Should Bruce Power ship 16,000 tonnes of waste through Ontario?
Source:
The Tyee
Date published:
Wed, 2010-08-04
On September 29th, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission will hold a public hearing on a Bruce Power plan to ship 16,000 tonnes of radioactive waste through Ontario to Sweden to be melted down.
Bruce Power operates the Bruce Nuclear Generating Station, one of the largest nuclear power plants in the world, on the shore of Lake Huron in southern Ontario.
The steam generators from a section of that plant, which processed radioactive water for about 20 years before being decommissioned, are considered low-grade radioactive waste. They were originally slated for disposal in long-term storage on-site, but in April the company decided to ship them to Sweden first to separate into their component parts.
Additional excerpt:
In a press release, the Sierra Club of Canada claimed credit for the hearing, but its executive director, John Bennett, said to the Tyee that it doesn't mean much on its own. He said he wants a full environmental assessment performed on the proposal.
"The Sierra Club feels that this is a major deviation from the original environmental assessment. That would call for a revisiting of the environmental assessment, not just a rubber-stamping of the change," he said.
Link to source site:
http://thetyee.ca/Blogs/TheHook/Environment/2010/08/04/Bruce-Power-Nuclear-Waste... 
Comments
Bruce Power Hearing?
I agree that we shouldn't be complacent about the potential dangers of nuclear waste transport, but I am unclear on the most useful position to take regarding this matter.
In order to effect change in this matter it is necessary to participate in the hearing on Sept 29th, via letter or in person or both. Written confirmation of this "intervention" must be presented by Sept 13th to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC.)
So are we asking them to conduct an additional environmental assessment specifically for the transport of the low grade nuclear waste? Or are we asking them not to transport the waste at all?
While I am concerned about nuclear power and all of the related safety issues, I am by no means an expert and I'd love some clarification or feedback about what the "best-case scenario" here would be! Thanks!
Not just Ontario