Michigan Delegation Urges SOS Tillerson to Use "Diplomatic and Legal" Action Against Great Lakes Nuclear Waste Repository

Press Release

Today, U.S. Representative Dave Trott (MI-11) and Representative Debbie Dingell (MI-12), led the Michigan delegation, and other Members of Congress representing the Great Lakes region in sending a letter to Secretary of State Rex Tillerson underscoring their opposition to Ontario Power Generation's proposed nuclear waste repository one mile from the shores of Lake Huron.

The letter, which represents the strongest bipartisan opposition to the plan yet, comes after Ontario Power Generation (OPG) submitted a 145-page document to the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency doubling down on its proposal to bury nuclear waste at the Bruce Power Complex less than a mile from Lake Huron in Kincardine, Ontario.

"Representing one-fifth of the world's freshwater supply, the Great Lakes are one of the most critical and sensitive ecosystems in the world. Since its proposal, I have been extremely alarmed by Ontario Power Generation's plan to bury nuclear waste within one mile of the magnificent shores of Lake Huron," said Rep. Trott. "Today, I, Rep. Debbie Dingell, and many other concerned Members from the Great Lakes region, implored Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to do everything in his power - diplomatic and legal - to protect our Great Lakes. Inaction is too high a price to pay."

"The Great Lakes account for 20 percent of the world's freshwater supply and are absolutely critical for millions of Americans who rely on them for clean drinking water, jobs and their way of life," Rep. Dingell said. "Any spill in this area would be catastrophic for the entire region, and no barrier or wall would be able to contain it. As I told Prime Minister Trudeau last year, we never want to see nuclear waste in the Great Lakes. OPG has identified other locations outside the Great Lakes basin that would be technically feasible and those options must be pursued. Protecting this precious resource at any cost should be a top priority."

In the letter, the Representatives write, "With the release of this report, it is our strong belief that OPG has doubled down on the Bruce Power Complex proposal for two inconvenient facts for the company: that they believe an alternative site would be more expensive and take longer to construct.

"We cannot let cost be the sole driving factor in this critical decision, as storing nuclear waste in the Great Lakes basin bears far too great a risk that would be fundamentally devastating to an entire region. Any contamination whatsoever would pose disastrous repercussions as all of the lakes are connected to one another, and no barrier, man-made or natural, would be able to stop a potential catastrophe of epic proportions."

Source