NWMO’s Deep Geological Repository (DGR) for Canada’s Used Nuclear Fuel Project

The assessment of NWMO's project must include transportation. It is irrational that the DGR project doesn't include getting the waste to the site.

The project cannot proceed because First Nations have not been consulted. There is not a square inch of land through which the waste will be transported that does not engage Indigenous Peoples as defined by the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) and Canada's UNDRIP Act.  I take issue with the NWMO hiving off Wabigoon First Nation to meet its indigenous consultation obligations as if it were representative of the First Nation communities and Indigenous Nations that have an interest in the health and well-being of their lands and waters and therefore, an interest in the transport of the waste through their communities and traditional territories on which they rely for sustenance. 

There needs to be a full environmental asessment and hearing that includes the duty to consult with First Nations communities and Indigenous Nations to meet the legal standard of free, prior and informed consent of the affected Indigenous Peoples. 

There has been no analysis of costs, benefits and risks that shows the real cost of nuclear power generation as compared to other power sources, especially renewable energy sources. A comparative and complete study of costs, benefits and risks MUST be done for a proper assessment. And such a study must be done by a neutral body. A project of this magnitutde with risks that last until the proverbial "kingdom come" cannot proceed without truth-telling and facts. It's not good enough to say that NWMO will bury the waste and forget about it.

It is not safe buried deep in the rock. The Canadian Shield is not inert. It is rock in a dynamic world. Rock succumbs to water. Disturbed rock even moreso.  Fissures are everwhere after blasting. Water seeps everywhere. The phenomenon of freezing water has incredibel power and has crumbled granite mountains. 

There is no certainty in this project about safety. Buring nuclear waste so that it becomes irretrievable is a bad idea. The waste should stay where it is so it can be managed and controlled against catastophic events. If the pile is getting too big to manage, then quit adding to the pile. Making more high level radioactive waste when there is no solution to dispose of it safely is also irrational. Even moreso when there are sustainable and clean alternatives. How can nuclear waste be clean energy? This is sloganeering, not science or fact.

A full asessment and hearing is required so citizens can engage in a thorough discussion and assessment of the DGR project. If it's a good idea and has been thoroughly examined, then it will be received as such. 

Really, it is not a project description that can be assessed. It's more at the fanatastical idea stage. More information, study by a neutral body and including all aspects of the DGR project, pros and cons, must be undertaken. A full assessment and hearing process must be undertaken.

I grew up on Lake Temagami. I am 73 years old and I am elected councillor of the Teme-Augama Anishnabai.

About 55 miles of Highway 11 runs through N'Daki Menan, Our Land. Our history on this land dates back to the last glacier. Our creation story happens at the highest point of land in Ontario, Ishpatina Ridge. Our 4000 square-mile home is a priceless source of freshwater. No water runs into N'Daki Menan. This source water finds it way to the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River. Any contamination of the waters of N'Daki-Menan, the Temagami Bioregion sourcewater, has far-reaching repercussions. Water is sacred. I have not been consulted.