NSW: Greenpeace launches fresh challenge against nuclear waste

AAP General News (Australia)
04-04-2001
NSW: Greenpeace launches fresh challenge against nuclear waste

Greenpeace has filed a fresh legal challenge after a French court of appeal authorised
the state-owned nuclear reprocessing firm COGEMA to unload a cargo of nuclear waste from
Australia.

Australian anti-nuclear campaigner STEPHEN CAMPBELL says Greenpeace filed a fresh complaint
overnight.

The move follows the court in Caen, in north-west France, throwing out an earlier decision
banning COGEMA from unloading the fuel in Cherbourg and taking it to its nearby plant
at La Hague.

Mr CAMPBELL has told Channel Seven that doubt remains over whether COGEMA has the correct
licences and authorisation in place to reprocess the Australian nuclear waste and whether
the importation of the nuclear waste is illegal.

He says Industry Minister NICK MINCHIN was premature in saying the Caen court's decision
vindicated the Australia's fuel management policy.

He says there's still a lengthy legal process to go through and Greenpeace is quite
confident that COGEMA doesn't have the correct licences and authorisations in place.

AAP RTV jjs/jn

KEYWORD: FRANCE NUCLEAR AUST (SYDNEY)

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