30,000 shipments of nuclear waste would move through Ontario cities, farmland under draft plan

A proposed transportation plan by Canada's nuclear industry would see up to 30,000 shipments of highly radioactive spent nuclear fuel rods travel through some of Ontario's most densely populated communities over four decades, starting in the 2040s.

Under the proposed plan from the Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO),fuel rods would be shipped by road and/or rail from reactor sites and interim storage facilities in Ontario, Quebec, Manitobaand New Brunswick, destined for eitherSouth Bruce or IgnaceinOntario.

Currently, scientists are studyingthe ancient bedrock belowboth communities to determine whether the geology is right for a deep geologic repository, a $23-billion crypt as deep as the CN Tower is tall,in whichCanada could seal away its entire stockpile of nuclear waste for eons.

The selection of a site is expected in 2023. Once chosen, the host community would startto receive up to 30,000 shipments of nuclear waste over four decades, starting in the 2040s, which translates into an average of 654 shipments per yearor almost two shipments per day.

Travel would involve rail, highway, streets

For the rest of the province, it would mean the radioactive cargo could potentially travel along rail routes, 400 series highways or even city streets as the fuel rods maketheirway to their final resting place.

"We're confident we can safely transport used nuclear fuel," said Caitlin Burley, the NWMO'smanager of transportation engagement.

She said the likelihood of an accidental radiation release, particularly in the event of a crash, while the waste is being transported through cities or some of the province's most productive farmlanddepends largely on the safety of the containers in which the spent fuel rods are being transported.

Burley said the containers have been extensively tested according to international standards. Vintagefilmsof such tests can be easily found online, in which nuclear shipping containers are dropped, immersed in water, punctured, rammed with a speeding locomotiveor even set ablaze using propane and jet fuel.

"All of them occur consecutively on the same package to inflict maximum damage," she said.

Shipments tracked by GPS, have security detail

Burley said that in all of the tests, the containers successfully shielded the outside environment from nuclear radiation, and noted that in almost 60 years of transporting used nuclear fuel, there has never been an incident in which people or the environment have been harmed.

Transportation of radioactive waste is regulated by Transport Canada and the Canada Nuclear Safety Commission.

CBC News reached out to bothfor comment Monday and has yet to receive a response.

Final approval of the plan would rest with the federal government.

Shipments will also have a security detail, and will be monitored by satellite and in constant communication witha 24-hour command centre to ensure the radioactive material isn't captured by criminals or terrorists.

Still, in the event a crash does happen, the NWMO has developed a planto deal with the situation, Burleysaid.

"We will be prepared. We will have the equipment and the personnel in place to respond.Everyone will know what their job is."

Critics say proposed plan is too vague

Bill Knoll,a resident of South Bruceand vice-president of the citizens'group Protecting Our Waterways No Nuclear Waste, spoke to CBC News about the plan.

Ontario town divided on becoming nuclear waste site

3 years ago

Duration 3:52

A small Ontario town is deeply divided over whether to become the storage location for Canadas nuclear waste. Advocates against the project accuse the waste management group behind the project of trying to garner support by putting money into their town.

"The plan is vague on details and is more of a plan for a plan," Knollwrote in an email on Monday. "This is one of the issues we have with the NWMO.Information that should be easy to arrive at is always changing."

For its part, the NWMO said the plan is vague because it is still in flux, noting the nuclear industry has yet to narrow down whether the permanent locationfor Canada's nuclear waste would be in South Bruce or Ignace.

"It's not set in stone. It's actually a living document that's meant to advance conversations around transportation," Burley said.

"We're really interested in what people have to say so we can incorporate it into our planning."