Northern Ontario School of Medicine conducting research on radiation and the environment

CBC Sudbury – The world’s largest operating nuclear generating facility is investing $5 million in health research at the Northern Ontario School of Medicine.

Bruce Power specifically wants to continue studies into radiation and the environment.

The $1 million in annual funding for five years will be used to continue research that began over the last few years.

“Our research looks at what happens to the body when we’re exposed to low doses of radiation,” said Dr. Doug Boreham, Bruce Power chair in radiation and health at NOSM and manager of integration at Bruce Power.

The $1 million in annual funding for five years will be used to continue research that began over the last few years.

“Our research looks at what happens to the body when we’re exposed to low doses of radiation,” said Dr. Doug Boreham, Bruce Power chair in radiation and health at NOSM and manager of integration at Bruce Power.

NOSM researchers are expected to look at:

• The impact of low-dose radiation on health.
• The environmental impacts of radiation and how they impact health.
• The effects of radiation and diagnostic imaging on fetal programming.
• The effect of radiation on specific species of fish.
• The impact of radiation on Indigenous communities.

“We have found that, contrary to popular belief, low-dose radiation has a net positive effect on an organism’s health, leading to less cancer and longer life expectancy,” Boreham continued.

“Essentially, low doses of radiation stimulate repair systems and make organisms healthier, stimulating a similar effect on the body as exercise.”

Bruce Power’s contributions to NOSM will consist of:

• A $5 million investment over the next five years to support the NOSM/Bruce Power Research Centre for Health, Environment, and Radiation.
• The renewal of the Bruce Power Chair in Radiation and Health at NOSM, which was established in 2013.
• A free, clean energy electric car charging station that is open and available to the public, as well as an electric car for conducting research.

CBC News Posted: Nov 11, 2016 8:07 PM ET Last Updated: Nov 11, 2016 8:07 PM ET

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/sudbury/nosm-bruce-power-radiation-study-1.3848075 

Is this northern Ontario township (Ignace) a good spot to bury nuclear waste?

Ignace, Ont. is 1 of 9 communities still in the running to serve as a nuclear waste storage centre

CBC News Posted: Nov 04, 2016 2:54 PM ET Last Updated: Nov 04, 2016 2:54 PM ET

The Nuclear Waste Management Organization is searching for a suitable location to bury nuclear waste. Ignace, Ont. is one of nine communities still in the running.
The Nuclear Waste Management Organization is searching for a suitable location to bury nuclear waste. Ignace, Ont. is one of nine communities still in the running. (John Flesher/The Associated Press)

The group that’s examining the feasibility of burying nuclear waste in the Canadian Shield will start a drilling program in 2017 near Ignace, Ont.

It’s part of work being done by the Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) to find a suitable site for the disposal of spent uranium pellets. The group has been narrowing down its scope of possible sites to store the waste.

“We’ve done airborne high resolution surveys, the geologists have been out walking the land [and] we’ve done some initial environmental mapping,” said Patrick Dolcetti, a spokesperson for the organization.

“But this will be the first time going in and getting some core samples to further understand the geology in the region.”

The NWMO will examine four areas, comprised of 14 specific sites, all within 50 kilometres of Ignace and in virtually all directions. One of the four main sites is partially within the township boundaries.

Study of all these areas will eventually lead to a decision on where to drill a borehole in 2017 to take core samples for study, Dolcetti said.

“So, we haven’t determined where that will be,” he said.

“We have areas that we have identified, so we are asking local people and people in the region to give their input on what they think, why a certain area may be suitable or may not be suitable, or whatever concerns they have.”

Ignace is one of nine communities still in the running to potentially serve as the final choice to bury the spent fuel.

Dolcetti said a final community will get picked in 2023, with the construction for the waste repository site to be completed by 2040.