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Hawthorne speaks to parliamentary committee today about shipment of used steam generators By Liz Dadson |
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Bruce Power's president and chief executive officer is in Ottawa today (March 8), speaking to a House of Commons Standing Committee on Natural Resources, regarding the shipment of used steam generators to Sweden for recycling. Duncan Hawthorne said the meeting is not a requirement for approval of the proposed shipping of the steam generators through the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway. "I was invited to the standing committee," he said, "and I had better show up. I'm not reluctant to do so. The facts are the facts and I'll gladly explain everything to their satisfaction." In a conference call Monday afternoon (March 7), Hawthorne said Bruce Power has gone through the regulatory process and received approval from the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) to ship the 16 steam generators removed from Units 1 and 2 of Bruce A which are undergoing refurbishment. However, there has been opposition to the plan to ship the generators from the Owen Sound harbour to Sweden. "What we have is an active and vocal anti-nuclear lobby," said Hawthorne. "So, we want to explain to the committee what we already explained to the CNSC, that what we are trying to do is good environmental stewardship, and represents best practice in the nuclear community." Hawthorne will have 10 minutes in which to make his arguments, and then another 50 minutes to respond to questions from the standing committee. "We want to talk about the lengths we have gone to in order to communicate our plan," he said, "and the community outreach we have done on this." Hawthorne said he would be surprised if today's hearing went ahead without any disruption from the anti-nuclear groups which also disrupted the previous Bruce Power hearings in Ottawa. He said the genesis of the concern by most of the intervenors at those hearings was based on misinformation from the anti-nuclear lobby groups. "Reasonable people will place their confidence in the nuclear regulatory staff and will not be concerned about this plan at all," he said. "However, those who oppose us have been very effective at spreading their story." He said Bruce Power has a reputation for doing the right thing. "I've been in the nuclear industry for 40 years and unanimous consent is never an option. There's always going to be opposition." Hawthorne said the company has been asked why the recycling can't be done in Canada. His answer, is that the plant in Sweden is a tried-and-tested facility and has all the regulatory approvals to do this specialized work.
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'If we kept the recycling process at home, these anti-nuclear groups would likely show up and oppose that too," he said. He noted that Bruce Power has met all the requirements of the regulatory process in Canada, and if the proposal is not allowed, that calls into question the regulatory process in Canada. Hawthorne added that shipping this type of cargo is routine activity through the Great Lakes. The only difference is the large size of the steam generators. Despite having the CNSC approval for the shipment, Bruce Power must still obtain several approvals for the transport route between the Bruce Nuclear site and Owen Sound harbour, said Hawthorne. The 16 steam generators are currently being stored at the Bruce site, which is okay for now, but Hawthorne said once all the reactors at the site are refurbished, there would be 64 steam generators in storage, taking up a lot of space. "This process (recycling) is more than cost-effective, it's the right thing to do," he said. "If you stand up for the environment, you should stand up for this." Once all approvals have been obtained, Bruce Power would be shipping the steam generators in either late spring or fall, said Hawthorne. The company cannot ship during the winter and does not want to disrupt the tourism season during the summer. Joining him in Ottawa today are Bruce County warden Mike Smith and Huron-Kinloss mayor Mitch Twolan. Bruce Power has also received an endorsement for its plan from Grey-Bruce medical officer of health, Dr. Hazel Lynn. "The local communities support this project," said Hawthorne, "and that's knowledgeable support. They know this is the right thing to do." Scrolling stops when you move your mouse inside the scroll area. You can click on the ads for more
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