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Feds and Ontario bid for nuclearmega-project

Taxpayer-funded bid for proposed $12 bil l ion fusionreactor project re-ignites nuclear controversy

By: Suzanne Els ton  

May 1 - The International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor project - or

ITER for short - may soon be coming to a neighbourhood near you. The $12

billion project (down from the original $20 billion estimate) is an internationalplan to build the world's first fusion reactor. The ITER (pronounced 'eater')

partners - Russia, Japan, the United States and Europe - first agreed toundertake the project following a Geneva summit in 1985/86. Canada has

been a member of the European party since the beginning.When the U.S. withdrew from the project in 1998, critics hoped that it would

collapse, but instead the three remaining partners renewed their commitmentto proceed. The U.S. has made it clear that if progress were made in making

site and construction decisions, it would consider re-joining the project.

The cost for all this prosperity is babysitting themassive, discarded radioactive hull of ITER for a

hundred or more years after the project ends

Three countries - Canada, Italy and Japan - are currently expressing an

interest in hosting the massive project that will cost $6 billion to build over aneight-year period. The remaining $6 billion will be for operational costs during

ITER's projected 20 year life span.Canada has a very good chance of being selected as the host country. The

Darlington and Bruce nuclear generating stations are the two Canadian sitesbeing considered. The preferred Canadian site will be named in May, andCanada will submit its bid to the ITER council in April 2001; it's expected that

a final decision will be made in July 2002 at the G8 meeting. Canada's bid isbeing supported by matching million dollar grants from both the federal

government and province of Ontario, per year, for a three-year period.Supporters of the ITER project see this as a bonus for Canada. Dr. Peter

Barnard is chairman and CEO of ITER Canada. "From Canada's point of view,this is an opportunity to be the host of the world's largest research facility",

said Dr. Barnard. "This will mean a brain gain - not brain drain. In addition toattracting the world's top scientists, ITER will allow us to keep some of thebest and brightest minds in Canada."

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The Darlington andBruce nucleargenerating stationsare the twoCanadian sites beingconsidered

Dr. Barnard also believes the chosen host community will benefit. The project

will generate 3,000 long-term construction jobs as well as 300 to 400engineering and technical jobs once the project is operational. It is expected

that 200 to 300 international scientists would also join the project, bringingboth prestige and influence to the host community. The cost for all thisprosperity is babysitting the massive, discarded radioactive hull of ITER for a

hundred or more years after the project ends.

The impetus behind ITER is clearly coming from those with a vested politicalinterest. It's supported by both the federal and Ontario provincial governmentsand in October, Canada will be hosting the international ITER Council.

Members of ITER's board of directors include Clarington Mayor Diane Hamreand Milton McIver from Bruce County, Power Workers' Union president John

Murphy and Pierre Charlebois from Ontario Power Generation (OPG). Both thePower Workers and OPG see ITER as an incredible opportunity to breathesome new life into Canada's failing nuclear program. Locating ITER at Bruce

would provide new jobs for workers displaced by nuclear shutdowns. If theDarlington site is selected, OPG could sell off its high priced stockpile of 

tritium (ITER's primary fuel) at $35 million per kilogram. At either location,OPG will be the default supplier for ITER's massive power needs.

The big question is whether ITER represents the way of the future, or yet

another nuclear boondoggle. Critics are quick to point out that there is aserious credibility gap here. When nuclear power was first introduced, itpromised to provide electricity, "too cheap to meter." Darlington's initial $3.5billion price tag ballooned to over $14 billion by the time it was completed. It's

important to clarify who would be responsible for similar cost overruns onITER.

"W hen you make a commitment to build somethingof this size, something else doesn't get done. Wehave to ask ourselves w hat we would be missing if we w ere to pursue the ITER option." - energyeconomist David Argue

Dr. Barnard notes that fusion is quite a different technology than fission.Rather than splitting atoms to create energy, fusion smacks them together at

tremendous speeds. While radioactive tritium is the breeder (or starter) fuelfor the reactor, according to fusion theory, once a reaction is achieved it

should only require lithium and hydrogen to sustain it."In theory this is an energy source that many people see as the long-term

energy solution for the world", said Dr. Barnard.Energy economist David Argue disagrees. "Politically, ITER's being sold as

the next great simple solution", said Argue. "Concentrating on big energy

projects flies in the face of everything we learned over the last 30 years. Wehave to face our energy problems in a multi-faceted way."

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"$12 billion sure could do a lot for energy efficiency and conservation - andwe already know that these things work," said Argue, "When you make acommitment to build something of this size, something else doesn't get done.

We have to ask ourselves what we would be missing if we were to pursue theITER option."

Dr. Barnard agrees with Argue's position on renewables. "We should beinvesting in energy efficiency and renewables as well", he said. But he also

believes that potential long-term gains of ITER are worth the investment."Fusion is perhaps the ultimately renewable source, but it's a long way off."

A very long way indeed. The first fusion power station isn't scheduled to be

built until at least 2030. In the meantime, ITER won't produce a singlemegawatt of usable electricity. Instead it is expected to use between 150 and

500 megawatts during test cycles. That's a lot of juice.

Suzanne Elston is a syndicated newspaper columnist, radio commentator and

motivational speaker, but considers being a parent her most important job.

Her most recently published work is a contribution to Sw eep ing th e Ear th :  

W om en Tak ing Act i on f o r a Heal t hy Plane t  . Along with her husband Brian

and their three wonderful children, she lives in their the family's 1827

farmhouse. Suzanne can be contacted at selston@tvo.org. Suzanne's Straight

Goods column appears bi-weekly.

Get More/ Do More  

ITER Canada's website is at www.itercanada.com.

For information on the international ITER effort, check out www.iter.org.

The Energy Council of Canada (www.energy.ca) seeks to forge a betterunderstanding of energy issues among the public and private sectors and the

country at large, through discussion and exchange of information on all formsand aspects of energy.

www.jet.uk - The JET Joint Undertaking in England is the first fusion facility in

the world to achieve significant production of controlled fusion power in 1991.JET is the world's largest magnetic confinement fusion experiment, which aims

at confirming the scientific theory of fusion and the scientific feasibility of 

nuclear fusion for power generation.

From the man who first coined the expression, "negawatt", there is another

way. Check out Amory Lovins' Rocky Mountain Institute (www.rmi.org) forreally innovative ideas and great practical information on energy efficiency and

sustainable use of resources as a path to global security

The World Energy Efficiency Association (www.weea.org) is a non-profitorganization composed of developed and developing country institutions and

individuals charged with increasing energy efficiency. WEEA's mandate is toassist developing countries in accessing information on energy efficiency, serve

as a clearinghouse for information on energy efficiency programs, technologiesand measures, disseminate this information worldwide, and publicize

international cooperation efforts in energy efficiency. Sounds like a plan to me.

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