Dear Editor,
By the time this letter is printed, the referendum will be underway in South Bruce, and some of my neighbours will already have cast their vote on the future Deep Geological Repository (DGR) for spent nuclear fuel. I’m writing this for those who have not yet chosen to vote, or who may as yet be undecided.
Some people have expressed the opinion that South Bruce doesn’t need a DGR – that life is just fine here, and the nuclear industry should go away and leave us alone. That we should rely on our thriving agricultural sector, and never mind the energy business. That’s easy to say for those of us who already own a home here, and those who have sufficient acreage to run a successful farm. We already have our little piece of South Bruce paradise.
The problem is that modern agriculture does not employ many people at high wage. The nuclear industry does. I would ask my undecided neighbours to consider the children and grandchildren and great-grandchildren, very few of whom will inherit a farm or the family home. You see, the only way my family and I were able to afford our little piece of South Bruce is that I was fortunate to find a career in the nuclear industry. And that only happened because, years before I was born, a lot of people had the courage and foresight to build the world’s largest nuclear power development right here in Bruce County.
The DGR could provide similar opportunities for thousands of our descendants, but that will only happen if we say yes.
Sincerely,
Tony Zettel,
RR5 Mildmay
