Gives
a lot of clean air
Radioactivity
emitted accounts for less than 1/10th of 1 per cent of average Canadian's
yearly dose
Town rallies against enriched uranium plan
Sept. 18.
Clashing views on nuclear waste
Sept. 18.
The two stories mentioned above,
published in the same edition of your paper, bring at least one salient fact to
light. When it comes to anything involving the word "nuclear," many
prefer to judge based on perceived risk as opposed to actual risk. They choose
to ignore the science and the regulations in place of anti-nuclear dogma.
Can you really blame them? In
today's fast-paced world information is usually passed in the form of a sound
byte which is far more conducive to the accusation than it is to the actual
explanation. Several decades of anti-nuclear sound bytes have left the debate a
little one-sided, partly because a newspaper letter or column is not nearly
enough to explain the workings and benefits of Canada's nuclear industry.
With regard to deep geological
disposal, it is important to note that the major concern, retrieval, can be
addressed by this plan. An initial monitoring period is already incorporated
into the plan that may be extended indefinitely if this option is deemed
necessary. There is also the perception that this method simply involves
burying the waste. This simplification ignores the complexity of the
engineering barriers that are in place. These include the fuel pellet itself,
which contains all the radioactive material, the fuel cladding, a two layer
stainless steel/copper container, a tightly packed layer of bentonite clay,
various layers of slurries, high-temperature concrete, and finally proper sight
selection in an arid and stable region of the
We also have a handy natural
example of the feasibility of deep geological disposal. In Gabon, Africa the
remains of several large natural nuclear reactors (where conditions in uranium
ore deposits were such that a chain reaction naturally occurred) have remained
intact for several billion years without dispersing their plutonium content.
Radiation is another issue and one
that is perhaps most misunderstood. Those espousing the danger seem not to
comprehend that while the nuclear industry does emit radioactivity, this
accounts for less than 1/10th of 1 per cent of a typical Canadian's yearly
dose. We are exposed to radioactivity every single day of our lives from the
ground, from the sun, from the food we eat, and even from ourselves. I often
wonder if the fear of radioactivity would be so great if it was general
knowledge that every banana we eat is bringing radioactive potassium into our
body. Or, perhaps more poignantly, the amount of radioactive material in just
two human beings is enough to fall under the regulation of the Canadian Nuclear
Safety Commission. The fact is that nuclear power is an essential tool as we go
forward into a clean air future. Even traditional environmentalists are
recognizing this fact. In
Andrew Daley, Hamilton, Ont.