Scale and colonialism in nuclear waste siting: The geography of spent nuclear fuel in northwestern Ontario, Canada

Abstract This article examines the social justice implications of the scales at which decisions are made about nuclear waste in northwestern Ontario. Drawing on a case study of a proposed deep geological repository, it argues that the nuclear industry's approach to site selection focuses on strategically constructed “local” and “national” scales of decision making which can exclude potentially affected First Nations and municipalities. By excluding other scales from decision making—including the scales that First Nations have mobilized like watersheds, transportation corridors, and First Nations territories —the nuclear industry has failed to include many First Nations and municipalities that could be exposed to environmental risk if the proposed waste repository is built and operated. As a result, the proposed waste repository is posed to move through assessment and regulatory processes without the free, prior, and informed consent of all potentially affected First Nations.