COM 0212.068 1996-1998 - Laserfiche WebLink

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~uclea Sunset: Economic Costs of the Canadian Nuclear Industry http://H~uu~.ccnr.org/sunsetl.hanl amount for decommissionulg1iability. Federal Heavy Water Investments Heavy water, needed for CANDU reactors, is difficult, expensive, and dangerous to manufacture. Considering the grossly inflated historic expectations for CANDU sales at home and abroad, it is perhaps not surprising that heavy water manufacture represents the single greatest financial and technological fiasco experienced by the Canadian nuclear industry. Two heavv water plants in Nova Scotia, and one in Quebec, as well as most of the Bruce Heavy Water Plant in Ontario have been built and then shut down in the absence of any market for the heavy water. In 1981, the Canadian parliament , forgave AECL heavy water plant loans and interest totalling $816.9 million. In effect; federal taxpayers provided a one billion dollar subsidy for the production of a surplus federal heavy water inventory. Nevertheless, AECL and the federal government have recently agreed to forego a large part of heavy water sales to South Korea and Romania, giving over $300 million worth of business to Ontario Hydro instead. At the same time, the federal government has supplied about $300 million worth of heavy water, free of charge, for a scientific experiment. This failure to obtain a return on the federal heavy water inventory in effect adds dollar for dollar to the federal government budget deficit. Conclusion Key decision points on public subsidies for the nuclear industry include the federal budget in 1996, and the expiry of the federal/provincial Memorandum of Understanding (also known as the CANDU Owners Group agreement) on nuclear funding on April 1, 1997. The federal parliament's Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development has already recommended that the government should "terminate its involvement in the CANDU Owners Group". Cabinet should heed that advice. The secret government review of the nuclear industry conducted in 1995 should be made public. A public consultation process should be launched to consider the phaseout of public support for the nuclear industry, in advance of the expiry of the federal; provincial Memorandum of Understanding. In keeping with current spirit of fiscal restraint, the federal government should simply end its subsidies to AECL. 1f the nuclear industry is as promising as it claims, it should be able to provide its own financing and demonstrate that it can of 76 04/08/97 22:0830