The Nunatsiavut Government says it is not aware of any proposed plans to dispose of nuclear waste in Labrador and was surprised to learn about it through the media.

In a released statement, the Nunatsiavut Government says the Constitutionally-protected Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement clearly defines Inuit rights and titles within Nunatsiavut.

Under that agreement, the provincial and federal governments have a legal duty to consult with the Nunatsiavut Government.

Information is still be gathered and the Nunatsiavut Government will be following up with both the federal and provincial governments before offering any further comment on the matter.

Former Prime Minister Part of Planning, Reports say

The CBC is reporting that former Prime Minister Jean Chretien was part of a secretive project to store nuclear waste in Labrador.

The information came to light through a series of emails obtained by the national broadcaster that show a group of entrepreneurs and lawyers were working toward setting up a facility in Labrador for international nuclear waste.

Premier-elect Andrew Furey says Newfoundland and Labrador is “nobody’s dumping ground.”

“Let me be perfectly clear,” says Furey, “that will not happen under my watch.”

“We lead the country in resource development,” he says, and “we don’t need to take other people’s garbage.”

MP Denies Federal Involvement

MP Seamus O’Regan says importing nuclear waste from other countries to Labrador—or any other part of Canada—has never been on the table, nor is it now.

O’Regan, who grew up in Labrador, supplied a statement to VOCM News indicating that the Canadian government has no involvement with the group reported in the recent CBC article.

He says that the work being reported is not related to the Nuclear Waster Management Organization’s work on Canada’s plan for used nuclear fuel.