Transportation

Radioactive material has been transported safely nationally and internationally by road, rail, water, and air for over 80 years without a single radiological incident. It is a highly regulated activity that must meet the stringent requirements of both Transport Canada and Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) before being approved.

Canada has decades of experience in transporting radioactive materials and has an excellent safety record. Thousands of shipments containing radioactive material are transported safely in Canada each year.

CNL’s Transportation of Dangerous Goods (TDG) Program meets the stringent requirements of the Transportation of Dangerous Goods Regulations and the CNSC Packaging and Transport of Nuclear Substances Regulations, allowing for safe shipping within Canada and globally. The Program covers all aspects of the off-site transport of radioactive material activities and practices at CNL. The Program outlines the requirements for fulfilling regulatory, company business, environmental, health, safety, and quality assurance responsibilities related to the transportation of radioactive materials.

The primary objectives of the Program are to protect persons, property, and the environment from the effects of radiation during the transportation of radioactive material. This is achieved by establishing and maintaining the requirements, processes, and training necessary to facilitate the safe transport of radioactive material to and from CNL sites, in accordance with regulatory requirements and industry best practices. In addition, the Program provides oversight and ongoing learning to ensure practices meet CNL’s standards for shipping and compliance with applicable regulatory and licensing requirements.

CNL’s TDG Program includes radioactive material packaging, ensures regulatory compliance with control and use of dangerous goods packaging. For more information on packaging of materials, see CNSC Packaging and Transport. This includes providing technical specifications or standards for packaging procurement, verifying packaging certification, guidelines for packaging use, maintenance, storage, and securing packages during transportation.

Transportation Factsheet

Click the link to learn more about CNL’s transportation program.

Program Responsibilities:

Providing support for the entire lifecycle of dangerous goods packaging.
Maintain a catalogue of CNL-approved dangerous goods packaging.
Review and verification of dangerous goods packaging documents. (including, but not limited to; packaging procedures, packaging certificates, and maintenance procedures).
Providing assistance for the drafting of dangerous goods packaging procedures for the use, maintenance, storage and transportation.

CNL transports radioactive materials associated with:

The Historic Waste Program (HWP), which is responsible for addressing historical waste liabilities that the Government of Canada has accepted responsibility for, like the soils and facilities contaminated with radium from the 1930s until 1950 in Port Hope and along the Northern Transportation Route.
CNL’s decommissioning and waste management strategy, which includes the Whiteshell Laboratories Restoration Project (WLRP), Douglas Point, and Gentilly-1.
Ongoing management of small commercial generator and organizational (e.g., universities, hospitals) radioactive waste.
All other CNL transportation, ie, commodities and materials, including but not limited to isotopes, tools, recyclables and scientific equipment.