Peace and Environment News* September 1991
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Peace and Environment News * September 1991 |
June 11 marked the opening of the House of Commons debate on Bill C-204, An Act to Amend the Atomic Energy Control Act. Two hours of parliamentary debate remain scheduled in the early fall prior to the vote on Bill C-204 at Second Reading.
Bill C-204, sponsored by MP Bill Blaikie (NDP, Winnipeg-Transcona), would end the development and export of nuclear substances, including nuclear reactors, equipment and materials required to build reactors, for fifty years beginning January 1, 1992. The Atomic Energy Control Board (AECB) would no longer issue any new licence relating to the production, mining, refining, use, sale, possession or export of any proscribed substance such as uranium; or the export or sale of nuclear reactors and related equipment and materials.
The Campaign For Nuclear Phaseout hopes to gain the support of enough MPs to pass Bill C-204 at Second Reading and allow it to go before a legislative committee. Committee hearings would permit input from experts and concerned environmental groups. This public debate would be valuable in making the public more aware of the issues involved in evaluating the nuclear industry. Passing the bill at Second Reading does not make it law. This would happen only if the bill passes Third Reading, which would be the next step in the legislative process.
The Campaign for Nuclear Phaseout, a broad based coalition of close to 200 environmental, labour, peace, women's, native and community based organizations, has been instrumental over the past year in bringing forward this proposed federal legislation. Lynn McDonald, spokesperson for the Campaign, stated "We are looking for support for the principle of nuclear phaseout, that is, the gradual elimination, through attrition, of nuclear power generating reactors, and their replacement with safe renewable sources and measures of efficiency and conservation. We need to persuade our elected representatives of the importance of making this transition and of the viability of 'soft energy' options, especially demand reduction through more efficient use."
The harmful effects of even low level radiation have been documented in studies since the nuclear industry began to be subsidized by the federal government in the early 1950s. Reactor aging has become a serious concern within the nuclear industry. A 1990 international ranking of nuclear reactor performance by Nuclear Engineering International placed Ontario Hydro's best plant in 26th place, a greatly diminished performance from 1989 in which an Ontario reactor ranked sixth out of nearly 300 plants.
The Conservative Party has, on several occasions, promised a public inquiry on the nuclear industry, but it has yet to deliver on that promise. The planned Electricity and Environment Review was recently cancelled, and upcoming hearings on high-level waste disposal explicitly exclude consideration of the merits of having a nuclear industry at all.
To ensure that Bill C-204 is brought to a public debate, we must urge our MPs to support the bill at Second Reading. Please write or phone your MP to urge that he or she vote in favour of the bill at Second Reading.
For more information, please contact the Campaign for Nuclear Phaseout at 563-2004.
Converted September 27, 2001 - Lg
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