Haldimand "Are We Going Nuclear?"

Well are you ready? It looks like we could be going Nuclear in Haldimand County. And the process will not take as much time as one would think.

Well last Friday was certainly a very interesting day for me. I heard on the news that morning that Bruce Power was indeed proceeding with an EA in preparation for the building of a Nuclear Plant right here in Haldimand County.

I want to send a special thanks to "James at Bruce Power" for the invitation to attend Friday's news release in Nanticoke!

Here is a list of some of the invited guests that attended the News Release on Friday; MPP Toby Barrett, MP Diane Finley, Mayor Marie Trainer, Councillors Sloat, Ricker and Bartlett from Haldimand County, Managers Karen General, Hugh Hanley (from Haldimand County)Mayor Travelle and a few council members from Norfolk County, members from the Board of Trade, Construction Industry, McMaster University, Bill Jackson from the Regional Newspaper.

Bruce Power had school buses picking up people in Jarvis, Simcoe and Cayuga.

Some of us were told that we were going to US Steel, but no one knew for sure where we were going, we only new that we could not drive our own vehicles. So I met the bus at the Jarvis Library at 11:30am. I met quite a few interesting people in the parking lot, and have a few very good contacts that I will be following up with at a later date.

So on the bus we went, I personally thought that we were going to US Steel and as it was over the lunch period there would be some sandwiches and drinks. It became clear when we turned down a farmers path and were now four wheeling in a school bus, we were not going to US Steel.

A few fields in we were dropped off at a prepared area where there was a tent and a Johnny on the spot set up for us. There was food, refreshments, hats and a lot of material to read. This was the ideal site, this 2,000 acre parcel of land that the Nuclear Plant will be built on is located approx. 4 km west of OPG and is owned by US Steel! Thank goodness it was a good day! I felt quite comfortable, I felt like I was in my own backyard surrounded by farmers fields and a view of the lake in the distance.

Councillor Sloat welcomed the crowd of around 60 people and introduced each speaker. Some of the key speakers were MPP Toby Barrett, MP Diane Finley, Mayor Trainer from Haldimand County, Councillor Bartlett from Haldimand County, Mayor Travelle from Norfolk County and the President of Bruce Power, Duncan Hawthorne.

I won't go into a lot of detail of what each speaker said, but I will tell you that on a "local" front our Mayor and Councillors of Haldimand County that were in attendance are in "full support" of a Nuclear Plant being built in Nanticoke. Some will say that they are only in support of the EA process, but I was there and can tell you that a Nuclear build in Haldimand County means "huge" dollars to our County, and our representatives that attended made that point perfectly clear.

Here are some highlights of what was talked about;

The need for "support" from the "community".
This venture will create approx. "1,000 jobs" over the period of the next 60 years.
This was welcomed news from both Haldimand and Norfolk Councils.
The EA process will take approx. 3 years.
Bruce Power has been working with US Steel for about two years.
Bruce Power has been working with the Councils of Haldmand and Norfolk since the beginning of 2007.
Councillor Sloat heads up the "Special Committee" that was formed in early 2007 to deal with the issues of power generation in Haldimand County.

What I learned from reading the information package that was given out that day;

There will be two Nuclear units.
Bruce Power is considering three potential reactor designs, The ACR-1000, advanced CANDU reactor, the Westinghouse AP1000 and the AREVA EPR, the latest generation of pressurized water reactors (PWR).
The schedule for each project phase for EA purposes.

The schedule is as follows;

Planning and EA; 2008-2010 (24 months) for unit 1 and 2.
Site preparation; 2010-2012 (18-24 months) for unit 1 and 2.
Construction; 2012-2016 for unit 1, 2013-2017 for unit 2.
Commissioning 2017 for unit 1, 2018 for unit 2.
Operation and Maintenance; 2017-2077 for unit 1, 2018-2078 for unit 2.
Decommissioning 2077+ for unit 1, and 2078 for unit 2.

Bruce Power has already been engaged with the community. Since early 2007 there have been several seminars and presentations to both Haldimand and Norfolk Councils. Both councils visited Bruce Power's facility in April of 2007. This was all in preparation to apply for the license to start the EA process. In October of 2008 Bruce Power applied to the Federal Government for a site preparation license, once this happens the EA will start.

Part of the EA process is engaging the community and gaining support for a new Nuclear Build.

I will be writing several articles on the EA process. There is a lot of information to be read and to really understand this process I will be talking to a few people from Bruce Power and the Government agencies that are involved.

Here are a few news articles;

Bruce Power to Conduct Environmental Assessment for Nuclear Generating Station in Haldimand-Norfolk

Last update: 1:00 p.m. EDT Oct. 31, 2008

NANTICOKE, ONTARIO, Oct 31, 2008 (MARKET WIRE via COMTEX) -- Bruce Power is pleased to announce it will conduct an Environmental Assessment (EA) as it considers building a nuclear generating station in the Haldimand-Norfolk region of southern Ontario.

The assessment, which could take nearly three years to complete, will examine the environmental and social impacts of building two reactors to generate between 2,000 and 3,000 megawatts of low-emissions electricity. It will also consider how other clean energy sources such as hydrogen, solar and wind could complement nuclear in the area.

"Ontario needs affordable, reliable and clean energy as we move forward to address one of the greatest challenges of our time - climate change," said Duncan Hawthorne, Bruce Power's President and Chief Executive Officer. "Examining new sources of generation in Haldimand-Norfolk will give us, and Ontario, a number of options to consider going forward."

Bruce Power is Canada's only private nuclear generating company and the operator of Ontario's first commercial wind farm at its Bruce County site, approximately 250 km northwest of Toronto. It is also considering building new reactors at its current Ontario site as well as the Peace Country region of Alberta.

Earlier this year, it launched a feasibility study to help Saskatchewan decide whether it will add nuclear to its energy mix as well.

In Haldimand-Norfolk, Bruce Power will use the EA as a planning tool to weigh the merits of building a clean energy hub on approximately 800 hectares within the Haldimand Industrial Park that it has optioned from US Steel Canada Inc. The EA will officially begin when a Project Description and Site Preparation License, filed today, are accepted by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission.

As part of its Integrated Power System Plan, the Ontario Power Authority has said nuclear energy should continue to provide 14,000 megawatts of electricity over the next 20 years, while coal is phased-out through investment in renewables and building a culture of conservation.
"Although this is a major step forward, we will not make a decision to proceed with a project until we have consulted thoroughly with the people of Haldimand-Norfolk and have significantly progressed the EA," Hawthorne said.

The Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development, applauded Bruce Power's decision, saying she strongly supports the launching of an assessment for new nuclear build in her Haldimand-Norfolk riding.

"I'm pleased Bruce Power is progressing with an option that could provide stable, long-term economic impacts for the next 60 years," said Minister Finley, who first approached Bruce Power in 2007 to consider her community as a potential growth site.

Last June, both Haldimand and Norfolk councils unanimously passed resolutions supporting the launch of an EA into new nuclear. Soon after, a poll conducted by Ipsos-Reid showed more than 80 per cent of residents were open to the EA planning process and that nearly two-thirds of people in the area support nuclear energy.

"Haldimand council fully supports this environmental assessment," said Marie Trainer, Mayor of Haldimand County. "This has been a topic of interest in our community for some time and with Bruce Power taking this step, we can now move ahead with extensive and formal public consultation and input."

Norfolk County Mayor Dennis Travale agreed, saying, "Ontario needs power from Nanticoke to support the grid and if such a project proceeds, following a detailed EA, it will be good news for the economies of Haldimand, Norfolk and Ontario."

Councillor Buck Sloat, Chair of the Haldimand Special Committee into Energy Development said the region could benefit greatly from new investment in clean energy. "Establishing an energy hub at Nanticoke means clean energy for Ontario and long-term stable jobs for our local community," Sloat said.

Patrick Dillon, Business Manager of the Provincial Building and Construction Trades Council of Ontario, said the project would help the region develop a larger pool of skilled trades people if it goes ahead. "This will have immense economic benefits that go far beyond the walls of any new facility," Dillon said.

In October of 2007, both councils jointly released an economic study, authored by Dr. Harry Kitchen of Trent University, which showed a new facility could create approximately 1,000 new jobs and contribute $550 million annually in regional, economic impacts during construction.

About Bruce Power

Bruce Power is a partnership among Cameco Corporation, TransCanada Corporation, BPC Generation Infrastructure Trust, a trust established by the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System, the Power Workers' Union and The Society of Energy Professionals.

Contacts:
Bruce Power
Steve Cannon
(519) 361-6559
Email: steve.cannon@brucepower.com

Bruce Power
24-hour Duty Media Officer
(519) 361-6161

Bruce Power eyes Lake Erie site for nuclear reactors
Last Updated: Friday, October 31, 2008 5:18 PM ET
CBC News
Nuclear power-plant operator Bruce Power said Friday it is considering construction of two new nuclear stations in Nanticoke, Ont., the site of a coal plant scheduled to shut down in 2014.
The private nuclear generating company announced Friday it had applied for a site preparation licence with the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission.

"Ontario needs affordable, reliable and clean energy as we move forward to address one of the greatest challenges of our time — climate change," said Bruce Power president and CEO Duncan Hawthorne in a statement.

"Examining new sources of generation in Haldimand-Norfolk will give us, and Ontario, a number of options to consider going forward," he said.

The company also said that if the safety commission accepts the licence application, the company would conduct an environmental assessment to gauge the impact of building two reactors in the Haldimand-Norfolk region of southern Ontario on the shore of Lake Erie, about 130 km southwest of Toronto.

The assessment could take as long as three years to complete, the company said.
The two reactors would generate between 2,000 and 3,000 megawatts of low-emissions electricity, the company said.

The Nanticoke Generating Station is the largest coal-firing power plant in North America. It is slated to close in 2014 as part of the Ontario government's push to eliminate the use of coal power by that year. The provincial government has said completely eliminating coal-fired power generation will have an environmental equivalent of removing seven million cars from the road.
Ontario currently has three operating nuclear plants: Bruce Power operates the Bruce site on Lake Huron while Ontario Power Generation operates the Pickering and Darlington sites, both east of Toronto.

Earlier this year Bruce Power filed an application nuclear safety commission for clearance to prepare another possible site in Alberta's Peace River district.