Chalk River Cleanup Ex Gratia Payments

Summary#

The Order Respecting Ex Gratia Payments to Workers Involved in Chalk River Nuclear Decontamination authorizes one-time payments of $28,500 to people who took part in on-site clean-up at Atomic Energy of Canada Limited’s Chalk River research reactors after incidents in 1952 and 1958. The order was registered on February 16, 2022 and sets deadlines for applying and for making payments.

What it does#

• Authorizes the Minister of Natural Resources to pay $28,500 to a worker who actively participated in clean-up or decontamination at Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) Chalk River reactor facilities during either:
  • December 12, 1952 to December 31, 1953, or
  • May 23, 1958 to December 31, 1958.
• Defines “worker” to include AECL employees (full-time, part-time, seasonal, casual), contractors and subcontractors, and employees of those contractors.
• Excludes anyone already eligible for payment under the Order Respecting Ex Gratia Payments to Veterans and Science and Technology Workers Involved in Nuclear Weapons Testing or Nuclear Decontamination.
• Allows payment to an estate or to named beneficiaries if the worker has died, with rules for executors, residual beneficiaries, or adults who lived with and cared for the worker.
• Requires applications to be submitted by March 31, 2023; late applications may be accepted only for reasons beyond the applicant’s control.
• States payments are a one-time lump sum and generally must be made by March 31, 2024, unless delays are caused by circumstances beyond control.
• Makes clear a payment does not constitute an admission of liability by the Crown.

Who's affected#

• Current and former employees of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) who took part in the Chalk River clean-ups in the specified 1952 and 1958 periods.
• Contractors and subcontractors who worked on those clean-ups, and employees of those contractors.
• Families, estates, executors or other beneficiaries of workers who are now deceased.
• People already covered by the earlier military-related program (for Department of National Defence (DND) personnel) are not eligible under this order.

Why it matters#

• It provides formal recognition and a cash payment of $28,500 to people who helped respond to two serious reactor incidents decades ago. That can matter to surviving workers and their families now.
• The program fills a gap left when earlier recognition covered DND personnel but not AECL employees.
• The rules are time-limited: eligible people (or their estates) need to apply by March 31, 2023, and payments are generally completed by March 31, 2024.
• Because payments are ex gratia and not an admission of liability, they do not create or confirm legal liability on the part of the government.