NSW: Nanotechnology commitee will be appointed, NSW governement

AAP General News (Australia)
12-26-2008
NSW: Nanotechnology commitee will be appointed, NSW governement

SYDNEY, Dec 26 AAP - A nanotechnology advisory committee will be appointed to consider
recommendations of a recent parliamentary inquiry, the NSW government says.

NSW Chief Scientist Professor Mary O'Kane has been asked to set up the committee, which
will explore a number of the 18 recommendations coming from the inquiry, science minister
Jodi McKay said.

"This was the first parliamentary inquiry into nanotechnology in Australia and one
that looked specifically at both the benefits and potential risks of nano materials,"

Ms McKay said in a statement on Friday.

"It is important we capitalise on this inquiry, and fully explore the viability of
nanotechnology in NSW."

Nanotechnology involves the manipulation of matter at an atomic or molecular scale,
between 1 to 100 nanometres or the size of 1/100,000th the diameter of a human hair.

"It can be applied to many areas including medicine, chemistry, the environment, energy
efficiency, aerospace, textiles, cosmetics and foods," Prof O'Kane said.

"At this extremely small scale, material properties such as colour, magnetism and electricity
conduction may change, leading to the development of new technologies."

NSW will work with a range of groups to ensure safe working and living environments
are maintained while researching the technology, Ms McKay said.

"It is important that we ensure the regulations and policies that are in place to manage
manufactured materials and products also relate to nano-sized particles," she said.

The Government's response to the inquiry and its recommendations is due at the end of April 2009.

The parliamentary inquiry into nanotechnology was conducted by the legislative council
standing committee on state development.

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KEYWORD: NANOTECH

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