Risk taking at its worst

Risk taking at its worst

Burying spent nuclear fuel in northwestern Ontario is fraught with formidable challenges that are beyond our control now and for generations to come. 

1. To predict that this spent fuel will be “safe” deep in the earth’s crust for thousands if not millions of years is a false and misleading statement. Other nations may view it as a potential resource to fuel their own nuclear plants. The potential also exists that these fuel cells could be used to make nuclear bombs. This vulnerability to foreign intruders is both potential and realistic, both over the near and long term. We have no way of predicting what will take place politically 100 years from now, 1000 years from now, even 20 years from now. 

2. The financial expense to construct and maintain this Deep Geological Repository as a secure location will be enormous. Will this cost be absorbed by governments, by tax payers, by electricity users, by private power companies? These details are not clearly elaborated.

3. What if a new technology is discovered whereby nuclear power plants can use enriched uranium or thorium from spent fuel cells? Will they have to dig these fuel cells up again?

4. Transportation related to moving spent nuclear fuel to the site has not yet been explained or described in detail. This is like putting the cart before the horse. How will the transportation containers carrying the radioactive containers be designed? What safety precautions will be taken during transportation? What related emergency procedures will be followed?

5. A cost /benefit analysis comparing the construction of this one geological repository to improving and securing long-term storage at existing reactor sites has yet to be undertaken.

6. With respect to obtaining free, prior and informed consent of Indigenous people in that region, what steps have been or are being taken to have dialogues with these First Nations? To what degree will the health and safety of people living downstream from the Revell site be compromised? To what degree will the repository impact the social and cultural aspects in the nearby area?

7. There is little to no mention of contingency plans related to accident scenarios in the repository during its construction. Such events as shaft failures, fire suppression, vehicle accidents and human health risks incurred by labourers all need explicit attention. 

In summary, I would expect a more definitive explnation to these serious concerns.