Cameco Fuel Manufacturing Safety

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The strong safety culture in all of Cameco's facilities continue to deliver sound results.

Safety is our top priority. We are guided everyday by our commitment to safeguarding the health and safety of our people, communities and the environment. 

Our fuel manufacturing facilities have systematic programs to identify, document and address risks and engage all workers and managers in a strong safety culture. These programs meet the specifications of the OHSAS 18001, an international occupational health and safety system, and have delivered excellent safety performance.

We pursue excellence in all that we do through promotion of a strong safety culture that is guided by our five safety culture principles:

  • Safety is our first priority
  • We are all accountable for safety
  • Safety is part of everything we do
  • Safety leadership is critical to Cameco Corporation
  • We are a learning organization

Cameco Fuel Manufacturing was awarded the Mary-Jean Green Mitchell award in 2023. This award is Cameco’s highest safety honour and recognizes outstanding safety achievements within the company.

Security and Emergency Response Measures

As a responsible industrial nuclear facility, maintaining security and safety are at the forefront of our day-to-day activities. 
Through the physical design of facilities, training and equipping of expert personnel, Cameco ensures the security and safety of our people and the local communities of Port Hope and Cobourg.

We have an onsite emergency response team with members trained, equipped and always ready to ensure that Cameco can respond to any potential situation involving fire or hazardous materials. Our team works closely with municipal emergency responders and conduct joint drills to ensure any situation can be effectively and safely resolved.

Many of Cameco's team members also serve as volunteer firefighters helping to keep the local community safe.

Radiation Protection

Radiation is energy in the form of energy waves or energized particles. Radiation is all around us and is part of our daily lives. It is both naturally occurring and man-made and it exists in different forms. Radiation can be found in everything from rocks and soil to your granite countertop, to the banana that you eat.

The uranium that we process on site has naturally occurring radiation. We have over 65 years of experience with safely handling and processing this type of material.

Radiation exposure for our workers and the public is stringently regulated by the CNSC. Acceptable levels of exposure are set by the CNSC and are based on decades of scientific studies by the International Commission on Radiological Protection. We have an extensive radiation protection program that is guided by the ALARA (as low as reasonably achievable) principle. This means that we do everything possible to minimize radiation exposures of our workers and the public and continually improve.

For nuclear energy workers like those who work at Cameco Fuel Manufacturing, the acceptable dose of radiation exposure is 50 milliseverts (mSv) per year, or no more than 100 mSv over a five-year period. The CNSC has set the acceptable dose of radiation exposure for a member of the public at 1 mSv.

Radiation risks are effectively managed through a formal radiation protection program and dedicated personnel who ensure that workers are safe. The program ensures that radiation protection is considered in the physical design of all facilities and operating procedures. It also provides for systematic monitoring of radiation in work areas and tracking the exposures of individual workers using a combination of monitoring devices and health testing. Radiation exposures at Blind River are far below regulatory limits.

Community Health

Port Hope has a long history in the nuclear industry. Over the past several decades, there have been a number of studies testing the health of residents. The results of these studies have confirmed that the health of Port Hope residents is consistent with other Ontario communities.

In 2009, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) drafted a report amalgamating the results and conclusions of all Port Hope health studies conducted over the years. Based on these studies and the findings of research conducted in other countries, the CNSC concluded that "no adverse health effects have occurred or are likely to occur in Port Hope, as a result of the operations of the nuclear industry in the community."

For more information see the CNSC website.

Regulatory Oversight

Cameco Fuel Manufacturing’s fuel assembly facility is licensed and regulated by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) in accordance with the federal Nuclear Safety and Control Act and regulations. Cameco provides quarterly and annual compliance reports and appears in front of the Commission annually for the CNSC’s Regulatory Oversight Report. CNSC staff conduct regular site inspections and audits to verify that people and the environment are protected.

In addition to the CNSC, the fuel manufacturing facilities are regulated by other federal and provincial regulators such as: 

Safety Performance

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Questions?

If you have questions about any of the items posted here, or require copies of Annual Compliance Reports no longer available on our website, please contact us.

Related Links

Safety and Environment

Safety Practices at Cameco

Environmental Monitoring