
OPG is planning the construction of an underground facility for the management of low and intermediate level radioactive waste approximately 700 metres below the ground surface at their Western Waste Management Facility at the Bruce Nuclear site, in Kincardine, Ontario. The case for the safety of such a facility is rooted in an in depth understanding of the limestones and shales within which the facility is to be sited. Intera is the prime contractor in the site characterization program to build this understanding. The project is a fascinating mix of geology, hydrogeology, geophysics, petrophysics, and geochemistry, involving seismic surveys (shown above), and borehole drilling, sampling, testing, and instrumentation. When completed, over 5 km worth of verical and inclined boreholes will have been drilled, and a wealth of data gathered, synthesized, and presented in technical reports.