Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL) has submitted a request to the Municipality of Port Hope (on behalf of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited – AECL) for an amendment to the Legal Agreement that established the Port Hope Area Initiative (PHAI). The proposed amendment would permit CNL to transfer a limited amount (6,500 mᶟ) of residual waste (sludge) generated by the Port Granby Waste Water Treatment Plant to the Port Hope Long-Term Waste Management Facility over the next five years.
With the cleanup of the Port Granby waste site complete, the Port Granby Long-Term Waste Management Facility is being capped and closed and will no longer be able to accept residual waste from the treatment plant, which will continue to operate.
The estimated volume of the proposed Port Granby wastes represents less than 0.5% of the total volume that the Port Hope facility can manage. Safely trucking the sludge to the Port Hope facility will allow CNL to minimize the environmental risks associated with transporting it long distances to other locations that can accept that type of waste.
The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission has confirmed that the existing Port Hope Project licence does not preclude waste transfer from one licensed facility to the other. The amendment will have no negative environmental impacts and will not have any adverse effect on the public’s safety.
