ACTION ALERT: Say no to shipping radioactive waste through the Great Lakes!

October 14, 2010

Dear friends,

Bruce Power has made an application to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) for a licence to ship 16 100-tonne radioactive steam generators through the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway to Sweden. The licence is required because the shipment does not meet packaging requirements and exceeds internationally set limits for radioactive levels by as high as 50 times. The Great Lakes holds nearly 20% of the world's freshwater. They provide drinking water to 40 million people in surrounding areas. If the CNSC approves this shipment, it could set a dangerous precedent for regularly shipping radioactive waste through the Great Lakes.

Bruce Power plans to recycle 90% of the 16 steam generators by contracting Swedish company Studsvik to ship, decontaminate, melt down and sell the metal on consumer markets. Studsvik will return 10% of the most radioactive parts to Bruce Power. Since there are 64 steam generators slated for recycling, these shipments pose a threat to the Great Lakes on the estimated eight trips.

The International Institute of Concern for Public Health has noted that radionuclides found in Great Lakes water, including tritium, carbon-14, cesium and long-lived iodine-129, pose serious health hazards even at low levels. An accident on the Great Lakes would further contribute to radioactivity and pollution in the Great Lakes.

Bruce Power failed to consult adequately with some First Nation communities and municipalities along the travel route.

There is a growing network of environmental and non-governmental organizations, First Nation communities, several U.S. senators and city mayors that oppose this shipment and highlight the risks to our fresh water sources. Nearly 80 groups and individuals made written submissions to the CNSC with the majority of them opposing the shipments. Half of the groups spoke at the CNSC's public hearing on September 28-29, 2010. Intervenors raised many unanswered questions and pointed to Bruce Power's inadequate emergency plans, which failed to include an emergency response for a sinking ship. The CNSC normally makes a decision within 30 business days (November 11, 2010) but may delay a decision in complex cases.

Premier Dalton McGuinty, who has a responsibility to protect the Great Lakes, and Environment Minister Peter Kent, who has a responsibility to protect Canada's water resources, have remained silent on this issue.

Send a letter to them telling them that you want to keep radioactive waste out of the Great Lakes!

The more legislators who hear your concerns the better. We also encourage you to send a copy to your Member of Parliament, Member of Provincial Parliament and/or city councilor.

Subject
Recipients	Minister Peter Kent, Environment Minister [kentp@parl.gc.ca] Premier Dalton McGuinty [Dalton.McGuinty@premier.gov.on.ca] c.c. Marc LeBlanc, Secretary to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission [marc.Leblanc@cnsc-ccsn.gc.ca] Michael Binder, Chair of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission [michael.binder@cnsc-ccsn.gc.ca] Christian Paradis, Minister of Natural Resources [Paradis.C@parl.gc.ca]
Compose your letter in the box below.
Dear Minister Peter Kent and Premier Dalton McGuinty: I am writing to express my opposition to Bruce Power's shipment of the 16 radioactive steam generators through the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway to Sweden. Bruce Power is unable to meet the packaging requirements set out in the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission's (CNSC) Packaging and Transport of Nuclear Substances Regulations. The total radioactive level exceeds the limits set out in International Atomic Energy Agency's Regulations for the Safe Transport of Radioactive Material. The Great Lakes holds nearly 20% of the world's freshwater. They provide drinking water to 40 million people in surrounding areas. Allowing this shipment sets a dangerous precedent for regularly shipping radioactive waste that does not meet national and international requirements through the Great Lakes. Under Canada's trade obligations, it could also render Canada powerless to enact laws that protect Canada's fresh water sources. The International Institute of Concern for Public Health has noted that radionuclides found in Great Lakes water, including tritium, carbon-14, cesium and long-lived iodine-129, pose a serious health hazard even at low levels. An accident on the Great Lakes would further contribute to radioactivity and pollution in the Great Lakes. If this plan is approved, Studsvik, a Swedish company contracted by Bruce Power, will decontaminate, melt down and sell the metal back into consumer markets. I strongly oppose radioactive scrap metal entering the consumer market, which can end up as personal use items including cutlery, zippers and dental braces. In February 2009, experts at the International Conference on Control and Management of Inadvertent Radioactive Material in Scrap Metal noted that radioactive material in scrap metal "can pose severe health, environmental, and financial consequences for the industry and the public." I believe water is a global commons (a shared entity) and a public trust. I urge you both to speak up and oppose this shipment and any future shipments of radioactive waste in order to protect our lakes and rivers. Sincerely,
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