nuclear-news

Canada’s Federal Court agrees on poor environmental assessment by Darlington New Nuclear project

Greenpeace v. Canada: Symbolic Blow to the Nuclear Industry, Game-Changer for Everyone Else?, the energy collective, Martin Olszynski June 18, 2014 In a rather lengthy (431 paragraphs) decision, the Federal Court of Canada agreed with Greenpeace and other environmental groups that portions of the Joint Review Panel report for the Darlington New Nuclear project proposed by Ontario Power Generation were inadequate. See Greenpeace Canada v. Canada (Attorney General), 2014 FC 463 (CanLII). Justice Russell held that the environmental assessment conducted by the Panel failed to comply with the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, SC 1992 c 37 (essentially Canada’s version of the United States National Environmental Policy Act). Specifically and as further discussed below, there were gaps in the treatment of hazardous substances emissions and spent nuclear fuel, and a failure to consider the effects of a severe “common cause” accident such as the combined earthquake and tsunami that caused the Fukushima nuclear disaster.

As noted by the media, while the decision is of limited effect on a project already indefinitely postponed by the provincial government, “it is a symbolic blow to an industry coping with the public and political fallout from Japan’s 2011 Fukushima meltdown.” As further discussed below, the decision is also likely to have implications for environmental assessment in Canada generally and several other projects currently making their way through either the regulatory process or the courts,…….. http://theenergycollective.com/energylawprof/402016/greenpeace-v-canada-symbolic-blow-nuclear-industry-game-changer-everyone-else

June 19, 2014 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | general