Environmental Incompetence!

Transporting nuclear waste from eastern and southern Ontario all the way to Ignace—mainly along Highways 11 and 17—raises some serious concerns. These are long, often dangerous routes with harsh weather, frequent accidents, and limited emergency response, yet they’d be used for decades to move highly hazardous material.

Even if the risk is considered “low,” the consequences of a single incident could be devastating—especially for northern ecosystems and waters connected to Lake Superior, the world’s largest freshwater lake, where contamination would be incredibly difficult, if not impossible, to clean up. Calling it safe overlooks the reality of repeated, long-term exposure to risk.

In a time when we’ve had to become increasingly protective of the environment, choosing to transport nuclear waste through such a critical and vulnerable region feels especially irresponsible.

There are also other concerns at play. This plan risks reinforcing environmental racism, with Indigenous communities and northern regions carrying the burden while much of the waste is generated in the south. The idea of buying out or pressuring smaller, economically vulnerable towns and reserves to accept that risk only adds to the concern.

Protecting such a critical freshwater region should matter more than convenience or cost.