Long term safety and transportation

TO THE IMPACT ASSESSMENT AGENCY

I am writing to express my concern about the proposed deep geological repository for nuclear fuel waste which the Nuclear Waste Management Organization is proposing to construct and operate between Ignace and Dryden in northwestern Ontario.

I have many concerns about the project, the NWMO’s method of selecting the site, and the unprecedented nature of the NWMO’s proposed Deep Geological Repository.

The draft guidelines leave out many important issues and do not require enough information about the NWMO’s project, the many different components and activities that are part of the project, or the potential for negative effects.

 LONG-DISTANCE TRANSPORTATION MUST BE INCLUDED IN THE PROJECT REVIEW. 

As a resident of Muskoka most of this waste will travel right past my doorstep.

Why is it even necessary to move the waste so far?

The draft guidelines require information about local transportation but would allow the NWMO to update a 2021 “Preliminary Transportation Plan” instead of providing a detailed description of their transportation program as part of the impact statement. Transportation of the wastes is part of the project and the impact statement must include a detailed description.

THE NWMO MUST BE REQUIRED TO PROVIDE A DETAILED PROJECT DESCRIPTION.

The draft guidelines do not require enough information about the project activities. For example, the guidelines must require a detailed description of the Used Fuel Packaging Plant, how the wastes will be transferred into the underground and placed in the emplacement rooms, how the containers will be monitored after they are underground, and how they will be retrieved or repaired in the event of a container failing. Releases to air and water at all stages of the project must be described, as well as their potential for harming humans and the environment.

I am requesting that the impact statement guidelines be strengthened to require a detailed description of the NWMO’s project and its activities and components.

Thank you for considering my comments and concerns.

Len Ring,
Muskoka resident