Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission
Perspectives on Nuclear Issues
Nuclear is a fascinating and complex topic. Countless studies, opinion pieces and news articles are frequently released. Below are a number of links of interest that represent some of the voices contributing to the debates over the use of nuclear technology in Canada, including regulatory aspects.
The CNSC does not, by publishing the information in this section, indicate its endorsement of any of the authors' opinions or conclusions.
2011
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The Energy Compass is a report published in October 2010 by the Canadian Society for Senior Engineers (CSSE), and includes among its authors two of the CNSC's recent guest speakers, Mr. Don Lawson and Mr. Arnold Eyre. The report presents a ranking of the 26 prime Canadian energy alternatives. The ranking was developed through an analysis of these alternatives in the contexts of "using indigenous energy," "conserving energy," and "exporting surplus energy." In consideration of these contexts, the report outlines how and why the use of indigenous nuclear energy emerges from the analysis as the fore-runner ahead of the other 25 primary energy alternatives.
- Work begins at TRIUMF on the Advanced Rare Isotope Laboratory (ARIEL) to develop a new way to produce medical isotopes for the diagnosis and treatment of cancer, heart disease, Parkinson's and Alzeimer's. Read the TRIUMF news release about the start of the ARIEL research tunnel construction.
- Teacher and author Larry Aaron from Danville and Pittsylvania County, Virginia, USA, was among a group traveling to Saskatchewan, Canada, to visit a working uranium mine and mill. The trip was funded by Virginia Uranium Inc., which hopes to mine the Coles Hill uranium deposit northeast of Chatham, Virginia, USA. Larry Aaron, as a special to the Star-Tribune, wrote articles about his visit to Cameco Corporation's Rabbit Lake milling operation in northern Saskatchewan, and his meetings with Government of Saskatchewan and Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission officials:
- September 28, 2011: Saskatchewan: Uranium Capital of the World (source: Womack Publishing, WPCVA Web site)
- October 5, 2011: Group visits uranium mine, mill in Canada (source: Womack Publishing, WPCVA Web site)
- October 14, 2011: Uranium mining safe, regulated, according to Canadian officials (source: Womack Publishing, WPCVA Web site)
- Non-nuclear energy failed Fukushima - Interview with John Ritch, Director General, World Nuclear Association (source RT, June 28, 2011)
- Childhood cancer and nuclear power plants in Switzerland: a census-based cohort study (source: International Journal of Epidemiology, July 12, 2011)
- In 2008, the Nuclear Energy Agency’s Radioactive Waste Management Committee (RWMC) established a project to study the issues of reversability and retrievability in geological disposal of radioactive wastes. This project was supported by contributions from member states. Participants from 17 countries, international organizations, and other RWMC groups have contributed to the project. The project's draft report and leaflet are now available for review:
- The Supply of Medical Radioisotopes: An Economic Study of the Molybdenum-99 Supply Chain (PDF) (source: NEA Web site)
2010
- Bill Gates and the development of new nuclear technologies: View Mr. Gates’s presentation at TED 2010 (source: TED 2010 Conference)
