January 24, 2022
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CANADALAND
#748 The Plan To Turn My Hometown Into A Nuclear Waste Dump
Canada has a nuclear problem... a nuclear waste problem. The hunt for a place to park radioactive waste has been ongoing in one form or another since 1978, but by 2023 it seems a solution will be within reach.
Jesse Brown
Host & Publisher
Sarah Lawrynuik
Senior Producer
Tristan Capacchione
Audio Editor & Technical Producer
Kieran Oudshoorn
Managing Editor, Podcasts

Canada has a nuclear problem… a nuclear waste problem. Since the dawn of nuclear power technology, solutions to waste have all been remarkably temporary given the longevity of the danger the material presents.

For decades, the hunt for a solution has spanned across provinces — even across countries. But the hope is that by 2023 Canada will have found a home – and permanent solution – for all of the country’s nuclear waste.

This endeavor is pitting neighbour against neighbour — community against community. And the stakes are high for the future of the nuclear industry.

CANADALAND senior producer Sarah Lawrynuik ventures to Northwestern Ontario to bring you this story.

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Sponsors: Rotman Executive Leadership Online, PolicyMe, Dispatch Coffee

Additional Music is by Audio Network

CORRECTION: A previous version of this story stated that monitoring of the waste site would occur for seven years after all of the nuclear waste was put in the deep geological repository. However, the NWMO has budgeted for monitoring to occur for 70 years. We regret this error.

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