The NWMO marks important milestone in the site selection process

A sunny cornfield in South Bruce, Ontario.

The community studies focus on the potential economic and social benefits and impacts of building a deep geological repository to store Canada’s used nuclear fuel.

May 20, 2022

South Bruce, Ont.

The community studies focus on the potential economic and social benefits and impacts of building a deep geological repository to store Canada’s used nuclear fuel.

The Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO), in collaboration with the potential siting area communities, will be rolling out various socio-economic and environmental studies over the summer and into next year.

The studies, referred to as “community studies,” were initiated by the Municipality of South Bruce and Township of Ignace in 2021, and focus on the potential economic and social benefits and impacts of building a deep geological repository to store Canada’s used nuclear fuel.

“For more than a decade, we have been working with Indigenous and municipal communities to provide information about the project, including the potential impacts that an environmental infrastructure project of this size could have in and around the potential siting areas. These studies will continue to support those efforts,” said Lise Morton, Vice-President of Site Selection. “We have always said that we will only proceed in an area with informed and willing hosts, and the community studies will support local decision-making around if this project is a good fit for their communities.”

The community studies cover several topics for each siting area, including:

Employment and workforce growth – with hundreds of direct jobs carried over several generations;
Opportunities for businesses both locally and regionally through the NWMO’s robust procurement program;
A growing population to support more robust community services;
A Centre of Expertise home to world-class research attracting academics from the world over; and
Improved infrastructure.

Residents in the potential siting area communities, and anyone interested in Canada’s plan to contain and isolate used nuclear fuel, are encouraged to read the studies. Studies will be released through presentations at a series of community liaison committee meetings in both siting areas. These meetings will be livestreamed and can be attended by anyone.

For more information, please visit our Ignace and South Bruce web pages to discover more about the potential impact of the repository project.

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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