WINDSOR, ONT. -- Following the historic vote by a First Nation that said no to plans to bury nuclear waste about a kilometre from Lake Huron, NDP Great Lakes Critic Brian Masse applauded the decision.
On Friday, 1,232 members of the Saugeen Ojibway Nation turned out to vote on Ontario Power Generation’s proposed deep geologic repository within their territory. The results were 1,058 'no' votes, with 170 'yes' and 4 spoiled ballots.
“This is a victory for the Saugeen Ojibway Nation (SON), the people of Ontario, and our international counterparts who share Lake Huron and the Great Lakes with us,” said Windsor West MP Masse in a statement.
“Any proposals to bury and store nuclear waste beside our drinking water, the drinking water for 40 million Canadians and Americans alike, is completely nonsensical. We need to move this radioactive waste away from these vital waters and find alternative options.”
The vote means the nuclear waste facility will have to be built somewhere else. OPG said finding a new set could take as long as 30 years.
