When Tuire Haavisto decided to live and work outside her native Finland, she didn’t do things by halves.
In February, 2023, just as Finland was emerging from its long winter darkness, she landed in hot-and-sunny Adelaide.
“In Finland, if it gets up to 25 degrees, it’s seen as extreme heat and, in the news, they recommend elderly people to stay inside and drink lots of water,” she says.
Tuire had never lived abroad before. Her image of Australia was, as for so many others,
“Surfers, sunny weather, and easy-going people.”
Apart from the surfers, Adelaide has lived up to the billing.
What brought Tuire to Adelaide was a job with the Australian Radioactive Waste Agency. She was part of the team developing the safety case for the National Radioactive Waste Facility for low-level and intermediate-level radioactive waste (LILW) in South Australia.
But after a period at ARWA, it was time to move on and Tellus was the intriguing next step, given we already operate an open-cut kaolin mine and near surface repository at Sandy Ridge, in the WA Goldfields.
After earning her degree in Physics at Åbo Akademi University, on the south-west coast of Finland, she went to work in Olkiluoto, one of Finland’s two nuclear power plants. What made this experience unique is that in Olkiluoto, they don’t only generate nuclear power, but also operate interim storages for all levels of radioactive waste, along with a disposal facility for LILW. And in addition to all this, they are building the world’s first deep geological repository – Onkalo – for final disposal of Olkiluoto’s spent nuclear fuel.
At Tellus, in her role as Study Manager, Tuire’s unique skills and experience have strengthened our capability. She supports our radioactive waste management and disposal activities in areas including operational safety, regulation and compliance. Meanwhile, Tellus’ involvement in hazardous chemical waste, and in mining, offers Tuire the opportunity to expand her own expertise.
“I love the red sand and the flora at Sandy Ridge,”
And as if Adelaide is not a sufficient contrast to Finland, Tuire has been able to go one step further and spend time at Sandy Ridge as well. “I love the red sand and the flora at Sandy Ridge,” she says.
“It is so beautiful and exotic to me, as it is the total opposite of what I am used to.”
