Selecting a site

News Release: NWMO Recognizes Participation of Communities in Creighton and Schreiber Areas

The NWMO

July 23, 2015

Toronto, Ont.

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The NWMO

TORONTO, July 23, 2015 – The Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) announced today that it will recognize communities in the areas of Schreiber, Ontario, and Creighton, Saskatchewan, that actively participated in recently concluded Preliminary Assessment studies and engagement for Canada’s deep geological repository for used nuclear fuel.

Eligible communities will each be recognized with an investment of $250,000 toward their community well-being.

The NWMO concluded Preliminary Assessment studies in both areas in March 2015, after geological field studies showed limited potential for finding suitable sites in either area. Schreiber and its neighbouring Ontario communities of Terrace Bay and Pays Plat First Nation were active participants in this phase of work. Along with Creighton, Denare Beach in Saskatchewan and Flin Flon in Manitoba actively participated in studies in that area. Each of these communities is eligible for the recognition funding.

“We are pleased to provide this investment in the well-being of these communities as they conclude their involvement in the site selection process,” said Kathryn Shaver, NWMO Vice-President, APM Engagement and Site Selection.

“The communities we are recognizing today helped advance our understanding of the geology in their area and its potential to safely and securely contain and isolate Canada’s used nuclear fuel. By coming together to help advance Canada’s plan, they have shown the way for collaboration, inclusiveness and decision-making,” said Ms. Shaver.

Administered by the communities, well-being reserve funds could be used to support initiatives such as: projects, programs or services for community youth; scholarship programs for community youth; projects or programs to support community and strategic planning; projects, programs or services for Elders and community seniors; projects or programs to support community sustainability; projects or programs to support community economic development; and projects or programs to support energy efficiency.

Each eligible community will be required to establish a Community Well-Being Reserve Fund or similar mechanism to administer the funding.

Studies are continuing in the areas of nine Ontario communities that requested preliminary assessments as part of the NWMO’s site selection process. Should the NWMO screen out additional areas from the site selection process during the Initial Studies phase of Preliminary Assessments, communities in close proximity to study areas that had been actively engaged would also be recognized.

About the NWMO

The Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) is a not-for-profit organization tasked with the safe, long-term management of Canada’s used nuclear fuel inside a deep geological repository, in a manner that protects people and the environment for generations to come.

Founded in 2002, the NWMO has been guided for more than 20 years by a dedicated team of world-class scientists, engineers and Indigenous Knowledge Holders that are developing innovative and collaborative solutions for nuclear waste management. Canada’s plan will only proceed in an area with informed and willing hosts, where the municipality, First Nation and Métis communities, and others in the area are working together to implement it. The NWMO plans to select a site in 2024, and two areas remain in our site selection process: the Wabigoon Lake Ojibway Nation-Ignace area in northwestern Ontario and the Saugeen Ojibway Nation-South Bruce area in southern Ontario.

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