The following information bulletin is in accordance with Canadian Nuclear Laboratories’ (CNL) ongoing commitment to voluntary public disclosure of events related to the Chalk River Laboratories site.
Chalk River, ON – October 5, 2025 – CNL has completed remediation of the affected sewage landfill location. All sewage sludge and any resulting contaminated soils have been safely removed and transported to the Chalk River Laboratories for storage. CNL has conducted an additional comprehensive verification of the landfill area to confirm that the removal and clean-up effort was effective.
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Chalk River, ON – October 2, 2025 – CNL is currently conducting an investigation regarding an event which has resulted in off-site radioactive contamination.
As part of planned maintenance activities at the Chalk River Laboratories (CRL) on September 22-24, a sewage storage tank was pumped out into a septic truck. On completion of the pump-out, the waste materials were disposed of at a sewage landfill.
Though radiological checks were made in advance, during, and after the work, subsequent activities have indicated that the sewage contained radiological contamination.
On discovery, immediate action was taken to address the issue. The landfill, the vehicle and the equipment from the job have been secured. An investigation is now underway to understand the extent of condition, and activities to clean-up the site are being initiated.
We have confirmed that all discharges from the CNL wastewater treatment facility remain within normal parameters, and we continue to monitor closely.
The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission has been notified of the event.
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Contact:
Philip Kompass
Director, Corporate Communications
1-866-886-2325
media@cnl.ca