Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutPLN 04-17 C'r Report to P JCKE R1 NG Planning & Development Committee Report Number: PLN 04-17 Date: April 3, 2017 From: Kyle Bentley Director, City Development & CBO Subject: Pickering Nuclear Generating Station Status of Activities File: 0-5260-005 Recommendations: 1. That Report PLN 04-17 of the Director, City Development & CBO regarding the status of activities at the Pickering Nuclear Generating Station be received for information; 2. That staff continue to report to Council at strategic milestones during the extended operations and retirement of the Pickering Nuclear Generating Station; and 3. That a copy of Report PLN 04-17 be forwarded to the Region of Durham, the Ministry of Energy, Ontario Power Generation, and Hydro One. Executive Summary: In 2016, staff reported on activities underway respecting the retirement of the Pickering Nuclear Generation Station (PNGS) and recommended that staff continue to report to Council at strategic milestones leading up to the shutdown of the PNGS. The purpose of this report is to follow up on the initial report and provide an update on activities related to the relicence renewal of the PNGS and the preparations for the shutdown of the Pickering station. There are five updates at this time. Firstly, in April 2017, a hearing will be held to consider the renewal of the Pickering Waste Management Facility's licence to 2028, and to hear Ontario Power Generation's (OPG) application to construct additional processing and storage buildings to accommodate the used fuel that will be generated by the shutdown of the Pickering station. Secondly, in August 2017, OPG will submit a request to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) for renewal of PNGS's current five year operating licence, which expires on August 31, 2018. In accordance with the conditions of the current licence, the licence renewal request will contain dates for the shutdown of the Pickering station and information regarding extended operations and decommissioning. Thirdly, the CNSC initiated a community outreach and engagement program earlier this year. The program will continue into 2018. PLN 04-17 April 3, 2017 Subject: Pickering Nuclear Generating Station Status of Activities Page 2 Fourthly, OPG and industry safety partners are investigating improvements to the public alerting systems and are preparing for a regional nuclear emergency exercise to take place at PNGS in December 2017. And lastly, the community engagement component of OPG's Repurposing Pickering Study was completed with the release of the Preliminary Assessment Report in the spring of 2016, and their Youth Engagement Workshops Report in May 2016. The Preliminary Assessment Report identified the list of preferred repurposing options, including land uses in the power, industrial, institutional, and recreational categories. It is recommended that staff continue to monitor the various activities related to the retirement of PNGS and report back to Council. Financial Implications: No direct costs to the City are anticipated as a result of the recommendations of this report. 1.0 Background In February 2016, Report to Executive Committee PLN 02-16 provided an update on the activities underway respecting the retirement of the Pickering Nuclear Generation Station (PNGS). It also recommended that staff report to Council at strategic milestones during the extended operations and retirement of the PNGS. The purpose of this current report is to provide an update on activities related to reticence renewal and the preparations for the shutdown of the Pickering station. 2.0 A licence renewal hearing for the Pickering Waste Management Facility will be held on April 11 and 12, 2017 Ontario Power Generation (OPG) owns and operates the Pickering Waste Management Facility (PWMF), which is located within the security protected area of the Pickering station. The current ten year licence for the PWMF expires on March 31, 2018. OPG has submitted an application to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) to renew the Pickering waste facility operating licence until August 2028. The CNSC will hold a public hearing to consider the licence renewal request on April 11 and 12, 2017, in Ottawa. Used nuclear fuel, resulting solely from the operation of the Pickering station, is processed and securely stored on an interim basis at the Pickering waste facility. In the long term, the waste is to be transferred to a future deep geological repository proposed by the Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO). Future used fuel resulting from the shutdown of the PNGS will also be stored at the Pickering waste facility, on an interim basis, before transfer to the future NWMO facility. The earliest that the NWMO facility may be available is in 2043. Low level waste from the operation of the Pickering station is shipped to the Western Waste Management Facility in Kincardine. PLN 04-17 April 3, 2017 Subject: Pickering Nuclear Generating Station Status of Activities Page 3 2.1 Additional facilities will be constructed in the Pickering Waste Management Facility Used nuclear fuel from the Pickering reactors is placed in wet storage pools (located inside the Generating Station) to cool for a period of at least ten years. Subsequently, the used fuel is processed and stored on site in Dry Storage Containers (DSC) within the PWMF. Currently, the PWMF consists of one DSC processing building, three DSC storage buildings, and the Retube Component Storage Area. This Retube area stores the intermediate-level radioactive waste, excluding the used nuclear fuel, resulting from the refurbishment of Pickering reactor units 1 to 4. OPG is seeking approval from the CNSC to construct additional facilities at the Pickering waste facility, including a second DSC processing building and three more DSC storage buildings. This will result in an increase in the capacity for the processing and storage of used fuel. These additional facilities will allow the processing and storage of all the used fuel generated by the shutdown and decommissioning of the Pickering station. OPG's application to construct additional buildings will also be considered at the upcoming public hearing into the relicence renewal of the PWMF scheduled for April 11 and 12, 2017. 3.0 The Pickering Nuclear Generating Station's current licence expires in 2018 In 2010, the Province of Ontario announced that the shutdown of the PNGS be planned for 2020. In January 2016, after technical work and investigations into safely extending the life of the station, the Province announced that the operation of the station will be extended to 2024. The extension was to ensure the generation of electricity during the refurbishment of the Darlington and Bruce nuclear plants. In May 2016, OPG informed the CNSC of its intent to request a 10 year Power Reactor Operating Licence for the period between September 1, 2018 and August 31, 2028. PNGS's current five year operating licence expires on August 31, 2018. OPG's submission to the CNSC for licence renewal will be made a year in advance, in August 2017. CNSC has yet to announce the hearing dates. As required by conditions attached to the current licence, the licence renewal request will contain permanent shutdown dates, and extended operations and decommissioning plans. OPG plans to operate until 2024. The licence term between 2024 and 2028 will allow for safe storage activities. PLN 04-17 April 3, 2017 Subject: Pickering Nuclear Generating Station Status of Activities Page 4 4.0 The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission has initiated a community outreach and engagement program The CNSC is an independent commission that regulates the use of nuclear energy and materials to protect health, safety, security, and the environment. The Commission has recently conducted public information sessions to provide information to interested community members prior to upcoming relicensing hearings. Earlier this year, on February 14, an information session was held at the Pickering Recreation Complex in advance of the relicence renewal hearing for the Pickering waste facility. Similar community outreach is planned by CNSC in advance of the PNGS relicence renewal hearings. 5.0 Public alerting improvements are under consideration and an emergency exercise is planned The current practice during an emergency, is for the automated telephone dialing system to deliver a pre-recorded warning message to residents and businesses within a 10-kilometer radius from the PNGS. To supplement the current telephone database, website self-registration will be made available in 2017 to the community. OPG and federal partners are working to develop a cell broadcast system as a possible future replacement for the existing automated telephone dialing system. Cell phones within or passing through an area would receive emergency messages. The Durham Emergency Management Office, along with regional municipal partners including Pickering Fire Services, have been involved in limited field testing. The cell broadcast system requires Canadian Radio- television and Telecommunications Commission approval. In December 2017, OPG will host a Regional Nuclear Emergency Exercise at the PNGS. Participants will include federal, regional, and municipal partners. 6.0 The community engagement component of Ontario Power Generation's Repurposing Study is complete In 2015, OPG initiated the Repurposing Pickering Study intended to gather information and ideas from the community to develop a long-term strategy and action plan for the repurposing of the OPG lands and water lots during and after decommissioning of the PNGS. Guiding principles of the Study included ensuring the reuse of the site continues to benefit both OPG and the surrounding communities, is consistent with OPG's decommissioning and used fuel management obligations, and that flexibility is retained for long-term uses once decommissioning has been completed. PLN 04-17 April 3, 2017 Subject: Pickering Nuclear Generating Station Status of Activities Page 5 • In the spring of 2016, the Repurposing Pickering Preliminary Assessment Report was issued. Additionally, OPG released a report resulting from their Youth Engagement Workshops on repurposing the Pickering site. The Assessment Report provided a short list of preferred options for further investigation. The options included uses in the power, industrial, institutional, and recreational categories. Results from the Youth Workshops were similar to the findings of the Assessment Report. The Assessment Report indicated that the next step is for OPG to assess the commercial viability and ease of implementation of the repurposing options, and to continue to work with the City of Pickering and the Region of Durham to ensure alignment with their visions for the site, remaining mindful of provincial energy policy. Prepared By: Approved/Endorsed By: ion4 jit Deborah Wylie, MCIP, RPP Catherine Rose, MCIP, RPP Principal Planner— Development Review Chief Planner s41'Jeff Brooks, MCIP, RPP Kyle Bentley Manager, Policy & Geomatics Director, City Development & CBO DW:Ic Recommended for the consideration of Pickering Ci Council // Tony Prevedel, P.Eng. Chief Administrative Officer