Labor alleges nuclear accident cover-up. 15/06/2006. ABC News Online


The Federal Opposition says the Government has to tell the public about the exact nature of an accident at Sydney's Lucas Heights nuclear reactor.
The accident has halted radio pharmaceutical production.
A memo leaked to the Opposition revealed details that have not been released publicly by the reactor's operator.
According to the memo, the ruptured pipe led to a worker coming into contact with a small amount of radiation that was washed off.
The Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation's operations chief Ron Cameron says the worker has received no internal radiation exposure.
That contrasts with a media statement released on Friday which said the worker was found not to have received any radiation dose.
It also said no measurable contamination dose was found outside the area.
The statement did not mention made that that a small amount of radioactive gas was released into the atmosphere.
The Science Minister, Julie Bishop, says the reactor's operator reported the burst pipe, even though it was not classified as a notifiable incident.
"This is just deliberate scaremongering by Labor in relation to a medical research reactor that delivers radioisotopes and radio pharmaceuticals for cancer patients across Australia," she said.
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