The Varennes Tokamak and the Canadian Nuclear Fusion Program: Anatomy of a Decision

Data obtained via interviews & internal memoranda & reports are drawn on to examine factors leading to the 1974/75 decision by the Canadian National Research Council & others to construct a Tokamak magnetic confinement facility at Varennes, Quebec, for purposes of research into nuclear fusion technology. It is shown that political & social factors served to shape the decision both by enforcing constraints on the actors involved, & by providing resources (eg, potential alliances of diverse interests) for them to draw on. Political components of the decision included the conflict between national & provincial interests, & its resolution by the successful co-opting of national interest in fusion development by Quebec loyalists. 63 References. A. Levine