A long-suffering reporter speaks out

Sometimes those of us who cover the news get caught up in an event and become the news.

Such was the case Friday night.

I was covering the town hall meeting hosted by CTV's W5 at the Legion in Kincardine. The focus, of course, was Ontario Power Generation (OPG)'s proposed Deep Geological Repository (DGR) for low- and intermediate-level nuclear waste, to be located at the Bruce Nuclear site in the Municipality of Kincardine.

W5 had descended from its studio in Toronto to capture this bit of controversy, apparently because it had gained such prominence, given that people in Canada and the United States are signing petitions either for or against it. Plus, the Canadian environment minister is set to make a decision on the issue later this year.

As a reporter in this area for more than 20 years, I can tell you that this is not a new issue. The DGR was proposed, by the Municipality of Kincardine, back in 2001 – that's 16 long years ago. And trust me, the information has not become much more interesting than it was a decade-and-a-half ago.

The proposal, as described back then, was to take the low- and intermediate-level waste, which is already stored at the Bruce site, and place it in a repository 680 metres below the site in containers inside vaults inside an excessively-tight rock formation. Sixteen years later, it's the same proposal, different decade.

I understand that the stuff is radioactive and remains “active” for hundreds of years. I also understand that we're not talking about high-level waste – this is not the spent fuel which requires further investigation and a different process for long-term management.

Since it was introduced in 2001, the DGR project has been studied and re-studied, and studied again. Hundreds, if not thousands, of top-level scientists have examined the plans, the geology, the mapping. An exhaustive Environmental Assessment has been done, along with further tests. Questions have been asked and answered. All of this study finally culminated in hearings before a federally-appointed Joint Review Panel, held in Kincardine and Port Elgin, back in 2013-14 and again in 2015.

The First Nations have been consulted, every individual and group that wanted to intervene has been consulted. People have questioned the science about this project for YEARS and YEARS.

The Joint Review Panel heard from all these people, and listened to all these groups – some so fanatical that they couldn't seem to separate the proposed DGR for low- and intermediate-level waste and a proposed DGR for spent nuclear fuel. Many were simply anti-nuclear in general and spouted such drivel as the fact that OPG was planning to bury nuclear waste on the beaches of Lake Huron.

It was tiresome and it went on for days and days. Thankfully, the Joint Review Panel made a decision: the DGR should be built sooner rather than later.

Unfortunately, there was a federal election and the Liberals were voted in, which is unfortunate in itself, but doubly for the DGR project because the newly-appointed environment minister, Catherine McKenna, was not prepared to immediately handle this hot potato. So, she requested further information, asking OPG to consider alternative sites and cumulative effects, and such.

Enter W5 and its investigative bit of show business, with camera, lights and action, at the Kincardine Legion Friday night.

I had expected a one-sided, anti-nuclear demonstration, fraught with emotions and angst. But surprisingly, it was a fairly balanced presentation, with as many people in favour of the DGR as there were against.

However, the opposition included the same merry band of pseudo-scientists and speakers that had already dumped all its vitriol on the Joint Review Panel. And here they were again, spouting the same tired rhetoric and the same sad tale of woe for the cameras.

I could feel my blood pressure rising because I had heard it all before and it had held no sway at previous hearings. I had told myself going into this meeting that I would say nothing; I was just covering the meeting.

But as one speaker after another presented ridiculous notions and spurious information, I finally stood up, went to the microphone and blasted them for their infernal reactionism and failure to provide anything substantial that should stop this project. They had their chance at the Joint Review Panel hearings and enough was enough. Just build the damned thing!

Contrary to what a lot of people think, and what W5 alluded to, this is a Kincardine project. People opposed to the DGR project and its risk to Lake Huron should give their heads a shake. Risk? Are you kidding? We already live beside the largest nuclear generating station in the world – seriously, folks!

The bottom line is, that many of the nay-sayers were not in Kincardine back in 1997. This was not a bustling place then. Ontario Hydro had already mothballed Units 1 and 2 of the Bruce A generating station, and in 1998, it closed the other two units, leaving only the four reactors at Bruce B.

It was a black time for Kincardine as hundreds of workers were forced to move to Darlington or Pickering to maintain employment. Houses went on the market, businesses closed, and families moved away. I was working for the Kincardine Independent at the time and had a front-row seat for the whole sad mess.

I will tell you one thing for sure, if building this DGR means I never have to relive the devastation that hit Kincardine in the late 1990s, then just build the damned thing.