Nuclear critics suspect hidden agenda in Sask. medical isotope plan
Last Updated: Thursday, July 9, 2009 | 9:50 PM ET
CBC News
Saskatchewan is submitting a proposal to the federal government on how the province could supply medical isotopes. (CBC/file)Critics of nuclear development in Saskatchewan say a plan by the provincial government to supply medical isotopes may lead to more substantial nuclear facilities.
Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall confirmed Wednesday that the University of Saskatchewan and the government are working to meet a July 31 deadline, set by the federal government, to suggest ways of supplying medical isotopes.
The current supply has been disrupted due to problems at a Chalk River, Ont., facility.
On Thursday critics of nuclear development expressed concerns about Saskatchewan's move.
'This is a way of bringing about their nuclear agenda by piggybacking on the medical isotope issue.'—Jim Penna, member of the Coalition for a Clean Green Saskatchewan
Jim Penna, a retired philosophy professor and a member of the Coalition for a Clean Green Saskatchewan, said there are ways of producing isotopes for medical diagnostics that do not require the construction of a nuclear reactor.
Penna said people should be wary of the motives behind the premier's proposal. Penna said a plan for a research reactor may be the thin edge of the wedge leading to further expansion of the nuclear industry.
"That's how it's argued you see," Penna told CBC News on Thursday. "They do talk about a research reactor … as one of the elements of a nuclear program for Saskatchewan. So this is a way of bringing about their nuclear agenda by piggybacking on the medical isotope issue."
NDP Opposition wants economic study
Other critics, in the political arena, called on the provincial government to provide more details about the proposal.
Sandra Morin, environment critic for the Saskatchewan NDP, said Thursday that an economic feasibility study should be prepared, to demonstrate the project's financial viability.
"We need a much more careful examination of just how much money will be put up by the Saskatchewan taxpayer and whether this is truly a feasible option for our province," Morin said. "By all accounts, an isotope reactor simply doesn't make sense from an economic standpoint so I would question the rush for the province to get involved in one."
Morin also raised questions about one of the people closely involved in Saskatchewan's pitch to the federal government, Richard Florizone.
Florizone, the vice-president of finance and resources at the University of Saskatchewan, is helping to prepare Saskatchewan's proposal.
Florizone also chaired the province's Uranium Development Partnership, the group appointed to look for ways to develop the uranium industry. Their report recommended building a research reactor that could produce medical isotopes.
Morin called the overlap of roles troublesome.
"When you have somebody who's clearly been an advocate for the furthering of the uranium development industry in the province because of his involvement with the Uranium Development Partnership, it just causes a lot of questions," Morin told CBC News.
