Make the most of our uranium

THE public mood on nuclear power is shifting because of the potential of a global catastrophe as a result of climate change.This key environmental issue will shape political decision-making as the situation becomes ever more urgent.
Ultimately, clean, green renewables like solar, wind and hot-rocks technology must be developed to generate electricity without producing the harmful gases causing climate change.
But to expect in the short-term that these forms of power could replace coal, gas and nuclear generators is simply wishful thinking.
Climate change demands immediate answers and nuclear power will inevitably be seen as part of the solution.
The world is energy hungry. No one can stop economic growth placing steadily increasing demands on supply.
Australia has a unique responsibility - and opportunity - because it has about 35 per cent of the known useable uranium resources.
Opposition Leader Kim Beazley and Premier Mike Rann are among Labor Party leaders who recognise this and who advocate scrapping the no-new uranium mines policy.
While some members of the ALP will seek to hold the line on environmental grounds, others recognise that large segments of the environmental movement now choose nuclear power as a lesser evil than climate change.
As the debate moves forward to accepting the advantages and inevitability of nuclear power, the question becomes how does Australia best contribute to combating the problems. These are the threat of terrorists or rogue states gaining access to radioactive material or technology and the safe storage of waste.
Enriching uranium in Australia, as advocated today by Foreign Affairs Minister Alexander Downer, would help make the process safer by giving us - as a mature, responsible democracy - greater control of the product and lessening the chance of proliferation.
It will also elevate us from the world quarry's to a real player in an increasingly important and lucrative industry.
We have an obligation not to squander this resource and to obtain the best possible returns we can.