Concerns about neutron radiation detected in a parking lot adjacent to Cameco’s Port Hope facility have been described in a letter sent to Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission president Linda Keen.
Port Hope concerned citizens group Families Against Radiation Exposure sent the letter to the president because the matter has not been dealt with publicly, FARE president John Miller said. In February the group announced in conjunction with the Uranium Medical Research Centre that neutron radiation had been detected within 20 metres of a trailer in the parking lot.

But CNSC staff have not informed the public of measures taken since the February announcement, he said. Readings were taken by UMRC deputy director Tedd Weyman on Dec. 11.

The matter was brought up by FARE during Cameco’s mid-term license hearing on Feb. 23, Mr. Miller said.“When we raised the issue at the hearings we expected somebody to take it seriously,” he said. “We have not seen anywhere where neutron radiation is reported by Cameco.”CNSC staff’s inability to reply to FARE concerns was the reason the letter was sent directly to Ms. Keen, Mr. Miller said. “We found we get a reply when we go to her,” he said. “When we go to staff we don’t necessarily hear back.”

Cameco reports gamma radiation readings, but no neutron, Mr. Miller said. The company has acknowledged the radiation, but has not reported it to the public.

“If it is acknowledged, why is it not reported?” Mr. Miller said.

Uranium hexafluoride (UF6) cylinders on a trailer in the parking lot is the cause of the neutron radiation readings, Cameco communications specialist Doug Prendergast said. The company is aware of the radiation, but levels are too low to cause concern.

The trailer has not been re-located, despite concerns voiced by FARE and Port Hope Community Health Concerns Committee, Mr. Prendergast said. Often a trailer holding the UF6 containers will sit in the parking lot during the weekend for about 24 hours. A transport truck then comes to pick up the trailer.

“It sits in the parking lot where it can be monitored by security,” Mr. Prendergast said. “It is usually there for less than 24 hours.”

FARE has not formally contacted Cameco about the issue, he said. The company is only aware of the concerns because they have been released to the public.

Cameco has been contacted by the CNSC regarding the issue, Mr. Prendergast said. The company is now monitoring for neutron radiation levels.

“The CNSC has asked Cameco to conduct further monitoring,” he said. “Any neutron radiation from UF6 cylinders is very small – this monitoring will look to confirm that.”

Mr. Miller confirmed his organization has not formally contacted Cameco. FARE questions have not been answered in the past when CNSC staff handed them down to the company. “If the CNSC doesn’t require Cameco to report this, why should they?” he said. “Our concern is with the CNSC.” “Why don’t they require them to report this?”

Neutron radiation is an external hazard that is best shielded by thick layers of concrete, according to the Idaho State University Radiation Information Network. The cancer-causing form of radiation is more penetrating than other types of radiation – alpha, beta and gamma.Neutron radiation has the ability to introduce radioactivity into most things it encounters – including human tissue, according to Wikipedia.org, an internet-based encyclopedia.If a person was to lay directly on top of a container they would be exposed to two microSieverts of radiation per hour. This is very low, Mr. Prendergast claimed in a previous interview.

The public dosage limit to radiation is one milliSievert per year. One milliSievert is equal to 1,000 microSieverts.

Back