Borehole drilling, coring and testing is underway in South Bruce as the Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) continues to evaluate the geology of two potential siting areas for a deep geological repository for Canada’s used nuclear fuel. The other potential site is in Ignace Ontario.
The NWMO reported the testing will help determine whether the site can meet regulatory requirements. the NWMO wants to ensure used nuclear fuel can be safely contained in the rock, underneath the surface. That is necessary to protect water, people and the environment. Once borehole drilling and testing is complete, the NWMO will share progress and findings with community members
"Drilling of boreholes is one of the important ways that we collect information about the geology and underground setting,” said Sarah Hirschorn, Director of Geoscience at the NWMO. “It allows us to learn more about the rock and the water deep below ground at our potential repository sites.”
The borehole drilling and testing programs in Ignace and South Bruce as well as the field activities can take up to nine months per borehole.
According to a release from the NWMO, the NWMO is a not-for-profit organization tasked with the safe, long-term storage of Canada’s used nuclear fuel in a manner that protects people and the environment for generations to come. The NWMO says they are implementing Canada’s plan to safely isolate and contain used nuclear fuel inside a deep geological repository, and the plan is based on years of public input, Indigenous Knowledge, international scientific consensus and best practices from around the world.
Canada’s plan will only proceed in an area with informed and willing hosts, where the municipality, First Nation and Métis communities, and others in the area are working together to implement it. The NWMO plans to select a site in 2023, and two areas remain in our site selection process: the Ignace area and South Bruce, both in Ontario.
Transparent and accountable, the NWMO works in close cooperation with communities, all levels of government, national and international regulators, Indigenous peoples, industry, academia, and civil society organizations.
