Just over half (55%) of Canadians support using nuclear energy to generate electricity.

Toronto, ON, October 20, 2023 – Just over half (55%) of Canadians support the use of nuclear energy to generate electricity. Support is highest in Ontario, where two-thirds (66%) support nuclear energy. Support for nuclear energy is also strong in Atlantic Canada (65%) and the Prairie provinces (64%), while it is on par with national average in Alberta (56%) and B.C. (52%). Support is by far lower in Quebec, where only one-third (34%) support the use of nuclear energy to generate electricity.

Support for renewable forms of electricity is by far the highest compared to other forms of generation and is consistently strong across all regions of the country. Overall, nine-in-ten Canadians support the use of solar (92%), hydroelectric (92%), or wind (88%) to generate electricity. At least nine-in-ten Canadians from all regions of the county support the use of solar and hydroelectric power, while support for wind generation is lowest in Alberta (83% support) and highest in Atlantic Canada (95%).

Three-quarters (74%) of Canadians support the use of natural gas to generate electricity, with a majority of Canadians in all provinces voicing support for using this fossil fuel for generation. Support for natural gas generation is highest in Alberta (86%), followed by the Prairie provinces (83%), Ontario (77%), Atlantic Canada (74%), B.C. (73%), and Quebec (61%).

In terms of investing in new types of electricity generation, Canadians are most likely to support the building of new renewable sources of electricity, including building new solar generation (90%), building new wind generation (86%), and hydro generation (86%).

Approximately six-in-ten (63%) Canadians support the refurbishment of existing nuclear power plants, while half (51%) support the construction of new nuclear power plants. Support for refurbishment and building new nuclear power plants is highest in Ontario (74% and 62% respectively), while it is lowest in Quebec (44% and 31% respectively).

Two-thirds (67%) of Canadians support building new natural gas generation capacity, where support is highest in Alberta (78%) and lowest in Quebec (54%).

Regarding the need for future electricity generation and the role of nuclear energy, a strong majority of Canadians agree that Canada needs more electricity generation to meet future demand (87%) and that nuclear energy should play a role in meeting this demand, in tandem with renewable generation such as wind and solar (62%).

Six-in-ten Canadians agree that nuclear energy can help Canada meet its climate change goals (62%) and that nuclear generation can be considered a clean form of electricity (58%).

About the Study

These are some of the findings of an Ipsos poll conducted between October 5^th to 10^th, 2023. For this survey, a sample of 2,000 Canadians aged 18+ was interviewed online. Quotas and weighting were employed to ensure that the sample’s composition reflects that of the Canadian population according to census parameters. The precision of Ipsos online polls is measured using a credibility interval. In this case, the poll is accurate to within ± 2.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, had all Canadians aged 18+ been polled. The credibility interval will be wider among subsets of the population. All sample surveys and polls may be subject to other sources of error, including, but not limited to coverage error, and measurement error.

For more information on this news release, please contact:

Martin Hrobsky
Senior Vice President, Ipsos Public Affairs Canada

[email protected]

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