Dear Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency,

This is a Freedom of Information (FoI} Act request regarding the storage of radioactive waste at ARRPANSA's Yallambie building.

Approximately 180 barrels of Ra-226 waste were transferred to Yallambie last year and are now stored indefinitely at ARPANSA's building. An expansion project was undertaken at the Yallambie building in 2018 to make room for this waste.

I don't know if a new licence was issued to accommodate this waste or whether an existing licence (e.g.S0002) was used to accept the waste. In either case, the CEO of ARPANSA was the licence applicant and regulatory approval authority.

I'm requesting an electronic copy of information associated with the application and approval for a licence or licence change which enabled the storage of approximately 180 drums of radioactive waste in Yallambie beginning in 2018. The requested information includes:

- the application for a new licence, or an amended licence (S0002), under which this radioactive waste is now being stored in Yallambie

- the approval for a new licence, or an amended licence (S0002), under which this radioactive waste is now being stored in Yallambie

- the current licence, including licence conditions, under which the radioactive waste store is now being stored in Yallambie

- any regulatory assessment report in support of the decision to grant the licence or licence change

- request and/or approval to construct an item important for safety, if applicable

- request and/or approval to make a relevant change that will have significant implications for safety, if applicable

This FoI request concerns safety and is very much in the public interest. It does not entail any personal information. It does not involve any agency other than ARPANSA. No proprietary information is requested.

Yours faithfully,
Anonymous

Dear $ARPANSA FOI,

Thank you for the acknowledgement.

In the spirit of the FoI Act, please provide the requested documents expeditiously.

There is no justification for delay. There is no third party to consult. I specifically requested documents that do not warrant extensions.

Yours sincerely,
Anonymous

Dear $ARPANSA FOI,

The time for making a decision on my request has expired and you have not provided a notice of decision.

You assured me that you'd advise me if an extension would be needed. The 30-day requirement was not met and I received no such advice.

There was no third party to consult because ARPANSA was both licence holder and regulator. That is, no other agencies or organisations were involved.

You assured me that you'd respond to my request by 15 July 2019. My request is simple. The information exists and documentation is not voluminous. I respectfully request that the information be provided without further delay.

Yours sincerely,
Anonymous

Dear $ARPANSA FOI,

Thank you. I look forward to receiving the requested information very soon.

I find it odd and ironic that ARPANSA, a regulatory agency tasked with enforcing regulations, would not do more to comply with the requirements of the FoI Act.

Yours sincerely,
Anonymous

Dear ARPANSA FOI,

Thank you.

I note that the source licence provided is a version that is dated after my FoI request.

However my request was for the licence, including licence conditions, under which the radioactive waste was being stored in Yallambie at the time of my request. I therefore respectfully request a copy of licence S0002 in effect when the waste was received in 2018 and/or the licence in effect on 14 June 2019.

You provided no information with respect to any safety or regulatory assessment performed prior to accepting the waste at the Yallambie building. Can you please confirm that no assessment was performed?

Yours sincerely,
Anonymous