Nuclear plan 'irrational'

FOREIGN Minister Alexander Downer's push for a nuclear power station in South Australia is irrational, the opposition said today.Labor's Foreign Affairs spokesman Kevin Rudd today slammed Mr Downer's call for a nuclear-powered desalination plant to curb demand on the Murray River.
Mr Downer told an Energy Supply Association of Australia conference in Adelaide yesterday that the project would stem the drain on the river's water by nearly 75 per cent, and fears of radiation leaks were not based on fact.
However, Mr Rudd today said the claims were "completely irrational".
"So would Mr Downer like the nuclear waste from the plant put in his back yard?" Mr Rudd said. "If this goes ahead, there are likely to be nuclear power stations in all of our capital cities shortly."
The ALP remained firmly opposed to a domestic nuclear industry and, "'Nuclear Alex' needs to cool down", Mr Rudd said.
Prime Minister John Howard last month called for a national debate on the nuclear industry