By Patrick Gower
The Government has acknowledged that for the last 20 years, New Zealand has been playing a part in Australia's uranium supply chain, servicing the nuclear industries of the United States and Europe.
Shipments of 'yellowcake' - which can be used to make nuclear fuel and weapons - have been regularly passing through the ports of nuclear-free New Zealand.
Mined in the Australian Outback and delivered to the world's nuclear plants, uranium is in high demand.
"We need to take a rational view," says Environment Minister Nick Smith.
"This is yellowcake, which is not much more than Australian dirt."
It's actually radioactive dirt, an early stage on the way to producing nuclear material.
The mining company shipments stop at ports in Nelson, Napier, Tauranga and Auckland, before going onto nuclear plants in the US, Canada and France.
They are happening fortnightly, with hundreds of tonnes of yellowcake in each load.
Dr Smith only learnt this a month ago.
"It remains in containers on ship," he says. "It poses no risk to the public health of New Zealand."
While it has been off the public radar, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs admits it's been happening quietly for 20 years.
Even Labour's Phil Goff, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Defence in the last Labour government, didn't know.
"I wasn't specifically aware of it because it's not an issue that came across my ministerial desk," he says.
Mr Goff's not worried, and says he's confident it was used for peaceful purposes like nuclear power - but admits he can't be sure.
"There's lots of things that you can miss as a minister if you don't know about it."
But now it's known, it's gone off like a bomb with one of his own MPs.
"This is nuclear-free New Zealand," says Phil Twyford. "Why have we only just heard about this? I think New Zealanders are going to have real questions to ask."
Mr Twyford's questions include one about a shipment that went through Auckland to a plant owned by US company Honeywell - not only big on the nuclear scene, but the defence industry too.
Honeywell told 3 News that 100 percent of its processed uranium was used in the production of civilian nuclear power, and there was no military usage.
But it seems there is nobody in New Zealand who can give a similar guarantee for the last 20 years of uranium shipments.
Uranium ore may just be dirt to some, but it's a dirty word to many others, and now New Zealand's role in the nuclear supply chain is out in the open, there will be many questions - none more than so than how this could have gone on for 20 years.
Shipments used to be on average once a year, but in the last year, are now happening once a week.
3 News