By Cecilia Nasmith/Today’s Northumberland
Northumberland County council this week heard a glowing account of benefits to come from the Wesleyville nuclear project, as Ontario Power Generation Vice-President of Nuclear Growth and Sustainability Theresa Dekker offered an update on the Wesleyville nuclear project, as well as a look at its future possibilities.
The development, located at the west end of the Municipality of Port Hope, will be largely focused on electricity generation. And the 300-acre is ideally suited, as it has been municipally zoned for electricity generation for more than 50 years.
Other factors that make it suitable for this purpose include its potential to co-locate “synergistic or complimentary industries” on the site, Dekker pointed out, as well as its existing proximity to railways and roads.
It has the potential to generate up to 10,000 megawatts, which is enough to power the equivalent of ten million homes.
At this point, they are about to begin the impact assessment process, after which there will be a number of regulatory approvals needed. By the end of the decade, they hope to get the license to prepare the site, and to get the license to operate by the late 2030s.
There will be public engagement opportunities throughout the process, Dekker said.
Working with the Conference Board of Canada, they have determined some of the benefits to the local community over the project’s 95-year life span – $65.7-billion added to the local GDP, for example, and an increase to local employment levels by 15% to 20%. As well, there are such benefits as supply-chain spending as well as employee and corporate charitable giving.
Since April, they have engaged with more than 6,000 people representing a wide range of demographics at local events as well as sponsored swims and skates. They have also opened a Nuclear Discovery Centre at 115 Toronto Rd., open weekdays from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
The main questions they are hearing involve concerns over safety, efficiency and environmental impacts, as well as employment potential (roughly 1,700 jobs during the design and construction phase, roughly 1,600 during the operation and maintenance phase).
Deputy Reeve Olena Hankivsky related experiences of communities hosting similar projects with pressures on schools, child care, social services and even light pollution and having to have dedicated police forces for the site.
“There are so many dimensions,” Hankivsky said.
Councillor Lucas Cleveland stated that, based on the fact that workers are bused daily into Cobourg from elsewhere, the number of skilled workers needed does not exist as yet. Recruitment needs to be part of the process, he said – possibly with pitches to auto workers losing their jobs as American tariffs wreak havoc on that industry.
A couple of county councillors had personal histories with Wesleyville. Hamilton Township Mayor Scott Jibb worked at the Wesleyville Generating Station some 50 years ago. Cramahe Township Mayor Mandy Martin was a journalist who covered the Wesleyville hearings.
“Personally, I think that this is a way to protect one of our most environmentally significant areas in the province,” Martin said, predicting a symbiotic relationship between the development and the community.
“That is why I am supporting it – one of the reasons.
“Also, I am a lifetime member of the Friends of Wesleyville Village because of the cultural significance it has, and I am pleased to see it’s still marked as ‘leased.’”
Martin recalled the significant economic boost that occurred as a result of the nearby Darlington nuclear plant. As for the Wesleyville project, she stated that Northumberland communities are ready
“We have projects ready for housing development, and what we need is some input and co-operation from the province to provide the servicing. To me, it’s not out of line – we are ready to go. We are ready to build and finance,” Martin said.
“We have the capability to provide the housing, and I think that needs to be factored in.”
