Don't quit nuclear research

IF only it were as simple as Lisa Raitt sug­gested a month ago. The natural resources minister posited in a private conversation with an aide, made public in June, that all it would take is money to solve the short­age in medical isotopes, brought about when Canada’s Chalk River nuclear facility was shutdown for repairs earlier this year.

The problem went radioactive for the Harper government this week when it was revealed that it would take many more months to repair the corrosion that led to heavy water leaks in the Nuclear Research Universal unit.

Chalk River supplied a third of the global demand for isotopes, which are used to precisely and quickly locate cancers, heart disease or illness in other organs, permitting rapid treatment. Now, as the medical community scrambles to find alternative methods or reverts to old, invasive procedures, all Ms. Raitt can muster for doctors and their anxious patients is an assurance that Chalk River will be back in business, she hopes, before the end of the year.

Not all of Canada's hospitals get their isotopes from Chalk River, but those that do have been forced to cancel or delay surgeries as alternate sources are lined up. The solution, ultimately, will take money, lots of it, but Prime Minister Stephen Harper is clearly in no mood to spend that kind of cash. He has announced that he wants this country out of the isotope producing business, and he canned the ill-fated, expensive MAPLE project that was supposed to replace Chalk River's NRU. After years of neglect by successive governments, it seems Ottawa is backing out of nuclear research and development altogether.

Canada's nuclear facilities are all old -- Chalk River is 50 years old; the unit at Hamilton's McMaster University that was offered as a stand-in is equally aged and in need of upgrades.

The crisis at Chalk River has Canada's back to the wall and has helped spark medical panic internationally as the Dutch reactor that was supposed to pick up the slack will shut down for emergency repairs itself next week. Isotopes are now high-demand commodities, the prices are rising steeply. The federal government has responded by throwing some cash at researchers and smaller producers to develop new technologies.

This 11th-hour approach is ill-suited to the problem, and does a disservice to the nuclear research community in this country. It ignores the reality of Canada's future energy demands, as well. Both Ontario and Saskatchewan are anxious to pursue nuclear power generation, which seems to present an opportunity to fix two problems at once.

Premier Brad Wall says Saskatchewan, one of the few provinces running surpluses, would welcome a joint partnership with the federal government and a private company to build a nuclear facility for generating power and nuclear research. Further, in Manitoba, voices are demanding the federal government reinvest in the Pinawa facility, to exploit its potential for research and isotope production.

It is a bad time for the federal government to be extracting itself, without a plan, from the nuclear scene. Exiting the business of isotope production would leave Canadians dependent upon other countries for a secure supply of a material critical to modern medical treatment. Taking duct tape to Chalk River is not a long-term answer. Money solves this problem, but what is required most is sincere commitment. Mr. Harper and his cabinet must step up.

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition July 10, 2009 A10