Nuclear News
Over 25 percent of the world's nuclear power plants are in the United States, and more are on the way. Over 17 million American's live within 20 miles of a nuclear plant. Here is a map of US Nuclear Reactors: map (Source: Earth Focus)
URANIUM
Bit of History: Uranium Nuclear
The following disasters have shown the world the catastrophic problems with uranium reactors. As a result, the movement to “denuclearize” and stop using uranium reactors is world-wide and growing. Link to movie Uranium by Magnus Isacsson, 1990 (48mins)
Three Mile Island (USA)
The Three Mile Island accident (Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, USA) was a partial meltdown, which occurred in one of two nuclear reactors on March 28, 1979. It was the worst accident in U.S. commercial nuclear power plant history. The official clean-up occurred from August 1979 to December 1993 and cost $1 billion. The accident was rated a five on the seven-point International Nuclear Event Scale. The reactor involved in the meltdown was decommissioned but the other reactor had its licence increased to 2034.
(Wikipedia) (Mother Nature Network) (Article 27-Mar-2015)
Three Mile Island News
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Date yyyy-mm-dd |
Posted By |
Article Link |
Comment |
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2017-06-07 |
CleanTechnica.com |
Study Links Three Mile Island Nuclear Partial Meltdown To Thyroid Cancers In Surrounding Counties |
James Ayre |
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2015-03-27 |
EcoWatch / harvey Wasserman |
36 Years of Three Mile Island’s Lethal Lies … and Still Counting |
Harvey Wasserman - Three Mile Island |
Chernobyl (Ukraine)
The Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in the Ukraine near the Belarus border, which was under the jurisdiction of the USSR, suffered a disaster on April 26, 1986. Chernobyl's fourth reactor exploded on April 26 1986 when a "routine experiment" went wrong sending a plume of radiation equivalent to 400 Hiroshimas into the night sky. (source) The explosion and fire released large quantities of radioactive particles into the atmosphere, much of which spread over western USSR and Europe. Today the power plant is within a 1,600 square mile exclusion zone with a clean-up target of 2065. The accident at Chernobyl was rated a seven on the seven-point International Nuclear Event Scale. (Wikipedia A, Wikipedia B). “Chernobyl’s radiation was tracked all across Europe where it continues to irradiate plants, animals and humans. The most credible study of Chernobyl’s human death toll put it at 985,000 in 2010.” (source)
Chernobyl News
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Date yyyy-mm-dd |
Posted By |
Article Link |
Comment |
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2010-04-13 |
EcoWatch / Olivia Rosane |
Olivia Rosane |
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2019-04-24 |
Post-gazette.com |
Peters resident and photographer tells stories of people and places left behind at Chernobyl |
M. Thomas |
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2017-04-25 |
Business Insider |
Sarah Jacobs |
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2016-08-04 |
EcoWatch / Lorraine Chow |
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2016-04-26 |
CTV News |
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2016-03-20 |
EnviroNews.tv |
Eerie Drone Footage Shows New Chernobyl Sarcophagus Nearing Completion |
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2015-10-05 |
The Telegraph |
Roland Oliphant |
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2015-08-06 |
Youtube / Diorsa Bitmez |
Nature |
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2014-04-23 |
IFL Science |
Lisa Winter |
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2013-10-31 |
Youtube / TED |
Holly Morris - community of 200 people living in Exclusion Zone |
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2013-06-24 |
Scientific American |
Jane Braxton Little and The Daily Climate |
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2011-09-20 |
The Telegraph |
Andrew Osborn |
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2010-09-04 |
GlobalResearch.com |
Prof. Karl Grossman |
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2006-03-16 |
MediaStorm.com |
Paul Fusco - photo essay |
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2005-09-05 |
World Health Organization (WHO) |
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Fukushima (Japan)
The Fukushima nuclear power plant suffered under a catastrophic 9.0 magnitude earthquake and resulting tsunami on March 11, 2011. Gauging and recovery from the accident which involved a meltdown of 3 cores and a problematic 4th core is still underway. The accident at Fukushima was rated a seven on the seven-point nuclear accident scale. (It has been noted that one core meltdown warrants a “7” therefore three core meltdowns should warrant a “21” but alas it is only a 7 point scale.)
Fukushima News
Link to more information regarding Fukushima Nuclear Plant (Japan)
Article: How a Fukushima scale accident would affect Ontario (Toronto Star)
COSMOS 954 (Canada)
On 24 January 1978, COSMOS 954, a Soviet nuclear-powered surveillance satellite, crashed in the Northwest Territories. The crash scattered an enormous amount of radioactivity over a 124,000 square kilometre area in Canada's north, stretching southward from Great Slave Lake into northern Alberta and Saskatchewan.
The clean-up operation was a coordinated event between the United States and Canada. Dubbed "Operation Morning Light", the clean-up effort continued into October 1978 and resulted, according to the Atomic Energy Control Board (now the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission), in the estimated recovery of about 0.1 percent of COSMOS 954's power source.
The crash of COSMOS 954 raised international policy questions. Soon after the satellite's crash, there was a call from the United States to prohibit satellites containing radioactive material from orbiting the earth. This was followed by similar calls from Canada and countries in Europe. In November 1978, the United Nations authorized its Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space to set up a working group to study nuclear-powered satellites.
(Source: Canada.ca) (.pdf)
Generation IV News
Presently the majority of reactors in operation around the world are considered second generation reactor systems, as the vast majority of the first-generation systems were retired some time ago, and there are only a dozen or so Generation III reactors in operation (2014). Generation IV designs, with the exception of the BN-1200 reactor, are generally not expected to be available for commercial construction before 2030-40. Generation V reactors refer to reactors that are purely theoretical and are therefore not yet considered feasible in the short term, resulting in limited R&D funding.
Link to Generation IV reactor overview by Wikipedia
THORIUM
Thorium - an Alternative Nuclear Energy Source?
Comment by Alasdair Lumsden (3-Jun-2013 article)
“The problem here is that existing Nuclear Reactors (Light Water Reactors) burn less than 1% of the fuel put into them, leaving 99% as a waste product. This is insane. Even the inventor of the Light Water Reactor, Alven Weinberg, thought they were terrible and unsafe, and instead advocated the use of a new design they developed at Oak Ridge National Laboratories, the Molten Salt Reactor. Unfortunately this design wasn't pursued for numerous political reasons, a tragedy that needs to be rectified. Molten Salt Reactors have significant design advantages. Because the fuel is dissolved in a molten salt, it can circulate, achieving 99% burnup, reducing waste to just 1%. MSRs can use Thorium as a fuel, which as abundant as lead and a byproduct of mining - people will pay you to take it away, meaning MSRs have the potential to produce energy cheaper than coal, with zero CO2 emissions - exactly what we need. What's more, MSR reactors can even burn existing spent nuclear fuel, reducing the world’s stockpiles of waste - incredible! Existing LWR reactors operate at 300 atmospheric pressures and use water as a coolant, meaning they can melt down and release steam and hydrogen/oxygen, which can explode, as happened at Fukushima. MSR reactors on the other hand operate at atmospheric pressure, meaning they can't explode, and as the salt is already molten, they can't melt down. They're inherently walk-away safe. The world needs to pursue MSR - it's clean, cheap and safe. The same cannot be said of existing reactors. Anyone interested in this technology should search for "Thorium Remix" on youtube, and spread the word! China has recognised the potential and is aggressively pursuing the technology. America and the west are going to be left behind on this, which is a tragedy. We'll be buying them off China in 15 years, just like everything else.
Rather than store the waste, America needs to re-look at the Molten Salt Reactor, which can consume existing nuclear waste stockpiles as fuel, turning it into energy. MSR is cheap, clean and walk away safe - sadly the tech was mothballed in the 60s due to politics, and the existing investment in LWR reactors, a tragedy for the nuclear industry. Anyone interested in the MSR should search for Thorium Remix on youtube.”
See the Thorium Car
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Date yyyy-mm-dd |
Posted By |
Article Link |
Comment |
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2019-10-15 |
Youtube / Subject Zero Science |
Subject Zero Science |
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2017-08-25 |
Sciencealert.com |
The First Thorium Salt Reactors in Over 40 Years Were Just Switched on in Europe |
Mike McRae |
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2014-07-16 |
Pocket-lint.com |
World’s first thorium reactor ready to be built for cheaper, safer nuclear energy |
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2012-04-26 |
KevinMeyerson .WordPress.com |
Kevin Myerson |
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2012-03-10 |
Youtube / Ross C. |
Ross C. - Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactor (LFTR) - Kirk Sorensen |
See also:
The Corbett Report – Fukushima’s Biggest Secret video (@ 31:20 @36:47)
Time lapse map of every nuclear explosion ever on earth by Isao Hashimoto
Dr. David Suzuki - Will Thorium Save Us From Climate Change? (11-Feb-2014)
CANADA
Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission
“It boggles the mind that the federal authorities approved new reactors without first considering the environmental effects of radioactive waste and reactor accidents.” Shawn-Patrick Stensil, Greenpeace (article)
ONTARIO
Port Hope Area Initiative (PHAI)
– represents the Government of Canada’s commitment to the cleanup and safe, local, long-term management of historic low-level radioactive waste (LLRW) in two Southern Ontario municipalities – Port Hope and Clarington. The waste is the result of radium and uranium processing in Port Hope between 1933 and 1988 by the former Crown corporation Eldorado Nuclear Limited and its private-sector predecessors. As at 2012 it was/is one of Canada’s largest and most expensive environmental remediation projects. (source, source)
Nuclear Power Plants (ON)
Nuclear power meets more than 50 percent of Ontario’s electricity demands. Link to Ontario Power Generation (OPG).
Bruce Nuclear Generating Station
- is owned and operated by the Bruce Power Limited Partnership, a partnership composed of several corporations (including TransCanada, OMERS, Power Workers Union, The Society of Energy Professionals (wikipedia)). Located on the eastern shore of Lake Huron, in the communities of Inverhuron and Tiverton, Ontario. It is the largest nuclear generating station in the world by total reactor count and number of operational reactors. The plant is comprised of 8 CANDU nuclear reactors having a total output of 6,272 megawatts (MW) and net 7,276 MW when all units are online. The station is the largest employer in Bruce County with 3,800 workers. (source)
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Date yyyy-mm-dd |
Posted By |
Article Link |
Comment |
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2020-06-22 |
BlackburnNews.com |
Janice MacKay |
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2019-05-07 |
CTV News |
Decision on nuclear waste burial facility expected by December |
Scott Miller |
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2016-01-06 |
CleanAirAlliance.org |
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Pickering Nuclear Generating Station
- is owned and operated by Ontario Power Generation (OPG). The station is located on the north shore of Lake Ontario in Pickering, Ontario. It produces 15-20% of Ontario’s power and employs 3,000 workers. The plant is one of the largest in the world with 8 CANDU (6 operating) reactors and a total output of 4,124 megawatts (MW) capacity net / 4,336 MW gross net. Pickering is only surpassed in Canada by the Bruce Nuclear Generating Station, which has greater output. (source) Shutdown target date is in the year 2020.
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Date yyyy-mm-dd |
Posted By |
Article Link |
Comment |
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2015-05-04 |
DurhamRegion.com |
OPG asks public for input on use of soon-to-be shuttered Pickering nuclear plant |
Kristen Calis |
Darlington Nuclear Generating Station
- is owned and operated by Ontario Power Generation (OPG). The station is located on the north shore of Lake Ontario in Clarington, Ontario. The plant is 70 km east of Toronto. The 4-unit station produces about 20% of Ontario’s electricity needs with output of 3,512 megawatts(MW), enough to serve a city of two million people. (source) In October 2016, work will begin to refurbish the plant. The project will extend the 25-year-old nuclear power plant’s life until at least 2055.
News – Darlington Nuclear Generating Station
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Date yyyy-mm-dd |
Posted By |
Article Link |
Comment |
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2016-01-04 |
CleanAirAlliance.org |
Ontario urged to abandon $13-billion nuclear reactors rebuild |
Kristen Calis |
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2014-06-03 |
Canadian Consulting Engineer |
Federal Court finds Darlington nuclear plant Environmental Assessment was inadequate |
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Chalk River Laboratories (CRL)
- is owned and operated by Atomic Energy of Canada Limited, a Canadian federal crown corporation. The facility is located in Deep River, Renfrew County, Ontario near the village of Chalk River, about 180km north-west of Ottawa. CRL is a site of major research and development in support and advance nuclear technology, in particular CANDU reactor technology. (source) Chalk River makes the majority of the world’s supply of medical radioisotopes, including two-thirds of the world’s technetium-99m. The National Research Universal Reactor (NRU) licence is set to expire in 2016, and has been extended to 2018 after which the reactor is expected to be decommissioned. (wikipedia)
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Date yyyy-mm-dd |
Posted By |
Article Link |
Comment |
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2012-02-09 |
National Post |
Ian MacLeod |
Other nuclear sites
- exist in the form of former and current research facilities, uranium mining and mills, processing and fuel fabrication sites, waste management sites, irradiation facilities, medical facilities and isotope producers. (maps)
Nuclear Waste
High-level radioactive waste (HLW)
- in Canada is used (irradiated) nuclear fuel that has been declared as radioactive waste. This type of waste also includes small amounts of radioactive waste from medical isotope production and other applications that generate significant heat via radioactive decay. (Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission). Stored on site at each station in wet and then dry storage facilities.
Intermediate-level waste
– resins, filters, items used for cleanup purposes on station systems. Packaged and transported to Bruce Power site near Kincardine for interim storage.
Low-level waste
– rags, mops, protective clothing. Items used in normal maintenance of stations. Packaged and transported to Bruce Power site near Kincardine for interim storage.
Learn how OPG manages nuclear waste (video)
See also:
Nuclear Waste: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)
Can Reusing Spent Nuclear Fuel Solve Our Energy Problems?
Radiation Impacts on Human Health
10 Symptoms of Radiation Sickness (nausea/vomiting, bruising/wounds won’t heal, bleeding from orifices, radiation burns, hair loss, headaches, weakness/fatigue, mouth sores, seizures/tremors, fever/infections)
Cancer
Chernobyl Legacy – Photo Essay by Paul Fusco
Fukushima’s Children are Dying (14-Jun-2014)
Other Specific Issues
Link to information regarding the Deep Geological Repository proposed by Ontario Power Generation (OPG) aka “ the Great Lakes Nuclear Dump”
“All radioactivity causes cancer, causes inheritable disease, causes damage to ova and sperm, and causes fetal damage. All, all of it does. So it’s just a question of the dose.”
Dr. Cathy Vakil, Family Practioner in Ontario (video @12:45)
NEWS – General Nuclear/Radioactive News
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Date yyyy-mm-dd |
Posted By |
Article Link |
Comment |
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2020-10-12 |
CKDR.net |
Sarah McCarthy - Ignace/Dryden area, ON |
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2020-02-21 |
CBC News |
Bruce County divided over becoming permanent site to store Canada's nuclear waste |
Colin Butler |
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2020-01-24 |
PublicNewsService.org (USA) |
Investigation: Marcellus Waste 'Too Hot' for Release by Nuke Plant |
Dan Heyman |
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2019-12-05 |
ClickOnDetroit.com |
Jason Colthorp, Dane Kelly |
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2019-12-05 |
TheStarPhoenix.com |
Opinion: Promoting small nuclear reactors is just a diversion |
Jim Harding |
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2019-12-03 |
CBC News |
'Many issues' with modular nuclear reactors says environmental lawyer |
Jordan Gill |
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2019-11-13 |
The Sun (UK) |
Charlotte Edwards |
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2019-11-07 |
TheTyee.ca |
M.V. Ramana |
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2019-06-05 |
CBC News |
U.S. government to reclassify high-level nuclear waste to save cleanup costs |
The Associated Press |
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2019-05-29 |
Global News |
Canada’s nuclear waste to be buried in deep underground repository |
Eric Sorenson |
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2019-04-18 |
CBC News (Saskatoon) |
50K litres of uranium-contaminated water leaks into ground at Cameco's Key Lake mill |
David Shield |
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2018-07-19 |
MIT Technology Review |
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2018-05-17 |
Industrytap.com |
Nidhi Goyal |
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2018-04-30 (29) |
YourNewsWire.com |
Baxter Dmitry |
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2018-03-11 |
Toronto Star |
Report paints grim picture of Fukushima-scale nuclear accident in Pickering |
Tess Kalinowski |
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2017-01-17 |
VanmeerFreePress.com |
Pamela Vanmeer - GE Peterborough |
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2016-12-17 |
Toronto Star |
Sara Mojtehedzadeh, Melissa Renwick - GE’s Peterborough plant |
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2016-11-09 |
Lake Ontario Waterkeeper |
Blog: What you need to know about the Port Hope Area radioactive waste cleanup |
Matt Flowers - Cameco |
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2016-11-09 |
EcoWatch / Climate News Network |
'Nuclear Industry in France in Crisis,' 20 Reactors Shut Down |
Paul Brown |
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2016-09-19 |
National Geographic |
Gary Strauss |
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2016-07-15 |
RT.com |
Florida nuclear plant operator sued for polluting drinking water |
- Turkey Point, Florida, USA |
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2016-06-26 |
EcoWatch / Ohio Valley ReSource |
Jie Jenny Zou |
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2016-05-03 |
Sum of Us |
Don Kossick - offshore tax havens $2.1 billion at stake |
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2016-05-02 |
TrueActivist.com |
Americans Distracted By The Transgender Bathroom Argument While 3 Nuclear Disasters Unfold |
Brianna Acuesta - Bridgeton Landfill, Missouri, fire - Turkey Point nuclear reactor, Florida, leak - New York nuclear leak |
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2016-03-09 |
KeysWeekly.com |
Sara Matthis |
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2016-02-17 |
EcoWatch / Cole Mellino |
Radioactive Leak at Indian Point Nuclear Plant Shows ‘We Are Flirting With Catastrophe’ |
Cole Mellino |
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2016-01-11 |
Southwest Booster |
BREAKING: Uranium concentrate spill shuts down Highway 4 north of SC |
- Saskatchewan - uranium concentrate cleanup |
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2016-01-05 |
Toronto Star |
Daniel Otis |
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2015-12-06 |
Abc12.com |
Canada delays decision to put nuclear waste site near Great Lakes |
Kellie Meyer |
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2015-11-25 |
EcoWatch / Harvey Wasserman |
Harvey Wasserman |
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2015-11-10 |
Toronto Star |
Daniel Otis |
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2015-10-14 |
EcoWatch / Harvey Wasserman |
Harvey Wasserman - Entergy clsoing the Pilgrim, north of Boston in 2019 |
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2015-08-12 |
EcoWatch / Thom Hartmann |
Japan Restarts First Nuclear Reactor Since Fukushima Disaster, Protests Erupt |
Thom Hartmann |
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2015-05-09 |
Aljazeera |
- Indian Point |
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2015-03-15 |
Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission |
Measurements and dose consequences of tritium in municipal sewage sludge |
- biosolids |
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2014-12-17 |
Youtube / Veritasium |
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2014-10-15 |
Guardian |
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2014-09-11 |
Green Party of Ontario |
Green Party of Ontario |
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2014-08-06 |
Toronto Star |
Thomas Walkom |
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2014-07-15 |
EcoWatch / Climate News Network |
Storage of Radioactive Spent Fuel Rods Still Haunts Nuclear Industry |
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2014-06 |
Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) |
.pdf file |
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2014-05-15 |
Lake Ontario Waterkeeper |
Allie Kosela - Darlington |
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2014-04-07 |
EcoWatch / Climate News Network |
Tim Radford |
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2014-03-14 |
Owen Sound Times / QMI Agency |
Cylinders with radioactive material dropped in ship docked in Halifax |
- Uranium hexafluoride |
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2014-02-11 |
EcoWatch / Dr. David Suzuki |
Dr. David Suzuki |
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2014-01-06 |
Toronto Star |
John Spears |
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2013-12-11 |
Live Science |
Tia Ghose |
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2013-12-09 |
Political Blindspot blog |
Arkansas Nuclear Plant Explosion Goes Largely Unreported by National Media |
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2013-11-18 |
KHQ Q6 (USA) |
Washington State |
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2013-11-14 |
NOW |
Zach Ruiter - GE Hitachi |
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2013-10-31 |
Toronto Star |
John Spears - transportation of nuclear material = no requirement to notify authorities of mishaps |
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2013-10-31 |
Globe and Mail |
Scaling back nuclear power a tempting option for cost-conscious Ontario Liberals |
Adam Radwanski |
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2013-10-28 |
Toronto Star |
Tests by nuclear agency show west-end Toronto uranium plant is safe |
- GE Hitachi - Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, City of Toronto, Ontario Ministry of the Environment |
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2013-10-25 |
Youtube / beforeitsnews.com (article) |
Alert, Hawaii Huge Spike in Radiation Levels Overnight Fukushima |
trulyconservative1 - over 150 CPM - blackcatsystems (independent amateur radiation monitoring network)
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2013-10-24 |
Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission |
News release - GE Hitachi - facililty produces uranium dioxide pellets - been in operation since 1955 |
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2013-10-23 |
National Geographic |
Patrick J. Kiger - intended to power oil and gas exploration in the Arctic |
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2013-10-22 |
CBC News |
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2013-10-21 |
Eco News / The Carbon Brief |
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2013-10-01 |
NBC News / Rock Center with Brian Williams |
Taylor Wilson |
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2013-09-27 |
Inside Toronto |
Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission Set to hold public meeting in Toronto |
Lisa Rainford - GE Hitachi |
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2013-09-24 |
Guardian Environment Network |
First US nuclear power closures in 15 years signal wider industry problems |
Elizabeth Douglass |
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2013-09-16 |
Andrew Cash MP for Davenport (Toronto NDP) |
Nuclear Safety Commission agrees to NDP request for meeting on GE-Hitachi facility |
- GE Hitachi - Facility located at 1025 Lansdowne Avenue at Dupont St. in Toronto - meeting TBD in December 2013 |
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2013-08-29 |
EcoWatch |
Another No Nuke Victory: Vermont Yankee Nuclear Plant to Close in 2014 |
Laura Beans |
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2013-08-07 |
Fierce Energy |
Barbara Vergetis Lundin |
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2013-07-08 |
Bayshore Broadcasting |
John Divinski Dr. Peter Ottensmeyer Fast neutron reactors (FNR) |
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2013-07-03 |
EcoWatch / Michael Leonardi |
Michael Leonardi |
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2013-06-20 |
Slate |
Orthodox Environmentalists Don’t Want You to See My Environmental Film |
Robert Stone Maybe nuclear is the way to go |
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2013-06-17 |
Toronto Star |
John Spears Orangeville? |
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2013-06-10 |
Reuters |
Peter N. Henderson |
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2013-06-07 |
EcoWatch / Neighbors for an Ohio Valley Alternative |
Geoffrey Sea |
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2013-06-06 |
AlJazeera |
Dr. Mozhgan Savabieasfahani |
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2013-06-03 |
International Institute of Concern for Public Health (IICPH) |
New Binational Great Lakes Nuclear Map Identifies “Nuclear Hot Spots” |
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2013-06-02 |
CTV News |
Skullduggery alleged over mayors' 'secret' nuclear-waste storage meetings |
Colin Perkel, The Canadian Press |
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2013-05-29 |
Toronto Star |
John Spears Critics say it should be closed. |
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2013-05-28 |
EcoWatch / Neighbors for an Ohio Valley Alternative |
Geoffrey Sea Part 4 of series |
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2013-05-28 |
EcoWatch / Neighbors for an Ohio Valley Alternative |
Geoffrey Sea Part 3 of series |
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2013-05-28 |
EcoWatch / Neighbors for an Ohio Valley Alternative |
Geoffrey Sea Part 2 of series; cannot be entirely predicted because no gaseous diffusion plant contaminated with transuranics has ever been powered down dirty before |
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2013-05-22 |
EcoWatch / Neighbors for an Ohio Valley Alternative |
Geoffrey Sea Part 1 of series; a semi-clean power-down has cost billions of dollars and has taken twelve years plus |
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2013-05-01 |
Real Clear Science |
Video: Taylor Wilson: My Radical Plan for Small Nuclear Fission Reactors (13 mins) |
Taylor Wilson |
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2013-03-09 *Meeting* |
Human Chain Reaction to Stop Nuclear Power Now |
GE Hitachi Uranium Fuel Processing Plant, 1025 Lansdowne Ave., north of Dupont St. |
@ noon Goal is to ring the plant with a human chain to build awareness (FB event) |
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2013-02-25 |
Earth Policy Institute |
Wind Surpasses Nuclear: Proof Positive Renewables Can Power the Planet |
J. Matthew Roney |
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2013-02-25 |
Nuclear News |
Reza Kahlili |
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2013-02-21 |
Council of Canadians |
NEWS: High-level nuclear waste to be transported by truck near Lake Ontario this summer |
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2013-02-11 |
National Post |
Bomb-grade uranium to be shipped secretly from Chalk River, ON nuclear plant to U.S. |
Ian MacLeod - highly-enriched uranium (HEU) in a liquid solution |
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2013-02-10 |
SurgicalScience28 – Earth Focus Documentary |
40:44 minutes Three Mile Island, Chernobyl and Fukushima |
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2013-02-08 |
Daily Caller |
Wind subsidies threaten to shut down nuclear plants, warns energy exec |
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2013-02-03 |
Toronto Star |
Protesters stop train on CP Rail tracks over Lansdowne Ave. uranium plant |
Alex Ballingall #IdleNoMore |
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2013-01-30 |
Ontarion (University of Guelph) |
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2013-01-25 |
BBC News Europe |
Laurence Peter |
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2012-01-15 |
Andrew Cash, NDP MP for Davenport |
Petition Calling for a Public Hearing on the GE-Hitachi Facility at 1025 Lansdowne Ave |
Hardcopy output only |
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2012-12-19 |
Rabble.ca |
“For the avoidance of any doubt”: Pinehouse signs “collaboration agreement” with Cameco/Areva |
Scott Harris - committing Pinehouse to support uranium giants Cameco and Areva's mining operations in the region in exchange for monetary payments and promises of preferential workforce and business development opportunities in Pinehouse. |
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2012-12-18 |
Northern Pride |
Phil Ambroziak Northern Saskatchewan |
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2012-12-14 |
Radio Against Global Ecocide (RAGE) |
Help!! Nuclear giant attacks small village in Northern Saskatchewan |
Effort to stop signing of “collaboration agreement” between Cameco/Areva and northern Saskatchewan community Pinehouse (includes contact list) |
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2012-12-12 |
Cameco |
Agreement Strengthens Relationship Between Industry and Northern Community |
collaboration agreement to guide future co-operation and sharing of benefits from uranium mining operations
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2012-12-12 |
Straight Goods News |
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2012-12-10 |
Green Party of Saskatchewan |
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2012-12-09 |
Intercontinental Cry |
Support the Court Injunction to Stop Cameco Areva Pinehouse Agreement! |
John Ahni Schertow anti-free speech clause |
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2012-11-15 |
Toronto Star / TheStar.com |
Niamh Scallan |
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2012-11-14 |
Toronto Star / TheStar.com |
Residents, company officials spar over uranium processing plant |
Karissa Donkin - GE Hitachi GEH.Canada@ge.com |
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2012-10-26 |
TheStar.com |
John Spears Darlington |
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2012-10-18 |
NOW Magazine |
Saul Chernos Toronto’s uranium pellet factory |
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2012-07-08 |
National Post |
Decaying concrete raising concerns at Canada’s aging nuclear plants |
Ian MacLeod |
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2012-05-10 |
Messy Nessy Chic |
Cold war history – US bomb testing on Bikini Atoll, Micronesian island |
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2012-04-26 |
Global Research |
Nuclear Radiation in Ontario: Tritium Toxic Emissions have Increased Dramatically in Peterborough |
Zach Ruiter |
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2012-04-03 |
Toronto Sun |
Sarah Deeth, QMI Agency |
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2012-03-01 |
CBC News |
Darlington |
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2011-03-16 |
Globe & Mail |
Pickering nuclear plant’s water leak will have ‘no impact,’ officials say |
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2011-01-28 |
Rabble.ca |
How residents delivered a major upset to GE-Hitachi Canada’s nuclear operations |
Zach Ruiter and Liat Mandel |
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2010-01-01 |
Globe & Mail |
Neil Reynolds Paul McKay |
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2008-05-26 |
Office of the Auditor General of Canada |
Environmental impact of toxi chemicals leaking into Lake Ontario #248 |
Cameco, Port Hope |
“For anyone out there who is still wondering why it is that governments are so wedded to this inherently unsafe and unstable uranium reactor for nuclear power … it’s the underlying idea that the uranium byproducts of those reactors can be used as the fissile material for weapons.” James Corbett (video @41:00)
“Now I am become Death, the Destroyer of Worlds”
Dr. J. Robert Oppenheimer (video 2 mins)
More information:
www.ontario.ca/radiationhealth
Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission - www.cnsc.canadacast.ca
Energy From Thorium – www.EnergyFromThorium.com
Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) – www.ieso.ca
Gord Edwards
Greenpeace
Nuclear Free by 2045? Blog by Dennis Riches
Nuclear Waste Watch
OCAA
Thorium Energy Alliance – www.ThoriumEnergyAlliance.com / www.ThoriumEnergyAlliance.org
Waterkeeper
World Nuclear Association www.world-nuclear.org / Canada
Youtube / The Most Radioactive Places on Earth (12mins by Veritasium)
Taylor Wilson
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Date yyyy-mm-dd |
Posted By |
Article Link |
Comment |
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2013-10-01 |
NBC News / Rock Center with Brian Williams |
Taylor Wilson |
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2013-05-01 |
Real Clear Science |
Video: Taylor Wilson: My Radical Plan for Small Nuclear Fission Reactors (13 mins) |
Taylor Wilson |
"In the long term, the economy and the environment are the same thing. If it’s unenvironmental it is uneconomical. That is the rule of nature." Mollie Beatty (Director of the US Fish and Wildlife Service, 1993-1996)
Go to AWARE-Ontario Energy Alternatives
Return to AWARE-Ontario.ca Home Page
List of Ontario’s Issues
Disclaimer: This information has been compiled through private amateur research for the purpose of allowing the reader to make an informed and educated decision. However, while the information is believed to be reliable, accuracy cannot be guaranteed.
APPENDICES
https://awareontario.nfshost.com/AWARE-Ontario/News%20Nuclear.htm
APPENDIX A
As copied from a Facebook entry on 30-May-2013:
Q. Have accidents happened at the Pickering nuclear station?
A. Yes. There have been a number of near misses at the Pickering nuclear station.
The following is a selection of these accidents:
Accidents at Pickering Nuclear
Pickering Reactor 2, August 1, 1983
A metre-long break ruptured a pressure tube in Pickering Reactor 2, spilling 17 kg of heavy water per second onto the floor of the reactor vault. The leak rate was gradually reduced as the coolant pressure dropped, and the the leak was stopped two weeks later. A broken fuel bundle left fuel ‘pencil’ wedged in the crack, which greatly complicated the removal of the pressure tube. Inspection of the pressure tubes at reactor 1 showed similar degradation, which resulted in the early retubing of Pickering reactors 1 and 2.
Pickering Reactor 1, November 22, 1988
A fuel failure occurred when a Pickering Reactor 1 operator, working with incorrect operating instructions, increased reactor power from 65% to 87%, causing 36 fuel bundles to fail. The breakdown of fuel bundles in the core was revealed by a sudden increase in the level of radioactive isotope iodine-131. Iodine-131 levels were at 30 times the normal release levels in the last two weeks of December 1988, and 80 times the normal release levels in the first week of January 1989. Ontario Hydro continued to operate the reactor and attempted to remove and damaged fuel bundles between January and May 1989.
Pickering Reactor 2, March 1989
Workers discovered that a 100 square cm hole had existed between the moderator purification room and the moderator room since early 1988. If a serious loss of coolant accident had occurred at some point during those fifteen months, the resulting leakage of water between these two rooms would have damaged the sump pumps, which are required to recirculate water to the Emergency Core Cooling System during a Loss of Coolant Accident.
Pickering Reactor 2, September 25, 1990
Pickering Reactor 2 experienced a “severe flux tilt” (unstable and unbalanced nuclear fission) following the insertion of an adjustor rod into the core Operators spent two days trying to stabilize the reactor by changing fuel bundles, reactor power and the configuration of the adjustor rods. The station management was reprimanded by the Atomic Energy Control Board for not shutting the reactor down right away. A second flux tilt occurred at the same reactor in November 1990, only two months later.
Pickering Reactor 4, November 1990
Moderator room pumps were found seized up at Pickering reactor 4. This situation was estimated to have disabled the Emergency Core Cooling System of that reactor for the previous 11 months. Had a Loss of Cooling Accident occurred during that time, the pumps would not have performed their crucial function of recirculating the water to the Emergency Core Cooling System to keep the fuel from melting.
Pickering “A” and “B”, 1990
During a test of the containment system at Pickering that is carried out only once every ten years, a seal on the Pressure Relief Duct failed at about one half the pressure it was designed to withstand. It was estimated that containment at the Pickering site was inadequate for 7.5 years prior to the test which revealed the weak seal. Work on the seals was not completed until June 1995. This could have allowed serious radiation releases in the event of an accident.
Pickering Reactor 4, June 1991
A faulty valve on a steam generator resulted in a 15,000 litre leak of heavy water at reactor 3. the reactor was just being re-started following retubing work carried out over the previous two years. While it was reported that no water leaked out of the steam generator area into Lake Ontario, there were airborne releases of tritium (a radioactive form of hydrogen) in the four hours immediately following the accident.
Pickering Reactor 1, August 2 1992
A heat exchanger was damaged by debris from a broken strainer, spilling over 2,000 litres of radioactive heavy water into Lake Ontario. The spill began at about 1:30 a.m. and lasted for 6 hours. The problem was not noticed by Ontario Hydro staff until 4:50 a.m., and was not stopped for an additional one and a half hours.
This was the largest single tritium spill ever to occur at Pickering. Sampling of local drinking water for tritium revealed significant increases, despite dilution over four days and the five kilometers of waterfront between the Pickering reactors and the Ajax water supply facility, the closest municipal water intake. The Ajax water plant was not shut down at the time, and the public was not notified, so those at most risk (pregnant women and young children) did not have the option of avoiding contaminated drinking water.
Pickering Reactor 4, April 15, 1996
A leaking heat exchanger spilled 100 litres of radioactive heavy water into Lake Ontario. The leak was discovered at 9:40 p.m. and was halted two hours later at 11:50 p.m. As a result of the spill, Durham Region shut down Ajax water treatment plant for about 24 hours.
Pickering Stations A and B, April 16, 1996
Workers discovered a malfunctioning valve associated with the Emergency Core Cooling System. After delaying several days (while former Prime Minister Chrétien was promoting CANDU reactors in Eastern Europe), Ontario Hydro announced the first unscheduled shutdown of all eight reactors at both Pickering nuclear stations. The shutdown took place on April 20 and 21. Hydro said that it expected to take about ten days to repair the safety system.
Pickering Nuclear Station, August 14, 2003 - At the time of the great blackout in eastern North America on August 14, 2003, the Pickering B reactors # 5, 6 and 8 were operating at or near full power and reactor # 7 was being restarted following a planned maintenance outage. Pickering A reactor # 4 was just being started up after being shut down since 1997, and was operating at 12% power, but was not synchronized to the grid.
A significant design flaw in the Pickering station’s emergency shutdown system was underscored by the blackout. The U.S.-Canada Power System Outage Task Force noted that “[e]quipment problems and design limitations at Pickering B resulted in a temporary reduction in the effectiveness of some of the multiple safety barriers…”.
Most notably, the Pickering station’s Emergency Core Cooling System (ECCS), which is used in the case of a Loss of Coolant Accident was designed to operate from grid supplied electricity. When the Pickering nuclear station was disconnected from the grid, the ECCS was unavailable for approximately 5.5 hours, meaning that it would have been impossible to replace coolant if a Large Loss of Coolant Accident (LLOCA) had occurred during that time.
Several emergency low pressure and high pressure water pumps used for cooling also failed to operate as intended. Operators were required to intervene manually to ensure safe shutdown.
Because of the serious problems with the ECCS during the blackout, Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission staff rated the emergency shutdown of the Pickering station as a Level 2 incident on the International Nuclear Event Scale.
Pickering B, December 26, 2003 - It was discovered Emergency Core Cooling System would have been unavailable in the case of a Loss of Coolant Accident (LOCA) and Loss of Electricity Supply (LOBES) incident because of a problem with the Site Electrical System. The system was unavailable for 7 hour and 38 minutes.
APPENDIX B
As copied from a Facebook entry on 30-May-2013:
962. 1989, 9th August - PICKERING, CANADA
A Canadian mechanic was exposed to six times the yearly legal radiation limit in an accident at the Pickering nuclear plant on 9th August 1989. Another worker who was standing nearby was also exposed. The workers were replacing a radioactive control rod, which is moved in or out of a reactor to control the nuclear process, when a radiation detection device one of the men was holding went off scale. It was later discovered that the equipment being used by the men was designed for training and did not contain lead, which shields workers from radiation.
("The Oshawa Times" Canada 14/8/89; WISE-318 29/9/89).
http://www.ib.cnea.gov.ar/~protrad/biblioteca/3Accidentes.pdf
56O. 1982, March - CHALK RIVER, TORONTO, CANADA
Exposure to radiation on the job was the most probable cause of death of an Ontario nuclearplant worker, according to a spokesman for Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. A second worker at a nuclear plant has won a disability award for cancer believed to have been caused or aggravated by radiation. Both victims had been long-time employees at the A.E.C.L. nuclear reactor research centre at Chalk River, Ontario, near Ottawa. The two victims developed typical radiation related cancers, though they never received more than the maximum permissible dose of radiation during their years at Chalk River. Both received Ontario Workers Compensation Board Awards in 1982 based on A.E.C.L. acknowledgement to the Board that their radiation exposure was a possible or contributing cause of their cancers.
("The Canberra Times" 6/3/1982)
567. 1982, October - LITTON SYSTEMS, TORONTO, CANADA
A bomb blew up part of the Litton Systems Canada plant which makes components for Cruise
missiles. ("West Australian" 16th October 1982)
835. 1987, October - CANADA
Radioactive contamination of dirt and asphalt in a parking lot in northeast Calgary, was
discovered by the Canadian Atomic Energy Control Board. A spokesman said the
contamination poses no health hazard "because it is in a parking lot". ("Toronto Star"
(Canada) 7 act 1987)
129. 1972, April - GINNA REACTOR, ONTARIO, CANADA
This Westinghouse-designed and -fuelled reactor contained 2,000 fuel rods, 40 of which were bent or crushed. (N. Thieberger Op.Cit. p.5)
328. 1979, 25th July, ONTARIO, CANADA
Plant shut near Bruce, Ontario, after 90,000 litres of heavy water leaked. (W.I.S.E. Ibid)
412. 1980, April - BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA
Deaths from lung cancer probably caused by uranium mining operations in Ontario are still taking place almost monthly according to a United Steelworkers of America employee. HOMER SEQUIN made the charge in front of a B.C. Royal Commission into Uranium Mining. Sequin alleged that 81 lung cancer deaths were attributable to uranium operations at Elliot Lake where Denison Hines Ltd. had been operating since the 1950's according to union records. Up to 14th March 1975, 496 present or former Elliot Lake mine and surface workers were identified as having lung disabilities in whole or in part as the direct result of dust exposure in the uranium industry. Sequin said "spills and breaks which spew contaminants into the environment happen all too frequently... the affected Serpent River watershed remains destroyed". (International Nuclear News Service, No.12 p.25)
604. 1983, August - CANADA
3,700 litres of radioactive tritium leaked into Lake Huron and Lake Ontario from Canadian nuclear power stations. ("Financial Review"; "The Age" 8/8/1983)
605. 1983,
611. 1983, October - ONTARIO, CANADA
A nuclear reactor in Ontario will be closed for at least 10 days after springing a leak. The reactor was only opened 6 months ago. ("Daily News" 31/10/1983) - [now, which one could this be?]
837. 1987, October - CANADA
An environment ministry official in Canada says the town of Port Hope, Ontario is
"walking a tight rope" as sewage treatment plant officials wait for a place to dump
uranium-tainted sludge. The contamination is due to uranium that has leaked from the
Altered Resources Ltd refinery. The untreated sewage is in danger of flowing over a
weir toward Lake Ontario. The uranium was discovered in the sewers 2 years ago, and
has built up to more than 75,000 cubic feet since then. ("The Star" (Ontario) 7 October
1987)
1000. 1990, 23rd January - BRUCE A, CANADA
Software caused fuelling accident. AECB says that "a long standing error" in the computer software that controls the fuelling machine at the Bruce A. nuclear station in Ontario is responsible for the accident on 23 January at the station's unit 4. (12 metric tons of heavy water coolant had spilled into the reactor vault after all four brakes on the fuelling machine bridge were suddenly released during the fuelling process. ("Nucleonics Week" 31/5/90;
WISE-335 6/7/90)
1001. 1990, 23 January - ONTARIO, CANADA
About 12,000 litres of heavy water coolant spilled into the reactor vault at Bruce reactor Unit no 4. The accident was caused by a fuelling machine which did not properly connect onto a fuel channel. ("Nuclear Awareness" Canada, Winter 1989/90; WISE 329 2/90)
10. 1952, 12th December - NRX CHALK RIVER, CANADA
First major reactor accident. Human error. Technician opened three or four valves and the resultant heat release melted some of the uranium fuel and boiled some of the coolant. The reactor core was nearly demolished by the explosions and much radioactivity was emitted.
(Sources: Penelope Coleing for M.A.U.M./S. Novick. The Careless Atom, Delta books, NY 1969).
27. 1958 - CHALK RIVER, CANADA MRU
Irradiated fuel element broke and plant caught fire. Two months of intense contamination followed. 400,000 square metres around the building were contaminated. (sources:"Accidents, Near Accidents And Leaks in the Nuclear Industry", Penelope Coleing for Sydney M.A.U.M.; Jean Geue A.A.B.C. "Les Amis de la Terre" L'escroquerie nucleaire.
Stock 1978 France.)
234. 1976, July - PORT HOPE, CANADA
Discovery that in Port Hope, Canada, which was built on uranium waste landfill, radiation levels in some buildings are 100 times more than safe. Bone marrow abnormalities found in town residents. (Nucleus, 25th July, 1979, p.18; Craw Doo Dah Gazette, August, 1976)
266. 1978, January - U.S.S.R. IN NORTHERN CANADA
The nuclear powered Soviet Satellite Cosmos 954 fell out of its orbit and plunged into the tundra of Northern Canada spreading radioactive material over a wide area. It contained a specially designed nuclear reactor which was fuelled by 100 lbs of Uranium 235, with an explosive power five times the force of Hiroshima. Launched on 18th September, 1977, the 954 was ill-fated from the beginning. The radioactive debris was not discovered in initial searches. DR. ROGER EATEN of the Atomic Energy Control Board warned residents of Fort Resolution not to use the top layer of snow for making tea and not to eat the bone marrow of game animals. "One orbit in the final unstable minutes could have caused it to strike near New York City". No official information has ever been released as to the purpose of the satellite. There is about half a ton of enriched uranium and a hundred or more pounds of plutonium circling overhead today. The Russians have 11 reactor models flying and the Americans have nine vehicles in orbit. (Burleson, p.243) 6 satellites have already made their re-entry complete with their nuclear centres. The dangers of nuclear-powered satellites are that the upper atmosphere could be contaminated over a wide area and on re-entry large areas could be contaminated by radiation. (Nucleus, 14/6/1978; Burleson, C.W., "The Day the Bomb Fell", Great Britain, 1980, pp 227-245).
323. 1979, 10th July - GENTILLY 1 POWER STATION, TROS RIVIERES, CANADA
Quebec's only nuclear power Station shut down indefinitely. Hugh Spence of the Atomic
Energy Control Board said that this reactor was fraught with problems from the beginning. "It is possible that Gentilly 1 will have to be closed permanently. The generating plant condemned by some scientists as a 'lemon' has functioned for only 10 days since opening in May, 1977". "West Australian" 11/7/1979)
378. 1979 - CANADA
A French Government/Rothchild owned multi-national corporation aptly named Amok has been given full permission by the Saskatchewan Government to develop one of the richest known uranium deposits near Carawell Lake. The rights of the Dene Indians who have treaty rights to the land have been ignored. The Government has refused to negotiate with them.
(W.I.S.E. No.4 p.9)
539. 1981, September - CANADA
The Canadian Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility, representing over 200 groups throughout Canada, called on Prime Minister Trudeau to establish a one million dollar Atomic Veterans Defence Fund. The appeal was triggered by the April 14 decision of the Canadian Pension Commission in the Bjarnie Paulson case. At that time, the Pension Commission refused to grant compensation to Paulson, a veteran of the Royal Canadian Armed Forces who had been suffering for 15 years from multiple skin cancers and other ailments which he claims were caused by radioactive contamination in 1958. Mr Paulson was one of 600 men ordered to
assist in a radioactive clean-up operation at the Chalk River Nuclear Laboratories following a major accident at a nuclear reactor there. (W.I.S.E. Vol.3 No.4 September 1981 p.6)
748. 1986, 6th October - CANADA / U.S.S.R.
In the winter of 1978, a nuclear powered Soviet spy satellite plunged out of the sky sprinkling radioactive debris across northern Canada. The Ottawa Government presented the Soviet Union with a cleaning up bill for about $__ million. Two years later the Soviet Union agreed to pay $__ million. However, in the wake of the Chernobyl accident and the larger scale of contamination it released, Moscow has refused any compensation to the West. ("The Sydney Morning Herald" 7/10/86)
868. 1988, 9th February - ROBERT E. GINNA, CANADA
A worker at the Robert E. Ginna Nuclear Power Plant fell inside the containment area,
injuring his back and suffering what the utility that runs the plant says is minor radiation exposure. ("Montreal Gazette" 10 February 1988)
894. 1988, June - VARENNES, CANADA
A company in Varennes, Canada has temporarily stopped selling radioactive waste as landfill because, says director of the plant Jacques Bureau, news reports about the practice have worried people in the area. 'We're doing this', he went on to say 'out of respect for the people here, but we hope to start selling the material again soon.' According to a Canadian Environment Department official, the waste is five times more radioactive than the minimum level at which a product can qualify as a "toxic waste" under provincial and federal regulations. ("Montreal Gazette" 19/6/88, WISE NC300, 21/10/88)
926. 1988, 8th December - CHALK RIVER, CANADA
An estimated 500 litres of heavy water spilled into the Ottawa River at Chalk River Nuclear Laboratories in Canada. The river supplies drinking water to Canada's capital city, Ottawa, and surrounding communities. ("Edmonton Journal" Canada 17/12/88; WISE-305 20/1/89).
931. 1988, 27th October - DARLINGTON, CANADA
Barely three weeks after start up, the Darlington Tritium Recover Facility in Canada had its first tritium accident. On 27th October a spill of tritium gas into three unoccupied rooms at the facility ceased the evacuation of the entire plant. According to a utility spokesman, workers were not exposed and the tritium 'puff', as he described it, did not get into the environment. Nevertheless, the facility was shut down. Whether the shutdown was because of the "puff" or for other reasons is still unknown. ("Nuclear Awareness Project Newsletter" Canada, Fall 1988; WISE-305 20/1/89).
982. 1989, October - DARLINGTON, CANADA
In early October, a mix-up resulted in operations workers mistakenly putting Tritiumcontaminated heavy water into the heat transport system of the Unit 2 reactor at the Darlington nuclear station in Canada. ("The Anti-Nuclear Review" Canada Summer/Fall
1989; WISE-322 1/12/89)
984. 1989, 7th November - RABBIT LAKE, SASKATCHEWAN, CANADA
A leak of about two million litres (about two thousand cubic metres) of radioactive and heavy metal contaminated water, enough to fill three olympic-size swimming pools, occurred at the Rabbit Lake uranium mine and mill area in northern Saskatchewan, Canada. The water burst from a faulty valve on a 10km long pipeline that carries run off and ground water seepage from the Collin's Bay open pit uranium mine to the Rabbit Lake uranium mill. The water had spilled 300 meters towards Collin's Creek which flows into Collin's Bay on Wollaston Lake. When the radioactivity and heavy metals reach the creek there will be a risk of contamination of a whitefish spawning area. The mill, however significant in itself, is small in relation to the spread of contamination from the routine operation of the mill and mines in the area. The mill releases over seven million litres of waste per day which eventually flows into Wollaston Lake. The water first flows through two settling ponds which together have a maximum holding capacity of only 16 days of mill operation. The water still contains dangerous levels of radioactivity and heavy metals after passing through the settling ponds. (The spill was not noticed for 14 hours - even though there were three Atomic Energy Control Board (AECB) inspectors on the site). ("Survival Office Saskatchewan"; "Saskatoon Star Phoenix", Saskatoon, Saskatchewan 9 and 11/11/89; "Edmonton Journal" Edmonton, Nov 89; WISE 322 1/12/89).
996. 1981-1989 - SASKATCHEWAN, CANADA
A total of 153 spills have been reported at three uranium mines in Saskatchewan Canada since mid 1981. Amoc mining reported 62 spills, Cameco 48 and Key Lake 43. (Three quarters of these are estimated to be radioac...See More
1006. 1990, 11-17 February - POINT LEPREAUT, CANADA
Between 11-17 February Canada's Point Lepreaut took what "Nucleonics Week" calls a
'forced outage in order to repair a crack in the boiler (steam generator) feedwater system in the rear reactor downcomer to system suction'. ("Nucleonics Week" (US) 6/4/90; WISE333 1/6/90)
1017. 1990, 13th May - BLIND RIVER, CANADA
Leak shuts down Canadian refinery. Approx. 178kg of radioactive uranium dust leaked from CAMECO's Blind River Uranium Refinery into the air over a 30 hour period during the week of 13 May. The filter system was bypassed accidentally and officials are unsure whether it was a mechanical or human error. ("Nuclear Awareness News" Canada, Spring 1990; WISE335 6/7/90 )
27. 1958 - CHALK RIVER, CANADA MRU
Irradiated fuel element broke and plant caught fire. Two months of intense contamination followed. 400,000 square metres around the building were contaminated. (sources: "Accidents, Near Accidents And Leaks in the Nuclear Industry", Penelope Coleing for Sydney M.A.U.M.; Jean Geue A.A.B.C. "Les Amis de la Terre" L'escroquerie nucleaire. Stock 1978 France.)