Alan Parkinson , thank you for your integrity and for taking the time to get this information out to the public. It might have been lost to history if not for your efforts. Sadly I have heard rumours relating to the collection of all historical evidence - birth defects and other medical records, being spirited away to Canberra in the early 2000's. Apparently too sensitive to be transferred over any network, the files were sealed in a briefcase and handcuffed to someone for "air- gapped transfer". This person had the authority to refuse all requests by customs officers to inspect his belongings and was to request the assistance of federal Police if customs officers gave him any problems.. It weighed on his conscience from what I was told.. But who knows? All I know for sure is that I heard about him in 2001..
@alanparkinson9135
4 жыл бұрын
Hello Dan. Yes there are such stories around and usually based on fact. For example, the story of Hedley Marston and his work checking the occurrence of Strontium in the thyroids of sheep and cattle across Australia following those atomic tests. Alan P
@dandeeteeyem2170
4 жыл бұрын
@@alanparkinson9135 yes indeed :) it's why I get so frustrated by people who push the narrative of UFOs visiting earth, or cattle mutilations.. There are waaaay better explanations here on earth, and the real culprits are obvious when you see who's pushing UFO stories down our throats the most... 🙄
@nullarborjack
Жыл бұрын
My brothers and I have very unusual tumours and thyroid problems after living near Maralinga in 1965-1966 and later 1967 to 1968 at Kingoonya.
@dandeeteeyem2170
Жыл бұрын
@@nullarborjack I have zero faith our gevernmment will ever admit if they caused this. By remaining silent about the danger of living in these areas they have blood on their hands. It seems human life has a price, and for some politicians, it's cheap.. :/
@LiquidAudio
6 жыл бұрын
Fantastic video Alan. For anyone out there watching this and interested to know more, I highly recommend Alan's book "Maralinga - Australia's Nuclear Waste Cover-up". It's one of the most interesting books I've read and if, like me, you're fascinated by the technical aspects of this sort of thing, Alan was there and covers all the details. The British nuclear tests at Montebello and Maralinga and the subsequent clean-up, or lack thereof, are a sad blight on our history. Scarce thought was given to environmental impacts then or now, or the effects on the traditional land owners. Its scandalous what the Brits got away with here, in Australia. They certainly weren't going to conduct nuclear weapons testing on their soil. I'm sure they thought they were 'helping' us...
@alanparkinson9135
6 жыл бұрын
Thanks for the advert - the book is now in E format. You are certainly correct that Britain 'used' Australia in the development of their nuclear weapons, but I must add that Australia had its own dreams of having a nuclear bomb. How the Australian government could have allowed the infamous Vixen B trials to proceed is beyond me since they were the cause of the huge contamination. However. the partial clean-up was all Australia's doing and was stuffed up by leaving it in the hands of people with no nuclear expertise, no understanding of the disposal of nuclear waste, and no regulatory organisation to specify what would be acceptable. Even when ARPANSA was formed (when the partial clean-up was more than half complete), they allowed the inadequate practice of simple burial to continue. A sad tale all round.
@LiquidAudio
6 жыл бұрын
Alan Parkinson Thanks for clarifying that Alan, I agree. Australia is totally responsible for the poor clean-up the most recent time. My point is that they shouldn’t really have had to do it at all. If the Brits had cleaned up properly after themselves, there wouldn’t have been plutonium fragments lying on the surface like there were. Sadly, during the 60’s and 70’s, Australia still hadn’t really found its voice and was still under British influence to some extent. This I think lead to some poor decisions, such as to allow the Vixen B trials. Remember that, even 20 years ago, Pangea was trying to convince Australians to house a nuclear waste dump for the world in either WA or SA. The largest stakeholder was the British nuclear fuel processing company whose name escapes me! I can only reiterate what a great book you wrote and how much I enjoyed reading it. A real eye opener. You must have some more amazing stories from your time on that project!
@Stefan_Eccles
Жыл бұрын
@alanparkinson9135 there may have been unexploded ordnance in that failed IVS heap?
@alanparkinson9135
11 ай бұрын
Hello, That too is mentioned as a possibility in my new book, also titled "Maralinga Mystery". In each bomb, there were 32 detonators and 64 explosive lenses, and each trial was designed for one detonator to explode before any other. I question what would happen if some did not explode but were swept into the adjacent pit and covered. That is more of a possibility than any of the other wild suggestions put forward. Alan Parkinson@@Stefan_Eccles
@alanparkinson9135
11 ай бұрын
Hello I was checking a new comment added to your initial contribution. Since my first book was published, other authors have written about Maralinga and they all tend to accept the department's line that the ISV equipment exploded. I finally got fed up with the lies and misinformation so I wrote a second book entitled "Maralinga Mystery" - it has now been released. Alan Parkinson
@anhedonianepiphany5588
7 жыл бұрын
Thank you, Alan, for such informative videos. I was aware that pretty much _every_ "clean up" attempt made at the test sites had consisted of half-arsed approaches (or shortcut cop-outs), mostly due to the reluctance of governments, both here and in Britain, to commit to _any_ spending on remediation. The detailed specifics _you_ provide are not readily accessible for most people, and your personal viewpoint is unique and valuable. From the _very beginning_ of British nuclear weapons tests, including the decision to use Australia as test range, the degree of governmental and military contempt for _anyone else_ was astonishing! The British government's contempt for Australia, by _lying_ about the types of tests and the dangers, and by withholding _all test data_ from Australian scientists - PM Menzies contempt for his own country, by submitting to the will of the British _without question_ and selling us out to gain social points in England - the British military's contempt for the Australian military - AND, _crucially,_ almost _everybody's_ contempt for the lives, welfare, and traditional lands of _many_ native people! This blight on Australia's landscape should have been _thoroughly_ and _appropriately_ dealt with long ago, but it increasingly seems as if this may _never_ occur.
@alanparkinson9135
7 жыл бұрын
Hello Nic I tend to agree with your comments, but must add that Australia wished to have its own nuclear weapons and hoped to gain access to the technology by piggy-backing the British tests. They failed to gain the necessary access for two reasons as far as I can see. The main reason was restrictions placed on Britain by the USA re sharing of atomic information, and the second reason was the inability of the Australian government to have sufficient involvement at the higher levels. I was in fact recruited by the Menzies government to help build a nuclear power reactor in NSW which I found out later was to be part of an overall project to acquire nuclear weapons. Regards Alan P
@anhedonianepiphany5588
7 жыл бұрын
Thanks for some more of your interesting insight, Alan. I'd bet you have some amazing stories up your sleeve. Fascinating stuff!
@alanparkinson9135
5 жыл бұрын
I agree, but in my opinion, the failure of the last clean-up was because the department decided they did not need any nuclear expertise (or project management experience) in their team and the clerks adopted a scheme that overseas countries would reject. We will never know the whole truth about the tests. But one thing is certain - Australia wanted a nuclear weapon and that is one reason why they collaborated with Britain.
@AndyRRR0791
4 жыл бұрын
@@alanparkinson9135 Whatever for? Were they going to wave it at the Chinese to shoo them away or something...?
@bossdog1480
Жыл бұрын
My dad was a Maralinga veteran. He died young. 😒
@DavidHopkinson-l8j
5 ай бұрын
My granddad was there. His 98 years old. Still kicking strong. Dunno how that works.
@bossdog1480
5 ай бұрын
@@DavidHopkinson-l8j Extreme luck or maybe wasn't required to walk about in heavily radiated areas. My dad was gone at 41.
@tedrobinson5743
7 жыл бұрын
Thank you sir for your honesty. I live in NEVADA,USA. so I try to understand these thing's as they pertain to my State.
@alanparkinson9135
7 жыл бұрын
Hello Ted Thank you for your comment. While I was involved in the Maralinga project, I spent a week at the Nevada Test Site, and I had the opportunity to compare the practice at the two sites for dealing with the same problem. If you watch another of my videos on KZitem, entitled Plutonium at Maralinga, you will see some photographs of me at Nevada and a comparison of the two approaches, extended to explain the approach to similar problems in Britain. The Australian approach leaves a lot to be desired. Regards Alan P
@michaelapostolides6021
Ай бұрын
Hi Alan ! , what an interesting day it was when that ISV hood went up ! , all these "managers" saying there must have been something undocumented in the pit either drums of fuel or oil or perhaps explosives of some sort ! , they even got an expert on site to test for residue to confirm their "deduction" (all negative) . I raised the idea that the obvious reason to me was water ! , basicly water and molten rock (lava) really wouldnt mix that well ! , and there was a lot of water sprayed onto the long probe of the excavator rock hammer they used to investigate the size and depth of the burial pit ! , also in the historical records when the initial clean up was done the burial pits were excavated using plant equipment , but .. some were in solid rock and were blasted into the rock using what they called "beehives" ! , common sense would say theres a good chance something blasted into solid rock could very easily hold water at the bottom ! , and the "probing" gave the dust control water an easy path to the bottom ! , and during the melt , when a couple of hundered tons of lava reached that water , ... where else was it going to go ?!! , i tried raising this possibility a number of times , to no avail ! , to me its what makes the most sense and explains the complete lack "explosive" residue ! , but i guess that didnt fit with the agenda , with the complete change of direction away from what was ment to happen !
@alanparkinson9135
Ай бұрын
Hello Michael. Sorry for the delay in commenting on your views. Yes what you suggest could have been responsible for the exploding pit, but I still think the explosion was something in the pits such as one of the detonators or explosives from the Vixen B trials. I mention this in my second book, Maralinga Mystery, supported by a letter from Britain. Of course, those in the department (and some others) wanted to blame the ISV equipment. The public servants to cover up their mistake in warranting the pit contents, and the others for their own benefit to make extra cash from the work. Blaming the equipment has been picked up by authors who have published books about Maralinga and have perpetuated the misinformation. But nobody has explained how a failure of equipment that is two metres above the pit could possibly cause the pit contents to be thrown upwards out of the pit. They must have a different understanding of the way that gravity works. The 'others' then went on to say that the steel plates should be melted for no reason, and those plates were contaminated with plutonium. A photo published in the MARTAC Report shows those plates still stacked after the trial so could not possibly have been contaminated. And all of this was supposedly overseen and approved by the public servants. Alan P
@mellbenham6809
4 жыл бұрын
I worked on glass vitrification at Harwell in the 1980's its now being used at Sellafield for high level waste encapsulation I also spent 10 years working of Plutonium glove boxes so have a really good working knowledge of dealing with Pu239/238 I also worked for 8 years in Health physics in the 1990's and was asked if I wanted to put my name down for this very cleanup which I did unfortunately we didn't get the contract so that was that mind you I had no idea what was out there and after doing some research I'm not sure I'd have been happy there the thought of paddling around in a desert with Plutonium being blown around by the wind puts the fear of christ up me in the hot labs just a few counts were considered a problem so god only knows whats still floating around on the breeze there, I also thought it would never happen to me but in 2016 I underwent surgery to have a massive GIST sarcoma removed from the left side of my stomach it came in at 5kg's I lost half my stomach and most of my large intestine, even now 4+ years down the line I still find it hard to believe what I've had happen to me I tried claiming compensation but got told no chance although my tumour type is incredibly rare they say it was just bad luck, bad luck my ar*s I have a PDGFRA Exon 18 D842V mutation GIST, they only see around 10 cases across the whole of the UK a year and up until then there had been no cancers in my family ever.
@alanparkinson9135
4 жыл бұрын
Hello Mell I am sorry to hear of your medical problems. It is difficult to prove that some health problems are caused by exposure to harmful radiation. I doubt you would have had much to fear had you been able to work at Maralinga. We took very good care of the radiation workers with sealed cabs and filtered air. The HP staff who monitored the heavy equipment wore respirators when checking the scrapers and other equipment. Good luck in the future. Alan P
@AndyRRR0791
4 жыл бұрын
Does anyone do any groundwater monitoring of the area to see how stable the remediation remains?
@alanparkinson9135
4 жыл бұрын
I very much doubt if any monitoring is done of groundwater. None was done during my time on the project. I don't know if any other monitoring is done for example of dust raising.
@answerback-films655
3 жыл бұрын
According to wiki the english in 1971 agreed to the "repatriation" of the remaining radio active plutonium that is to remain in decay for the next 24000 years. I wonder where they store it in england?
@alanparkinson9135
3 жыл бұрын
I'm not sure what this means by "the remaining radioactive plutonium". I know nothing of any agreement made in 1971 to repatriate plutonium to Britain. Perhaps this should have referred to a joint operation between scientists from both Australia and Britain to recover 500 g of Pu from a burial at Maralinga. That was in 1979. The plutonium was recovered, packed in six large drums and shipped out to Britain by Hercules aircraft. It is now stored at the UK Weapons research station. Note also that the figure of 24,000 often stated in relation to plutonium is the half-life of the element - it remains radioactive far longer than that.
@ralphkilloran8065
8 жыл бұрын
Thank you Dr. Parkinson for putting out your videos on the questionable methods and dealings that were put to the Maralinga nuclear cleanup. I would appreciate if any of your viewers might be able to offer me any information on Australia's nuclear expert, Dr. K. H. Lokan. Dr. Lokan authored "Cosmos 954 - A Case Study" which supported the Canadian nuclear expert Dr Bliss Tracy's assessment of a nuclear fire only holding radiation contamination for 2 years. It should also be noted that Dr. Tracy took part in a Maralinga inquiry where he seemingly white-washed his participation in the cleanup. There seems to be a global relationship among these nuclear experts and how they support each other.
@alanparkinson9135
8 жыл бұрын
Hello Ralph When the Maralinga project started, the government decided there should be an advisory committee to advise the minister on progress of the project. I was a member of that committee, as was Dr Keith Lokan. At that time, Keith was also the Head of ARL and had extensive knowledge of Maralinga. I have no knowledge of the Cosmos 954 study. Bliss Tarcey was not involved in the Maralinga project. However, on 16 April 2000, the ABC Radio National broadcast a 50 minutes program in their Background Briefing series - entitled Maralinga: The Fall-out Continues. I collaborated with Gregg Borschmann (the presenter) in that program which included a statement by ARPANSA the nuclear regulator, certifying that the burial trenches had been constructed consistent with the Code of Practice for the Disposal of Radioactive Waste in Australia 1992. Bliss Tracey was one of the four authors of the code which was never used in the project. Gregg spoke by 'phone with Bliss during the program and he stated that the code was never designed to cover a situation such as Maralinga. He went on to say that he was surprised that the Australian government should attempt to use it as a benchmark for the disposal of plutonium. I am not in a position to comment about holding radiation for only four years since that depends on the isotopes involved. I trust this helps you, and please note I am Mr not Dr, or simply Alan.
@ralphkilloran8065
8 жыл бұрын
Thank you for your very thorough explanation on Dr. Bliss Tracy and "Maralinga - The Fallout continues".
@PetraKann
4 жыл бұрын
The BRITISH nuclear weapons tests in Australia during the 1950s were more than questionable to begin with. No public discussion, nor were there any questions raised in the Australian parliament. Menzies receives a phone call from London - that is all it took to contaminate Australian soil for thousands of years. (and the lives affected due to fallout)
@stephenpage-murray7226
2 жыл бұрын
You should have a look at the cancer rates for residents/ex residents of Woomera. It’s an eye opener
@alanparkinson9135
2 жыл бұрын
Thanks for your comment. It would be difficult to trace the cancer rates at Woomera to Maralinga. They are some few hundred kilometres apart.
@stephenpage-murray7226
2 жыл бұрын
@@alanparkinson9135 Talk of a class action some years back. The cemetery at Woomera also has more babies graves than one can imagine. My nephrologist wrote papers to defence but all quickly buried.
@emtyskull
4 жыл бұрын
This doesn't surprise me in the slightest. My grandfather was in the Monte Bellos for another well known British test, its disgusting how our govt turned their back on those men, absolutely heartless.
@alanparkinson9135
4 жыл бұрын
Hello Matty. The first British atomic explosion was in the Monte Bello islands aboard HMS Plym, and I understand that was a really filthy test with a lot of the seabed thrown out of the water. There were two more tests there and they were large explosions. I have sympathy for the service personnel and civilians involved in those tests.
@emtyskull
4 жыл бұрын
Alan Parkinson bang on Alan my grandfather was on the HMAS Karangi which I believe was the closest vessel to the Plym at detonation.
@alanparkinson9135
4 жыл бұрын
@@emtyskull Hello Matty In his book Test of Greatness, author Brian Cathcart records how HMAS Karangi was used in survey work before the tests and then returned to Perth. He does not list the ships present at the tests, but there were probably too many of both RAN and RN to list in his book.
@emtyskull
4 жыл бұрын
Alan Parkinson Thank you so much Alan I’ll have to get my hands on that I know my dad would be thrilled to read it!
@emtyskull
4 жыл бұрын
@@alanparkinson9135 crikey Alan they want up to $250 for that book that’s if someone has one. $125USD for a used copy. Must be one helluva read!!!!
@chriswalker1058
3 жыл бұрын
My father was their in the late 60,s as a part of the clean up
@alanparkinson9135
3 жыл бұрын
I trust he remained safe during his work on Operation Brumby, as I am sure he did.
@chriswalker1058
3 жыл бұрын
@@alanparkinson9135 he talks about it all the time he drove a Bedford tipper lorry he remembers standing in one of the creators left by the bomb
@alanparkinson9135
3 жыл бұрын
@@chriswalker1058 Only one of the atomic explosions created a crater. That was the second in the Buffalo series and was code-named Marcoo. It was a small bomb, only 1.5 kilotons, and was exploded on the ground - hence the crater. I have seen photos of men walking up the side of the crater, or standing on the rim. From those photos, I guess the crater was about 12 or 13 metres deep by perhaps 40 metres across. The crater was used as a dumping ground for eight small aircraft and some buildings and then covered. By the time got to Maralinga, the crater had been filled and the land levelled.
@BerlietGBC
5 жыл бұрын
Another outstanding movie from you one this, my question is how much more contamination did they cause trying to break up the vitrified blocks, to a engineer as myself this seams utterly pointless, thank you again for your work.
@alanparkinson9135
4 жыл бұрын
Hello Chris Sorry, I missed your comment of 9 months ago. I agree that breaking up the blocks was pointless, but somebody saw an opportunity to book a lot more hours to the work and so increase their income. They then used the broken blocks in a compromise solution to cover the heavily contaminated debris, instead of doing what they would do in USA or UK and that is place the whole lot in a concrete bunker and cover it with a concrete lid.
@BerlietGBC
4 жыл бұрын
Alan Parkinson Watching this terrifies me the way they went about is , just watching the amounts of dust thrown up to
@MichaelRogersJesusrules
Жыл бұрын
Its discusting! thanx for sharing.
@alanparkinson9135
Жыл бұрын
There is more to tell than I could squeeze into the video - see my recently released book "Maralinga Mystery". Alan P
@jackovhemling1831
6 жыл бұрын
My Grandpa was at maralinga for the initial test, he is in his 80's and fighting fit.
@alanparkinson9135
6 жыл бұрын
Good to hear that he is in fine fettle. Alan P
@jackovhemling1831
6 жыл бұрын
Alan Parkinson Very interesting... he did have bowel cancer cant decide if it were due to leaning over radar done on air craft or maralinga
@jasoningarfield1268
5 жыл бұрын
Alan that last comment of the TOs recieving $6million is never going to compensate them on lives lost. The actual date has slipped my mind but bones of local aborigines that had died were sent to England for testing for quite a period of time
@alanparkinson9135
5 жыл бұрын
I agree that no money will ever compensate for the loss of lives. I guess the reported $6 M was to smooth the way to transfer custody of the lands to the traditional owners.
@nikkireborn5923
6 жыл бұрын
Good job!
@alanparkinson9135
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you for your comment.
@Steve211Ucdhihifvshi
7 жыл бұрын
This is quintessentially Australian. He can do it cause he's my mate and it'll save us some cash. What are your thoughts on visiting the site today as a tourist. I was thinking of visiting but Who knows if it's truely cleaned up out there
@alanparkinson9135
7 жыл бұрын
Thanks for your comment - I tend to agree with you. I suspect there was a desire on the part of the government to save money, and this totally inadequate of dealing with the contamination was adopted. In the end, they did not save because they made an additional payment to the traditional owners when the land was returned to their keeping. As for visiting Maralinga, I recommend it to you. The Maralinga Tjarutja in Ceduna give permission to visit the site and there is a caretaker who takes visitors round the site. A large area is still contaminated, but you would not go onto that land. I have been there many times even before the partial clean-up, and I walked over the contamination without harm.
@marklimbrick
2 жыл бұрын
I find your upbeat invitation a bit odd. Plutonium is only realised in quantity artificially. One dust speck lodged in tissue is very likely to cause cancer. The area has a higher risk of a particle. But the particle is a binary. There or not there. Maralinga more likely there. London dusty and full of other hazards but particles of Pu not there.
@stephensheppard6678
2 жыл бұрын
Hi Alan as being your eyes and ears on site in your tenure and the on until 2003 I totally agree with all of your statements. I guess this is what happens when a government department (Dept of Works) is taken over by the alternative Tenderer GHD who all along wanted to exhume and rebury all the material have the ear of the Commonwealth and how the greasy poke is lubricated. Parkinson's Law (Really) Shame it does no mention putting on the handbrake of a vehicle No Parkin son remember Steve
@alanparkinson9135
2 жыл бұрын
You were more than eyes and ears, and much appreciated. GHD were not alternative tenderer - they were not in the final six considered for management of the project. GHD purchased the project manager company and the contract was extended to cover the ISV part, even though they had not been involved in the development. They then suggested a change to the scope of work, which the department accepted, to simply bury the highly contaminated debris. And they received two awards for management of the project!!!! The 'No Parkin son' sign was needed because somebody had forgotten to erect a fence to protect the communications tower.
@granskare
7 жыл бұрын
we always do this in USA. And now with our new prez, anything can occur.
@alanparkinson9135
7 жыл бұрын
Hello - I tend to agree with you - anything can occur if money is the governing factor.
@Stefan_Eccles
Жыл бұрын
F.R.Mayfield Electrical / AMEC Pty Ltd GHD and Theiss Brothers would have made a fortune!
@alanparkinson9135
11 ай бұрын
Hello Stef, You might be right in some cases, but it might not be confined to companies. Some individuals might also have profited by persuading the department to undertake work that was not necessary. This is described in my new book "Maralinga Mystery" just released. Alan Parkinson
@hobens1
3 жыл бұрын
Government bureaucracy
@alanparkinson9135
3 жыл бұрын
No argument there. It would not have been so bad if they had been qualified.
@criminalgangster5237
5 жыл бұрын
I see maralinga on geography map
@stoopsyo
5 жыл бұрын
do you live in adelaide? id love to talk to you over a beer!
@alanparkinson9135
5 жыл бұрын
Hello - No I do not live in Adelaide, and I no longer make my regular visits to there, so sorry, it could have been interesting.
@dmystify1381
Жыл бұрын
...and rightly so,they can keep it....i wonder where,the 6million dollars went.....lot o money back then.
@blairjohnson5833
8 жыл бұрын
Is this a dank meme compilation
@alanparkinson9135
7 жыл бұрын
It probably is.
@longdaysandhardworkatramra8260
2 жыл бұрын
This is 1337x MLG faze type stuff right here my dude epic plutonium no scope trickshot compilation 2008
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