Canada's Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) has signed or renewed international knowledge sharing co-operation agreements with counterparts from five countries
The NWMO now has agreements with Belgium, France, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom, to go along with accords with nuclear waste organizations in Finland, South Korea and Japan.
The Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) is implementing Canada's plan for the long-term management of used nuclear fuel. Sites in South Bruce and Huron Kinloss are being considered to store the fuel.
The new agreements were the focus of a signing ceremony at the opening reception for the 2018 EDRAM annual meeting, hosted this year by the NWMO in Toronto. EDRAM is the International Association for Environmentally Safe Disposal of Radioactive Materials
The EDRAM annual meeting consists of two days of meetings and will conclude with a tour of the NWMO's proof-of-concept test facility in Oakville, where delegates will see first-hand some of the Canadian technology and research underway.
"As our work to identify a single, preferred site for a deep geological repository intensifies, now is the perfect time to renew and sign knowledge-sharing agreements with our international partners," said Laurie Swami, president and CEO of the NWMO. "These agreements ensure we are applying the best international practice to Canada's plan for the safe, long-term management of used nuclear fuel, and sharing our experience with our global counterparts."
Kim Rudd, Parliamentary Secretary to Canada's Minister of Natural Resources, the Honourable Jim Carr, provided remarks at the signing ceremony and expressed appreciation for the NWMO's leadership in promoting international co-operation.
"As it makes steady progress in implementing Canada's plan, I am pleased that the NWMO is sharing Canadian research and innovation with the rest of the world, and learning from the experiences and knowledge of other countries. Collaboration of this sort is vital in the global imperative to safely manage used nuclear fuel to protect people and the environment," she said.