The National Nanotechnology Strategy Taskforce has just released its “Report on Options for a National Nanotechnology Strategy” paper. While this has been a long time coming, I think they have delivered a good result. They have identified the critical role of government in addressing immediate issues of OH&S, community awareness, metrology and standards, and international cooperation. They also identified an opportunity for new national mechanisms – a Federal/State coordination function, and a major national centre of excellence – to optimise the uptake of nanotechnology in Australia. While there are pros and cons to these ideas, I hope these mechanisms receive full consideration by the Minister.
The other aspect of the Taskforce paper that impressed was that they outlined the alternative “do nothing” scenario, in which the Commonwealth takes new action and current State and industry initiatives continue to drive Australian nanotechnology. The Taskforce is clearly stating that this is a critical time for Australian nanotechnology, and that failure by the Federal Government to play a role leaves Australia falling behind in technology and industry development, ability to handle HSE impact and public concerns, and international engagement with its main trading partners.
What do you think of the paper?
Dr Rye Senjen | 24-Oct-06 at 4:36 pm | Permalink
I think the taskforce has delivered a dismal, disappointing, cynical and unthinking report. We from
Friends of the Earth Australia have released a detailed analysis of the government’s proposed approach to managing nanotechnology, “Options for a National Nanotechnology Strategy”. We explain how the government’s proposed nanotechnology strategy fails to manage nanotechnology’s environmental, social and economic impacts and ethical challenges and document the many public interest issues ignored by the government to date. Please go to http://nano.foe.org.au/node/146
to read our position on this issue. Here is a summary of the key failures:
Failure to propose an integrated new regulatory regime capable of dealing with the complex array of new risks and challenges posed by nanotechnology;
Failure to support the Precautionary Principle in the regulation of nanotechnology. This defies the calls for precaution-based regulation made by the world’s oldest scientific institution, the United Kingdom’s Royal Society, and also the world’s second largest re-insurer, Swiss Re;
Failure to insist on public participation in nanotechnology decision making before the National Nanotechnology Strategy is finalised;
Failure to investigate the impacts of technological convergence, which most commentators believe is critical to nanotechnology’s transformative potential, and therefore likely to result in the most significant economic, social and environmental impacts, and pose the most complex ethical challenges;
Failure to recommend immediate action to protect workers, the public and the environment from nanotoxicity, despite growing evidence that exposure to nanomaterials may result in serious harm;
Failure to acknowledge and act on concerns about the use of nanotechnology in food and agriculture;
Failure to recommend a comprehensive labeling regime of all products containing nanomaterials in order to enable consumers to make an informed choice about using these products;
Failure to recognize the serious nature of the ethical challenges posed by nanotechnology, including those that relate to nanobiotechnology, human enhancement, military and surveillance applications;
Failure to undertake any economic analysis, including failure to investigate nanotechnology’s potential impacts on labour markets, commodity trade, or capacity to result in large-scale economic upheaval;
Failure to recommend a strategy to grapple with the very serious risks posed the development of nanobioweaponry and nanobioterrorism;
Consistent privileging of the interests of the emerging nanotechnology business sector ahead of those of the public.
In light of these failures, Friends of the Earth has reiterated its call for an immediate moratorium on all commercial research, development and release of nanotechnological materials and products.