Defence Act Casts a Long Shadow
The battle now shifts from public good to commercial
research, as new Defence powers threaten a broad range of
“dual-use” technologies.
Last month marked the centenary of the foundation of the Australian Council of Science
and Industry, which later evolved into today’s CSIRO. The Prime Minister of the ledg-
ling nation, Billy Hughes, had argued for the establishment of a scientiic organisation
that would “solve problems that seemed insoluble”, many of which were agricultural for
a country that was riding on the sheep’s back.
Much has changed in Australia – and indeed in science – over the past century but
land, water and climate science remain central to the public good. However, the freedom
for our scientists to pursue public good research has been stymied as successive govern-
ments have sought an economic return on their investment.
It was this inancial imperative that led CSIRO management to slash and burn its land,
water and climate research (Up Front, March 2016), arguing that the climate data had
been gathered and now it was time to move onto climate mitigation research. Since then
temperatures have soared to new records, the Great Barrier Reef has experienced exten-
sive coral bleaching, and a new study has predicted that the world could be 1.5°C hotter
as soon as 2020 (see p.6). Is climate mitigation already relying on outdated modelling?
The heated environment spread to a Senate Inquiry last month. “Our reputation is
now trashed internationally,” said CSIRO stalwart Dr John Church, who argued that
once CSIRO’s expertise was lost “we could not attract those people again”.
Dr Richard Matear asked the inquiry whether CSIRO’s focus on commercialisation
was “in the long-term interest of Australia... I think not, that’s why I’m speaking here.”
But CSIRO is not the only scientiic organisation being driven by commercial require-
ments. Defence, too, has a research arm that needs to pay its way, and this month it’s gaining
some extraordinary powers.
The Defence Trade Controls Act, which comes into force on 2 April, controls research
that could have military applications. While this seems a reasonable proposition in an
age of cyberattacks and regional pandemics, Brendan Jones (p.39) warns that the “353-
page list of such ‘dual-use’ technologies (tinyurl.com/jcsm9ro) lays claim to just about
every ield of research”.
Furthermore, the Act prohibits communication of this research with colleagues
overseas. A simple email could land a scientist in jail for 10 years, attract a ine of
$425,000, and even lead to forfeiture of the research to Defence. This isn’t practical
in an era of international research collaboration.
Nor is it practical for business, whose intellectual property is under threat. “Defence
inspectors accompanied by defence scientists can now demand entry to research prem-
ises for an ‘audit’, and make copies of intellectual property,” Jones writes. Already, he
says, there have been instances of IP theft, including from his own company.
Jones has dissolved his business and moved offshore, and expects others to join him.
Such an outcome is a bust for a government that has been advertising its National Inno-
vation and Science Agenda as an “ideas boom”.
Guy Nolch is Editor/Publisher of Australasian Science.
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