The NWMO regularly participates in the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) Annual Conference in order to update municipalities throughout Canada about the progress in implementing Canada's plan for the long-term management of used nuclear fuel and to support the sharing of experience among communities, which is the focus of many of the sessions during the conference.

At the most recent FCM conference (Halifax, June 3–6), we participated in the trade show with our travelling exhibit focused on describing Canada's plan, Adaptive Phased Management (APM), and our recent activities to implement this plan. We also sponsored an industry exchange session titled, "Deciding to Host a National Repository for Used Nuclear Fuel: Swedish Experience." In this session, representatives from two Swedish communities shared their experience with community-driven decision-making processes, what worked and what did not work, using their participation in Sweden's deep geological repository project as a case study.

We invited representatives of communities participating in Canada's site selection process for APM to attend the FCM conference, including the panel session we hosted. This panel session was open to all conference participants. Community representatives also met representatives of municipal associations in their area, as well as mayors and past mayors of communities that have hosted nuclear facilities, in order to facilitate sharing of information and experience. Over the course of the conference, each community met with the representatives of the Swedish communities to allow for private and frank discussion.

Our involvement in this conference included payment to FCM for exhibit space and for an industry exchange session as is standard practice for conference participants; and payment of the travel and accommodation expenses associated with attendance at the conference for representatives from the communities involved in Canada's site selection process, for the Swedish communities that participated in the panel session and for some members of our Municipal Forum, consistent with our participant expense guidelines.

Be involved! Photographs of our exhibit as it appeared on the trade show floor can be viewed below. Participate in the dialogue by sharing your questions and comments!

Rolf Persson, LKO Project Manager (Sweden) [Part 1]

2010 Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) Expo [Part 2]