete the section and substitute:

"Prescribed dangerous substance" for the purposes of this Division

13. In this Division—

"prescribed dangerous substance" means—

(a)a dangerous substance for the time being declared by regulation to be a prescribed dangerous substance for the purposes of this Division; or

(b)nuclear waste.

Substitution of section 17

5. Section 17—delete the section and substitute:

"Prescribed dangerous substance" for the purposes of this Division

17. In this Division—

"prescribed dangerous substance" means—

(a)a dangerous substance for the time being declared by regulation to be a prescribed dangerous substance for the purposes of this Division; or

(b)nuclear waste.

Insertion of Part 3 Division 5

6. Part 3—after Division 4 insert:

Division 5—Special provision for nuclear waste

Conveyance of nuclear waste declared project under Development Act

22A. (1) The provisions of Part 4 Division 2 Subdivision 1 of the Development Act 1993 apply to the conveyance of nuclear waste as if—

(a)the Minister has declared under section 46 of that Act that the conveyance of nuclear waste is a project to which the section applies; and

(b)the conveyance of nuclear waste is a project for which an EIS must be prepared.

(2) In this section—

"EIS" has the same meaning as in the Development Act 1993;

"Minister" means the Minister to whom for the time being the administration of the Development Act 1993 is committed.

Part 3—Amendment of Nuclear Waste Storage Facility (Prohibition) Act 2000

Substitution of section 9

7. Section 9—delete the section and substitute:

Prohibition against transport of nuclear waste into State

9. (1) A person who transports nuclear waste into the State is guilty of an offence.

Maximum penalty:

In the case of a natural person—$500 000 or imprisonment for 10 years;

In the case of a body corporate—$5 000 000.

(2) A person who supplies nuclear waste to another person is guilty of an offence if—

(a)the person supplies the nuclear waste to the other person for transport to a nuclear waste storage facility in the State; or

(b)the person believes, at the time of supplying the nuclear waste to the other person, that there is a reasonable likelihood the other person will transport the nuclear waste into the State,

and the nuclear waste is subsequently transported into the State by the other person.

Maximum penalty:

In the case of a natural person—$500 000 or imprisonment for 10 years;

In the case of a body corporate—$5 000 000.

(3) This section applies—

(a)both within and outside the State; and

(b)outside the State to the full extent of the extra-territorial legislative power of the State.

(4) The Governor may, by regulation, exempt a person from the application of subsection (1) or (2), conditionally or unconditionally.

Repeal of sections 14 and 15

8. Sections 14 and 15—delete the sections

Printed under the authority of the Government Printer

South Australian Bills

STATUTES AMENDMENT (NUCLEAR WASTE) BILL 2003