Beyond Nuclear submits written submission opposing Canadian Great Lakes radioactive waste dump

The proposed location for the DUD, less than a mile from the Great Lakes shoreBeyond Nuclear's Radioactive Waste Watchdog, Kevin Kamps, filed a written submission by the arbitrarily short deadline of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC)/Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency (CEAA) Joint Review Panel overseeing the Environmental Assessment on Ontario Power Generation's (OPG) proposed Deep Geologic Repository (DGR) at Bruce Nuclear Generating Station. This preserves Beyond Nuclear's opportunity to submit oral testimony at the JRP's next -- and likely final -- round of public hearings on the DGR, to be held in Kincardine, Ontario this September.

Kevin also testified at the JRP's previous hearings in Kincardine in Sept. 2013.

Dave Martin of Greenpeace Canada coined the acronym DUD (for Deep Underground Dump), to reflect the inanity -- not to mention insanity -- of the proposal.

OPG wants to bury all the "low" and "intermediate" level radioactive wastes ever generated at Ontario's nearly two-dozen atomic reactors -- a total of 9 reactors at Bruce (including the Douglas Point prototype); 8 reactors at Pickering, just east of Toronto; and 4 reactors at Darlington, a bit further east of Pickering.

In fact, all of the province's reactors have already exported their "low" level radioactive wastes to Bruce, over the past 40+ years. There, incredibly enough, with little to no public notification (especially in the U.S.), they have been incinerated. Little to no information is publicly available as to how bad the radioactive emissions from this nuclear waste incineration have been.

However, hazardous tritium (a radioactive form of hydrogen) saturates even "low" level radioactive wastes (LLRW), and cannot be filtered at an industrial scale, because of its infinitesmally small size. Thus, it is likely that a large part of the tritium contained in Ontario's "low" level radioactive wastes have been discharged to the atmosphere, compliments of the radioactive waste incinerator at Bruce.

Thus, it is the resulting ash from LLRW incineration at Bruce that OPG wants to now bury. This radioactive ash, as well as Bruce's own "intermediate" level radioactive wastes, have been stored for decades on-site at the Western Waste Management Facility (WWMF). The entrance tunnel to the DGR would be excavated immediately next to the WWMF, less than a mile from Lake Huron. The Great Lakes are the drinking water supply for 40 million people in 8 U.S. states, 2 Canadian provinces, and a large number of Native American/First Nations.

What can you do to stop this insane dump? If you haven't already, please sign the petition to Stop the Great Lakes Nuclear Dump. If you have already signed it, please forward the link to everyone you know.

You can also urge your town, county, or state/province to oppose the DGR, by passing an official resolution, as dozens of others from Minnesota in the west to Ontario in the east already have.

Lastly, you can express your opposition to the DUD in writing, either via email or snail mail. Be sure to note your remarks are re: OPG's DGR, and send them in to:

Snail mail:

Joint Review Panel Secretariat

C/O Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency

160 Elgin St., 22nd Floor

Ottawa ON  K1A 0H3

CANADA

or

Email: DGR.Review@ceaa-acee.gc.ca

Beyond Nuclear's "Canada" website section contains many postings with additional information and updates on the resistance to the DUD (as well as other Canadian anti-nuke news)!

Update on July 31, 2014 by admin

Beverly Fernandez, spokesperson for Stop the Great Lakes Nuclear DumpAs reported on the website of Stop the Great Lakes Nuclear Dump, the following three Michigan municipalities passed resolutions against the DUD on July 21st and 22nd:

City of Croswell [Sanilac County] July 22, 2014;
Clay Township [St. Clair County] July 21, 2014;
City of Lapeer [Lapeer County] July 21, 2014.

If your community has not yet passed a resolution against the DUD, please urge your city or county council to do so right away! The Great Lakes represent over 20% of the world's surface fresh water, and over 90% of North America's surface fresh water!

Also, on July 29th, Michigan State Senator Phil Pavlov (R-25th District) hosted a "Save Our Great Lakes Home" town hall meeting opposing the DUD. Stop the Great Lakes Nuclear Dump's spokesperson, Beverly Fernandez, was the keynote speaker (beginning at the 12 minute 40 second mark, ending at the 41 minute 25 second mark).

The Voice reported on the town hall meeting.

The Stop the Great Lakes Nuclear Dump petition has garnered nearly 65,000 signatures thus far. If you have not already signed it, please do. If you have signed it, please pass the link on to everyone you know!

Update on August 7, 2014 by admin

The Times Herald has reported on this story, in an Aug. 2nd article by Beth LeBlanc entitled "Michigan legislators, residents protest nuclear waste facility on shores of Lake Huron."

So has the Toronto Star, in a column by Thomas Walkom entitled "Lake Huron nuclear dump scheme in trouble."

On Aug. 6th, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) and Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency (CEAA) have notified Beyond Nuclear's Radioactive Waste Watchdog, Kevin Kamps, that they will grant him 10 minutes to testify before the federal Joint Review Panel (JRP), at what are likely to be the last round of Environmental Assessment hearings on the proposed DUD, to be held in Kincardine, Ontario beginning on Sept. 9th.

Kevin presented 30 minutes of testimony last Sept. at the JRP's initial round of public hearings on the DUD in Kincardine.

Update on August 28, 2014 by admin

Beyond Nuclear's Kevin Kamps submitted his powerpoint by the August 25th deadline, to be presented at his Sept. 16th appearance before the JRP.

U.S. Rep. Candice Miller urges Sec. Kerry to activate IJC on Canadian Great Lakes radioactive waste dump

U.S. Representative Candice Miller (R-MI) has written U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, urging that he activate the International Joint Commission to review Ontario Power Generation's proposal to bury so-called "low" and "intermediate" level radioactive wastes at the Bruce Nuclear Generating Station, less than a mile from the shore of Lake Huron. Michigan is less than 50 across Lake Huron from the targeted dumpsite, and millions of Michiganders draw their drinking water from the Great Lakes downstream of the proposed dump.

The U.S. State Department wrote Rep. Miller back, saying "The Department will review any possible role for the IJC and determine next steps."

Dr. David Suzuki speaks out against Canada's proposed Great Lakes radioactive waste dump

Dr. David SuzukiAs reported at the website of Stop the Great Lakes Nuclear Dump:

Dr. David Suzuki, award-winning scientist, environmentalist, broadcaster, Companion of the Order of Canada, holder of 26 honorary degrees, recipient of UNESCO's Kalinga Prize for science, the United Nations Environment Program medal, the 2009 Right Livelihood Award, and Global 500 calls for halt to Ontario Power Generation proposed nuclear waste repository in Kincardine, Ontario.

Dr. Suzuki's op-ed, "Lake Huron is No Place for a Nuclear Waste Dump," appeared at Huffington Post.

City of Port Huron, Michigan passes resolution against OPG DGR

As reported at the website of Stop the Great Lakes Nuclear Dump, Port Huron, MI has joined the ranks of municipalities across the Great Lakes opposed to Ontario Power Generation's (OPG) proposed Deep Geologic Repository (DGR) -- a dumpsite for all of Ontario's so-called low and intermediate level radioactive wastes from 20 reactors across the province.

Stop the Great Lakes Nuclear Dump keeps an updated map of the spread of such resolutions across 8 U.S. states and Ontario (image, left). A combined 10.5 million people reside in the communities that have passed anti-DGR resolutions, Stop the Great Lakes Nuclear Dump reports.

"Nuclear waste plan unsafe, panel hears"

As reported by the Globe and Mail of Ottawa, Ontario, Dr. Frank Greening has warned the Canadian federal Joint Review Panel overseeing the environmental assessment on a proposed Great Lakes radioactive waste dump that discarded pressure tubes could behave like cluster bombs.

Ontario Power Generation (OPG) proposes to bury so-called "low" and "intermediate" level radioactive wastes from 20 reactors across the province less than a mile from the shoreline of Lake Huron.

The article reports:

'In a submission to a federal review panel, nuclear chemist Frank Greening said OPG’s contractors seriously underestimated the potential impacts of a bombing in the vicinity of pressure tubes that have been removed from reactors and stored as waste. In contrast to OPG assurances, Dr. Greening said the zirconium in the tubes would burn fiercely, setting off chain reactions similar to those in cluster bombs.

“I think this is quite alarming, what I’m suggesting could happen and what they seem to have entirely missed,” he said in an interview Monday. “This absolutely affects the safety case … This is the design of a cluster bomb, this is an incendiary weapon waiting to happen. In fact, I think this is absolutely reckless on their part.”'

As the article reports:

'Dr. Greening was a research scientist for OPG’s predecessor, Ontario Hydro, for more than 20 years until 2000, and has worked more recently as a consultant for Bruce Power. He has been a frequent critic of OPG and the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) which – along with the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency – is conducting the hearings.'