Australian uranium fuelled Fukushima and now fuels global insecurity

It did nothing even as the ability of Japan's nuclear plants to withstand earthquakes and tsunamis came under growing criticism from industry insiders and independent experts.

And the uranium industry did nothing about the multiple conflicts of interest plaguing Japanese nuclear regulators.

"Deeply saddened"

Mirarr senior Traditional Owner Yvonne Margarula - on whose land in the Northern Territory Rio Tinto's Ranger uranium mine operated - said she was "deeply saddened" that uranium from Ranger was exported to Japanese nuclear power companies including TEPCO.

No such humility from the uranium companies. They get tetchy at any suggestion of culpability, with the Australian Uranium Association describing it as "opportunism in the midst of human tragedy" and "utter nonsense".

Yet, Australia could have played a role in breaking the vicious cycle of mismanagement in Japan's nuclear industry by making uranium exports conditional on improved management of nuclear plants and tighter regulation.

Even a strong public statement of concern would have been heard by the Japanese utilities - unless it was understood to be rhetoric for public consumption. It would have registered with some politicians and bureaucrats. It would have registered in the Japanese media.

But the uranium industry denied culpability and instead stuck its head in the sand. Since the industry is in denial about its role in fuelling the Fukushima disaster, there is no reason to believe that it will behave more responsibly in future.

Successive Australian governments did nothing about the unacceptable standards in Japan's nuclear industry. Julia Gillard -- Australia's Prime Minister at the time of the Fukushima disaster -- said the disaster "doesn't have any impact on my thinking about uranium exports".

'Nuclear village'

Signification elements of Japan's corrupt 'nuclear village' -- comprising industry, regulators, politicians and government agencies -- were back in control just a few years after the Fukushima disaster. Regulation remains problematic.

Add to that ageing reactors, and companies facing serious economic stress and intense competition, and there's every reason for ongoing concern about nuclear safety in Japan.