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Our online presence
Contact
- Publications
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- Policies and initiatives
Emissions reduction
Industry innovation and science
- Artificial intelligence
- Australian Radioactive Waste Agency
- Australian Space Agency
- Boosting innovation and science
- Co-hosting the Square Kilometre Array
- Increasing international collaboration
- Industry growth centres
- Industry Innovation and Science Australia
- National Measurement Institute
- Optical astronomy in Australia
- Participating in the digital economy
- Promoting innovation precincts
- Science in our department
- Science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM)
Energy
Resources
Northern Australia
Trade
Business support
Measurement services
Government to government services
- Regulations and standards
Emissions reduction
Energy
Resources
- Applying to export rough diamonds
- Applying to export uranium and controlled ores
- Offshore mineral exploration and mining
- Offshore oil and gas exploration and development
- Offshore petroleum exploration acreage release process
- Regulating offshore oil and gas in Australian Commonwealth waters
- Regulating the Ranger Uranium Mine
- Taxes and royalties on minerals and petroleum
Measurement
Trade
Space industry
Building industry
Business support
- Funding and incentives
Emissions reduction
Industry innovation and science
- Australian Square Kilometre Array Fellowships Programme
- Business Research and Innovation Initiative
- Business-research collaboration
- Collaborating with Asia-Pacific on science, research and innovation
- Collaborating with China on science and research
- Collaborating with India on science and research
- Cooperative research centres
- Enabling international space investment
- Industry 4.0
- Inspiring Australia: Science engagement in Australia
- International research collaboration
- Moon to Mars: opportunities for Australian businesses
- Prime Minister's Prizes for Science
- Research and Development Tax Incentive
- Supporting advanced manufacturing
- Supporting business and innovation
- Supporting space infrastructure growth
- Transitioning Australia’s automotive manufacturing industry
- Venture capital
Resources
- About us
COVID-19
Jobs
Who we are
- Our Ministers
- Our Executive team
- Organisation chart
- Our portfolio agencies
- Overseas engagement
- Anti-Dumping Commission
- Anti-Dumping Review Panel
- Australian Radioactive Waste Agency
- Australian SKA Office
- Australian Space Agency
- Critical Minerals Facilitation Office
- National Measurement Institute
- Office of Innovation and Science Australia
- Office of Northern Australia
- Office of the Chief Economist
- Office of the Chief Scientist
Who we work with
Reporting and accountability
- Annual report
- Assurance and Audit Committee
- Budget statements
- Campaign Certification Statements
- Continuing Order of the Senate
- Corporate plan
- Deregulation agenda
- Freedom of information
- Gifts and benefits register
- Grants reporting
- Information Publication Scheme
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- Privacy impact assessments
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- Senate Order 15: portfolio appointments and vacancies
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- Australian Radioactive Waste Agency
On this page
Australian Radioactive Waste Agency

Australians benefit enormously from nuclear medicine and research activities. Around 2 in 3 Australians will use nuclear medicine in their lifetime. With these benefits comes a responsibility to safely manage radioactive waste.
Currently, Australia’s radioactive waste is stored in more than 100 locations around the country.
The Australian Radioactive Waste Agency (ARWA) is leading the process to:
- responsibly manage our nation’s radioactive waste
- deliver a single, safe and purpose-built facility
Read more about what we do and how we’re organised.
Managing radioactive waste
The Australian Radioactive Waste Management Framework sets out our principles, responsibilities and goals for effectively managing radioactive waste throughout its life cycle.
This work includes:
- enabling Australia to meet international obligations under the Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and Safety of Radioactive Waste Management
- working with the independent regulator of Australian radioactive material, the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency, to ensure safety
Establishing a national radioactive waste management facility
We’re establishing the National Radioactive Waste Management Facility (NRWMF) in line with the National Radioactive Waste Management Act 2012.
The facility will:
- permanently dispose of low-level radioactive waste
- temporarily store intermediate-level waste
In February 2020, the government identified Napandee, near Kimba in South Australia, as the preferred site to host the facility. The National Radioactive Waste Management Amendment (Site Specification, Community Fund and Other Measures) Bill 2020 confirms this commitment.
We’ll lead a separate process to site a facility to permanently dispose of Australia’s intermediate-level waste.
Facility concept design
See a description of the concept design.
Delivering community benefits
The facility will provide a new industry for Kimba with:
- job opportunities during construction and ongoing
- improved infrastructure, including water, power, communications, transport and waste
- increased local investment
Kimba will receive a Community Development Package of up to $31 million. This package includes:
- $20 million community fund to provide long-term support for the region
- $8 million of grants to strengthen the economic and skills base of the host community
- $3 million from the government’s Indigenous Advancement Strategy will support Indigenous opportunity.
Communities considered during the site selection process will receive $2 million in grant funding this year through a Community Benefit Program.
Read more
- View news and media
- Read reports, independent assessments and community information
- Read about waste management principles on ANSTO’s website
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Contact us
- Email arwa [at] industry.gov.au
- Phone 13 28 46
- Write to us at: Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources; Australian Radioactive Waste Agency, GPO Box 2013, Canberra ACT 2601
See also
The site selection process for the facility involved community consultation and technical assessment over 4 years.
- See previous work by the National Radioactive Waste Management Facility Taskforce to select a site for the facility.
- Earlier work to nominate a site can be found on the Australia Government web archive. We’re aware there are discrepancies with data capture of some documents in the archive. If you’re having difficulty accessing any documents, please contact us.
Last updated: 22 December 2020
Content ID: 67322