Impact Assessment Insufficient

As a resident of northwestern Ontario for over seven decades, I have numerous concerns about the project to build a Deep Geological Repository for All of Canada’s High Level Nuclear Waste and I wish to address the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada.

A project to dispose of high level nuclear waste has been in the planning stages for decades, as the cooling ponds at existing reactors are now filled to and beyond capacity.  The energy generated by nuclear fission is frequently referred to by the industry and the current federal government as “clean”.  Admittedly, though it does not produce greenhouse gases, it is far from clean.  Not only is the waste from this process the most toxic substance known to humankind, it will retain its lethal properties for hundreds of thousands of years and beyond. This DGR Project has a proposed lifespan of 160 years. After that the used fuel bundles will remain highly radioactive and lethal to humankind, for millions of years with no plan for long term monitoring.  Impacts of this project could potentially be catastrophic for water, air, wildlife and the health of present and future generations. Such impacts are still seen in Chernobyl and Fukushima. 

A Impact Assessment and Public Hearing for the full Project including transportation from reactor sites to the DGR is critically required.

But Phase One of the Project is already a farce. I strongly object to the brief 30 day time frame which members of the public have been given to read the technical Initial Project Description of over 1200 pages and formulate succinct comments. A minimum of 90 days would be acceptable in my opinion, if indeed you wish to have, and be seen to have, meaningful consultation with the taxpaying public.  Please extend the Comment period to 90 days.

Second Failure, Phase One: The second shock to those anticipating the Impact Assessment process was the NWMO’s exclusion of transportation from the Project.

Throughout preceding months and years, the NWMO have consistently stated that a full Impact Assessment would be done and the full project would be assessed with the highest level of safety standards and scientific scrutiny. Since the project could not exist without the transportation of the used fuel rods to the DGR site, it was considered a certainty that the Project would include the transportation aspect of getting the waste to the DGR.  This removal of transportation from the scope of the project is coincidentally timed with rallies being held across Ontario demanding improved road safety due to the increasing number of accidents involving tractor trailers. This twist on Project Terms being announced at the outset of a 30 day Comment period is an insult to people impacted by this project and a mockery of our democratic rights. It is essential that this Project be redefined to include a comprehensive analysis of transportation risks and hazards, with emergency preparedness plans in place for all communities along the route. Fast Tracking at any stage of this project should not be considered due to the levels of risk to be understood and measured.