Canadian repository project moves on to review stage

The Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) announced on 5 January that the Initial Project Description - which it describes as a foundational document detailing the repository's purpose, need and expected benefits, as well as explaining how the project will be implemented in a manner that protects people and the environment - has been posted to the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada website. This formally initiates the federal impact assessment and licensing processes and provides the basis for sustained community engagement, the NWMO said.

"For the NWMO, submitting the Initial Project Description represents more than a regulatory requirement," said NWMO Vice-President of Regulatory Approvals Allan Webster. "It is a shared starting point that brings together engineering, environmental, Indigenous Knowledge and community perspectives to guide how the project moves forward through impact assessment, licensing, design optimisation, construction and operations."

The NWMO is a not-for-profit organisation funded by Canada’s nuclear waste producers with a mandate to determine and find and build and operate a long-term solution for disposal of used nuclear fuel in Canada. A consent-based siting process launched in 2010 culminated in the selection in 2024 of Wabigoon Lake Ojibway Nation (WLON) and the Township of Ignace as the host communities for the project. The communities agreed to enter the regulatory decision-making phase as potential host communities for the repository.

The proposed project would be located 21 kilometres southeast of the WLON and 43 kilometres northwest of the Town of Ignace in Ontario. It would provide permanent storage for some 5.9 million bundles of used nuclear fuel between 650 and 800 metres below ground and have an underground footprint of about 2 kilometres by 3 kilometres.

The project is expected to span around 160 years, encompassing site preparation, construction - which is projected to take about 10 years - operation from the 2040s and decades of post-operations closure monitoring, according to information from the Impact Assessment Agency. 

The Impact Assessment Agency of Canada and the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission have invited Indigenous Peoples and the public to submit comments on the summary of the Initial Project Description and to provide feedback by 4 February to support them in the preparation of a summary of issues that will be sent to the NWMO and help shape how the overall integrated assessment will be carried out.