Manitoba Historical Society
     Keeping history alive for over 140 years
 

Pay & Donate in the MHS Online Shop

Endangered Top 10
Endangered
Top 10
2019

Manitoba History No. 89
Manitoba
History
No. 89

Fall Field Trip 2019
MHS
Fall
Field Trip

War Memorials in Manitoba
War
Memorials
in Manitoba

This Old Elevator
This Old
Elevator

Abandoned Manitoba
Abandoned
Manitoba

Memorable Manitobans
Memorable
Manitobans

Historic Sites of Manitoba
Historic Sites
of Manitoba

Historic Sites of Manitoba: AECL Underground Research Laboratory (RM of Lac du Bonnet)

Construction of an underground research laboratory by Atomic Energy of Canada Limited, at a site east of Lac du Bonnet in the Rural Municipality of Lac du Bonnet, started in 1982. The laboratory consisted of above-ground support buildings and a 420-metre-deep structure in a granite batholith of the Precambrian Shield. AECL constructed the facility to provide a setting for research and development activities in support of its nuclear fuel waste management program. In 1990, the facility received an Achievement Award from the Association of Professional Engineers of Manitoba.

The laboratory was closed in June 2003 and below-ground instrumentation and surface buildings were removed. The decommissioning process was completed in 2010.

AECL Underground Research Laboratory

AECL Underground Research Laboratory (1991)
Source: George Penner

AECL Underground Research Laboratory

AECL Underground Research Laboratory (1991)
Source: George Penner

Site Location (lat/long): N50.25255, W95.86537
denoted by symbol on the map above

Sources:

“Twenty years of underground research at Canada’s URL” by N. A. Chandler, WM '03 Conference, 23-27 February 2003, Tucson, Arizona, USA.

“Closing of $40-M lab shocks Pinawa area,” Winnipeg Free Press, 18 May 2003.

“Whiteshell labs closes underground facility forever,” Winnipeg Free Press, 8 December 2010.

This page was prepared by George Penner and Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 7 June 2019

Historic Sites of Manitoba

This is a collection of historic sites in Manitoba compiled by the Manitoba Historical Society.

Browse lists of:
Museums/Archives | Buildings | Monuments | Cemeteries | Locations | Other

Please note that inclusion in this collection does not mean that a particular site has special status or protection. Some sites are on private property and permission must be secured from the owner prior to visiting.

Site information is provided by the Manitoba Historical Society as a free public service only for non-commercial purposes.

Search Tips | Suggest a Site | FAQ | Acknowledgements

Send inquiries to the MHS Webmaster.
Back to top of page
   


To report an error on the above page, please contact the MHS Webmaster.

Home  |  Terms & Conditions  |  FAQ  |  Contact Us  |  Privacy Policy  |  Donations Policy

© 1998-2019 Manitoba Historical Society. All rights reserved.