Crucial green energy source or radioactive boondoggle? Legislative committee hears from witnesses on small modular nuclear reactors.
It’s an issue that never fails to generate controversy: nuclear energy. At stake is the future of the planet and billions of dollars.
NB Power says the controversial energy source is key for its strategy to generate low-carbon electricity.
The utility already operates the Point Lepreau Nuclear Generating Station, a CANDU reactor located about 50 km southwest of Saint John.
Among other sources, New Brunswick’s power mix also includes electricity from NB Power’s coal-fired Belledune Generating Station on the province’s north shore.
The federal government says that facility, one of the biggest emitters of greenhouse gases in the province, has to stop operations by 2030.
NB Power plans to build what’s called a small modular nuclear reactor, or SMR, at the site of the existing Point Lepreau nuclear site, on the Bay of Fundy.
Government and industry describe SMRs as “considerably smaller in size and power output than conventional nuclear power reactors, with enhanced safety features.”
Supporters say it will be a key component in global efforts to avoid the worst effects of the climate crisis caused by greenhouse gas emissions.
But opponents of nuclear energy say SMR technology is untested and risky, both for the environment and government coffers, and that it could even contribute to nuclear weapons proliferation.… Continue