Canada Minister of Natural Resources Seamus O’Regan, released a national SMR Action Plan, which responds to the 53 recommendations identified in Canada’s SMR Roadmap that was launched in November 2018.

Canada’s SMR Action Plan seeks to advance the safe and responsible development and deployment of SMRs through a pan-Canadian approach in partnership with provincial and territorial governments, Indigenous peoples, organized labour, utilities, industry, innovators, academia and civil society.

Each of these key enablers has contributed a chapter to the Action Plan, describing a concrete set of actions they are taking to seize the SMR opportunity for Canada. Collectively, these chapters demonstrate the breadth of engagement on SMRs across the country and outline the depth of progress and ongoing efforts.

There are 109 chapters by participating organizations, with some 450 actions tracked.

The SMR Action Plan provides concrete actions for the Government of Canada to:

• Ensure robust policy, regulatory and legislative frameworks are in place to protect people and the environment;

• Accelerate innovation;

• Continue meaningful engagement with Indigenous communities and all Canadians; and

• Develop international partnerships and open up new markets.

Canada’s strengthened climate plan, A Healthy Environment and a Healthy Economy, underlines that SMRs have the potential to reduce emissions, decarbonize heavy industry and spur economic development. SMRs represent a new field of innovation with designs that are smaller and less expensive and are a potential tool to reduce emissions within Canada and abroad by replacing the use of coal and other emitting fuels such as diesel.

The SMR Action Plan strengthens Canada’s position as a leader in the development of innovative, zero-emissions nuclear technologies. Small modular reactors are the great enabler of other, clean energy sources. They are uniquely equipped to work alongside renewables to help decarbonize key regions and industries that are challenged to meet emission reduction goals.

—John Gorman, President and CEO, Canadian Nuclear Association