The federal resources minister has visited the site of Australia's first national nuclear waste facility. 

Works on the new Australian Radioactive Waste Agency (ARWA) site are continuing, Federal Minister for Resources Madeleine King visiting the chosen site at Napandee in South Australia in recent days.

She says progress is being made. 

“The studies being taken out at the site at the moment are site-characterisation studies,” she said.

“They are entirely remedial. They are what I would call small-scale.

“There is a cultural heritage management plan that is informed by the research of the Barngarla people.

“There are strict protocols around the work that is going on right now to make sure there is no disturbance of cultural heritage.”

ARWA Safety and Technical general manager David Osborne said tests of the site’s seismology, hydrology and background radiation are ongoing.

The local Kimba District Council has received a $6 million federal grants program, currently in its final round, for waste site candidates.

Another $20 million is on the way for the community, but the minister says there are a few hurdles that need to be cleared before the money can flow.

“The facility has to get its operational licence. That does require construction and construction is a long way off,” Ms King said.

“There is a judicial review [involving the Barngarla Determination Aboriginal Corporation] going on right now and it depends on the outcome of that case.”

The Barngarla Determination Aboriginal Corporation is opposed to the facility, saying traditional owners were not sufficiently consulted.

It launched legal action last year to stop the project from going ahead.