[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 16 (Wednesday, January 27, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Page S264]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 2971. Mr. KIRK submitted an amendment intended to be proposed to 
amendment SA 2953 proposed by Ms. Murkowski to the bill S. 2012, to 
provide for the modernization of the energy policy of the United 
States, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; 
as follows:

       At the appropriate place, insert the following:

     SEC. __. REVIEW OF LONG-TERM IMPACTS OF PROPOSED DISPOSAL OF 
                   NUCLEAR WASTE AT THE BRUCE NUCLEAR POWER PLANT 
                   IN KINCARDINE, ONTARIO.

       (a) Senses of Congress; Findings.--
       (1) Sense of congress that canada should not approve 
     nuclear waste repository.--
       (A) In general.--It is the sense of Congress that the 
     Government of Canada should not approve the construction of a 
     permanent nuclear waste repository in Kincardine, Ontario, 
     Canada (referred to in this section as the ``repository'').
       (B) Supporting findings.--In support of the sense of 
     Congress described in subparagraph (A), Congress finds that--
       (i) the repository would be located less than 1 mile from 
     the shores of the Great Lakes;
       (ii) the repository could store up to 7,000,000 cubic feet 
     of toxic nuclear waste; and
       (iii) some of that nuclear waste will remain radioactive 
     for over 100,000 years.
       (2) Sense of congress that a growing body of organizations 
     opposes the repository.--
       (A) In general.--It is the sense of Congress that a growing 
     body of lawmakers, officials, governments, and community 
     organizations on the Federal, State, local, and international 
     level publicly opposes the repository.
       (B) Supporting findings.--In support of the sense of 
     Congress described in subparagraph (A), Congress finds that--
       (i) the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate 
     emphasized opposition to the repository in the report 
     accompanying S. 1725 (114th Congress), as reported out on 
     July 9, 2015--

       (I) expressing concern with the proposal for the repository 
     by Ontario Power Generation, ``which could cause irreparable 
     harm to the shared economic and ecological wellbeing of the 
     Great Lakes''; and
       (II) recommending that ``the Department of State request an 
     International Joint Commission review of the proposal and 
     urge the Government of Canada to postpone its final decision 
     until the review of the long-term impacts of locating a 
     nuclear repository at the proposed site is complete and fully 
     evaluated by both the Governments of the United States and 
     Canada'';

       (ii) the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative, a 
     binational coalition of over 110 United States and Canadian 
     mayors and local officials, formally opposes the repository;
       (iii) the Great Lakes Legislative Caucus, comprised of 
     State and local lawmakers from the 8 States bordering the 
     Great Lakes, Ontario, and Quebec, opposes the repository;
       (iv) 52 local units of government and communities in Canada 
     and 128 units of local government and communities in the 
     United States oppose the repository; and
       (v) the State Senate of Michigan unanimously enacted a law 
     and a series of resolutions calling on the International 
     Joint Commission to stop the repository from moving forward.
       (b) Department of State Actions.--The Department of State 
     shall--
       (1) request that, pursuant to Article IX of the Boundary 
     Waters Treaty of 1909, the International Joint Commission 
     conduct a review of the proposed repository; and
       (2) urge the Government of Canada to postpone its final 
     decision on the proposed repository until the review of the 
     long-term impacts of the repository requested pursuant to 
     paragraph (1) is complete and fully evaluated by both the 
     Governments of the United States and Canada.
                                 ______