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The science of environmental stewardship

Through AECL's Federal Nuclear Science and Technology (FNST) Work Plan, CNL undertakes research activities to support environmental stewardship and responsible nuclear waste management.
The science of environmental stewardship

Overarching federal priorities and goals to which CNL applies its science capabilities include:

  • Support Canada’s national and international leadership to improve the understanding and reduce environmental impact of nuclear energy.
  • Enhance Canada’s environmental stewardship by ensuring that nuclear energy is developed within a robust framework that addresses environmental and waste management concerns.
  • Support implementation of the Pan-Canadian Framework and achieve Canada’s international greenhouse gas reduction targets by identifying the environmental impacts of nuclear energy production that could be reduced.
  • Develop and demonstrate innovative technologies to reduce environmental impacts, increase competitiveness, and promote the use of clean technology including in Canada’s natural resource sectors.
  • Providing science and technology to support the understanding of the effects of radiation on the environment
  • Improving the understanding of the migration of radioisotopes in the environment (terrestrial and aquatic), and their potential impacts on human health and non-human biota.
  • Enhancing prediction methods of radionuclide concentrations in the environment during the recovery phase following an unplanned radioactive release.

Scope of Work: Providing science and technology to support radioactive waste management

  • Developing and improving technologies and techniques for characterizing (or analyzing) and treating radioactive waste and contaminated materials.
  • Improving the understanding of fuel-supply waste streams for Small Modular Reactors.
  • Developing strategies for identifying, characterizing and managing offsite contaminated materials (e.g. soils, building materials, etc.) in the short to medium term post emergency nuclear release.
  • Advancing processing technologies for disposal and recovery.
  • Increasing our understanding of the long-term performance and safety of radioactive waste disposal facilities.

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For detailed information and examples of completed FNST projects in environmental sciences, please follow the link below.