Canada must not store nuclear waste near Great Lakes, say Upton, Mitchell

U.S. Reps. Fred Upton (R-MI) and Paul Mitchell (R-MI) are against Canada placing a nuclear waste storage facility near the Great Lakes.

“This is a grave concern. These waters have long united us — they should not divide us,” Reps. Upton and Mitchell wrote in a Dec. 6 letter sent to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. “This is a treasured natural resource each of our countries share and we urge you to stand with us to protect these waters for future generations.”

Joining Reps. Upton and Mitchell in signing the letter were their home-state Democratic colleagues U.S. Reps. Debbie Dingell (D-MI) and Dan Kildee (D-MI).

“We write to you out of deep concern regarding reports that Canada is moving closer to selecting a permanent national repository for harmful nuclear waste along the shores of the Great Lakes,” the lawmakers wrote. “Allowing a permanent nuclear waste storage facility anywhere near the Great Lakes basin, for any amount of time, is a risk we cannot afford to take. The recent reporting also has us greatly concerned that the highest levels of radioactive waste would ultimately be stored at the proposed site.”

Reps. Upton and Mitchell and their colleagues noted that in November, the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee also advanced the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 2019, H.R. 2699, to the U.S. House of Representatives for final consideration.

H.R. 2699, wrote the lawmakers, includes a bipartisan amendment expressing the sense of Congress that the governments of the United States and Canada should not allow permanent or long-term storage of spent nuclear fuel or other radioactive waste near the Great Lakes. The amendment was unanimously supported and adopted, they wrote.

The representatives also warned Trudeau that “there are other members of Congress representing districts in the Great Lakes basin who are most concerned by this development and will certainly be joining with us in the days ahead.”