Possible US Weapons Plutonium Fuel Routes to Canada

US DoE map image

Source: Parallex Environmental Assessment, Predecisional Draft, US Department of Energy, August 18, 1997


As part of their environmental assessment of plutonium fuel fabrication and transport (for the purposes of the Chalk River "test burn"), the US Department of Energy produced a map showing three possible routes that plutonium fuel from Los Alamos, New Mexico would take to reach Chalk River, Ontario. The map, which is reproduced above, is excerpted from the Parallex Environmental Assessment, Predecisional Draft, US Department of Energy, August 18, 1997.

The US Department of Energy's assessment of the transportation of weapons plutonium literally stops at the border. While the US cities along the plutonium fuel transportation route are identified in the EA, Canadian communities are not. CNP has attempted to match the path of the route in Canada, which is outlined on the DoE map without place name or road references, to actual communities. The Canadian communities listed below are based on a comparative analysis of the US DoE map and Canadian road maps.

Copies of the US DoE EA document, including maps and diagrams are available as "PDF" (Adobe Acrobat) or WordPerfect PC (compressed "zip" format) versions directly from the DoE web site. The site address is http://www.lanl.gov/LAAO/docs/para.html



Possible Transportation Routes of US Weapons Plutonium:
US Border to Chalk River, Ontario

The US Department of Energy's transportation route map for weapons plutonium fuel does not list the names of Canadian communities. The communities identified below are based on a comparative analysis of the US DoE map and Canadian road maps.

Route 1
North Dakota -
Manitoba - Ontario

US Border Crossing:
Pembina, North Dakota
________________

Manitoba:
Emerson
Morris
Ste Agathe
Winnipeg
Richer
_______________

Ontario:
Keewatin
Kenora
Dryden
Thunder Bay
Red Rock
Nipigon
Beardmere
Geraldton
Longlac
Hearst
Kapuskasing
Iroquois Falls
Kirkland Lake
New Liskeard
North Bay
Mattawa
Deux Rivières
Bisset Creek
Point Alexander
Deep River
Chalk River Nuclear Labs

 Route 2
Michigan - Ontario


US Border Crossing:
Port Huron, Michigan
_________________

Ontario:
Sarnia
London
Woodstock
Brantford
Kitchener/Waterloo
Cambridge
Guelph
Missisauga
Toronto
Oshawa
Bowmanville
Port Hope
Coburg
Trenton
Belleville
Kingston
Crosby
Perth
Merrickville
Carleton Place
Almonte
Arnprior
Cobden
Pembroke
Petawawa
Chalk River Nuclear Labs


 Route 3
New York - Ontario


US Border Crossing:
near Watertown, New York
____________

Ontario:
Brockville
Smith Falls
Carleton Place
Almonte
Arnprior
Cobden
Pembroke
Petawawa
Chalk River Nuclear Labs

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