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The hearing into SRB Technologies licence renewal application continues Monday morning in Ottawa.
The company’s operating licence expires Nov. 30.
Monday’s hearing is the second of two days of testimony that will go into the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission’s (CNSC) final decision whether or not to renew the company’s licence to operate.
The first day of the hearing was held on Oct. 23.
Comments were mainly focused on SRBT’s plan to reduce its tritium contamination of groundwater around the plant by collecting rainwater from the vicinity of its smokestacks and diverting it into a storage tank for periodic release into Pembroke’s sewage system.
CNSC members stated they had some reservations about SRBT’s proposal but did not outright condemn the plan.
The Concerned Citizens of Renfrew County, a local environmental watchdog agency, was outraged by the proposal to collect the drippings from the stacks and flush them through the sewer system into the Ottawa River.
The hearing will begin at 8:30 a.m. with an oral presentation by SRBT followed by a presentation by CNSC staff where it is expected it will recommend SRBT for a licence renewal.
Following that, members of the public that have filed a request to intervene will be heard.
During this section of the agenda, groups including the City of Pembroke, the Concerned Citizens, Families Against Radiation Exposure, Ottawa Riverkeeper, Canadian Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility, the Institute of the Environment (University of Ottawa) will present along with nearly 27 individual members of the public. Another 61 written submissions from the public will be considered.
SRBT manufacturers seal light sources containing tritium for use in luminous signs and other luminous objects.
The original hearing dates were scheduled for Aug. 17 and Oct. 25 but these dates were rescheduled after SRBT was ordered to cease operations for a time because of the groundwater contamination issue. The plant was subsequently allowed to reopen under the restriction that it only operate on days without precipitation.
Following the second hearing date on Monday, the CNSC is expected to issue a statement regarding the acceptance or refusal of SRBT’s licence application as the current licence expires on Thursday.
Pembroke Daily Observer