Pinehouse Mayor Breaks Silence On Nuclear Waste

Pinehouse Mayor Breaks Silence On Nuclear Waste

Wednesday, September 08, 2010 at 15:03

The mayor of Pinehouse is making his first public comments about the possibility his community could someday house a nuclear fuel storage site.

In a news release, Mike Natomagan, who’s also the president of the Kineepik Metis Local, confirms the village and Metis local have invited the Nuclear Waste Management Organization to come to the community to talk about the idea.

Natomagan stresses this “learn more” opportunity does not commit the village or Metis local to any further steps.

He also says this “does not mean the community of Pinehouse has said ‘yes’ to the project” — adding a decision on the matter is at least five to 10 years away.

The mayor points out that the Conference Board of Canada recently said northern Saskatchewan has the second lowest median income in the country.

Natomagan says all viable economic options should be looked at.

The NWMO says $16 billion to $24 billion in jobs and benefits could go to the region that agrees to accept the waste.