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EDMONTON — A nuclear-energy option for fossil-fuelled Alberta is still being explored up in the Peace Country — although in a different place.
Frank Saunders, vice-president, nuclear oversight and regulatory affairs division of Ontario nuclear-energy giant Bruce Power says the company withdrew the Lac Cardinal site application to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission last November.
The company encountered stiff resistance to the first site it had chosen, Lac Cardinal, east of Peace River, and opted to explore an alternate location — designated the Whitemud site — 30 km north of the town.
Concerns were raised about the near proximity of a gravel aquifer — and while Bruce Power felt environmental technology could have protected the aquifer, it decided to look elsewhere.
"We`re really focusing on the other site," Saunders said.
The company is doing baseline soil testing, determining the depth of the bedrock and exploring grading issues before making application to go to the environmental assessment stage.
"There`s still a fair amount of work — we`ll do a lot of work this summer."
The company is also waiting on the results of a provincial government consultation process that will — or won`t — result in a nuclear policy for Alberta.
"If the government decides nuclear is not an option, there`s not much of a point going ahead," Saunders said.
In March, Alberta Energy Minister Mel Knight, in press reports, was quoted as acknowledging the existence of a "nuclear renaissance," but stopped shot of endorsing atomic power as an alternative for Alberta.
In the same reports, Premier Ed Stelmach promised public consultation before any decision was made.
Read the full article here.
Frank Saunders, vice-president, nuclear oversight and regulatory affairs division of Ontario nuclear-energy giant Bruce Power says the company withdrew the Lac Cardinal site application to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission last November.
The company encountered stiff resistance to the first site it had chosen, Lac Cardinal, east of Peace River, and opted to explore an alternate location — designated the Whitemud site — 30 km north of the town.
Concerns were raised about the near proximity of a gravel aquifer — and while Bruce Power felt environmental technology could have protected the aquifer, it decided to look elsewhere.
"We`re really focusing on the other site," Saunders said.
The company is doing baseline soil testing, determining the depth of the bedrock and exploring grading issues before making application to go to the environmental assessment stage.
"There`s still a fair amount of work — we`ll do a lot of work this summer."
The company is also waiting on the results of a provincial government consultation process that will — or won`t — result in a nuclear policy for Alberta.
"If the government decides nuclear is not an option, there`s not much of a point going ahead," Saunders said.
In March, Alberta Energy Minister Mel Knight, in press reports, was quoted as acknowledging the existence of a "nuclear renaissance," but stopped shot of endorsing atomic power as an alternative for Alberta.
In the same reports, Premier Ed Stelmach promised public consultation before any decision was made.
Read the full article here.