Canadian Guidelines for Intervention During a Nuclear Emergency

An Overview of Nuclear Emergency Planning in Canada

It is important to place these guidelines in the context of overall nuclear emergency planning in Canada. Planning, preparing and responding to nuclear emergencies are multi-jurisdictional responsibilities shared by all levels of government. The operators of Canadian nuclear facilities are responsible for on-site emergency planning for events involving their facilities. Off-site, provincial governments have the primary responsibility for protecting public health and safety, property and the environment within their own boundaries. In addition to specific federal responsibilities, the federal government, under FNEP (Health Canada 2000), coordinates with, and provides support to, provinces in their response to an emergency. Health Canada is responsible for managing FNEP. The Plan applies to nuclear emergencies or events occurring in the following situations:

• At a nuclear facility within Canada or near the Canada/United States border
• At a distant nuclear facility in another country, if the event has an impact on Canadians
• In a nuclear-powered vessel at a Canadian port or in transit through Canadian waters
• For other serious radiological events, such as a re-entering nuclear-powered satellite or a threat involving an improvised radiation dispersal device, occurring in Canada or over Canadian air space.

For an emergency occurring at a nuclear facility in Canada, FNEP would normally be activated after the relevant provincial plan has been implemented. The three provinces with nuclear generating stations (Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick) have developed their own nuclear emergency response plans, and have the primary responsibility for implementing off-site urgent countermeasures to protect public health. In addition to its specific responsibilities at the federal level, the chief contribution of the federal government to a provincial response would be to provide assistance and advice when requested by the provincial authority. The federal Plan would also coordinate the response in adjacent provinces that might be affected by transboundary effects. This would be particularly important if an adjacent province did not have its own emergency response plan. For all other categories of nuclear events, FNEP would most likely provide the primary Canadian response to the event.

The federal government is also responsible for the international aspects of a nuclear emergency in Canada, i.e., notifying other countries and international organizations, gathering and coordinating all information for the international community and keeping them informed of developments, liaising with the United States under the Canada-United States Joint Radiological Emergency Response Plan (EPC-FEMA 1996), and requesting and coordinating international assistance. In all cases, the federal government must evaluate and respond to the impacts of the emergency on federal programs, and has primary responsibility for issues dealing with food controls, international transportation, international relations, liability, and compensation.