Energy Probe

Ontario is delaying by three months a decision on which company will build a new nuclear plant at Darlington to give bidders -- including Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. -- more time.

A radioactive part was missing for almost two months at the Bruce nuclear plant before a worker walking through an area called "the vault" discovered the problem after his radiation detector went off.

Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd., which misplaced the part while working on the multi-billion-dollar restart of the plant, failed to notify officials at Bruce Power about the incident. ...

Frank Greening, a nuclear scientist and consultant with more than three decades of industry experience, equated the incident to a doctor leaving a scalpel inside a patient, knowing about it, but taking two months before saying anything. ...

Norm Rubin, director of nuclear research at Energy Probe, which is critical of nuclear power, said it's standard practice to immediately report such events. "Obviously, things that are carcinogenic and lethal shouldn't be left around, no matter what field you're in," said Rubin.

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