September 29, 2010
Critics warn against shipping radioactive waste on Great Lakes
Nuclear safety staff recommend licence for Bruce Power
Steve Rennie, The Canadian Press
Staff at Canada’s nuclear-safety watchdog are satisfied that it’s safe to ship low-level radioactive generators across the Great Lakes to a recycling site in Sweden.
They are recommending the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission grant a licence to Bruce Power to ship 16 school bus-sized steam generators from a facility in Owen Sound.
But environmentalists warned that allowing the shipment sets a dangerous precedent that could open the way for more nuclear waste on Canadian waterways.
The commission started two days of public hearings into the shipments Tuesday. It has already said there are no safety concerns that would prevent issuing a licence to Bruce Power for the shipment.
A presentation by commission staff ran the gamut of worst-case scenarios and concluded any accidents would have no impact on the health and safety of Canadians or the environment.
They also said radiation levels in drinking water after an accident would only be a third of what the commission deems safe for people to be exposed to in a full year, one millisievert.
Bruce Power has said a person would have to stand beside one of the generators for a few hours to receive the same amount of radiation given off by a chest X-ray.
Duncan Hawthorne, the utility’s chief executive officer, told the commission that environmental groups and other critics are deliberately trying to scare people.
He said the facts show the shipments are safe.
“You know, I’m not living in a fantasy land. There are a number of people who oppose our technology and at every opportunity seek to oppose us. And they do that with misinformation and scare tactics in the public.
“I believe that factual, scientific debate will debunk many of those stories.” Several groups have accused the commission of not allowing a full debate on Bruce Power’s plan to ship the 100-tonne generators across the North Atlantic.
They called for a full environmental assessment before the commission grants a licence.
“This is just the tip of an enormous iceberg,” said Gordon Edwards of the Great Lakes United Task Force on Nuclear Power and Green Energy.
“Because once they ship these 16 steam generators, they’re going to be shipping more and more and more radioactive waste.”
But the commission noted that radioactive materials, such as medical isotopes, are routinely shipped across Canada and around the world.
Commission staff testified Tuesday that shipments of uranium hexafluoride, yellow cake, cobalt-60 and other radioactive materials routinely pass through the St. Lawrence Seaway and across the Great Lakes.
But Edwards said the generators Bruce Power wants to ship are “waste from a decrepit nuclear reactor.”
“This is a far cry from medical isotopes, where there is a value. A value to the patient, to the hospital, to the medical community,” he said.
“This is not for any purpose, other than to divest the nuclear industry of its responsibilities to manage the waste.”
One environmental group said more than 100 mayors of communities along the shores of the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River have joined those opposed to the plan.
New Democrat MP Nathan Cullen said an accident on the Great Lakes or the St. Lawrence involving radioactive material could potentially be worse than the recent massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
“We’ve had accidents before in this industry. The problem with accidents in this industry, they’re much worse than they are in the oil and gas sector because they last so much longer,” he said.
“The types of radiation we’re talking about can potentially affect tens of millions of people.”
