nuclear-news

Critics have called the project a nuclear waste “dump,” and worry it could eventually leach into the Ottawa River, just 1.2 kilometres from the planned site.

“Radioactive wastes should never be abandoned right beside major water bodies,” said Gordon Edwards, president of the Canadian Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility, in a news release.

…… Ole Hendrickson, a former government research scientist and researcher for the group Concerned Citizens of Renfrew County and Area, said even with the recent changes the proposed facility doesn’t comply with International Atomic Energy Agency guidelines.

He said that’s because Canadian law doesn’t compel CNL to meet those international standards.

“So if the government itself, which is responsible for policy, does not have a policy that says it will meet international standards, that basically leaves Canadian nuclear laboratories free to do whatever they want,” Hendrickson said.

The Chalk River nuclear facility is a federal site that contains waste generated during decades of federal research and development, he said.

“The federal government is the owner of the waste, not Canadian Nuclear Laboratories. It’s responsible for safe disposal, and it has simply abdicated its responsibility by handing over it to this consortium.”

In 2014, the federal government gave CNL control over nuclear operations at Chalk River, but the government continues to own the nuclear assets. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/nuclear-waste-plan-chalk-river-1.5400030