MP Gallant Announces Clean-up of Nuclear Site Underway: New Waste Analysis Facility Opens at Chalk River

May 30, 2008

CHALK RIVER – MP Cheryl Gallant, (Renfrew-Nipissing-Pembroke), joined the Honourable Gary Lunn, Minister of Natural Resources, to officially open the new Waste Analysis Facility (WAF) at the Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) Chalk River nuclear site. The Government of Canada provided $4.5 million to build the facility as part of its five-year strategy unveiled in 2006 to begin the clean-up of "nuclear legacy liabilities" resulting from research and development activities that date back to the beginning of nuclear technologies and medicine in Canada.

"In 2006, our Government unveiled a concrete action plan to clean up contaminated lands and radioactive waste and to decommission outdated infrastructure. We moved swiftly because the safety and security of Canadians is our top priority, and communities, like those of the Ottawa Valley, had waited too long while previous governments ignored this issue," said Minister Lunn. "This new facility will be responsible for reviewing and analyzing waste to ensure that there is no radioactive contamination before the waste is sent for recycling or to a landfill."

"The opening of this facility is good news for communities throughout the Upper Ottawa Valley," said Cheryl Gallant, Member of Parliament for Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke. "People in these communities have been waiting a long time for action on this issue, and I'm proud that our government is coming through for them."

The Government of Canada's Nuclear Legacy Liabilities Program (NLLP) was announced in June 2006 and provides a long-term strategy to manage legacy wastes and contamination on AECL sites, including Chalk River, Whiteshell and other locations.

More than half of the "nuclear legacy liabilities" are the result of Cold War activities undertaken in the 1940s, 1950s and early 1960s. The remaining liabilities stem from the research and development of medical isotopes and from nuclear reactor technology, as well as national science programs. The legacy wastes are the responsibility of the Government of Canada and distinct from those produced by the nuclear industry and provincial utilities.

The $520 million to fund this environmental program is in addition to the $300 million announced in the Federal Conservative 2008 budget. This represents the most significant infusion of funding to AECL in over 30 years. “As the local MP, I am proud of the role I have played in supporting the over 2500 employees who are employed by the Crown Corporation in the Ottawa Valley,” concluded Cheryl Gallant, MP.