Saint John-Rothesay's Wayne Long argues it's time for his party to "pick a lane" and get behind the technology.

Long was responding to MP Jenica Atwin's comments at a news conference in Ottawa organized by a New Brunswick group opposed to nuclear power.

The Trudeau government says expanding nuclear power is part of its strategy to reduce Canada's greenhouse gas emissions.

Liberal MP Jenica Atwin said she was supporting constituents who want to inform Canadians about 'the associated risk and the many unknowns' with small modular reactors. (Jacques Poitras/CBC)

But Atwin, first elected as a Green MP in 2019 before switching to the Liberals in 2021, said Tuesday she was supporting constituents who want to inform Canadians about "the associated risk and the many unknowns" with SMRs.

"I want to be clear that I am here as an individual, a concerned individual, a mother, and as a member of parliament for Fredericton," Atwin said at the Parliament Hill news conference organized by the Coalition for Responsible Energy Development–New Brunswick. 

Long called Atwin's intervention "healthy" because it shows diverse opinions are welcome in the federal Liberal caucus.

But he said "people can be misinformed and not understand" the role nuclear energy can play in helping Canada reach the goal of net-zero emissions by 2050.

"I recognize that there's a pocket in the Fredericton area that's very Green, if you will, and very anti-nuclear. … Call it like it is," Long said.

The three-term MP said there's a limit to how much the Liberal party should try to appeal to those voters.

"It's time for us to pick a lane, and the lane we need to be on is the lane that supports nuclear energy for New Brunswick," said Long, who isn't running in the next election.

'More to determine,' says Liberal leader

Last year, new provincial Liberal Leader Susan Holt, who worked for a previous government that funded SMR development, said she was "not sure it's the solution for electricity generation for our province.

"I think it's not clear yet if it will really give us energy in a way that's responsible and efficient with our investments, so there's still more to determine there."

Nuclear energy does not emit carbon dioxide that causes climate change, though environmentalists have flagged safety and long-term waste concerns.

Physicist Ginette Charbonneau, NDP MP Alexandre Boulerice, Liberal MP Jenica Atwin, Bloc Quebecois MP Mario Simard and Green Party MP Elizabeth May listen to Coalition for Responsible Energy Development-New Brunswick’s Susan O’Donnell speak during a news conference in Ottawa, Tuesday, April 25, 2023. (Adrian Wyld/Canadian Press)

Two companies with operations in Long's Saint John riding are working with N.B. Power to develop small reactors to install next to the Point Lepreau nuclear generation station. 

Both have received tens of millions of dollars in subsidies from the federal and provincial governments. 

Ottawa recently upped the ante in the federal budget, making nuclear plants eligible for a new 15-per-cent clean energy tax credit.

Last fall, the federal Canada Infrastructure Bank announced $970 million for a small modular reactor in Ontario.

'Agree to disagree,' Long says

Long, who has broken ranks with his party on other issues, said he didn't think Atwin would suffer any consequences for dissenting.

"Jenica's a great MP. She's a great colleague. We obviously agree to disagree on nuclear energy. … The party encourages a diversity of opinions and it is what it is. Is it disappointing? Yes. Am I surprised? No." 

Long suggested Atwin tour the Point Lepreau plant to see how safe it is.

Asked Tuesday if there were other "outliers" in the Liberal caucus who oppose nuclear power, Atwin said some of her colleagues were "open" to learning more.

"I'm used to be an outlier, oftentimes. I think people can see that by now. But I've been very open with my personal opinion on this and bringing the voices of my constituency forward," she said.

Long suggested Atwin tour the Point Lepreau plant to see how safe it is. (Submitted by NB Power)

"I'm grateful to my colleagues that they allow me to express my opinions and have those conversations to add to the information that's been presented," she said. 

Long said the Liberals have "had some doubters in caucus," and said supporters of nuclear power have "done a lot of work" to win them over, including "leaning into" Environment Minister Stephen Guilbeault.

Guilbeault acknowledged Tuesday he once opposed nuclear power as an environmental activist. 

But he said both the International Energy Agency and the International Panel on Climate Change have concluded that "to achieve our carbon neutrality targets, we need this technology."

In February ARC Clean Energy CEO Bill Labbe said his company's first reactor will be running at Point Lepreau by 2030, when N.B. Power must stop burning coal under federal climate regulations.

But Labbe said the 100-megawatt unit won't be enough to replace the 450-megawatt shortfall from the coal phase-out.

Moltex Energy Canada's proposed small nuclear reactor, also to be located at Lepreau, would generate 300 megawatts, but company CEO Rory O'Sullivan said in February it won't be ready for 2030.

Atwin took part in the Coalition for Responsible Energy Development news conference with MPs from the NDP, Green Party and the Bloc Québécois.

She said there were "many different perspectives" on SMRs in her riding, and not all of those voices were being heard in the debate.

She also said "there is no margin for error" on the risks with nuclear power. 

Atwin did not respond to an interview request Wednesday.