Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutPSD-074-09Clarington Leading the Way REPORT PLANNING SERVICES Meeting: GENERAL PURPOSE AND ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE Date: Monday, July 6, 2009 eh o w r ~1 Report #: PSD-074-09 File #: PLN 33.4 By-law #: Subject: MUNICIPALITY OF CLARINGTON COMMENTS TO THE CANADIAN NUCLEAR SAFETY COMMISSION HEARING ON THE PORT GRANBY SCREENING REPORT RECOMMENDATIONS: It is respectfully recommended that. the General Purpose and Administration Committee recommend to Council the following: 1. THAT Report PSD-074-09 be received; 2. THAT Report PSD-074-09 be APPROVED as the Municipality of Clarington's comments to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission on the Screening Report for the Port Granby project; 3. THAT Report PSD-074-09 be submitted to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission at such time as the Commission releases a Public Notice advising of the holding of a Hearing with respect to the Port Granby Screening Report; and 4. THAT all interested parties listed in this report and any delegations be advised of Council's decision. Submitted by: Reviewed by: JAS/FUdf 'U 26 June 2009 avd J. C m , MCIP, R n lin Wu, iy~ctor of PI Wing Servi es ~/ Chief Administrative Officer CORPORATION OF THE MUNICIPALITY TEMPERANCE STREET, BOWMANVILLE, ONTARIO L1C 3A6 T (905)623-3379 F (905)623-0830 OF CLARINGTON REPORT NO.: PSD-074-09 1.0 BACKGROUND PAGE 2 1.1 The Port Granby Project defines the preferred alternative for the long-term management of the historic and low level radioactive wastes and marginally contaminated soils in the Municipality of Clarington. As part of the regulatory process, an Environmental Assessment is required under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act. The Port Hope Area Initiative operated by Atomic Energy Canada Limited (AECL), is the proponent for the Port Granby Project. The responsible authorities for the Port Granby Project are Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) and the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC). 1.2 On May 4, 2009, NRCan as the lead Regulatory Authority for the Port Granby Project, released the draft Screening Report for the Port Granby Project for public review and comment. The review period ended on June 17, 2009. The Municipality's comments on the draft Screening Report were approved by Council through its consideration of Report PSD-058-09 and comments submitted by Gerry Mahoney on behalf of the South East Clarington Residents' Association. 1.3 NRCan will revise the Screening Report based on the comments received. The CNSC will hold a hearing prior to finalizing its decision on the Screening Report. Information with respect to this hearing, including the date and the contact person for the submission of written comments, has not yet been provided by the CNSC. However, there is a possibility that the hearing may occur within the next two months. As such, the Municipality's submission to the CNSC on the Port Granby Screening Report should be approved prior to the Council's summer recess. 1.4 Hardy Stevenson, the Municipality's peer review consultant, and Staff have prepared a submission (Attachment 1) for Council's consideration as the Municipality's comments to the CNSC on the Screening Report. The submission builds upon and advances the Municipality's comments and recommendations on the draft Screening Report as approved by Council on June 15, 2009. 2.0 CANADIAN NUCLEAR SAFETY COMMISSION 2.1 The CNSC is Canada's nuclear watchdog and is the sole authority for regulating the use and licensing of all nuclear energy and materials in Canada under the Nuclear Safety and Control Act. It is aquasi-judicial body that is independent from the Government of Canada, but does not function in isolation from it. The CNSC regulates the use of nuclear energy and materials to protect the health, safety and security of persons and the environment. 2.2 The CNSC grants licence approval for nuclear waste management facilities. A licence is required for all steps in facility management: site preparation, construction, operation, decommissioning and abandonment. In the case of the Port Granby Project, a "Waste Nuclear Substance Licence" is also required. REPORT NO.: PSD-074-09 PAGE 3 2.3 Additionally, the licencing phase for the Port Granby Project will establish a schedule for the completion of the agreed licensing document submissions (e.g. Licencing Manual, Water Treatment Strategy, EA Follow-Up Program Plan). The process will require timelines to be specified, details of the service standards for production. as well as the review and revision of documents. There will also be a requirement for the definition of processes for communications, management reporting and resolving disputes. 2.4 Although the licencing of the Port Granby Project by the CNSC is a distinct process, it is also strongly guided by the Environmental Assessment process. 3.0 SUBMISSION TO THE CANADIAN NUCLEAR SAFETY COMMJSSION 3.1 The submission to the CNSC, Attachment 1, seeks to ensure that the commitments identified in the EASR for the Port Granby Project, as approved by the Screening Report and agreed upon by AECL, are solidified as conditions in the CNSC licencing process. As such, the submission is intended to provide a basis for intervention by the Municipality during the licencing phase for the Port Granby Project. 3.2 The submission outlines the items that the Municipality wishes to be addressed by the CNSC for the Port Granby Project as the licence is being. assessed. The following issues are discussed in the submission: • Municipal Requirements for Conditions to be Addressed by the Licencing Process o Recognition of the Legal Agreement o Emphasizing ALARA (As Low As Reasonably Achievable) over adaptive management to avoid adverse effects o Recognition of the Cleanup Criteria agreed to by the Municipality and the opportunity for Municipal involvement in determining 'how clean is clean' during the clean up process o Ensuring Municipal budget requirements. related to the Port Granby Project are properly addressed , • Conditions Requested for Inclusion in the CNSC Licence o Water treatment requirements o Lifespan of the geomembrane in the base liner of the new waste storage facility o Dust Management Plan that includes the management of dust at-source REPORT NO.: PSD-074-09 PAGE 4 o Contingency Plans for the EA Followup Program, description of the monitoring programs, and assessing the effectiveness of mitigation programs Awell-developed program for managing the socio-economic impacts related to the Project on area residents o Recognition of commitments regarding end use, the sale of surplus land, and assurances regarding no additional waste • Opportunities for Stakeholder Involvement • The importance of establishing an effective protocol for communications and local involvement in the Project. 4.0 CONCLUSIONS 4.1 Once the CNSC issues the licence for the Port Granby Project, it will be responsible for all aspects of the Project on the existing waste site and the site of the new Long Term Waste Management Facility. As such, it is important that the CNSC, when it reviews the Screening Report, is aware of the expectations of the Municipality and area residents with respect to the implementation of commitments made in the EASR and in the Screening Report. The attached submission will help to accomplish this objective. It will also lay the groundwork for Municipal participation at the CNSC licensing hearing for the Port Granby Project. 4.2 Once the CNSC hearing related to the Screening Report has been scheduled, Staff will forward this report to the contact person identified by the Commission for receiving public submissions. Attachments: Attachment 1 -Submission to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission List of interested parties to be advised of Council's decision: Christine Fahey Gerry Mahoney Attachment 111 to PSD-074-09 PORT GRANBY LONG-TERM LOW-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE MANAGEMENT PROJECT • ~~ Leading the Way MUNICIPALITY OF CLARINGTON SUBMISSION TO THE CANADIAN NUCLEAR SAFETY COMMISSION ON THE PORT GRANBY PROJECT DRAFT SCREENING REPORT July 13, 2009 Table of Contents 1.0 Introduction ..............................................................................................3 2.0 .Municipal Requirements to be Brought Forward in the Licencing Process ................................................................................................................3 2.1 The Legal Agreement ....................................................................... ....3 2.2 ALARA Principle .................:............................................:................ ....3 2.3 Clean Up Criteria ............................................................................... ....4 2.4 Budgeting .....:...............................................................:.................... ....4 3.0 Conditions Requested to be included in the CNSC Licence ............ ....4 3.1 Water Treatment Requirements ....:..............:................................... ....4 3.2 Lifespan of the Liner Geomembrane .............................................. ....5 3.3 Dust Management Plan .................................................................... ....5 3.4 Follow-Up Program ..........................:................................................ ....5 3.5 Socio-Economic Impact Management ............................................ ....5 3.6 End Use Commitments ........:........................................................... ....6 4.0 Roles and Responsibilities of Authorities/ Licencee .:...................... ....6 5.0 Roles and Responsibilities of other Parties and Local Content to Decis ions ......................................................................................................... ....6 6.0 Communications Protocols ................................................................. ....7 Municipality of Clarington's Submission to the CNSC on the Port Granby Project Draft Screening Report 1.0 Introduction This submission provides a basis for intervention by the Municipality of Clarington during the licencing phase for the Port Granby Project. In this submission, the Municipality outlines the terms that it wishes to be addressed by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) for the Port Granby Project as the licence is being assessed. The commitments identified in the Environmental Assessment Study Report (EASR) and agreed upon by Atomic Energy Canada Limited (AECL) need to be solidified as conditions in the licencing process. The following items are discussed in this submission: • Municipal requirements for conditions to be addressed by the CNSC licencing process • Roles and responsibilities of Authorities/ Licencee • Roles and responsibilities of other parties and local content to decisions • Communications protocols. 2.0 Municipal Requirements to be Brought Forward in the Licencing Process Ultimately, the Municipality of Clarington wants the CNSC licence to deliver the protection of human health and the environment. The conditions of the licence must also generate and create an environment of openness, accountability and foster conditions of trust between all parties (Municipality of Clarington, the proponent (Port Hope Area Initiative) and the Regulatory Authorities who represent the Government of Canada. The following sections (2.0 to 5.0) outline the conditions that the Municipality of Clarington expects to be incorporated into the licence. 2.1 The Legal Agreement The Legal Agreement was signed between the Town of Port Hope, the Township of Port Hope (now the Municipality of Port Hope) and the .Municipality of Clarington and the Minister of Natural Resources in 2001. The Agreement provides the legal basis for the long term solution for radioactive waste management which lead to the creation of the Port Hope Area Initiative. The conditions of the Legal Agreement as signed by the Municipality of Clarington in 2001 must be acknowledged and respected by the CNSC licence. 4 2.2 ALARA Principle The "As Low As Reasonably Achievable" (ALARA) principle should be upheld as a critical component of design and operations in the licencing phase. The ALARA principle has guided decision making throughout the EA process and should be strongly incorporated into Detailed Design documents as a condition of the licence. The Municipality has previously commented, through the report prepared by the Municipal Peer Review Team, that the Draft Screening Report overly relied on the proponent's use of 'adaptive management' as an approach to making key decisions about the clean up. Strengthening ALARA means that `avoidance of the effect' should be the first priority over adaptive management. 2.3 Clean Up Criteria A set of clean up principles have been agreed to between the Municipality of Port Hope, the Municipality of Clarington and the AECL. The licencing phase should specifically refer to the clean up criteria underpinned by the principles that have been established in the Environmental Assessment process. Based on these principles, the Municipality of Clarington must have the opportunity to provide input on the issue of 'how clean is clean' during the conduct of the clean up process. 2.4 Budgeting There needs to be acknowledgement that there are differences in how the Municipality of Clarington and the Government of Canada makes decisions on costs and budgets: Municipal budget decisions are often made in relation. to operating and capital costs over the lifespan of a facility as well as the consideration of users and beneficiaries, while the Government of Canada focuses on total costs. As a condition of the licence, the Municipal budget for the Port Granby Project should be sufficient such that all tasks that need to be completed by the Municipality of Clarington should be able to be properly funded. 3.0 Conditions Requested to be included in the CNSC Licence Numerous key documents will be developed before a licence is granted. The CNSC should confirm that there is substantial agreement between the Government of Canada and the Municipality of Clarington on the final wording and content of the documents (e.g. Licencing Manual, Water Treatment Strategy, EA Follow Up Program Plan, etc.). The Municipality will review these documents and recommend additions and revisions as appropriate. The licencing conditions should reflect the requested changes. The following documents the specific issues that the Municipality addressed in its comments on the Draft Screening Report, as presented in the report prepared by • 5 the Municipal Peer Review Team. We believe these issues should be recognised in the subsequent licencing documents and confirmed as licence conditions. 3.4 Water Treatment Requirements The licence needs to strongly define the requirements for water treatment, ground water flow and flushing. There needs to be reference to the EA documents that describe the water treatment requirements and .preferred approaches (Appendix G, the Water Treatment Memo, and the EASR Addendum Review). The Addendum Report indicates that resin-based ion exchange is the preferred water treatment approach. As a condition of the licence, it would be prudent to install monitoring wells in the existing waste material at several locations in order to sample actual waste quality before the design of the treatment system is finalized. 3.2 Lifespan of the Liner Geomembrane The definition of the geomembrane liner's lifespan needs to be stipulated by the licence. Should the Final Screening Report not adequately address the lifespan of the liner, then the licence needs to incorporate a condition for stronger recommendations about mid-term repairs and remediation. 3.3 Dust Management Plan A good Dust Management Plan is the key to ensuring that off-site impacts do not occur. As a condition of licencing, the Dust Management Plan should be required to control dust at the source rather than at the Project fence line. All aspects of the plan, including specifics on mitigation, monitoring (including real-time), complaint response, corrective actions and record keeping need to be defined as conditions of the Iicence..The licence should require the implementation of an onsite weather station. 3.4 Follow-Up Program As a condition of the licence, the Follow-Up Program should provide monitoring or contingency plans related to follow-up activities. Additionally, there should be a description of the monitoring programs including monitoring locations, parameters to be monitored, frequency and duration of monitoring and protocols for reporting the results, contingency plans or response programs to address exceedances of predicted values. Furthermore, the mitigation measures applied in the EASR need to be confirmed and tracked as well to demonstrate that the assessment of the net effects was accurate. 3.5 Socio-Economic Impact Management The management of socio-economic effects are critically important for the residents of Port Granby and the Municipality of Clarington. The successful management of socio-economic effects should be a condition of the licence. The licence needs to stipulate: • Adoption of impact management plans for homes along, transportation routes; • Applicable safety measures for the crossing at the CNR line at Elliot Road in relation to truck traffic; • Remove trucks from roads during school bus pick up and drop off times; • Implement noise mitigation measures for residents; • Additional- mitigation measures in the EASR should be highlighted to follow up on action items in the licencing process (e.g. end use commitments, contingency measures for the enjoyment of property, off site tree planting program, etc.) ; • Development of a fully funded contingency plan for the Project; • Prior notice given to the Municipality and local residents when over sized loads will be using Newtonville Road or Lakeshore Road; • Need for continuous improvement of the Property Value Protection Program; and • Involve local residents in a meaningful way in the monitoring process. 3.6 End Use Commitments End Use commitments made during the EA process must be supported by the licence. Commitments regarding the sale of excess property and the explicit assurances that no additional waste will be accepted in the facility should also be upheld. 4.0 Roles and Responsibilities of Authorities! Licencee The Municipality recognises that the CNSC is the sole licencing Authority and that the Project will require. the CNSC's approval to commence. Working closely with the CNSC is of the utmost importance to the Municipality of Clarington. As we move into-the licencing process, there needs to be an understanding of each others values, roles and responsibilities. 5.0 Roles and Responsibilities of other Parties and Local Content to Decisions The licence needs to provide for local content for decision making along with CNSC oversight. Residents need to be ensured that their concerns are addressed during the construction phase. When local input is acknowledged and addressed, there is greater acceptance of the decision making process by stakeholders. The following identifies Port Granby Project Stakeholders: • Municipal corporation as legal governing body -Mayor, Council, Staff; • Local resident groups (e.g. SECRA) and business groups (e.g. Chamber of Commerce); • Non Profit Service Groups (Rotary, Lions, Legion); • Individual residents; and • New stakeholders who should be accommodated, made aware of the Project, etc. Public oversight and community engagement will be an important contributor to the success of the Project as a result of licencing. We recommend that the licencing documentation specify requirements for: • Designated community members to be given responsibility for community liaison; • Ongoing consultation and communication mechanisms with local residents; and The role of citizen liaison groups, an appeal procedure and ombudsman to ensure monitoring and mitigation measures are sound. 6.0 Communications Protocols Effective communications and a positive working relationship among the parties will lead to a more efficient project. The Legal Agreement also sets out provisions for communications: • All Parties have a responsibility to work together and to develop and maintain excellent communications (Section 5.2). • The Municipalities have the responsibility "to maintain, ..., liaison with Canada regarding all aspects of the work being undertaken for the Project and to provide public input on the Project planning and implementation and to assist the proponent in communicating with the public". (Section 5.2.3). • Canada will provide monitoring results to the Municipality (Section 5.5). The licence should stipulate an effective communications and liaison process between the Municipality of Clarington, the Government of Canada, the community and the CNSC. This process must also ensure the delivery of the requirements of the Legal Agreement and foster good working communications.