Should Manitoba Go Nuclear?

Abstract

Manitoba hosts the first nuclear community in Western Canada. AECL’s Whiteshell Laboratories in Pinawa carried out research on reactor safety, waste management and a number of reactor types including small reactors for powering remote communities. The Whiteshell site is now being decommissioned but will likely remain under CNSC license for the next century. The site is ideal for a new power reactor with its location on a major river, a major transmission corridor that runs through the site, and its proximity to major markets. With the relatively small grid sizes in the Prairie Provinces, it makes sense for the provincial utilities to cooperate in the building of major projects so as not to overwhelm individual utilities with a large power rector. What is needed now is a formal feasibility study to address the economic factors in favour of a nuclear plant compared with the cost of remote hydro dams and expensive transmission costs. With nuclear expansion now envisioned both east and west of Manitoba it makes sense for the province to become involved. Because of its history and knowledgeable and supportive population Pinawa could readily host a nuclear power plant or any other nuclear operation.