The Port Hope Area Initiative (PHAI) represents the Government of Canada’s commitment to the cleanup and safe, local, long-term management of historic low-level radioactive waste (LLRW) in two Southern Ontario municipalities – Port Hope and Clarington. The waste is the result of radium and uranium processing in Port Hope between 1933 and 1988 by the former Crown corporation Eldorado Nuclear Limited and its private-sector predecessors.
The PHAI is based on community-recommended solutions for the cleanup and safe long-term management of approximately 1.7 million cubic metres of LLRW. It is currently one of Canada’s largest environmental remediation projects.
The PHAI is being carried out as two projects – the Port Hope Project and the Port Granby Project. Each project has three phases: Phase 1 – planning/regulatory approval, Phase 2 – implementation and Phase 3 – long-term monitoring and maintenance. Both projects are currently in Phase 2.
Through its Historic Waste Program Management Office (HWP MO), Canadian Nuclear Laboratories is implementing the PHAI on behalf of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited, a federal Crown corporation. The HWP MO brings together a diverse and specialized staff from government, private industry and consulting backgrounds in fields such as engineering, environmental sciences, industrial safety, financial management, contract administration, communications and scheduling to implement the projects.
The PHAI is resulting in many environmental and socio-economic benefits for the host communities, surrounding regions and beyond.
For more information on the Port Hope Area Initiative, you are invited to visit the program’s dedicated website.
