Uniting the 4,400 men and women at Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) is a common purpose: to develop and preserve Canada’s unique nuclear energy option (CANDU) and related technological achievements for the benefit of present and future generations.

Formed as a Crown corporation in 1952, AECL consists of two main divisions. AECL CANDU — based in Mississauga and Montreal, with offices around the world — is responsible for the development, design, marketing and project management of CANDU nuclear power projects in Canada and internationally. AECL Research — based in Ottawa, with laboratories in Chalk River, Ontario, and Pinawa, Manitoba—performs the research, development, demonstration and marketing required to apply nuclear sciences and their associated technologies for the maximum benefit of Canada.
 

1. AECL Whiteshell research engineer Tracy Sanderson checks out the RD14M loop, which models many features of the CANDU reactor heat transport systems. 2. Research technologist Todd Chaput carries out an acid rain monitoring experiment at AECL Chalk River.

Employees of AECL are involved in a kaleidoscope of engineering, research and commercial projects. AECL scientists created Canada’s unique CANDU nuclear power system in co-operation with Ontario Hydro and Canadian industry, pioneered the use of radioactive cobalt-60 to treat cancer and sterilize medical products, and developed uses for new radioactive elements in medicine and industry, building their expertise into a thriving international business.

AECL’s best-known achievement is the CANDU nuclear electricity-generating system. In 1987 the Engineering Centennial Board named CANDU one of Canada’s top 10 engineering achievements of the past century. According to independent international evaluation, at the end of December 1990 there were nearly 340 large power reactors (more than 150 MW) operating around the world, including 22 CANDU reactors. On the basis of lifetime world power reactor performance, three out of the top 10 rankings went to CANDU systems.

CANDU has about six percent of the world nuclear market — the world’s third largest share. With the completion of the Darlington, Ontario, nuclear generating station by 1993, nuclear power will generate 20 percent of Canada’s and 60 percent of Ontario’s electricity.

The Canadian nuclear industry, with AECL at its heart, employs some 28,000 and pumps almost $5 billion into the economy annually, making it one of Canada’s major industries. The nation’s return on its nuclear research investment is high: Canada produces the greatest amount of electricity per research dollar of any country in the western world.

Concern for the environment is an integral factor in Canada’s nuclear research and development program. Unlike fossil fuels, nuclear energy does not produce the acid rain that is killing our lakes and trees, nor does it emit the carbon dioxide that is causing global warming. AECL invests more than $50 million each year in environment-related research.

A major concern of AECL’s scientists is the disposal of nuclear waste. The company believes safe methods now exist to securely contain and manage nuclear waste until it is no longer a threat to the environment. And containment of a relatively small amount of used nuclear fuel is preferable to the massive discharge into the atmosphere of pollutants from burning other fuels.

Through improvements to its existing products and the development of new technologies, AECL aims to ensure that all Canadians enjoy a safe, clear, secure and affordable source of energy now and in the future.