Ontario Power Generation

The Deep Geologic Repository



Government Appoints Panel Members for DGR
Jan. 24, 2012

Another milestone in the regulatory process for OPG’s proposed Deep Geologic Repository (DGR) project for Low and Intermediate Level Waste (L&ILW) was reached on Jan. 24. In a joint communication, the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency (CEAA) and the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) announced the federal appointment of a three-member Joint Review Panel (JRP).

In April, OPG submitted the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), Preliminary Safety Report (PSR). The submission to federal authorities supports a strong safety case for the long-term isolation of low and intermediate-level nuclear waste. The DGR proposal calls for the project to be located on OPG-owned lands at the Bruce nuclear site in the municipality of Kincardine.

A copy of the media release and the bios of the panel members can be viewed at the CEAA website.

The submission documents can be viewed at nwmo.ca/dgr. Review the EIS summary document.

The Project

The DGR is proposed to be located about 680 metres (2,230 feet) below ground surface in low permeability limestone, beneath a 200 metres (660 feet) thick layer of low permeability shale. These sedimentary bedrock formations, that provide multiple natural barriers, will safely isolate and contain the low and intermediate level nuclear waste.

The DGR facility would manage about 200,000 cubic meters of low and intermediate-level waste, which is the only waste from OPG-owned or operated nuclear generating stations in Ontario accepted at the DGR. Used fuel will not be stored or managed in the DGR.

Key elements that provide confidence in the safety of the DGR:

• The DGR is Isolated from surface and drinking waters by a nominal depth of 680 metres (2,230 feet);
• Low permeability rock formations under and above the DGR provide multiple natural barriers to safely isolate and contain the waste;
• The 450 million-year-old rock formations have remained stable through tectonic events, climate changes and several ice ages, and are expected to remain stable for at least the next few million years;
• The DGR site is within the tectonically stable interior of the North American continent, which is a region characterized by low rates of seismicity where large magnitude earthquakes are unlikely;
• The radioactivity in the low and intermediate level waste will decay with time; most of the waste volume contains primarily shorter-lived radionuclides; and
• The properties of the host rock and shaft seals will limit the movement of radioactivity to very slow rates.

Artist's Rendition of Deep Geologic Repository

Ontario Power Generation
Box 7000, B21
Tiverton, ON N0G 2T0
Canada
Tel: (519)368-1639
Fax: (519)368-1607
Email: dgrinfo@opg.com

• DGR Brochure
• DGR Frequently Asked Questions
• EIS Summary Report
• For further information on the DGR project and submission documents please visit the Nuclear Waste Management Organization website, nwmo.ca/dgr
• If you would like a CD with the electronic versions of the submission documents, please send an email to dgrinfo@opg.com providing your name and mailing address
• To view a paper copy of the DGR Submission documents visit; Libraries: Kincardine, Port Elgin, Walkerton and Bruce County (Saugeen Shores), Chesley, Ripley, Southampton, Teeswater, Tobermory and Walkerton. Municipal Offices: Kincardine, Arran-Elderslie, Brockton, Huron-Kinloss and North Bruce Peninsula and, the County of Bruce Administration Building in Walkerton

Watch this video outlining the DGR project.

• WATCH NOW

• April 14, 2011: OPG Submits Reports