Resident gives thoughts on nuclear considerations

The recent distribution of potassium iodide pills brings to mind our proximity to two nearby nuclear power plants: Fermi 2 at Newport, Michigan, and the Davis-Bessie plant near Oak Harbor, Ohio, both on the Lake Erie shore.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) defines two emergency planning zones around nuclear plants:

(1) a plume pathway zone with radius of 16 km (10 mi), concerned with exposure to and inhalation of airborne radioactive contamination, and

(2) an ingestion pathway zone of 80 km (50 mi), concerned primarily with ingestion of food and liquid contaminated by radioactivity.

Amherstburg is 19 km from Fermi 2 and 60 km from Davis-Bessie. Each plant has suffered past accidents with those more serious at the Davis-Bessie plant.

In Canada, the regulator is the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC), which collaborates with the province to designate around a nuclear plant a primary zone in which preparedness plans are required. For instance, the zone around the Chalk River plant near Ottawa is a 9 km radius.

According to regulators, nuclear plants release very small amounts of radiation into the air and water and do not pose a risk to the health and safety of persons or the environment. As reported by studies conducted by respected scientific organizations, such as the American Cancer Society and the National Cancer Institute, living near nuclear plants has “no adverse impact on cancer rates.”

—Terry Hall

Amherstburg

Resident gives thoughts on nuclear considerations