What evidence did the CNSC use when assessing if the Port Hope nuclear industry could have caused adverse health effects in local residents?
A9. The CNSC evaluated the information collected along two principal lines of evidence using a weight-of-evidence approach: • Environmental studies, which analyzed and measured the environmental concentrations of contaminants attributable to the nuclear industry in Port Hope and compared them with national and international benchmarks to assess potential risks • Epidemiological studies, which compared the health status of the residents and nuclear workers of Port Hope with the general population (descriptive, ecological studies), and assessed the relationship between occupational and residential exposures and potential adverse health effects (case-control and cohort studies) The CNSC also needed to examine many other factors when determining if environmental contamination levels could have affected human health or the environment in Port Hope: • Is a substance toxic and if so, at what levels? • What was/is the level of exposure, if any? • When did the exposure occur? • Have health effe
