By Jim Blackwell
MELBOURNE — On November 30 the USS Omaha, a nuclear-powered submarine was scheduled to enter Port Phillip Bay. The Omaha may or may not be carrying nuclear weapons — a situation we cannot find out about because the United States Navy policy of neither confirming nor denying the nuclear-weapon status of its vessels. If an accident happens while the Omaha is in port, Melbourne may well become a waste land, too polluted to ever be used again.
This dramatic presentation of the situation is not fantasy. An incineration of a nuclear weapon in a fire on board the vessel or the rupturing of the containment of the nuclear reactor which propels the vessel could see vast amounts of highly radioactive smoke being spread over a vast area of Melbourne.
The USS Omaha is a Los Angeles class submarine propelled by a pressurised water cooled S6g GE reactor. It carries an arsenal of torpedoes, Harpoon missiles and can carry eight nuclear warhead Tomahawk missiles. It has a personnel of 127. Each submarine of this type costs over US$500 million just to build and millions more to maintain.
As for why it has appeared in a Victorian port now (after more than a decade since the last visit by a nuclear-powered submarine) is a mystery, except that federal defence minister Robert Ray has been pushing for the return of nuclear-powered vessels to Victorian ports. The election of the Kennett government provided him with this opportunity.
Premier Jeff Kennett welcomed the visit: "We certainly believe in giving safe harbor to our friends. We consider the US fleet friends of Victoria as obviously the federal government considers them friends of Australia", he said.
In 1989 around 95 separate nuclear accidents were known to have happened around the world. The US Navy continues to have around 30 nuclear weapons accidents every year. And since World War II up to 50 nuclear warheads and 30 nuclear reactors have found their way to the bottom of the ocean.
In the years 1983-87 US submarines had 50 collisions, 113 fires, 12 groundings, 85 explosions, 82 non-ordinance related equipment errors and 48 floodings. The USS Omaha itself was involved in an accident that ripped a fishing net and nearly drowned a group of fishermen in Canada.
A submarine of the same class, the USS Houston once snagged a submerged cable of a tug-boat off the California coast and pulled the tug under, killing one of the crew members. The reality is that accidents do happen and one could happen during the Omaha's five-day stay.
An accident could occur in a number of ways with a variety of eakage of reactor coolant could see radioactive material leaking into Port Phillip Bay, decimating marine life and the fishing industry.
Professor Jackson, the executive director of the Environmental Studies Institute of Santa Cruz, California, has outlined two accident scenarios which could happen on a vessel like the Omaha.
Scenario 1: The accidental incineration of a nuclear weapon. While tactical nuclear weapons usually carried by this type of submarine were part of the nuclear weapons cuts announced by former US President George Bush this year, they were to be stockpiled but "available" for use. The crews continue to train in the use of these weapons. As the US will neither confirm nor deny the presence of nuclear weapons on its vessels, nor open them to independent verification, we must assume that there may be nuclear weapons on board.
The plutonium that is a central part of a nuclear warhead is highly flammable and may be incinerated in a fire on board a vessel. A large cloud of smoke containing highly radioactive material would fall over an area of Victoria extending more than 250km causing death from radiation poisoning for some and deadly cancers in many more.
Scenario 2: The accidental breach of a nuclear reactor: A fire involving the nuclear power reactor that powers the Omaha could result ion a similar poisonous cloud being dispersed in a similar manner to that outlined above. The Coode Island fires of last year provide a precise example of how far a cloud of smoke could cover Melbourne. The difference being that the smoke from such a fire would kill thousands rather than just cause nausea and sore eyes.
If a south-easterly breeze was blowing at the time of such a fire the deadly cloud could kill and cost literally hundreds of millions of dollars to decontaminate. The United States does not guarantee any compensation in the event of a nuclear weapons accident and only guarantees to clean up the vessel in the event of an accident involving a nuclear reactor. Any evacuation plan could not possibly work in the period necessary to save lives. While the government may say they have contingency plans the reality is that in the event of the scenario above Melbourne would be dead.
Not worth the risk: Victoria and Australia gain no benefit from the visit of nuclear powered vessels. Rather than improving our national security they are targets for attack and in the event of war could expose Melbourne to a nuclear attack. The return of such vessels does nothing for the ANZUS alliance which has continued on right through the ban on such vessels. The ANZUS alliance itself in no way guarantees Australia's security or economy. An argument that good security relations with the US is necessary for good economic relations is ridiculous as any Australian farmer suffering from the damage done to international will testify.
Australians have a good record in resisting the docking of nuclear vessels. The Waterside Workers Federation and the Seaman's Union of Australia have refused to work in their docking and maintenance. Massive protests have occurred and will no doubt continue to occur if Melbourne and other Australian cites are exposed to such deadly possibilities.
[Jim Blackwell is secretary of the Campaign for International Cooperation and Disarmament. For more information ph. 03-663 3677.]