Stabenow Proposes Bill to Put a Hold On Nuclear Disposal Facility

(AP) — U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow wants to invoke a treaty with Canada to prevent construction of a nuclear waste disposal facility than a mile from Lake Huron.

The Michigan Democrat said Monday she's seeking a study by the International Joint Commission of risks the project might pose to the Great Lakes. The commission was established under a 1909 treaty between the U.S. and Canada to resolve disputes over shared waterways.

Her bill would order the U.S. State Department to ask Canada to delay a decision on the waste facility until the study is finished.

Ontario Power Generation wants to bury waste from nuclear power plants in rock chambers near Kincardine, Ontario.

The company says the project won't contaminate nearby Lake Huron, but opponents say anything could happen over thousands of years.