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While many citizens of Chalk River and neighbouring communities say they are confident in the safety of Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd.’s nuclear reactor, some are still skeptical about its upcoming restart.
The 50-year-old reactor provides the raw material used to make medical isotopes for about 25 million global diagnoses and medical treatments each year. It was shut down for upgrades on Nov. 18.
Legislation passed in the House of Commons on Tuesday and in the Senate on Wednesday allows for speedy resumption of reactor operations, effectively overriding the concerns of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC).
AECL announced yesterday that it would be producing the raw materials turned into medical isotopes by MDS Nordion of Kanata within eight days. MDS Nordion says it needs a further 36 hours to make the final product and deliver it.
“I’m not concerned and I have full confidence in the people who run the reactor,” said Vance Gutzman, mayor of Laurentian Hills, which includes Chalk River.
“It is the livelihood of our whole community,” Mr. Gutzman said. “They have a vested interest in ensuring its safety (because) they live in the community.”
“We’ve never been living in any fear,” said Kim Mirault, who runs Chalk River Nursery School and has lived in the community for almost 20 years. “We’re just sad that there are waiting lists for people who need diagnoses, so we’re glad to hear that it is going to be up and running.”
Ann Aikens, mayor of nearby Deep River, also said she is enthusiastic about the restart of the reactor. About 700 of the more than 2,000 reactor employees live in her town.
“I think there is this huge perception that we’re at this terrible risk and we’re not,” she said. “If I was somebody waiting for a cancer diagnosis, I would feel at a lot greater risk.”
Some remain skeptical, though, despite AECL’s reassurances about the reactor’s safety.
“You’re going to be hard pressed to find somebody who is going to openly criticize AECL’s opening,” said Kelly O’Grady, a Pembroke resident and registered nurse who is also a member of the environmental group Concerned Citizens of Renfrew County. “They are a boom for our economy and they supply a lot of jobs.”
Ms. O’Grady said she has questions about the reactor’s safety.
“I think that, if the CNSC has grave concerns … then yes, this is worrisome,” she said. “We now have a question of whose health is more important: the health of the people relying on these isotopes or the health of the people living in the direct vicinity of this facility?”
Meredith Brown, president of Ottawa Riverkeeper, said it should have been up to the safety commission to reopen the facility.
“The fact that they have this regulator in place to protect the safety of Canadians and a politician can circumvent the process … is a total disregard for this regulator and the role that they play,” said Ms. Brown, who has been holding quarterly environmental meetings with AECL for a little more than one year. The reactor rests on the banks of the Ottawa River.
“I have confidence that AECL would not power up if it isn’t safe,” she said. “But I have concerns about the precedent this will set down the road.”
Dr. Sandor Demeter, president of the Canadian Society of Nuclear Medicine, said the federal government made the right choice to restart the reactor.
“We’re quite pleased that they are taking the strong and balanced approach and assessing the risk of operating the Chalk River facility versus the risk of Canadians not having access to an essential medical service,” Dr. Demeter said.
However, he warned there was still much work to be done.
“We still have a sole provider for an important medical service,” Dr. Demeter said. “We can’t go forward without thinking about contingencies. We need a better solution for if this ever happens again.”
© The Ottawa Citizen 2007