The chief of the Saugeen First Nation says he has Ontario Power Generations word that the planned underground storage for nuclear waste at Bruce Power will not go ahead without his support.
Chief Vernon Roote says there is a potential of a natural disaster creating a leak in the repository, and contaminating the worlds largest source of fresh water for many generations.
"It would go downstream, and pollute the fresh water that people need to sustain themselves," says Roote. "There are enough problems already with the lack of fresh water, and here we are basically creating a potential issue for the future."
He says they have treaty rights that need to be addressed, and are prepared for a legal battle
"That's a fight that we have prepared for if they go ahead with their own proposal without our consent, and of course that's going to go against the consultation process about duty to consult with our community," says Roote.
The Joint Review Panel this week recommended approval of a Deep Geologic Repository to store 200,000 cubic metres of dry low-and-intermediate level nuclear waste nearly 700 metres below the Bruce nuclear site.
