OTTAWA ? The Canadian government's ability to handle a nuclear disaster is questioned in a new report assessing federal actions during last year's Fukushima crisis.
The emergency revealed a confused federal bureaucracy, unsure of what departments were responsible for measures such as informing Canadians of radioactive fallout migrating across the Pacific, says the report by a special review committee established by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission.
That and other concerns, "exposed the lack of clearly defined responsibilities and leadership as it pertains to a nuclear emergency in Canada or a global event," it says of the federal government.
The CNSC, which is Canada's independent nuclear regulatory agency reporting to Parliament, gets generally high marks from the committee for its actions during the crisis, including urgently reassessing the ability of Canada's nuclear power plants to withstand extreme natural hazards in light of the unforeseen apocalyptic scenario that overwhelmed Japan.
As the catastrophe unfolded, however, so did confusion outside the CNSC over which federal department had the lead role for government, according to the report.
Public Safety Canada, for example, has the authority to manage the Federal Emergency Response Plan, while Health Canada is responsible for the Federal Nuclear Emergency Plan. The situation was further complicated when Health Canada briefly and mistakenly announced on its website that Canada's nuclear emergency plan had been activated.
The implications for a domestic nuclear emergency are not reassuring, says the report by a blue-chip panel of three distinguished, non-nuclear professionals with backgrounds in science, industry and government.
"The potential for confusion over roles and responsibilities is even greater ? involving federal, provincial and municipal governments, with each containing its own responsible organizations," the report says.
In the absence of a coherent and co-ordinated federal response, the report says there was no "official federal government voice" to provide the public with crucial information on the crisis.
The CNSC did its best to attempt to fill that void, but, as the federal nuclear regulator, its primary task was to urgently review the safety of Canada's nuclear power plants and major nuclear operators, monitor Fukushima, advise government and liaise with the international nuclear industry about the worsening situation.
It also quickly established the Fukushima Task Force, which reported last fall on implications of Fukushima on the operational, technical and regulatory requirements on Canadian nuclear power plants. The CNSC tribunal is to hold a May 3 public hearing to discuss potential new safety regulations stemming from the report.
The special review committee was formed last August by CNSC president Michael Binder to assess how the CNSC responded to the crisis, including the work of the Fukushima Task Force.
In its report to Binder this month, it makes nine recommendations, including calls for improved government co-ordination for handling nuclear events and more frequent nuclear emergency planning exercises.
A formal written response from Binder and other members of the CNSC tribunal is expected this week.
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