A Deep Dive into Our Backyard
As we look out over our beautiful Northwestern Ontario landscape, many of us are asking questions about the proposed Revell Site. The Nuclear Waste Management Organization is moving forward with an Impact Assessment for a Deep Geological Repository, and it is time we look closely at what this means for Melgund Township and our surrounding neighbors.
What We Are Learning
The Nuclear Waste Management Organization explains that they have been developing this plan for decades, following the Nuclear Fuel Waste Act of 2002. They call their approach “Adaptive Phased Management.” In plain terms, they intend to bury Canada’s used nuclear fuel deep underground at the Revell Site. Recently, they identified the Township of Ignace and Wabigoon Lake Ojibway Nation as the official host communities, citing a “consent-based” selection process.
The Reality Check
What is being promised: A process built on community willingness and “adaptive” learning to ensure long-term safety.
What we need to verify: How “consent” is actually defined and measured. While Ignace and WLON have signed agreements, many residents in Melgund Township, Borups Corners, and Dyment—who live just as close to the site—haven’t had the same formal say in the process.
The Path Forward
The report noted a significant gap: the current framework focuses almost exclusively on the official host towns, largely ignoring the regional impacts on those of us living along the transportation corridors and shared watersheds. Therefore, we are calling for a detailed “Willingness and Consent Framework” that explicitly includes the voices of neighboring communities. This solution must provide clear data on how dissenting voices are handled and what legal thresholds are being used to claim the region is truly “willing.”
Why It Matters Here
For those of us in Borups Corners and Dyment, this isn’t just a technical project; it is about our daily lives. The Deep Geological Repository would be a massive, decades-long industrial operation in a place we value for its silence and natural beauty. If “adaptive” management means learning as they go, we need to know the exact safety limits for our well water and our hunting grounds. Our local lifestyle depends on the environmental integrity of the Revell Site area.
Have Your Say
This affects our future. Submit your feedback on this specific issue via our Engage page to ensure the Impact Assessment Agency hears from our community.
The Melgund Integrated Nuclear Impact Assessment Project
The Impact Assessment Agency of Canada (IAAC) is reviewing the Nuclear Waste Management Organization’s (NWMO) proposed Deep Geological Repository (DGR) at the Revell Site, located near Ignace and Wabigoon Lake Ojibway Nation in Northwestern Ontario.
This major nuclear infrastructure project is undergoing a joint federal review by the IAAC and the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) to evaluate environmental, health, social, and Indigenous rights impacts over its projected 160-year lifecycle.
Public Feedback Open: Comments on the Initial Project Description are accepted until February 4, 2026. Submissions help shape the formal impact assessment guidelines.
This short article and summary is based on an initial analysis of a proponent’s initial project description. It does not represent, any community the NWMO or the Government of Canada. Learn more at the Melgund Integrated Nuclear Impact Assessment Project project page.
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