nuclear-news

Plan for nuclear waste storage should be met with caution, says farmers union president http://huron.bulletnewscanada.ca/2013/01/25/plan-for-nuclear-waste-storage-should-be-met-with-caution-says-farmers-union-president/

“The decision to put all of Canada’s high level radioactive reactor fuel waste under some of Canada’s best farm land and beside the Great Lakes is one that should be considered very cautiously” said Tony McQuail, who is the president of the Huron National Farmers Union (NFU) Local 335.In co-operation with the Huron District of the Christian Farmers Federation of Ontario, Huron NFU has scheduled an information session on Saturday, Feb. 9 at 2 p.m. at the Regional Equine and Agricultural Centre of Huron, which is located in Clinton. It expects to have information on both the benefits and risks of storing the country high-level nuclear waste.

More than 20 communities, including the Municipality of Central Huron, have expressed an interest in learning more about hosting a deep geologic site to store the country’s high-level radioactive waste from nuclear electricity generation.

Brennain Lloyd of North Watch will present Deep Trouble: Nuclear Waste Burial in the Great Lakes Basin. There will be an opportunity for questions following the presentation.

Since 1988 Northwatch has been addressing sound energy planning, healthy forests, responsible mining, waste reduction, and conservation of natural resources and environmental assets. Northwatch has worked with residents over the past two decades to prevent northeastern Ontario from becoming the receiving ground for foreign wastes, whether it’s Toronto’s garbage, Ontario’s biomedical waste, Canada’s nuclear reactor fuel waste, or PCBs from around the world.

Huron NFU said a request to the Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO), which federal legislation has charged with the task of finding a storage site for the nuclear waste, has not responded to an invitation to attend its information session. However, NWMO information will be available for the public.

Members of the Huron NFU were concerned after attending an NWMO open house that the information provided failed to adequately present the risks of the proposal.