The Canadian nuclear industry will continue
to cover the Town of Creighton’s expenses for learning about radioactive-waste storage.
Town council voted last week to sign an agreement with the Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) to obtain up to $125,000 in funding per year.
Though Creighton is not expected to incur anywhere near that level of expense, NWMO dollars will be available for costs such as staff time, travel and meeting space rentals.
Mayor Bruce Fidler said the agreement represents a continuation of NWMO’s policy of covering costs associated with learning about the potential of a nuclear-waste repository.
Accounting
Under the deal, NWMO will twice a year require an accounting of all expenditures to ensure funds are being spent appropriately.
Eligible costs include town support staff who assist with both the learning process and the Community Liaison Committee (CLC), a volunteer group that serves as a bridge between NWMO and the public.
Also eligible are Aboriginal cultural awareness training initiatives within the community, costs of attending conferences, youth initiatives to support education around science and nuclear waste storage, and CLC administrative expenses like advertising and newsletters.
Included as well are costs related to town councillors or municipal staff participating in the NWMO learning process, such as by holding meetings with Aboriginal people.
In addition to funding related to the NWMO learning process, Creighton is receiving a $400,000 gift from NWMO to be spent on community projects.
NWMO said the gift recognizes Creighton’s work to help find a site to store radioactive waste, but some anti-waste critics worry it was an effort to buy public support.
Creighton and 13 Ontario communities are learning about the possibility of hosting a waste repository to be constructed by NWMO. None have actually applied to host the project.
NWMO is funded by Canada’s nuclear industry, which is based primarily in Ontario.
