A vehicle protest parade against a deep geological repository (DGR) in South Bruce is set to take place this evening.
The group ‘Protect Our Waterways – No Nuclear Waste’ says its second annual Yellow Protest Parade is scheduled for 6:30 this evening (June 8).
The Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) is looking at two locations in the province to store used nuclear fuel— one is the Municipality of South Bruce and the other is Ignace. The NWMO says the DGR would be about 500 metres belowground. The process of searching for a site began in 2010. Local areas no longer being considered included Saugeen Shores, Brockton and Arran-Elderslie.
Borehole drilling, coring and testing started in South Bruce in late April as part of NWMO studies of the area’s geology. The NWMO says field studies can take up to nine months per borehole. They plan to select a location in 2023.
Groups like ‘Protect Our Waterways – No Nuclear Waste’ are concerned the DGR would be located too close to Lake Huron. They feel it threatens ground water and river water that flows into the lake if there was ever to be a leak. They’ve also stated concern about the possible social stigma of being known as “Canada’s nuclear dump.”
The NWMO says on its website, a DGR is, “Consistent with international best practice. This approach is the culmination of more than 30 years of research, development and demonstration of technologies and techniques.”
Protest organizer Michelle Stein says they will present a delegation to South Bruce council before the parade starts. It’s intended to be a peaceful parade during which, people wear yellow and decorate their vehicles in yellow.
An event poster says “They won’t define ‘willing’ so lets show the NWMO ‘unwilling’ in a bright and colourful way.”
The parade will begin at the Teeswater Community Centre at the James Street east entrance.
Organizers say last year, over 200 people participated in the event in about 100 vehicles.
