On May 26, 1999, four AECL employees entered a controlled radiological zone to perform work on a ventilation system. The work involved the removal of a component (baffle box) in a room in a building that contained a plutonium processing facility. The facility has been non-functional since 1957, and remained in a dormant state in preparation for decomissioning. Workers were wearing protective and monitoring equipment. Cutting of the baffle box proceeded for an hour and 40 minutes and dust was observed falling from the box. When work was terminated and upon exiting the area, personal contamination monitors detected contamination on the clothing of all workers. Immediate actions included placing work restriction on affected personnel and initiating dose assessment through bioassay techniques. Initial exposure estimates were less than 11 mSv. Recent indications are that the maximum committed doses are of the order of 24 to 55 mSv for the four individuals involved. 50 mSv is the regulatory dose limit. Radiochemical analysis is continuing to determine whether doses exceeded the regulatory limit. Following the incident, the AECB, the regulatory authority in Canada, has conduced an inspection at CRL and continues to gather information on the incident.
Location: CHALK RIVER LABORATORIES Event date: Wed, 26-05-1999
The Netherlands has agreed to allow Urenco to be used for the British military nuclear program. This clears the way for uranium enriched by Urenco to be used in nuclear weapons. With his decision, Foreign Minister Berendsen (CDA Christen Democrats) is departing from the principle that civilian and military nuclear applications must remain strictly separate. […]
Behnam Raeesian is an internationally recognized visual artist and poster designer from Iran, known for bold political and cultural works. Through exhibitions, workshops, jury roles, and collaborations with cultural institutions worldwide, he has built a strong voice in contemporary political graphic design. His projects confront complex issues such as nuclear risk and technological impact, transforming […]
Everywhere you look, the nuclear industry’s hype machine is in overdrive. Goldman Sachs, Microsoft, and the UK government all tout small modular reactors as the silver bullet for climate change and energy security. Tech billionaires are hiring nuclear veterans. Wall Street is whispering about “round-the-clock power” for artificial intelligence data centers. For those old enough […]
Kernenergie en veiligheid: A wargame sought to test if a major radiological release that would prompt the evacuation of millions of civilians in South Korea could distract key US allies from assisting and rebuffing an all-out military invasion of Taiwan. The short answer was yes. The game originally presumed that China, wanting to keep the […]
Big batteries and EVs to the rescue again as faults with new nuclear plant cause chaos on Nordic grids The Finnish nuclear power plant Olkiluoto was finally connected to the grid last year, at an estimated cost of €11 billion compared to the original budget of €3 billion. That cost blowout forced its developer, the […]
