Canada’s Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) is planning a number of additional test boreholes as it continues to winnow down the number of potential sites for construction of a deep geologic repository for disposal of the nation’s spent nuclear fuel.
The nongovernmental nonprofit is within five years of identifying a preferred location for the facility for site characterization and licensing, Lisa Frizzell, NWMO vice president for stakeholder relations, said earlier this month at an industry conference in Savannah, Ga.
Five locations, all in Ontario, are still in contention: Ignace, Manitouwadge, Homepayne, Huron-Kinloss, and South Bruce. “Selecting a site is within reach for us,” Frizzell said.
The disposal program, projected to cost $24 billion CAN ($18.8 billion) from start to finish, would place up to 5.2 million used fuel bundles underground.
Drilling of a first borehole began last November 22 miles west of Ignace and was completed in January. It was the first specific potential repository site within the broader area being considered, Frizzell said. The boreholes are intended to provide better understanding of the rock in which the spent fuel would be buried.
“This initial borehole was continuously cored to a depth of about 1000 m (nearly 3,300 feet), or twice the expected potential repository depth,” Frizzell said in a follow-up email Friday. “At this time, it is too early to draw conclusions from a single borehole – that’s why borehole drilling and testing will continue in this area to ensure the best possible information is brought to the site selection process.”
Geological conditions in the test area have not yet ruled it out for the repository, but additional analysis is needed, according to Frizzell. The Nuclear Waste Management Organization is also planning two more boreholes in the area, along with initial boreholes in the four other locations.
Site selection is due to wrap up in 2023, followed by a detailed site characterization process beginning the next year. The license application would be filed in 2028 and granted in 2032, according to NWMO’s timeline. That would lead to design and construction beginning in 2033 and operations a decade later.
