Ottawa needs to step in before nuclear waste project goes any further – IRPP

March 10, 2025

It must ensure the $26-billion plan to bury bundles in northwestern Ontario does not advance without consent from potentially affected First Nations.

In December, Eagle Lake First Nation applied for judicial review of a controversial decision to locate a nuclear waste dump in northwestern Ontario. The lawsuit says there were serious flaws in the process used to select the site, known as a deep geological repository (DGR).

While the Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) claims it used a “consent-based” approach to making the decision, some First Nations whose rights could be affected were excluded from the process of selecting the site for the $26-billion project to bury millions of used nuclear fuel bundles underground.

The project must still undergo impact assessment and regulatory processes, with operations not set to begin until at least the 2040s.

Read More: https://policyoptions.irpp.org/magazines/march-2025/nuclear-waste-first-nations/